Explain this new silent disembarkation

[vickie_bernie]

I've been hearing about how princess is now doing a "silent disembarkation" can anyone explain.

 

Sounds like you are assigned to a public room depending on your baggain tag color then each room is told independently when they can leave the ship. No public announcements are made.

 

However I am sure there are still people hanging out in the public areas, stairwells, atrium... how do they find out when to leave?

 

Has it worked?

 

Has it not worked?

[Pam in CA]

I've been hearing about how princess is now doing a "silent disembarkation" can anyone explain.

 

Sounds like you are assigned to a public room depending on your baggain tag color then each room is told independently when they can leave the ship. No public announcements are made.

 

However I am sure there are still people hanging out in the public areas, stairwells, atrium... how do they find out when to leave?

 

Has it worked?

 

Has it not worked?

Yes, it works because people HAVE to be in the lounge to know when to disembark. You are correct in that people are directed to a specific room and asked to be there 15 minutes before their scheduled disembarkation time. The announcements are made in the room. In a way, it works like tendering disembarkation for Princess shore excursions. We were in the Elite/Platinum lounge and they came around to everyone asking if they were a certain color and that if you were, you could disembark. It really freed up the hallways and in particular, the atrium.

[Colo Cruiser]

If they are not in their designated waiting area they will not know when to leave.

 

I think it works fine. :)

[cdncruzer]

Our previous cruises on Celebrity were handled much the same way. You were assigned a time and designated area of the ship. Once there you waited until your color is called by ship personal (there are no PA announcements) and off you go! Very easy, straightforward and definitely more relaxing.

 

We have only cruised the once with Princess (and had a ~1-2 hr delay getting into FLL) but I found the whole 'hang-around-the Atrium" ordeal an unpleasant way to end a great trip.

[Cruisin' Chick]

If it'll get passengers from hanging out on stairwells, then this is a good thing.

[SeaTeacher]

I have never understood why people stood around in the atrium. On every cruise I've been on, the Princess Theatre and the Explorer's lounger were available to all passengers so you could sit, read, watch the news on TV. Generally they were quiet places away from the crowds. Now I'm CC platinum and I really appreciate the perk of a separate place with coffee and snacks. But even before the platinum status, it has long been a puzzle to me why people actually chose to stand around in the noise and crowding of the atrium and passegways. I suspect most people just don't use their heads.

 

It sounds to me like the new system will lead to a better experience for those who must be led around on a leash - and for those who use their brains and find quiet places to wait, well now the lounges won't be quiet anymore. Call me elitest, but bigger ships mean more crowds, and I'm always looking for ways to avoid and bypass massive groups of people.

 

Even better than a platinum lounge would be the HAL pattern of waiting in your cabin to disembark.

[NorcalGuy]

If it will keep people off the darn stairs and out of the elevator areas, then it will be wonderful. I always am AMAZED how people can sit on stairs oblivious to passengers trying to pass by in order disembark the ship!

Even before I had access to the Platinum lounge, I typically waited on the Prom deck and watched the pier activity, rather than the crowded atrium. The only problem was trying to pass down the darn stairs of course!

[vickie_bernie]

I have to agree, I don't know why people feel the need to sit on the stairs, floors, railings. Block hallways, elevators, and gangways just so they can get off.

 

I too find a quiet place and relax. Last trip we sat on the promendade and watched the ship get unloaded.

 

But now that Princess has the option that you can take your bags off with you, there is even more clutter and things to trip over.

 

This upcoming cruise will be the first time we get access to the Platinum/Elite lounge so I am interested in how it is different.

 

What are the perks???

[palolake]

Vickie, we'll be right there with you. The Platinum/Elite lounge is nice because it's usually a lot less crowded. Plus they have coffee, tea, orange juice and rolls for you while you wait. It just seems less stressful in there. Will you be Platinum on the first leg or last one?

[Bilyeu5]

Do suite passengers have use of the Platinum/Elite lounge, also? One of the perks is supposed to be priority disembarkation.

