Newbie question about ports...

[quiescentlyfrozen]

Probably a dumb question here (again!). If an iteniary says that we arrive in port at 8a, what time is it realistic for people to be able to get off the ship if they are not part of a Celebrity booked shore excursion?

 

And reason I ask incase it has impact... doing a wedding in Juneau this summer. Working with transportation company to coordinate a bus to come pick up my friends and family / decide time of ceremony etc. So I need to know when - realistically - it would be "safe" to have transport show up/plan for.

 

If 8a, that's awesome! I just suspect that it's an hour or two later, though I really have no idea. I tend toward saying pickup at 10:30 to be safe, but if that isn't enough time, I'd definitely appreciate that input!

 

Thanks again to you all - you've been SO utterly helpful so far. I can't wait for my first cruise.

[Longboysfan]

If you are docked in Juneau - Which the Celebrity site say that you are.

If they say tendered then there is a problem with tendering priority tickets.

 

You can get off the ship at 8AM. But be careful with this as there could be delays docking.

Most time and I would say that 95% of the time there are no delays and they are on time or before time. The ship will be tied up and you can walk ashore at the time specified.

 

Every trip I have been on the ship has been at dock on time.

If there are many people with you and some are - let's say - slow to the gangway - then have them be ready to go at 8am and they will show after that.

 

Have someonw with you for the bus or special transport one to the bus to find and the other at the gangway off the ship to point them in the right direction.

[BurgerBits]

CONGRATS on the wedding in Juneau!!

 

My experiences are exactly like Longboyfan's - we have yet to experience late docking at a port, and occasionally have been able to leave the ship earlier than the stated 'docking time.'

 

That being said, there's always a chance of a holdup, so... if it was something I was arranging, I'd set the pickup bus arrival time closer to 8:30 or 9:00 with a backup plan (being able to contact the bus driver/company to make changes as needed).

[quiescentlyfrozen]

Ok, you guys rule as usual! Thanks for the prompt and helpful response - see, I was all ready to make people wait till 10:30 for paranoia's sake. 9 to be safe sounds way more fun... :rolleyes:

[BurgerBits]

Ok, you guys rule as usual! Thanks for the prompt and helpful response - see, I was all ready to make people wait till 10:30 for paranoia's sake. 9 to be safe sounds way more fun... :rolleyes:

 

Fun is good!!!

 

Remember, though, that tendering is a LOT different than docking, so make sure which it is (I've never been on an AK cruise, so don't know from experience :)).

 

Docking: You can walk off the ship onto the pier.

 

Tendering: You have to wait for the ship's tender to load and then be driven to the pier. There's a possibility that not all of your party will be able to go on the same tender.

 

If tendering, the late pickup is safer, IMHO.

[CruisingChick]

When we did our Alaskan cruise in 2005 we were 1 hour late docking in Juneau. We were suppose to be there 8:00 AM but got in at 9:00 AM. The majority of us had a private excursion for Whale Watching with Captain Larry. I called them and they said the entire tour was from the ship so they obviously were waiting for us.

 

Just make sure you tell the transportation company you might be late and have their number and your cell phone ready to call them if there is a delay. I'm sure they will be more than accomodating.

 

Congratulations on the Wedding.

 

Anne Maria

[geoherb]

When we were on Century last month, the ship was a little bit late getting to Cozumel. People were eagerly waiting to get off--lining the corridors. Our cabin was near the stairwell that led to the gangway. Since we weren't going to do anything in Cozumel, we just made our way through the crowd.

 

If I were arranging private transportation, I'd make sure to let the company know to wait if the ship is late in docking.

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

We were also late arriving in Juneau. And there's another issue to consider there--the tides. They have massive tides and depending whether the tide is in or out will depend on where they are able to put the gangway. We had to thread our way through passenger halls way down to a lower deck--took forever to get off the ship. Our whale watch was waiting for us too, since most of its passengers were from the ship. However, they had another one to do after us, so we lost time from ours--they had to be back to pick up the next bunch. So this is a tad different from a Caribbean port where you are docked and just go ashore. Your local transportation providers should be aware of these quirks and should be able to adjust. And if you have to tender, there will be even more delays.

 

So, allow for some slack and enjoy the wedding in Juneau! And your cruise--Alaska is fantastic!

[MandyGirl]

Talk to the concierge onboard when you arrive and let them know you have a wedding. At least our experience on NCL helped us by doing so: the NCL concierge (Alex Forbes) arranged for our group to meet in a special location, and we were escorted to the tenders first. We were in a mini-suite, but most of our group was not. Alex took spectacular care of us. We made our 9:00 wedding EARLY with plenty of time for everyone to enjoy everything. And NO, we had NOT booked the wedding through the cruiseline. NCL just took good care of us. :) I would expect Celebrity to do the same. Congrats on the wedding!!!