Embarkation time for Koningsdam out of Amsterdam?

We're sailing on Koningsdam out of Amsterdam next month. I am always a big proponent of getting to the terminal early and being on the ship no later than noon (it helps that we're Elite on Celebrity, obviously). However, we're only 2* on HAL and I recall reading a review saying that they were unable to board until 1pm, which is what my boarding pass says (and which I normally ignore). When we sailed Eurodam out of Port Everglades last year, we had to wait for over an hour to board and I''m trying to avoid that experience this time. I was thinking of leaving for the terminal around noon but someone I hoped to share a taxi with (they're staying at our hotel) wants to be there earlier, by 11:30.

So.. are we likely to get onto the ship before 1pm? Will we have a long wait if we get to the port at 11:30?

Koningsdam (unlike the other ships in the fleet)has been doing a staggered boarding since it joined the fleet, but the consistency of enforcement has been unclear. Your email says 1pm, not a time for each deck?

If it doesn't have a time to board for each deck, then perhaps they aren't doing the staggered boarding time. In that case, they have reverted to the policy on the other ships- boarding starts at 11:30, or very close.

No one is going to be able to tell you how much time it will take or what the lines will be like. That varies by each time they board a ship.

Koningsdam (unlike the other ships in the fleet)has been doing a staggered boarding since it joined the fleet, but the consistency of enforcement has been unclear. Your email says 1pm, not a time for each deck?

I don't have an email since we're 4 weeks away. The boarding pass says 1pm.

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I don't have an email since we're 4 weeks away. The boarding pass says 1pm.

 

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You should get an email in the next week or so that will likely suggest that you board at a certain time, and it will explain deck by deck boarding. As mentioned here frequently, these are only suggestions.

May I please ask a slightly different question: does anyone know what is the earliest time it's likely to be possible to drop off bags?

The people who I'm asking this for don't mind if they have to wait in the terminal before they can actually check in, or to wait there before they can board. But they have nowhere comfortable to wait before they get to the cruise terminal, and so they are keen to be able to get rid of their big bags when they get there and to do so as soon as possible.

Thanks!

May I please ask a slightly different question: does anyone know what is the earliest time it's likely to be possible to drop off bags?

What port? We've dropped bags off as early as 10:00 at FLL.

Given the thread title, I'm guessing Amsterdam. :halo:

Given the thread title, I'm guessing Amsterdam. :halo:

13:00 pm - Deck 7 & Deck 8 (Schubert & Navigation)

13:30 pm- Deck 4 & Deck 10 (Beethoven & Panorama)

14:00 pm - Deck 5 & Deck 11 (Gershwin & Sun)

14:30 pm - Deck 6 (Mozart)

15:30 pm - Deck 1 (Main)

We took the Koningsdam out of Amsterdam in 2016 and we were able to start checkin at 11:00. It was slightly easier for us because we were staying at the Movenpick (the hotel connected to the cruise terminal) so we dropped off our luggage with the HAL representative in the hotel lobby, but we saw other passengers with luggage checking in as early as 11:00. And HAL doesn’t enforce the checkin times. If you get there earlier than your designated time, they’ll just put you in the next available boarding group after Suite guests and 4/5 Star Mariners. It was a pretty efficient process and we didn’t have to wait long. They usually start general boarding by noon.[emoji483]

What port? We've dropped bags off as early as 10:00 at FLL.

Given the thread title, I'm guessing Amsterdam. :halo:

Maybe, and maybe not. That's why I asked.

We took the Koningsdam out of Amsterdam in 2016 and we were able to start checkin at 11:00. It was slightly easier for us because we were staying at the Movenpick (the hotel connected to the cruise terminal) so we dropped off our luggage with the HAL representative in the hotel lobby ...

If they could leave it with the HAL rep in the lobby, then I was thinking that they might also be able to find a comfortable place in the public areas of the hotel in which to wait, and to get some refreshment too.

It is indeed about the Koningsdam at Amsterdam - it's why I picked this thread to ask the question on!

 

 

 

Now that's given me an idea: If you have enough chutzpah, could you do this even if you're not actually staying at the Movenpick?

 

 

 

If they could leave it with the HAL rep in the lobby, then I was thinking that they might also be able to find a comfortable place in the public areas of the hotel in which to wait, and to get some refreshment too.

LOL! Funny you should say that because that’s exactly what we did. Even though we were staying at the Movenpick for our three days in Amsterdam, we did not book it through HAL and we did not arrange for any pre-cruise transfers. But my sister did. So when she took her luggage to the lobby, I followed her with ours, and I was very honest with the porter who took her luggage that I didn’t arrange for luggage transfer but asked if would he take it. He said “no problem” and he even had me wheel it to the loading dock with him (his hands were full) to assure me that my luggage was being put with all the other HAL luggage going on the Koningsdam. The loading dock was literally just outside the door off the hotel lobby. I gave him a nice tip and we went to breakfast at the Movenpick cafe and saw our luggage in our cabin later that afternoon. It was great! Just be sure to have your cruise tags on your luggage and I’m sure you’ll be fine. Worst case, they say no, and you wheel it next door to the cruise terminal (it really is very close) and drop it off there. I’ll add that the lobby of the Movenpick is very busy on embarkation day so no one knows who was staying at the hotel and who was not.

LOL! Funny you should say that because that’s exactly what we did. Even though we were staying at the Movenpick for our three days in Amsterdam, we did not book it through HAL and we did not arrange for any pre-cruise transfers. But my sister did.

Sorry, but did you say that your sister paid for transfers from the Movenpick from the cruise port that is literally next door? Did they at least pick her up in a golf cart and drive her over?

BTW a related question for a fellow cruiser on our cruise out of Amsterdam next week. He's arriving at Schipol at 7:30am and purchased HAL transfers. What time will they take the over to the terminal? I'm guessing that they will make them wait at the airport until 10 or so so they're not sitting at the terminal for hours before they start checking people in. Also, what time will they take luggage at the terminal?

Sorry, but did you say that your sister paid for transfers from the Movenpick from the cruise port that is literally next door? Did they at least pick her up in a golf cart and drive her over?

Sorry, I guess my story was misleading. My sister booked her air through HAL and the pre-cruise hotel package for two nights in Amsterdam. The package included all transfers from the airport, two nights at the Movenpick w/breakfast, and luggage drop off at the Movenpick on embarkation day. We didn’t book air or the hotel through HAL because we had enough CC points to cover that portion of our trip. So since we didn’t book the hotel through HAL, they wouldn’t let us book the transfers through them.

So, we are on Kdam, just boarded to say. We got to the port at 11:30. We had a 15 minute wait to check in, and were put in group 10. When we got to the boarding waiting area, they were up to group 7. We were called by 12:15 and were on the ship by 12:30 (after a wait at security). No one questioned our boarding time, which was 1pm. Also, we never got the email telling us what time to show up. Between the boarding experience and the cheap Uber ride from our hotel, it was surprisingly pleasant.

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