Latest time to show up to board the GEM to Bermuda?

I have found similar threads, but not the exact same question I'm asking (not saying it's not already posted, I just can't find it if it is).

I just booked my cruise aboard the Gem with a 3:00PM departure time. For a number of reasons (cost, direct flight, I don't have to travel to a larger city), my choice flight would be scheduled to arrive at 12:33pm at LGA. Allowing to get bagged and 30 mins to get to to the cruise terminal, I should arrive about 1:30pm. Is this too late? I'd already be online checked in for what it's worth.

... I just booked my cruise aboard the Gem with a 3:00PM departure time. For a number of reasons ... my choice flight would be scheduled to arrive at 12:33pm at LGA. Allowing to get bagged and 30 mins to get to to the cruise terminal ...

No !! Bad Choice, to put it bluntly ... welcome to your first post on CC.

From NCL's MyNCL webpage - verbatim/directly ...

Due to security reasons, all guests must be on board 2 hours before sailing. Disembarkation usually begins 2 hours after docking. Itineraries are subject to change at any time without notice.

That is 13:00 or 1 PM - you are expected to be at the pier & checked in and onboard. Rebook and change your flight time to arrive EARLIER - your flight time leave absolutely zero time/slack for any kind of delays ...

If you just book your flight now (within the last 12/24 hours) you can cancel & rebook with no penalty - cough up the price difference, unless you are prepared to waive goodbye to the ship as it WILL sail without you and denied boarding. Feel free to enjoy an extended stay in NYC and fly, at your own expense, to catch up with the ship at Bermuda later in the week.

Even if your flight is on time and your baggage is not delayed (best to do carry-on, don't even gate-check it) - there are ongoing airport issues at LGA to connect to ground transportation. It is less than 50:50 for you to make it to MCT (cruise terminal) in under 30 minutes at midday or 1 PM - most likely 45 minutes to 1 hour, curbside to curbside - exiting the airport's service roadways onto the parkway can take upwards of 15 minutes, depending on the terminal/airline.

In other words, DON'T do this - you have been advised & warned !!

I should arrive about 1:30pm. Is this too late?

YES. NCL has to have the manifest in the hands of the Authorities at least an hour before sailing which is why they say you have to be there 2 hours before sailing.

If your plane is due to land at 12.33 you have 27 minutes to get off the plane, get your luggage and then travel the 20 miles from the airport to the cruise terminal and then get through all the formalities.

NO CHANCE.

I agree that your plan is too close to comfort.

But, for what it's worth, I did call NCL yesterday to discuss the seeming discrepancy with Embarkation time and Departure time.

With a Departure Time of 3:00, they say All Guests MUST be on board no later than 1:00 (2 hours before Departure)

But, on the other hand they've allowed me to select an Arrival time at the pier for embarkation between 1:00 - 1:30 and tell me they will turn me away if I arrive earlier than my arrival time. But, 1:00 to 1:30 is clearly AFTER the time they want everyone on board.

I asked AJ @ NCLto explain this discrepancy to me.

From what I could gather, asking specific questions of AJ and hearing his replies, is that they really, really want everyone on board on time so they draft it in this confusing way to make sure you get your butt there. I said, will I be OK arriving at my Arrival Time even though I am already supposed to be on the boat by that time? He said yes. I asked, would I be OK arriving after 1:30, say closer to 2 (since 1:30-2 is also an option at check-in). He gave me the impression that I was running into dangerous territory the closer I got to 2 oclock cutoff.

I suggest you call and get an impression for yourself. I also suggest you get an earlier flight, I'd be stressing with that time table. I am stressing with my 3 hour cushion (taking a bus... what if it breaks down?)

Best of luck...sorry if this is rambling.

I have found similar threads, but not the exact same question I'm asking (not saying it's not already posted, I just can't find it if it is).

 

I just booked my cruise aboard the Gem with a 3:00PM departure time. For a number of reasons (cost, direct flight, I don't have to travel to a larger city), my choice flight would be scheduled to arrive at 12:33pm at LGA. Allowing to get bagged and 30 mins to get to to the cruise terminal, I should arrive about 1:30pm. Is this too late? I'd already be online checked in for what it's worth.

