earliest embarkation on the Majesty?

[cruizincrazy]

I will be on the Majesty NYE cruise and I was wondering what is a good time to arrive at the Charleston port for early boarding? I understand the Charleston port isn't anything like Ft. Lauderdale or Miami, but I still figure we can board earlier than the listed 1:00 boarding time. Any info is greatly appreciated.

[gotksgirl]

I would love to know this too. Interesting info on the NCL.com website states this:

 

NOTE: As of January 1, 2008 all guests must be onboard the ship two hours prior to the ship's scheduled departure time.

 

So if boarding begins at 1pm and the ship leaves at 4pm do we need to be on by 2pm? 1 hour to check in everyone? This does not make sense. We leave Jan. 5. Obviously this does not matter for your cruise, but it might affect ours.

[salty dingo]

I don't know what that 2 hour rule refers to. I don't think you would have any difficulty arriving at the port of Charleston at 3 PM if you wish. But your question was not how late one can arrive, but how early.

 

Things may have changed in 2 years but we got there between 11:30 and 11:45 and the port gates were just opening. If you get there any earlier you will most likely be turned away. I belive you can drop off your bags somewhere at the port, but must leave and return when the gates open. I think they are usually open by noon, but a lot could depend on how well the previous cruise's debarkation went.

[RedHeadTexan]

I was on the December 8th cruise, and they started boarding around 11:30am. We arrived around 12:15 and were onboard within 45 minutes. We drove to port, so it took a little time to park the car and get on a shuttle.

[gotksgirl]

Sorry, but I guess I was not clear. If there is this new rule that you must be on board 2 hours ahead, then they really need to allow early embarkation as in before the 1pm stated time. Here is the web address that states the new 2 hour rule:

http://www.ncl.com/nclweb/cruiser/cmsPages.html?pageId=FAQ#finalboarding

 

 

So, I would like to probably board early as well to beat the rush at 1pm. Thanks for the info! Maybe we will try around noon.

[salty dingo]

Rather than early embarkation, they can just push back the departure to a later time. It would work as well.

 

The NCL policy page you mentioned also states that guests must be back on board at ports of call one hour before sailing... I find that very odd, since it has always been a half-hour (when docked) on every cruise I have been on, NCL or not.

 

I don't see how being back 30 minutes earlier will improve anything. Maybe I will start a thread on this to get a discusion going on this topic, so we don't hijack this thread.