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Vacating stateroom by 8:00 am on disembarkation day


Jagggg
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Just off the Star and all cabins were to be vacated by 8:00 am. Wondering if this is true for all Princess cruises. Other cruise lines we could be in our cabin until 9:00. We did not know about the vacated time until after we choose our disembarkation group at 10:00. Needless to say if we would have known about the cabins being vacated at 8:00 we would have choose an earlier disembarkation time.

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I've never thought the time to be an issue. It was 8 a.m. on my recent Emerald Princess cruise. In terms of the crew, what they have to do on turn around day, 9 a.m. isn't fair to them. Princess isn't RCI, you can get in your cabin as soon as you board.

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Just off the Caribbean Princess--we were asked to be out by 8:00. The intent is that the crew can get the cabins ready for the next guests. It is MUCH easier if they can prop all the door open, which they are not permitted to do if there are personal belongings in the room. And we all appreciate having the cabins available on embarkation.

 

On this cruise, people could be seated for breakfast until 8:30 and sit to continue eating till 9:00.

 

On Disney, regular cabins are 8:00, suites and concierge cabins are 9:00 . They ask that everyone be off the ship by 9, and at 9:15, start the "sweep: to remove any remaining passengers. And they don't have cabins ready when you board.

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It's always been 8am from what I remember. Seeing as I'm a coffee addict I always pack Starbucks "shots," for the final morning as I like coffee as soon as I wake up.

When boarding, we've always gone right to our room which is ready. Usually about 11 to 12.

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It has been 8 am since we have been cruising with Princess. It allows the cabin steward to have the cabin ready for the next passenger when they board. If you choose a later disembarkation you can be seated in the dining room as late as 8:30 and linger there until 9:30 ish without a problem. By then, most passengers have disembarked and there are plenty of places to relax.

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Princess has the rooms ready when we board at 11:30am or so. To do that they need us out at the end so they can get the cabin ready for the next group. The cabin steward has always taken great care of us, so I don't mind getting out to help them.

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The earlier clearing of the cabins is the trade off for being able to get into your cabin at an earlier time on embarkation. Personally I think it is a good trade and am usually ready to head out quickly after breakfast.

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It's been 8am since I started cruising.

 

We leave the cabin at 8am, go to the MDR for a leisurely breakfast, then wait in the designated lounge or the Platinum lounge until our disembarkation group is called - we always choose a late disembarkation time.

 

This worked very well for us yesterday when we disembarked from Diamond in Yokohama - the traffic was reasonably light so the taxi to our Tokyo hotel was cheaper than expected.

 

I'd much rather have early access to my cabin when boarding my cruise than a later time to leave the cabin on disembarkation day.

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Like the other posters, it has always been 8 AM on all the Princess ships we have sailed. They need the rooms vacated so that the stewards can completely clean the cabins and get them ready for the next cruise pax. We vacate the cabin and go to the MDR for a nice breakfast before departing the ship.

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We started cruising in 1992 and even then we had to vacate our cabin by 8:00 am.

Remember how clean and sparkling the ship and your cabin seemed when you boarded? Well, there's no magic wand that made it that way. Every crew member is cleaning, polishing, and changing linens, so the least we can do is stay out of their way.

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We don't really mind the 8:00 AM vacating time. We disembarked on April 1 and selected the latest disembarkation time. We had a leisurely breakfast and then made our way to our disembarkation lounge. We were offered either Wheelhouse or Club Fusion. We went to Club Fusion where there was plenty of room and we took a table in the corner. There was coffee, water, tea, and juice available. I had 2 splits of champagne I had snagged the night before and kept in the refrigerator in the room. I grabbed 2 empty glasses and a third one that I filled with Orange Juice and we enjoyed a couple of Mimosas each while waiting to be called. As we were in the last group to disembark there was no issue with crowds. In return our cabin is ready when we embark. It seemed quite a civilized way to handle things. The airport on the other hand... That was miserable. Airlines are evil.

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It is MUCH easier if they can prop all the door open' date=' which they are not permitted to do if there are personal belongings in the room.[/quote']

 

I have left my stuff in the cabin, come back (before 8:00 am) and found the door propped-open, and the steward

no where in sight.

 

Now I just take my stuff and walk off.

 

Less risk.

