E tickets

[Love2cruise1106]

Sorry if I have this in the wrong thread.....my question is...how do e tickets work, we have never used them......When do we get the boarding passes for the air.....I am assuming the cruise will be paper tickets?

 

Thanks

[mcboo]

Love2cruise1106,

You will get your boarding passes when you check in for your flight whether it be online or at the airport. Whatever you do make sure you get your seat assignments as soon as you know your flight schedule.

Hope this helps.:)

[serene56]

You are talking e-tickets for airfare?

 

24 hours before your cruise you can print up your boarding pass. (go to the airlines web page- there will be a place for you to check in. When you made your arrangments you should have been given a confirmation number,. Thats all you need to get e-tickets. You can also wait til you are at the airport (which we do so we can get exit isle seats)

 

The cruise documents will be paper.

[Fran0521]

Thank you both, we do have seat assignments already. We were given them when the cruised was booked back in February. Sorry to appear dumb, but havent flowen since '97 and always had a ticket. So if we print boarding passes here, we are all set, just show up at the airport? My TA said get there at least 2 hrs before our flight is due to leave.....Have to check that out once the final docs arrive here.

[serene56]

Also- keep checking your flights to see if anything changes. My sons flight changed 6 times before we cruised. We did the seats almost a year out.

[Fran0521]

I will....when you ssid it changed, was it a drastic time change?

[serene56]

No- it wasnt a drastic change overall- he was flying out of a small airport to FLL. But word to the wise.. keep checking flights after you book.

[billybob123]

Fran - if you check in online, you will probably want to check your bags at the airport, since you're going on a cruise. Show up at the airport, and depending on the airline, you can either drop your bags with the curbside checkin desks, or you can go inside where each airline usually has a special line for bag drop for kiosk or online checkin. Show your boarding passes, drop your bags there, they'll get tagged and sent, then you go thru security and you're on your way.

 

You don't need to do online checkin - you can also checkin using the old-fashioned way at the airport by getting in line and going to an agent. All you will need is usually photo ID, but bring the email or printed confirmation from the airline to give to the agent in case (the one with your record # -- usually has the flight schedule and your names on it, plus the seats you're seated in). If you're at all uncomfortable with checking in online, this is a perfectly acceptable way to do it!

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[Fran0521]

billybob123

 

I really appreciate the info you just gave me. I guess you could say we are a little uncomfortable checking in on line. Only because we have never done it that way before. I had read that since 911 they don't do curb side check ins at the airports. In the past we alway had done it that way. I'd rather check in on line, avoid airport hassels....and seems so easy. We are flying Delta, so I guess they would have curb side checkin. Have to check with DH again on that one. Thanks

[joelmarj]

Delta is easy. Online check is up to 24 hours before. Just print out your boarding pass. Most airports have reinstated curbside check in, so when you get to the airport, you can still do curbside even if you checked in online.

 

One thing to keep in mind when traveling on the weekends ( I am an excessive business traveler in addition to vacations). Weekends can be the worst time at the airport. Mostly amateur travels (i really don't mean that in a bad way). Just really mean inexperienced. They will ALL be at the agent counters, will all have some sort of problem (14 people all want to sit together, uncle bob didn't know he needed his photo id, suitcase weighs 86 lbs so they are shifting stuff to a shopping bag - I've seen all of these! LOL).

 

Trust me, online and curbside are definitely the way to go. Worst case, Delta has Kiosks in most of their airports and all you need is a major credit card to swipe and you can check in there with bags.

 

What airport are u traveling from?

[Hilary]

Definitely print your boarding passes at home and check your bags at the curb!! On one of our trips to Maui I printed our boarding passes so we wouldn't have to wait in line at the airport. When we arrived, we checked our bags curbside and walked into the terminal. What greeted us was a HUGE line to check-in at the desks, and my sister and her family waiting to check-in. I asked her why she didn't check in on-line like I suggested the night before. She said she liked seeing a desk agent in person.... It took them over an hour to make it down to the gate and by then all 3 of her kids and her husband were complaining that they had to stand in line for nothing.

