Surviving Cruise Debarkation Day Part 2

Evening Before Debarkation

Most cruise lines now offer an "Easy Walk-off" option for those that don't have a lot of luggage, or for those that have early flight arrangements.  It is important to note that if you plan to use this method, you must be able to handle your entire luggage on your own. The crew will not be allowed to assist you.

For those that want to avail themselves of the normal process, bags must be packed and placed outside your cabin by the stated deadline.   This is usually shortly after late dining is completed.

Plan for What You Need in Morning

If you attended the cruise director's talk, he may have told you stories of passengers forgetting that they would need clothes in the morning and having to walk off the ship in a towel.  This may sound silly, but you do need to think about what items (clothing, toiletries, medicines, etc.) that you'll need in the morning.

We always have at least one carry-on bag with us so that we'll have a place to put our sleepwear, shavers, 3-1-1 bags with all our toiletries, and souvenirs that we don't want to pack in our larger suitcase.  Of course, you'll need your passports and other important travel documents with you as well.  Pack your large suitcase(s) and also have your carry-on packed, or at least know what will go in them, before placing the bags to be picked up outside your cabin.

Cruise Isn't Over Until 

the Paperwork is Done

Before retiring to bed, we suggest that you fill our your U.S. Customs Declaration Form and place it together with your passports.  Only one form is needed per family that are traveling and living together back home.   You'll need to know how much you spent in port and on the ship for things like souvenirs, jewelry, liquor, and clothing.   Anything that you purchased and are bringing off the ship must be counted.  You will have an allowance per family and the good news is that for things like liquor, your children count in determining the allowance.

Since the morning is an early one (usually all guests must be out of their cabins before 8 AM) you'll want to complete this the night before.  Doing so will allow you time for breakfast and a smooth, hassle free departure.

Once Docked, Crew  No Longer in Charge

Disembarkation is controlled by the U.S. Customs & Border Protection.  You'll find that there are several areas of the ship that will be blocked off and traffic patterns are strictly enforced.  You don't want to attempt to enter a controlled area.   It is for this reason that waiting areas are suggested by the crew in the instructions.   Don't proceed to the disembarkation point until your luggage color is called.  This will help keep the process moving for all passengers.

Go have breakfast and try to keep your entire traveling party together.   This way when an announcement is made for your luggage tag group, you will be able to disembark the ship.

There is a definite order of disembarkation and that will be listed in the instructions.  You might want to keep a copy of that handy so that you can tell when it is close to your time to disembark.  That allows you time for that one last bathroom break for example.

Note that the times listed for debark time are only approximate.   It is possible that the process may be halted several times to allow for crowd control.  There are a maximum number of passengers that can be in the terminal at a given time and as we mentioned, this is strictly under the control of the CBP.   Therefore, if there any doubt that you'll need more time, take the earlier tag when picking your luggage tags.

Getting to the Airport

Cruise lines sell "transfers" which can be prepaid or purchased on board the ship up to the stated time.  This is the easiest method for transferring to the ship because the ship's personnel will direct you to waiting buses for the trip to the airport.  You'll be amongst the earlier groups to depart the ship as well (ordered by flight times).  Caution: this could be a higher cost that arranging your own transportation, but it typically be the easiest.

Your travel professional can go over the various options applicable for your pier and airport location and can assist in booking the arrangements with the cruise line or other provider.   Remember, to be sure to allow sufficient time for the debarkation process.

Post-Cruise Tours

In many ports it is possible to book a post-cruise tour through the cruise line.  This is very similar to booking transfers but in addition to the transportation to the airport, you will also see one or more local sites.   This is a great option for those that booked later flights.  Consult the shore excursion sight before your cruise or during to determine your options here.  

Take-A-Ways

• Pack your luggage early so that you can enjoy your final evening onboard
• Leave clothing and other essentials for the morning
• Complete your Customs paperwork before retiring for the evening
• Pre-book transfers, tours, or know options for transfers to airport in advance
• Have a nice breakfast and listen for announcements
• When your luggage group is called, gather your belongings and head for the debark point
• Planning will help keep the stress levels down
• Also see Surviving Cruise Debarkation Day (Part 1)

Surviving Cruise Debarkation Day

Ending Cruise on a High 

The final full day of the cruise has arrived and fortunately it is a sea day.  That means you don't need to rush breakfast and get ready to go into port.   You plan to take full advantage of the ship and let any remaining stress melt away.

