prime time to arrive at terminal?

[luv2reisen]

first time poster, haven't cruised in years....travelling on the crown in a couple weeks and wondering what the prime time for arriving at the terminal is. friends have said they have boarded prior to the posted/suggested arrival times, but they cruised on other lines. what's the standard for princess, can you arrive earlier than the stated boarding time, and/or what is the best time to arrive?

 

if it makes a difference, we will be travelling with a party of 7 (including a toddler!!!).

[paul929207]

Princess usually starts checkin 30 to 60 minutes before the posted start time. If you check in early, you will probably be directed to a lounge where you wait until they allow people to board.

[mii]

Frankly I try to be there between 11a.m. and 11;30a.m. and they will check you in and you may have to wait until they annouce the boarding call. Now with a toddler you may want to wait a little longer so that you can go stright onto the ship.

 

Marilyn

[jean s]

We usually try to get there between 1:30 and 2:00. The lines are very short and we are normally on the ship in about 20 minutes. Last year we made it on board even a little quicker.

[pascalburns]

around 1200 hrs or noon.:cool:

[Nancyquilts]

Frankly I try to be there between 11a.m. and 11;30a.m. and they will check you in and you may have to wait until they annouce the boarding call. Now with a toddler you may want to wait a little longer so that you can go stright onto the ship.

 

Marilyn

This timing works for us too. Nancy

[BalconyBumz]

10:30 for us like clock work and we are usually near the front of the line to check in and near the first people to walk on the ship! I want every moment I can on the ship.

[Scooter-n-GB]

We were there at 11:20, and ended up with group #13 for check in. Last year, same timing, and we were with group #3, so go figure...

[avcruz]

Unlike some other cruise lines, they won't let you on the ship until all the cabins are ready. So it depends upon how fast everyone got off and how quickly they managed to clean up. Personally I prefer this to getting on board & having to drag my carry-on with me to the pool area or bar for a couple of hours.

 

I agree the some of the previous posters, we usually arrive around noon and get straight on. :)

[potchak]

Hmm, I am supposed to arrive at the airport around 10 am, I assume I will be at the port between 11 and 11:30. Does this seem reasonable? We are taking a cab to the port from the airport.

 

We are going on the Ruby on Sat! Very excited! Appreciate the help!

[luv2reisen]

thanks for the help...looks like we could arrive any time, maybe wait a little if we get there early...appreciate the help!

[Grego]

Hmm, I am supposed to arrive at the airport around 10 am, I assume I will be at the port between 11 and 11:30. Does this seem reasonable? We are taking a cab to the port from the airport.

 

We are going on the Ruby on Sat! Very excited! Appreciate the help!

 

You will be in great shape. That's a great time to get there. You will have a slight wait until they start boarding (12:00) but you'll be able to get to your cabin, unload whatever carryon stuff you have, freshen up, hit the buffet lunch, walk around to ship to get acquainted and eventually your checked luggage will appear.

 

To us, this is the real great time of the cruise because it marks the beginning of the vacation.

 

Have a great cruise.

[judydoc]

We are leaving on the Golden next week and are starting to pack. Was wondering what the temperatures are like on the trip across the ocean?

[ggprincess2004]

In FLL , we usually plan to be at the cruise port by 11:15, and can wait in the lounge indoors until they begin boarding, which is sometimes as early as 11:30.

 

BUT, it just depends upon the day, how early they cleared the ship, and also random arrivals of large groups, really it is hit or miss and while being there early is usually an excellent strategy, on the rare occasion it can backfire, and you can be waiting quite a long time.

 

For instance, we waited for several hours in San Diego while the ship was disinfected (noro outbreak) - the cruise terminal was a zoo and when they finally began boarding it was absolute mayhem.

 

On the other hand, we have been on board by 11:40 a number of times, and dropped our hand luggage in the stateroom, and started enjoying the ship right away.

 

With a toddler, you might want to consider a "late arrival" - say between 2:30 and 3:00, as the odds are you will be able to board without lines or delays. If your toddler is old enough for the Princess kids programs, do head to the kids zone and get the little darling enrolled when you board.

 

Have a great cruise!:)

[potchak]

Since we are taking the inaugural cruise, I imagine since they only have a couple hundred instead of a couple thousand to get off the ship for the 2 day pre inaugural sailing, that they should be able to board pretty quickly and early. I will keep my fingers crossed.

[cruiserbryce]

I think a little bit of the answer depends on what port you are going to. When we have been leaving from LA we have always been on board around 12-12:15 with little or no wait

[caribill]

Hope that Tropical Storm/Hurricane Paloma does not adversely affect your cruise on the Ruby Princess.

[Grego]

I think a little bit of the answer depends on what port you are going to. When we have been leaving from LA we have always been on board around 12-12:15 with little or no wait

Since we usually arrive a day in advance, I would rather wait in line at the ship then try to kill time in a hotel room.

 

Port Everglades usually has the best embarkation proceedure so the wait times are less. As I mentioned above, I think, we normally arrive around 11:00 and are onboard by noon.