Horror in Boston-Carnival Glory June 10

[bhanback]

Originally Posted by kbmeow

Wrong, I will say this the weather although rocky one day back was not bad and the terminal was still a mess at 12:30 I hear it was still a mess at 3. They started special assist boarding around 12 so it was a cluster all day.

Thanks for the back up! we may also mention that we were scheduled for sail away at 4 pm. But due to all the problems with embarkation we did not leave till 7. I don't think we had it as bad as the previous cruise, but it was still the worst I have seen. I am no expert but have boarded in Miami, Tampa, Norfolk, Baltimore........and now Boston.

I don't think the weather was an issue with the Glory returning to Boston, when we got there, early, I know.....it was at the pier and had been there for awhile already.

[SMSACE6]

What a horrible boarding process! Im not sure I would have handled it as well as you did OP, and I am hoping that at least your cruise was worth it all after such a bad start. Looking forward to your review.

[rina80]

I think most of the problems for you arose from the Jun 3 - 10th glory trip that we were on. We did arrive back to Boston before 7:30am, however they cleared non-US customs on the ship...by the time all non-US citizens were cleared to disembark it was atleast 9:30...some of our passengers were in zone 31 to disembark and we did not get off the ship until 11ish.
There were problems finding some non-US citizens and those pages were being done non-stop.
We had a 1:55pm flight boarding at 1pm on Sunday and we made it to the gate at 12:50, so our cruise was a nightmare from start to finish.

Originally Posted by bhanback

Thanks for the back up! we may also mention that we were scheduled for sail away at 4 pm. But due to all the problems with embarkation we did not leave till 7. I don't think we had it as bad as the previous cruise, but it was still the worst I have seen. I am no expert but have boarded in Miami, Tampa, Norfolk, Baltimore........and now Boston.

I don't think the weather was an issue with the Glory returning to Boston, when we got there, early, I know.....it was at the pier and had been there for awhile already.

[cat888]

Originally Posted by bhanback

Thanks for the back up! we may also mention that we were scheduled for sail away at 4 pm. But due to all the problems with embarkation we did not leave till 7. I don't think we had it as bad as the previous cruise, but it was still the worst I have seen. I am no expert but have boarded in Miami, Tampa, Norfolk, Baltimore........and now Boston.

I don't think the weather was an issue with the Glory returning to Boston, when we got there, early, I know.....it was at the pier and had been there for awhile already.

We were on the same cruise. It took us 3 hours from parking the car to boarding the ship and we arrived about 12:45 It was horrible. We have cruised from Boston many times and this was just unbelievable.

[caribsun]

I believe what you said and the port employees treated you poorly but there must have been issues with CCL or port security.

To let others know that I have driven to the port, offloaded luggage, parked car and was on the ship in a little over a hour on 2 trips with NCL.

[wiskt]

This is a good example of a post that should be under the PORT OF CALLS section. I hope you put this in the format of a MEMBER REVIEW also because it will ask you for specifics regarding your embarkation, debarkation, cabin, food etc.

[saltmom1]

To the posters who have been commenting on Barking Crab, I only have a few words. The " No Name Restaurant is down the street". Barking Crab does not have a good reputation with the locals. Suffice it to say I have been told by people who work in the area that the Board of Health knows them well.
Just sayin

[carynh]

Originally Posted by luvtheships

1. The weather that the previous cruise encountered means nothing to you btw. What matters to you is that you booked a northern cruise for June...notorious for so so weather....I took this cruise in August...and the weather was magnificent...thought we were in the Carib.

2. You arrived at the port way too early therefore, you encountered issues that you would not have had you arrived around 12:30.


Not sayin you are not justified in your opinion...just sayin that had you arrived later....

Just like when there is a backup on the highway at 8am due to an accident....the folks that pass thru after the accident is cleared...do not experience it....the backup that is.

I was on this cruise as well, and we arrived at 11:15, there were still people debarking as we walked up to the terminal. I don't think it would've mattered what time she arrived. It took us 2 hours from parking to boarding. There were a couple of issues starting with the ship clearing customs late to the computers being down that combined for a slow embark.

I have sailed to Canada 2x in June, 1x in July and 1x in August, this was the 1st time we didn't encounter fog. We got to Halifax in August and you could barely see 20 ft ahead the fog was so bad.

[lcseale53]

Originally Posted by loubetti

Boston and Massachusetts as a whole has a HUGE security issue, as they were hosts to some 9/11 flights, and they have yet to get a clue. It's third world treatment. Even New Jersey does it better.

I am SO getting out of the northeast and moving to Florida!

Come on down Lou. We have an occasional TFR but they are few and scattered.

Leon

[RenieRaider]

Originally Posted by spunkyhungry

Wow, that's surprising to hear. I was just at the Boston terminal on June 8th to board my Norwegian cruise, and I was very impressed with the embarkation process. We arrived at 11, and as soon as we got out of the car a porter arrived to take our luggage. The staff at the terminal directed us to have our passports out and told us where to go. About 10-15 minutes later we were checked in. Then we spent about 30 minutes waiting for the ship to be cleared for boarding. Once people began boarding, we got on about 10-12 minutes later. The entire process was smooth and easy, and the staff members were nice and helpful. I believe these are the same terminal staff members that Carnival uses?

Yes, Interline works with all the cruise lines.

Someone did post that there was weather that caused delay and also two people they wanted to locate. PLUS computers were not loaded and check-in was being done manually.

Sorry to hear of the boarding ordeal. As I have cruised many times out of CruisePortBoston, I can tell you..... what you experienced was not usual.