[vickie_bernie]

Vickie, we'll be right there with you. The Platinum/Elite lounge is nice because it's usually a lot less crowded. Plus they have coffee, tea, orange juice and rolls for you while you wait. It just seems less stressful in there. Will you be Platinum on the first leg or last one?

 

well we will be on the cruise together; however we will not be using the lounge for this cruise as we will be relaxing in our room and doing wash as we are on the next sailing as well. :)

[devinc]

Has the Crown begun to use this procedure? Thx.

[sultan_sfo]

I wonder whether Princess has resolved the issue of elevators under the new system. Most of the lounges are on Deck 7 and gangways are often on Deck 5. The elevator system on Princess is programmed that if one elevator is on Deck 7, no other elevator will stop at Deck 7 until that elevator has left. It takes a long time to fill one elevator because pax are trying to squeeze into it with their carry-ons and other items in their hands (liquor and what not). We had to take the stairs for 2 decks lugging our carry-on. I told those umpteen crew just standing around the elevators on Deck 7 that they should dedicate 2 or 3 elevators to be controlled by a crew member like they do at embarkation. But these crew members were totally unconcerned about the traffic jam at the elevator.

[Pam in CA]

Do suite passengers have use of the Platinum/Elite lounge, also? One of the perks is supposed to be priority disembarkation.

Yes, the lounge for Elite and Platinum passengers is also for FULL suite passengers (does not include mini-suites in case someone gets confused.)

[ikey78]

Has the Crown begun to use this procedure? Thx.

 

Yes, it was used on the 11/24 cruise.

 

Seemed to go quite well. We were called towards the end of the process but nobody checked our bag tag to see if we had the correct color. In other words anyone could have walked off the ship at that time (about 10.30).

[seattlekckckc]

I loved this new procedure on the Coral last week. It worked extremely well (see my thread about this subject on how fast I got the the FLL airport!). When we walked off, our tag was not checked either. ~However~ I have NEVER had my bag tag color checked, ever, in 29 cruises. I think that is pretty much an honor system. Maybe in the rush of passengers before the silent disembark was used (I am assuming they willtransition company wide to this), they had to check to make sure there were no cheaters. But still, my theory is, get the hanger-outers and stairwell sitters OFF of the ship, they are just bogging the system down!

 

We avoid the self-disembark like the plaugue, one of the times we did it, it was the WORST experience of my life! I got in an argument with a lady, and my adrenaline pumping! The problem with that lay in the fact that Princess was calling the self number like crazy, before the prious grous (s) were even off. When people were then pouring into the security are, they were pouring into an already saturated area. It was awful. Plus, some older people who could not handle their bags got stuck on the sharply inclined ramp to get off of the ship, and blocked the whole thing.

[vince_g]

Do suite passengers have use of the Platinum/Elite lounge, also? One of the perks is supposed to be priority disembarkation.

 

No, priority disembarkation is not a suite perk. The perk is priority tender tickets. Just off the Crown and we received a letter inviting us to use the Crown Grill even though we are not even platinum captain's circle members. I kept the letter and showed it to Esther the captain's circle rep. It seemed to be much less crowded than the Wheelhouse Bar, which is where we would have reported otherwise.

[mindy41]

My first cruise will be on the Island Princess in Feb. Having no knowledge of how these things work, what is the best way to avoid the crowds on the debarkement day? We are staying in FLL for an extra day so don't have a flight to catch. I don't want to be stressed out trying to get off the ship if I don't have to.

THanks for all your ideas I appreciate it.

Lorinda

[Colo Cruiser]

My first cruise will be on the Island Princess in Feb. Having no knowledge of how these things work, what is the best way to avoid the crowds on the debarkement day? We are staying in FLL for an extra day so don't have a flight to catch. I don't want to be stressed out trying to get off the ship if I don't have to.

THanks for all your ideas I appreciate it.

Lorinda

 

 

 

On the Island we love to sit on the Promanade deck outside before disembarking, it is usually very quiet. :)

[mindy41]

Thanks Colo Cruiser - this sounds better that lining up in the hallways.:)

Lorinda