 

Ironically, on our way home from our next trip, another incident occurred that solidified my resolve to always print on-line boarding passes. I printed our boarding passes at the hotel and when we arrived at the airport we were told the computers were down. Instead of waiting in a line that was almost 2 hours long, we were able to check our bags with a porter (who hand wrote our bag tags), and get to the gate in plenty of time.

 

The nice thing is that if you do the on-line boarding passes, you can still talk with an agent either at the gate or in the terminal. We've done that many times to request exit row seats and it's no big deal.

[Fran0521]

Delta is easy. Online check is up to 24 hours before. Just print out your boarding pass. Most airports have reinstated curbside check in, so when you get to the airport, you can still do curbside even if you checked in online.

 

One thing to keep in mind when traveling on the weekends ( I am an excessive business traveler in addition to vacations). Weekends can be the worst time at the airport. Mostly amateur travels (i really don't mean that in a bad way). Just really mean inexperienced. They will ALL be at the agent counters, will all have some sort of problem (14 people all want to sit together, uncle bob didn't know he needed his photo id, suitcase weighs 86 lbs so they are shifting stuff to a shopping bag - I've seen all of these! LOL).

 

Trust me, online and curbside are definitely the way to go. Worst case, Delta has Kiosks in most of their airports and all you need is a major credit card to swipe and you can check in there with bags.

 

What airport are u traveling from?

 

We will be flying out of Albany, NY With all the favorable posts here I am convenienced that is the way to go. :) The less hassle we have, the better I like it. Its no fun starting out on a great vacation, with problems.

 

Thanks

[betsyrossapk]

OK, how do you check in on-line for the return trip home from your cruise? I did the E-ticket & we already have our seat numbers for both ways, & I plan to do the on-line check-in 24 hrs in advance for our trip down. But how will that work for when we come home? I hate purchasing the internet pkg on ship, just for a 5 min on-line checkin. What do you suggest?

[Fran0521]

Great question, hope someone replys....something I didn't think of....

[shiftman1956]

That is a question I'm interested in hearing an answer to also. I would love to print my boarding passes before getting off in San Juan. I've heard that airport is a nightmare!

[Globaliser]

I hate purchasing the internet pkg on ship, just for a 5 min on-line checkin. What do you suggest?

Why don't you just pay for the minutes you use?

 

Or if you are in a port within the online check-in time frame, go to an Internet cafe.

[CRUZFOOLS]

Can't You Print Your Boarding Passes On The Terminals At The Airport When You Arrive (from Your Cruise Thatis)? I Never Thought About The Return Trip Home.

[joelmarj]

Delta has kiosks at the airports in Florida. Bring your bags right to the kiosks, check in and an agent will take the bags. Or do curbside. They will give you the boarding pass and take the bags too. Last resort should be going to the ticket counter with agents. Again, those are always bogged down with travel troubles.

[raven22355]

OK, silly question! What is meant by a kiosk? I am new to E-tickets as well, but online check in sounds like the way to go. Thanks for the advise.

 

Raven

[ozcaz]

Hi everyone,

 

I am curious about this too. Does it really save you time?

 

I havent flown in america since 1999 so I am sure many things have changed.

 

We did the curbside checkin and also the counter one. Some of the check in times where horrendous. Las Vegas 2 hours curb side.

 

We are flying United, US Airways and Southwest while in the states this time.

 

So i can find an internet the day before each flight. Print our boarding pass off, then like the above poster said find a kiosk? and check in.

 

This would be great if it cuts waiting time down. We have allowed 3 hrs for every flight check in and to clear security.

 

Caz

[Globaliser]

OK, silly question! What is meant by a kiosk? I am new to E-tickets as well, but online check in sounds like the way to go.

Different airlines have different setups, and some may not yet be equipped with both of these, but there are basically now two ways of checking in without seeing a human.

 

The first is online, on the Internet. The other is using a kiosk or self-service machine (usually) at the airport.

 

Your airline may restrict the availability of one or other of these methods, depending on your itinerary and on whether you have bags to check.