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I can't remember ever being able to stay in our cabin later than 8:00 a.m. on any cruise line. No matter how early we leave, we take everything with us because I'd rather roll my carry-on with me than attempt to get back to the cabin later. Our preferred breakfast on disembarkation day is the MDR where we can enjoy a leisurely meal.

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What happens to people who are on back to back cruises and staying in the same cabin? In our case, we have a Princess tour set for 12:30 while in Whittier.

 

Since we are in the same cabin, we will be leaving all clothes etc. in the room. Expect that we will have to follow the procedure to get off the ship, wait and back on with new cards etc. and then go to area to wait for our tour or meet on shore.

 

We totally understand the 8:00 timeframe as the room stewards have a lot to do on the last day of a cruise.

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What happens to people who are on back to back cruises and staying in the same cabin? In our case, we have a Princess tour set for 12:30 while in Whittier.

 

Since we are in the same cabin, we will be leaving all clothes etc. in the room. Expect that we will have to follow the procedure to get off the ship, wait and back on with new cards etc. and then go to area to wait for our tour or meet on shore.

 

We totally understand the 8:00 timeframe as the room stewards have a lot to do on the last day of a cruise.

If you are on a b2b you do not have to leave your cabin by 8am. The cabin steward will clean your cabin in the normal manner just like any other day, and you will have access to your cabin and belongings at any time. However, and this is very important. Since you are doing a turnaround at a U.S. port you will be required by law to go through immigration. There will be instructions in your cabin regarding the procedure. Read it and follow it exactly. It will give you two choices, 1) exit the ship at anytime, re-board after general boarding has begun. You will not be able to do this as you must be back on the ship before 12:30. The 2nd choice is to meet a staff member on the ship at a specific time and location. Once everyone is there you are walked through immigration and back on the ship, where you can return to your cabin and prepare for your tour. Again the most important thing is to fully read and follow the instructions. You may or may not receive new cruise cards in your cabin the night before. Sometimes they use the same cruise card, sometimes they don't.

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If you are on a b2b you do not have to leave your cabin by 8am. The cabin steward will clean your cabin in the normal manner just like any other day, and you will have access to your cabin and belongings at any time. However, and this is very important. Since you are doing a turnaround at a U.S. port you will be required by law to go through immigration..

 

This is not true of the turnaround is in Whittier, AK on a B2B in Alaska. You go through Customs/Immigration in Vancouver and then you are in US the entire time until you hit Vancouver again. There are no customs/immigrations in Whittier. This is assuming you do a Vancouver to Whittier to Vancouver cruise.

 

If you do a turnaround in Whittier, there will be instructions on getting your picture for your new cruise card. You normally just meet at a certain point near the gangway and they will retake your picture. If you leave for the day for a tour that is fine also. They will get your picture when you return. You will have an intransit card. They send instructions with options.

 

Gran2five - you will not have to leave your cabin. Just tell your room steward your plans. He will probably touch base with you when he is told you are on the next sailing.

Edited by Coral
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What happens to people who are on back to back cruises and staying in the same cabin? In our case, we have a Princess tour set for 12:30 while in Whittier.

 

Since we are in the same cabin, we will be leaving all clothes etc. in the room. Expect that we will have to follow the procedure to get off the ship, wait and back on with new cards etc. and then go to area to wait for our tour or meet on shore.

 

We totally understand the 8:00 timeframe as the room stewards have a lot to do on the last day of a cruise.

My experience with B2B cruises is that the regulations change from one port to another and sometimes from one year to another at the same port.

 

You do not have to vacate your room at any specified time, but remember that breakfast service hours are limited on the changeover day. Our experience has been that whether we are "walked off" by a crew member or just instructed to do it on our own has depended on how many people have booked B2B cruises. When there is a group of 20 or more, you are usually given a time (typically 10) to meet at a location. A crew member then escorted us off the ship, thru Customs, and back on. This has happened at US ports as well as in Barcelona. I do understand that no one clears Customs at Whittier, so this wouldn't be necessary. On some B2Bs, we have been given cruise cards that were good for the entire B2B; other times we had to go to Passenger Services to pick up new cards.

 

The one thing that has been consistent across all ports has been that we received an instruction sheet the day before the changeover. This detailed exactly what would be necessary. Just follow the instructions. They are usually pretty minimal!

 

Your room will be cleaned as on any other day. We have sometimes suggested to our steward that he should skip our room on that day since he is so busy; somehow they always do our room regardless.

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