tendered?

[Belfast Castle]

Just looking at some itinerarys and see that at some ports the ship is docked and at others tendered.

 

Now whilst I love the cruise I am not a great fan of small boats etc - any experiences please. how easy is it to manouver this tendering?

[robtulipe]

I am not sure of what the question is exactly here re the maneuvering of the tender which being small boat can do this very well. The skill of the tender driver or operator and his support staff has been excellent in all the tendering I have done.

It takes longer and is a more complicated process to be tendered in than when the ship docks in a port. Typically you must get a tender ticket and wait for your tender # to be announced before you can line up to board the tender. Usually the tender ride is very short (5-10 minutes) since the ship will anchor close to shore if possible.

Weather will have much more of an affect on tendering than docking since a small boat's up and down movement in rough seas (due to waves action) is much more than the much larger thus more stable cruise ship you are trying to get off or on. There is a much greater possibility of missing a port due to the dangers to both paxs and crew of tendering in rough seas presents.

[cb at sea]

In most cases, the tender holds ALOT of people--it's almost like a ferry--2 levels with rows and rows of seats! We're not talking "rowboats" here!

[sandytoes03]

I've never had to get a tender ticket. I've always just lined up and away we went. The longest tender ride I've ever had is in Belize. Otherwise, they aren't too long and should not be something to even worry about. Docking is better than tendering, but you should be fine. As someone else said, they hold many people. Enjoy the vacation!:)

[Joy2Day]

Some ports like Cozumel or Grand Cayman have local companies run the tenders. In other ports, you tender in the boats than "hang" from the side of the ship. These are the boats that would be used as lifeboats in an emergency.

 

When you tender, the boat will come alongside the ship. You will step from a platform onto the tender. Since the platform is attached to the ship, it is relatively stable, but the tender may be moving up and down a little bit. There are always 2-3 crewmembers there to assist and ensure your safety. They will grasp you by the forearm to give you more stability and support. In rough seas, it can be a little exciting to move from ship to boat or boat to ship.

 

Because it takes more time to load/unload this way, the lines will be long for going ashore, especially early in the day.

[ehfl]

You don't have to do the manuvering. The tender captain will do that for you. All you have to do is walk on/walk off. If you need assistance boarding or disembarking the tender, just ask for help. They will be happy to assist you. I have even seen people in wheelchairs on a tender.