Last night you didn't have time to read the daily paper, so you pick it up and start to see what activities are planned by the staff.   Scanning through the list of morning activities, you see one that catches your eye ... "Debarkation Information - hosted by Cruise Director".  There is a note that says, one person from each family should attend.   Wait, what - I'm on vacation - what do you mean?

MUST I ATTEND?

Especially if you are a cruise rookie (first time cruiser) it is highly advisable that you attend any briefing offered by the Cruise Director or staff.   This will make your life much easier, since they will provide all the information you need and answer any questions.   On most ships, this information is disseminated in multiple ways, so if you have some conflict, you can skip the session.

For example, there should also be more information either in the daily paper or as a supplement covering everything you need to disembark the ship.  Often the debarkation talk is recorded and available for viewing on the ship's TV station during the rest of the day.

Flight Times Dictate Departure

Just Say When

When you listen to or read the information about debarkation, you'll soon discover that by mid-morning everyone is expected to be off the ship so that the crew can welcome aboard the new set of passengers.  There is a lot of activity that happens to make this possible.

WHEN TO LEAVE

You may not realize it, but your departure time was determined by you when you booked your trip and made travel arrangements.

How's that you ask?   When you picked your return flights, or made other arrangements for your return home, you determined the time that you needed to be off the ship in order to make your flight on time.   Upon leaving the ship you'll need to collect your bags, process through Customs, and board a taxi, shuttle bus, or other means of transportation to your departure destination (airport, bus, train station, rental car etc.).

How much time do you need?

There are a lot of variances in terms of when the cruise line calls your luggage group and when you are outside with bags in hands.   It may take some time to catch an elevator and actually get to the disembarkation point on the ship.  Once through there, it's usually a walk along a ramp, down the escalator or elevator to the lower level, where you'll find your baggage sorted by color tag.  There are porters to assist you in finding your bags and getting you through Customs.

In most cases, the pier isn't far from the airport, so you may have about 30 minutes to an hour for transfer time from pier to airport.  There are several ways to get to the airport, but for now, let's just assume you need to factor in some travel time.    Since you will be checking bags, and there will be several hundred or more of you arriving at the airport at the same time, you'll need at least 1.5 to 2 hours for checking in and clearing airport security.

The rule of thumb is that for flights before noon, you'll want to be in one of the first groups off the ship but for later flights you can take your time.

Key Take-A-Ways

• When booking your return flights, be sure to factor in the time it will take to disembark and travel to the airport
• Ask your travel professional for guidance before making arrangements
•  It is best to book flights later in the day to avoid having to rush - why add stress to your vacation after you have finally started to relax
• Be sure to attend any information talks and/or read and follow printed instructions

In Part 2, we'll talk more about preparation the night before debarkation as well as what to expect in the morning.

Do You Remember the Doc Dance

Once Upon a Time ...

August is a busy time for us, monitoring the tropical storms that are forming in both the Atlantic and Pacific.  You may have noticed most of our articles have been about approaching storms and the impact on cruise itineraries.

Fortunately, there hasn't been much impact to the cruises despite the number of tropical storms.  Ernesto caused the most disruption.

We thought you might like a break from all this talk about weather...  Journey with us down memory lane...

Digging Into Our Archives

We found this "Guest Vacation Documents" booklet from Royal Caribbean from one of our Panama Canal cruises.  You'll notice that it was a bound booklet, which cost some money and effort to put together for each guest on the sailing.

Royal Caribbean and all the major lines sent out these documents to guests, usually about a month before the cruise.   Folks that were chatting online would declare they "were doing the doc dance" when the package arrived in the mail.   Everyone else would then be on the lookout for their docs.

Receiving your cruise documents this way helped build excitement.  Once they arrived you knew the trip was real - it was getting close.

Electronic Age

With the boom of the electronic age and the expansion of the Worldwide Web into everyone's lives, these booklets have gone the way of the dinosaur and become extinct.  There are a few of the luxury lines that still produce these booklets, but even there the numbers have dwindled.

Now you are likely to get an email with your booking ID and instructions on how to read the "documents" online and if desired, print a copy for yourself.

Luggage Tags

Included with your documents you would also find several luggage tags which you could use to identify your baggage.   Initially they were blank labels which you'd have to complete.  In later years, they were pre-printed with your name and stateroom information, along with an identifier of the ship.

