Back on board time?

Hi, I couldn't find this info on the HAL website or the CC HAL for dummies thread.

How long ahead of the time on the cruise itinerary do we need to be back on board? The Noordam will be in Ketchikan from 11am-7pm per the itinerary for our cruise in June. If I schedule the George Inlet Lodge Crab Feast directly, not through HAL, for 4-6:30, am I pushing it? Of course I'd have to worry about some sort of unforeseen delay getting back to the ship. And we'd rather not have such a huge meal for lunch.

I considered going to the Alaska Fish House for dungeness instead, but reviews say the lines could be long, waiting for a table could be long, and food coming out could take long. So I figured George Inlet cuts out a lot of that waiting...I'd rather spend time moving. And booking direct through them costs less--all the HAL excursions with this feast are combined with something else, and at a huge upcharge (around $60+ extra total) when I calculate excursions separately.

I wouldn't chance it on a non-HAL excursion. Back on board time is usually 30 min before departure.

If I even considered cutting it close by a half hour DH would have a heart attack. I would be considering how far George Inlet is from the ship. We always are back to the ship - or within sight of it an hour before sailaway. A good idea is to take a picture of the times posted at the end of the gangway as you disembark the ship. My choice would be to go for the safe meal - on a HAL excursion, even though it would cost more money.

Having a private excursion end when you are suppose to be back on the ship is way too risky for me.

We always make certain that we back at least one hour before the ship sails.

I agree with everyone above. We were on a HAL tour that returned 30 minutes late and, thankfully, the ship waited. I would have been stressed beyond belief it it hadn't been a ship tour.

Keep in mind that the all aboard time is usually early than that which is listed on the itinerary. Typically you need to be back onboard 30 minutes before the stated sailing time. My rule of thumb is to be back two hours before sailing or one hour before if I'm within eyesight of the ship. I just like to play it safe.

Doing this particular excursion thru the ship will cost far less than missing sail away. I do most things privately, but wouldn’t chance this one.

Thank you all for your experienced advice! I will definitely either have us book through HAL, or book the feast for lunch time instead. I agree the cost of "missing the boat" would be much greater than the savings we may have had. I'll pay a little extra to not be stressed on vacation.

 

How long does it usually take to leave the ship at ports? And how long does it usually take to get back on? Long lines both ways?

How long does it usually take to leave the ship at ports? And how long does it usually take to get back on? Long lines both ways?

For non-tender ports, if you relax in your cabin until they announce that the gangway is open you can usually go down and be off the ship in 5 minutes or so. For reboarding (again in non-tender ports) the only times that I recall seeing a line of more than about 8>10 people was when sudden rain sent many people scurrying back to the ship at once.

 

For tender ports, with no priority, it can take up to 30>40 minutes each way.

 

edit: if you're in a port that requires that you take a shuttle bus from the ship to a terminal building or "downtown" area, or returning from an excursion on a bus, you could be at the end of the bus-load line.

Edited March 22, 2018 by catl331

For non-tender ports, if you relax in your cabin until they announce that the gangway is open you can usually go down and be off the ship in 5 minutes or so. For reboarding (again in non-tender ports) the only times that I recall seeing a line of more than about 8>10 people was when sudden rain sent many people scurrying back to the ship at once.

 

For tender ports, with no priority, it can take up to 30>40 minutes each way.

 

The only times I've seen a long line for reboarding has been when a bunch of tours returned at the same time.

The only times I've seen a long line for reboarding has been when a bunch of tours returned at the same time.

I just edited to add that thought, probably as you were typing. :)

We aren't tendering during our Alaska cruise. So sounds like it'll be easy in and out. Many thanks for the helpful replies! I try to be well-informed. These boards are one part of today's technology that I really like on that note! :-)

Great idea to snap a photo on our way out to remember the timing! We're less than 3 months out, so I'm filing all these tips into my digital notepad!