If you complete the online check in, you have to be at the terminal no later than 1 hour before departure. Your plan will work if there are no delays.

If you complete the online check in, you have to be at the terminal no later than 1 hour before departure.

What is the source of this information please?

Wow, I'm impressed with all the input given the short amount of time! :hearteyes:That's awesome!

I haven't booked the flight yet, but it by far is the best option for me. Based on what most of everyone has said it appears I likely will NOT be choosing this flight.

However, I will call today the casino reservations line for NCL (I got this cruise comped through CET), and then post the results back

I was wondering why it was so confusing and ambiguous between the embarkation times vs departure times. Now we know why thanks to Invaccaro.

I have found similar threads, but not the exact same question I'm asking (not saying it's not already posted, I just can't find it if it is).

 

I just booked my cruise aboard the Gem with a 3:00PM departure time. For a number of reasons (cost, direct flight, I don't have to travel to a larger city), my choice flight would be scheduled to arrive at 12:33pm at LGA. Allowing to get bagged and 30 mins to get to to the cruise terminal, I should arrive about 1:30pm. Is this too late? I'd already be online checked in for what it's worth.

way to close for comfort. If you can not fly in the night before you should be on a flight that gets you in by no later than about 10 am. Here is a recent experience we had and this is not uncommon; we were scheduled to leave the airport at 11am but due to a/c problems we were detained 2 hours. this happens daily with one line or another. Anything can go wrong. This is why we always fly in a day early. Yes, it is costly but not nearly as much as if we had to find our own way to the next port.

I’m going to say you have almost a zero chance of making the ship. You won’t even be getting your baggage until after 1, hopefully getting to the port by 2, a half hour too late, since you need to be there by 1:30, and I think that’s your best case scenario. Our airports are the worst, and traffic can be crazy.

If you complete the online check in, you have to be at the terminal no later than 1 hour before departure.

 

What is the source of this information please?

https://www.ncl.com/faq#boarding-times

This is one of the many reasons that you aren't making a quick exit from the airport service road onto the Grand Central Parkway, onward to MCT. That's long term airport ongoing expansion & construction thru 2020.

Doing a little tracking, it appeared you are almost certain to be doing this special Bermuda run on a Saturday in early November. If you miss this 5 days sailing, might as well do a NY staycation.

Depending on airline & terminal arrival, it's fairly routine - especially on smaller regional aircraft flown on short haul connections - for even "larger" carry-on bags to be gate-checked, as we couldn't even fit our 22" soft-side convertible luggage onto the CRJ's overhead bins - underseat storage barely big enough for a 16" backpack. Waiting for luggage on arrival is going to add to the extending your wait time ... even if flight is on time & wheels down early, add 10 minutes taxiing to the gate, jet-bridge connected & door open (will you be among the first 25 to exit & run toward luggage carousal at arrival ... wait of 10 to 15 minutes, fairly common.)

Then, it's stepping outside to find/join the taxi queue for ground transportation ... another 10 or 15 minutes, before you head for airport exit and onto MCT - trip time, probably 45 to 60 minutes on a Saturday early afternoon, maybe a little less. There is absolutely no way that you can get anywhere near the cruise terminal before 2 PM.

If your in-bound flight is delayed and/or late arriving into NY's LaGuardia, all bets are lost, not off. Feel free to call your CAS hotline & see what the agent say - short of NCL giving your a written waiver for arriving 30 or 45 minutes before the ship sail down the Hudson River, everyone/anyone can promise you a chance to board - it is still your obligation and responsibility to be there. My advice, spend that extra money & book an earlier flight - better yet, come in a day earlier ... you've saved on the casino rate.

[Click] LGA's 411 - a little extra reading/background, just in case you still feel like rolling the dices & been lucky playing poker.

Sent from my KIW-L24 using Tapatalk

I wouldn't chance traffic. With that said, on June 30th I arrived at 12:45pm (had to be there by 1pm too), and there were dozens of people still in line (like all the way to the front doors) to get thru security and then to check in with the desk to get your cabin card. We got on the ship at 1:35pm- and we were not the last guests-lots still behind us.