Looking inside the documents we found in our archives, we found the extra luggage tags still in the bound booklet. 

Times They Are a Changing

Along with the passing of hard-cover documents, luggage tags went through many changes.  In some cases, like with a Royal Caribbean cruise, they were special-order items.   Your cruise specialist may have ordered them for you and sent them, but rest assured, you weren't getting them directly from the cruise line as had been the case for decades past.

Royal Caribbean has just announced that it will no longer be possible to pre-order the luggage tags.  They are now included as a page in the eDocs that you print from the web.   Some elite Crown &  Anchor members and high-end cabins will still be able to get baggage tags, but the majority of you won't be able to order them. 

A Word of Caution - Hints

Royal Caribbean was one of the hold-outs printing luggage  labels on special stock.  Other cruise lines have already substituted the "print your own at home" baggage tags for some time.

The down side to printing your own is that these baggage tags are far less durable than the ones that were previously provided.  They are likely to come off the luggage during handling.   You don't want to put them on your bags when you leave home.   The airlines will do everything in their power to rip them in transit, and you'll get to the pier without a luggage tag.

You could print on heavy-stock paper and put on your bags ahead of time.  That might work, but again, it's pretty risky.

One thing that we've done successfully is wait until we are on the way to the pier (leaving our pre-cruise hotel for example) to attach the home-made tags.   We ask the front desk if we can borrow a stapler, or bring some tape with us to attach that way.

Make sure to have other identification on your bags (the real sturdy kind) in case these tags fall off.   The crew will be able to check the ship's roster and deliver your bags to you (bags might be late arriving at your cabin however).

You can also wait until you get to the pier and ask a porter for luggage tags.  You'll want to be sure you have your stateroom information handy to fill them out properly.

How to Build Excitement

You won't be getting your documents in the mail, unless your cruise specialist goes the extra mile and prints them for you.  So, what to do to get that heart pumping as your departure date draws close?


Embrace the electronic age and add a calendar entry to go online and complete you online registration, review and/or print your documents, and optionally print your luggage tags.   You need to do this anyway, so make it part of the preparation phase of your trip.

This post gave us a whole new idea for some future columns.... this is only one thing from the past that has gone away or changed.   Can you think of others?  Drop us a note via email, comment, or post on our Facebook page.

Speaking of future columns, be sure to Vote in our poll to help select our next featured destination.

Disembarkation Day Allure of the Seas

Royal Caribbean
Allure of the Seas^SM

Disembarkation Day 

It is the wee hours of the morning and Allure of the Seas has pulled into Port Everglades, its home port in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

There is much to do in preparation for arrival in Ft. Lauderdale.  The ship arrives between 5:30 AM and 6:00 AM and shortly thereafter begins the process of turnaround.   The U.S. Customs officials must clear the ship before anything or anyone is allowed to disembark.  This process on the Allure of the Seas went by without anyone even noticing as they were having their final breakfast onboard the ship.

Waiting for Departure 

Just like on most ships, disembarkation is done based on color-coded numbered luggage tags.  There is an option for early walk-off, without assistance, for those that can manage their own luggage and want to get an early start.

The remainder of the luggage tags are assigned based on information provided to guest services regarding your travel plans.   Guests traveling on post-cruise shore excursions and elite Crown & Anchor members are among the first that may disembark the ship.   

 When completing the disembarkation form, guests provide details about the flight arrangements which factors into the luggage tag assignment.   We had a flight at 11:30 AM from Ft. Lauderdale International Airport, so our tags were #14.   Since we knew approximately when our number would be called, we had proceeded to some benches near the gangway.  We monitored the electronic screen to see when our number was called.   According to the time on the screen, our number was called around 7:35 AM, but we took our time disembarking.

Where's Our Bags

Once off the ship, we proceeded to the customs luggage hall where all the bags were lined up by tag number.  It's amazing to think that the ship only docked 90 minutes ago and all this luggage was already in place and ready to be picked up.

We found our bags right away and headed towards the U.S. Customs counter where our passports were checked and our declaration form collected.
Taxi cabs can be found straight ahead and other transportation, such as tours and Royal Caribbean transfers are to the right as you exit Customs.

We found disembarkation to be a very efficient process !!    We were in a cab and on our way to the airport by 8:10 AM, plenty of time to check-in at the airport and go through security before heading to our gate.