That being said.... we embarked on June 14th at 11:25 and were on the ship before noon. BUT guests that came later, after 1:30, were stuck in a Check-in frenzy.

As far as the Porters..... not one approached us as we came towards them and there were at least 4 guys standing there, just standing there. We pulled our luggage past them and a woman porter approached us and took our luggage. I tipped her and thanked her. After she took our bags, my niece who was traveling with me, stopped her as she started to walk away with our bags. She wanted to give her a tip too.

The porter stopped and said, "Thank you! It is SO NICE to have a young person aggressively come to give a gratuity! You don't see that very often."

I was SO Proud of my niece Melanie.

[saltmom1]

[quote=RenieRaider;34237046]Yes, Interline works with all the cruise lines.


As far as the Porters..... not one approached us as we came towards them and there were at least 4 guys standing there, just standing there.

We had the same experience boarding the Dawn last year. We finally had to flag a porter down and they did NOT get a tip.

[MRVEGAS711]

My wife and I and two friends sailed on this June 10th cruise along with some 25 other cruise critic friends.
Boarding was smooth and the wait was typical of any port.
Getting off was a breeze with practically no boarder patrol issues.

Sorry your experience was rough.

[sjn911]

Sorry about the boarding fiasco and unrelaxing start in the Am from your hotel..those are bummers on trips for sure. I am really beginning to see the special driv/shuttle offered to port form any hotel I have ended up in recently before a cruise is usually great help..small..all headind in one direction an the driver gives you tips on how to navigate and jokes about our waitng to feed our faces in buffet..just seeing what a gift that has been and not purposely picked..but luck of the bidding process..for Long Beach, and San Diego ports.

Miami have never been to..FT Lauderdale was a lifetime ago..so will read up more on those..

Had a bad burned steak once at a Mortons and flabbergasted at the cost..that high flame broil goes any way..Loved my 2 Ruth Chris splurges..but give me the secret steak houses here..LOL..and my own tenderloins from Costco...hope rest of cruise was better..Sarah

[ManyMore]

This is NOT typical of the cruise experience out of Boston and perhaps people might need to put themselves in the shoes of the employee? Is it ever right to be rude or snippy? NO! but.... when you have a situation beyond your control, the ship is still debarking because of a situation beyond their control and you have people who are arriving to embark (which is not a usual situation and could not have been antisipated) it can get overwhelming with people asking questions and being rude to the emplyee for something that is not their fault.

(side note: the name of the campany that they use in Boston is not Interline)

[Disneynutbsv]

Originally Posted by bhanback

Ok, sorry, trying to do this review on the IPad and the auto correct is not always helpful. I hope everyone understands that "Excalibur" should be Elevator!

hahaha, I like excalibur better!

[bhanback]

Originally Posted by ManyMore

This is NOT typical of the cruise experience out of Boston and perhaps people might need to put themselves in the shoes of the employee? Is it ever right to be rude or snippy? NO! but.... when you have a situation beyond your control, the ship is still debarking because of a situation beyond their control and you have people who are arriving to embark (which is not a usual situation and could not have been antisipated) it can get overwhelming with people asking questions and being rude to the emplyee for something that is not their fault.

(side note: the name of the campany that they use in Boston is not Interline)

Ok, if YOU know the name of the company they use, could you provide it? I would like to write a letter to the company to let them know of my observations and experiences. I did not see anyone treating these employees in a rude or snippy way, but I saw LOTS of rude and snippy responses from said employees. Seemed to me that folks were just seeking to understand the situation and by asking questions they were interrupting the big "social whirl" that the boarding employeess were engaging in. It is not at all unusual for people to arrive at the pier while the prior cruise is still debarking.....and those cruisers are always aware that they have a wait ahead of them. That did not seem to cause any problems at all. It was the complete indifference to such simple questions as how to check bags with porters and the conflicting information which created the bad situation. For myself, I am not losing sleep over this but for other people whom I saw being treated this way, including a lady in a wheelchair and several families with children in strollers, I got pretty steamed about it. Just saying.....

[ManyMore]

Interline is discounted travel for airline employees.

[tjmohawk]

Originally Posted by saltmom1

To the posters who have been commenting on Barking Crab, I only have a few words. The " No Name Restaurant is down the street". Barking Crab does not have a good reputation with the locals. Suffice it to say I have been told by people who work in the area that the Board of Health knows them well.
Just sayin

Two years ago my husband was injured there due to incompetence of their hostess. No one on the staff seemed to care, and nothing was done to check on him. Others dining there were very concerned and offered their names in case he needed to pursue the issue. And as stated, the food was terrible, AND he had to pay for it! Why are they still in business???

[saltmom1]

Originally Posted by tjmohawk

Two years ago my husband was injured there due to incompetence of their hostess. No one on the staff seemed to care, and nothing was done to check on him. Others dining there were very concerned and offered their names in case he needed to pursue the issue. And as stated, the food was terrible, AND he had to pay for it! Why are they still in business???

I served on a jury from the federal courthouse for 18 months. On day one the lawyer said. BTW, don't go to Barking Crab for lunch. We want you here this afternoon. She said they are regularly shut down. This was over 2 years ago now, but don't know if things have changed.

Sorry about your DH . Hope he is OK.

[CruisingQueen101]

We were on the Glory out of Boston on July 12th & the boarding was fabulous. We parked @ 11:10 & were on board by 11:30. That included taking the bus, waiting for a porter to get us luggage tags since ours printed wrong, going through security, checking in, embarkation photo, & getting on board. It was the best embarkation time we have ever had.