Honolulu to Ensenda - Mercury

[Spendogirl]

I can not seem to find airfare from Ensenada, Mexico... when you take a cruise the disembarks at this port, is there a shuttle that goes back into the United States?

 

Any help or info on this would be greatly appreciated.:o

[pamkev]

We are doing this in March of 2008 and have been told by some friends who have done this that they shuttle you back to San Deigo.

[Karynanne]

Yes, there is a shuttle that will take you to the cruise pier in San Diego. The San Diego Airport is nearby, and that's the airport you'd need to fly home. Your travel agent or Celebrity should have all the information regarding the transfer.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

 

Karyn

[sdcruiser]

The transfer is additional to your cruise fare and runs approx $79/pp from Ensenada to San Diego. Unless, you opt for Celebrity's air in which case this transfer is included in the price of the airfare.

 

We are taking this cruise in March 2008, and were quoted $379/pp airfare from Celebrity, from San Diego to Honolulu, which on the way back, includes the transfer from Ensenada to San Diego.

 

Hope this helps..

 

SDCruiser

[rubrrick]

We are one the same voyage..............and SD cruiser is correct........we come back to Ensenada...........and then travel back to San Diego to catch our flights.

 

Rick

[osiebosie]

We did this same cruise on Carnival a few years ago. You have to stop in Ensenada because of maritime law. Hawaii to SD has no foreign ports. When we stopped in Ensenada and got off, we saw a RC ship there. When we finally got to SD, the RC ship was there. I can't figure out why cruise lines don't just make Ensenada a port, then end up in SD, instead of putting pax out in Ensenada.

 

To make it worse (for us), we were shuttled back to SD on buses. We ended up on the last bus. The last bus, for some reason, left late, so was not with the group of buses. Our driver got lost in downtown Tijuana. It was not a fun sensation. I mean we were in downtown Tijuana and our cell phones did not work and the driver would not stop and ask for directions. It was really a scarey feeling. When we finally finally finally crossed the border, all of our cell phones beeped back on. We then had to go through border patrol, and our bus driver drove up the wrong ramp! He had to back that huge bus down the ramp. Ohmygosh, I was sweating bullets, because I was sitting on the side that would have taken the hit had we fallen off of the ramp, and I was looking down at the inch or two of room he had.

 

To make matters a little worse, our luggage wasn't even on our bus. It was on another one, and we had to find our luggage after we finally landed. It was just sitting out there in the open on the sidewalk. And other people on other buses had to wait for our bus (very very late) to arrive to get their luggage.

 

Carnival got a nasty letter from me on that incident. I sure was wishing CCL would have had some VIP's on that bus with us. Then shuttling from Ensenada to SD would probably be done with.

 

I have never heard of any other horror stories about the shuttle service from Ensenada to SD. So maybe ours was just a fluke. I am sure your trip will be just fine. It is actually a pretty drive along the ocean (when you're not lost in downtown Tijuana). And the drive isn't long, again when you are not lost. The bus was a new bus and had a bathroom on it.

 

Wish I was sailing from Hawaii to Ensenada. Yes, I would do it again. We laugh about our experience now.

 

Shay

[Spendogirl]

Thank you everyone for your quick response... I now know what I have to do...

 

Shay...sorry to hear you had such trouble, but I'm glad you can look back on it and laugh... but I do see how it could have been a little unnerving to say the least...

 

Happy sailing all!

 

Shelli :)

[fsalzer]

I can't figure out why cruise lines don't just make Ensenada a port, then end up in SD, instead of putting pax out in Ensenada.

 

Ensenada is a "nearby foreign port". In order to embark passengers at one US port and disembark passengers at another, a ship must visit a "distant foreign port". Please see Passenger Vessel Services Act http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/cfr_2002/aprqtr/19cfr4.80a.htm

 

Fred

[osiebosie]

Oh. Well when you are lost in Mexico, Ensenada seems a long ways away!!

 

Shay

[Cruise Arizona]

If your are traveling from one US departure to a different US final destination on a foreign flagged ship you must visit a "distant" foreign port.

 

If you are going RT from a US port you can visit a "Near-by" foreign port.

 

Miami to San Diego Via Panama Canal...Aruba qualifies as your distant foreign port.

 

Seattle to Alaska and Back...Any place in Canada would qualify as your "near-by" foreign port.

 

San Diego to Hawaii and Back to San Diego. The ship can stop in Ensanada for 5 minutes to meet the requirments of the Jones act.

 

But for cruises going from Seattle to Seward or Honolulu to San Diego...there is no foreign port in the "Distant" category... so they have to start or end at the foreign port...hence the Ensanda departure or final destination... or Vancouver start or finish for the one way Alaska cruises.

 

 

Hope that makes sense!!!!

[fsalzer]

The ship can stop in Ensanada for 5 minutes to meet the requirments of the Jones act.

 

I believe you are referring to the requirements of the Passenger Vessel Services Act, not the Jones Act. The Jones Act doesn't appear to me to address this issue. I booked, through a TA that alerted me to the potential problem, a Princess B2B San Diego to Vancouver, Vancouver to Whittier (or similar) and I was later told by a Princess CSR that the bookings were being canceled due to a violation of the Passenger Vessel Services Act. Moving luggage off in Vancouver and then reboarding through the normal boarding process to a different cabin was not a solution. :(

 

Wikipedia

"The Merchant Marine Act of 1920 (commonly known as the Jones Act) is a United States Federal statute that requires U.S.-flagged vessels to be built in the United States, owned by U.S. citizens, and documented under the laws of the United States. Documented means "registered, enrolled, or licensed under the laws of the United States." In addition, all officers and 75% of the crew must be U.S. citizens. Vessels that satisfy these requirements comprise the "Jones Act fleet".

The Jones Act restricts the carriage of goods between United States ports to United States flagged vessels. [1]

The Jones Act also allows injured sailors to obtain damages from their employers for the negligence of the shipowner, the captain, or fellow members of the crew. "

 

Fred