Review of new "expdited" departure in Vancouver

Ok.....I just got back from Vancouver yesterday. Took a cruise aboard Radiance of the Seas, and participated in the new "expedited" check-in process from ship back to airport in YVR. Since this is a relatively new service, I thought some of you might be interested in the particulars

In my humble opinion, this process is a bust and a scam. The only saving grace was that you truly don't have to mess with your luggage upon debarkation because once they pick them up from your cabin door the last night of the cruise, you don't see them again until baggage claim at your destination airport. Well, and that's the best case scenario. My flight was a non-stop flight from YVR to ATL and I got my bags just fine. My sister and family were on same flight but connected in ATL with flight to FLL and as of this morning, still no bags.... . At least this was on the return portion of trip and I don't suppose that matters much.

Now.....as far as this "expedited process", my personal review is that it is a way to get an additional $15 to $20 bucks out of you, plus cost of their own transfers. First of all, the RCCL documentation describes the new process available only to passengers who purchase RCCL transfers. The documentation does not disclose that there is an additional cost on top of the transfers. I'm typically against piling into a big bus full of people to get anywhere so I don't usually buy cruise line transfers. After further consideration and in anticipation of a truly unique and simplified immigration/customs clearing process (as described both in the cruise documents and in the YVR airport website) I bought the transfers. When I got on the ship, I found out that there was an additional cost of $20 per person for this expedited process, and that it WAS NOT MANDATORY to use cruise line transfers. Imagine my bewilderment at this point since I thought that it made perfect sense to be in a "confined or sterile" environment from the ship (cleared by US already) to the airport (beyond US border control) without ever entering Canadian space which was the point of this whole process (or so I thought).

Now on to reality. The second day of the cruise, we had to fill out a bunch of forms with flight numbers, number of checked pieces of luggage (you could not change your mind about the number of pieces after that time), as well as other details. The morning of arrival, all passengers participating in this program were asked to be in a specified lounge at the crack of dawn (7am sharp). Here, we stood in huge lines in order to get our airline boarding passes, our final bag claim tags, a "sterile" card (which we never had to show anyone and if you keep reading you'll see why), Canadian customs forms , as well as US customs forms etc. So, if you'll follow what we've done so far, we've stood in a huge line to get our boarding passes, just like we would have at the airport during regular check-in (in fact, since I was traveling in first class, the airport special check-in desk would have been the way to go with much shorter lines). But that aside, so far the net/net is zero benefit from the process at this point. Then off to debarkation, which begins with the people participating in this process. As we exited the ship, we had to go through Canadian Customs (which explains why we got the form to begin with, but I thought the whole point of this process was to remain "sterile" from ship to beyond US border control at airport to avoid all this stuff). Then we got stuffed in the big bus and set off on the approx 35 minute ride to the airport. Upon arrival, all the buses carrying passengers participating in this program are pulled aside to a remote location and boarded by security personnel who proceed to check everyone's passports, boarding passes, and other travel documentation (????? did I miss something here....isn't the point of this program to skip all this???). After the buses are cleared, they drop you off at a specified area of the airport terminal. Here, the first thing you do is go through security screening (x-ray bags, metal detectors, etc). Huge lines here as a result of only two machines, and participating passengers from three ships arriving at the same time (Coral Princess, Radiance of the Seas, and Zaandam were all there at the same time). Upon clearing that, you guessed it, US Customs!!! Again, two officers for all these people so do the math.

In my mind, this explains why you could have participated in this program (with the benefit of not having to deal with your bags) and NOT have to take cruise line transfers since we basically went through the same steps as having entered Canada even if just for making our own way to the airport.

Bottom line, if not dealing with your bags until you get home is worth the additional money (and potentially the longer lines if you're traveling in first class or have elite status with your airline), then this program is for you. If what you're looking for is the experience described in your cruise documents and outlined in the YVR airport website, run the other way!!!!!

Happy cruising!!!

thank you so much for an honest assesment of the new process. i can truly say that i love vancouver and cant wait to go back again for a vacation , but yvr is horrid. it is the worst time consuming cattle car airport i have every had to deal with. we flew into and out of seattle to avoid it all together this cruise. i was on the glacier bay carnival cruise the middle of may and they did not offer this service to my knowledge. in any case, i personally want to be in total controll of my luggage on my own and from the sounds of it i would also be saving money. i hope they get the bugs fixed soon. as with the new system at canadian place with immigration and security, there are many problems and VERY long waits. i could not beleive how long it took to board the ship this time--3 1/2 hrs :mad: . and we only were seated for about 15 minutes of that time. we can only hope that it will all get settled down soon for both new procedures.

We had a much better experience with the program last fall. I'm at my happiest when I don't have to schelp a lot of luggage around, so I was quite happy to pay $15 not to have to drag it all over the airport.

We didn't know about the program before boarding, so we hadn't purchased the RCCL transfers. We knew we would be checking the same bags w/the airport that we checked on the way up, so filling the paperwork out in advance was easy. There was no mention of special customs clearance or anything of the sort that we saw.

The one thing I will do differently next time is not stress about arriving at the appointed place right at 7:00 am. It took them 15 minutes just to set up, then they called people to pick up their boarding passes and luggage receipts in order: RCI bus transfers first, then morning flights, then afternoon flights. Because we had a 1:30 flight, we decided to get breakfast and return at 8:15, when they were just calling us. So next time I'll just go to breakfast first and get there when I get there.

We could have disembarked immediately, but chose to linger in Chops (Platinum lounge) instead. As a result, the line to clear Canadian customs was fairly long, but it moved, and we didn't have to push a cart full of luggage in front of us. We didn't have any trouble getting a cab right away - must have been good karma.

Since we don't fly first class or have elite status, we would have had to stand in a long line to check in at the airport, so we bypassed one long line. We went the normal route through US Customs and security. It worked really well for us, and I would do it again in a heartbeat. Actually, I would plan on an even later flight - without any luggage we'll be able to wander around Vancouver for the day!

I don't really understand why you'd think you wouldn't have to clear Canadian customs and immigration even if you're just going to the airport to fly back to the US. If I as a Canadian, got off the ship in Miami and directly on to a transfer to the airport from which I would be flying directly home to Canada, do you think US customs and immigration would allow me such a liberty? I can tell you they absolutely do not - nor should they. Why would Canadian c & i be any different? Not trying to be crabby - maybe I just don't understand what you were trying to say.:confused:

Personally, I feel the new system is nothing more than an attempt(!!) to make the debarkation process more simple for the passengers in that they don't have to pick up luggage or look for a cab. We'll have to wait and see if they can work out the bugs.

Nice read, thanks.

I too agree with your comments and think this is just another way for RCI/CEL to gain more revenue. I have passed your comments along to my sales manager at my agency.

Regards