Sailed away time was suppose to be 3 but we left closer to 5pm.

If you complete the online check in, you have to be at the terminal no later than 1 hour before departure.

 

What is the source of this information please?

Hey guys - this is right from NCL.com:

What time do I board the ship on embarkation day and in ports of call?

Arrival at the Cruise Terminal:

For your comfort and convenience, we recommend that guests who have not completed their Online Check-Inarrive at the cruise terminal no later than two (2) hours prior to the scheduled embarkation time printed on your cruise documents. Guests who have completed their Online Check-In should arrive at the terminal no later than one (1) hour prior to the scheduled embarkation time printed on your cruise documents. We STRONGLY recommend guests complete their Online Check-In at least four (4) days prior to sailing.

Final Boarding Time:

In order to facilitate the embarkation process and the processing of your eDocs, and to comply with new government regulations governing departure manifest, all guests are required to complete Online Check-In at least one day prior to sailing and must complete check-in at the cruise terminal and be onboard the ship no later than one hour prior to the departure time noted on their cruise documents or they will not be permitted to sail. Please note guests who have not filled out their Online Check-In must arrive at port two (2) hours prior to sailing.

I have found similar threads, but not the exact same question I'm asking (not saying it's not already posted, I just can't find it if it is).

 

I just booked my cruise aboard the Gem with a 3:00PM departure time. For a number of reasons (cost, direct flight, I don't have to travel to a larger city), my choice flight would be scheduled to arrive at 12:33pm at LGA. Allowing to get bagged and 30 mins to get to to the cruise terminal, I should arrive about 1:30pm. Is this too late? I'd already be online checked in for what it's worth.

NCL says you should be on board 2 hours prior to sailaway, or in your case 1:00 p.m. You can push that back to any hour, BUT that means actually on board, not checking in, so to allow sufficient time you should be physically in the terminal no later than 90 minutes prior to sailaway. You will be lucky to be out of LGA before 1:15 and then you still have to get to the pier. I highly recommend an earlier flight, or be prepared if you are denied boarding.

I'm not going to chance it. However, it appears other options would be JFK or EWR, albeit maybe allow an extra 30 mins? Anyone ever fly into those to get to the Manhattan cruise terminal?

Newark is an option. I would go with that one. If you take the Lincoln tunne it lets you out about 15 blocks from the boat.

LGA or JFK is going to be a problem if you’re cutting it close. I wouldn’t want to land any later than 9:30-10 at those airports. You’ll be on the east side of manhattan. The boats are on the west side. It’s raken me 45 minutes to get from First Ave to Eleventh Ave but this was during the week.

If you’re sailing on the weekend it may not be that bad.

Newark is an option. I would go with that one. If you take the Lincoln tunne it lets you out about 15 blocks from the boat.

LGA or JFK is going to be a problem if you’re cutting it close. I wouldn’t want to land any later than 9:30-10 at those airports. You’ll be on the east side of manhattan. The boats are on the west side. It’s raken me 45 minutes to get from First Ave to Eleventh Ave but this was during the week.

If you’re sailing on the weekend it may not be that bad.

A big long term construction project is starting up, closing one lane of 495, signs have been posted and folks here seem to think it will be problematic. I’m staying away from the Lincoln tunnel!

I suppose anything is possible but the chances of arriving at the Manhattan cruise terminal one hour after your flight arrives at a gate at LaGuardia are approaching zero. Even 90 minutes would be a minor miracle.

I'm not going to chance it. However, it appears other options would be JFK or EWR, albeit maybe allow an extra 30 mins? Anyone ever fly into those to get to the Manhattan cruise terminal?

Any nyc airports are a nightmare to get luggage and get out of. Plus your flight could be delayed. We never fly in the day of sailing. You never know what could happen! We always fly in atleast a day before. Wouldn’t want to miss the ship!

Just get into NYC one day before cruise - please - for your god's sake and peace of mind.

The 3:00 pm departure is rather early. You have no idea about the traffic into the terminal.

The last time we departed from NYC our taxi ride from hotel (W 36th) to terminal took over an hour instead of 15-20 mins due to traffic jam/blocks/etc.

So, just fly into NYC the day before cruise …. :cool: