Back-to-back on same ship

We are considering doing back-to-back cruises on the same ship. Our cabin number may or may not be the same.

Will we have to disembark at the end of the first cruise and go through the embarkation process again?

D.

We have done several B to B cruises and never had to disembark between cruises. We did have to change cabins once and the cabin steward helped us move our stufff with a luggage cart. They do however prefer to not change your cabin as it is a lot of work for everone. Good Luck, I think that it will be fine. Have a great time.

Dee

I think it may depend on where the last port is on the first cruise.

We did a B2B this year 1st ending in LA...we had to go through immigration on the ship then disembark for at least an hour.... but we went sight seeing anyway so no big deal

when we returned to the ship we just went onboard, no check in only at the gangway.

We did a B2B in Europe and just got off/on when we wanted.

We had the same cabin for both cruises. so didn't need to move our stuff.

We have also done quite a few back-to-back cruises. We book far enough in advance that we have the same cabin.

In San Diego we have never had to get off the ship or go through either immigration or customs at the end of the first cruise.

But in Ft lauderdale we always have to go through customs. HAL changed the way they do things a couple of years because of all the security rules. Intransit passengers are the last to be called to get off the ship and go through immigration in the terminal. Then we have the choice of waiting till the ship is completely cleared to get back on or we can go off on a tour of our own. If you chose to leave the terminal and go out on your own, then you will also have to go through customs. There have been times when we got back on the ship within 15 minutes and times when we had to wait for over an hour before the ship was completely cleared and we could get back on.

One special perk of back to back cruises on some ships is an almost private luncheon in main dining room which is locked to those newly boarding the ship (they must use the buffet).

Thanks, everyone!

D.

Slightly OT but a question for the OP - do you get the exact same itinerary both times? Are the meals the same (which you can probably answer after the cruise)?

Slightly OT but a question for the OP - do you get the exact same itinerary both times? Are the meals the same (which you can probably answer after the cruise)?

Yes..same itenerary. We haven't booked the back-to-back yet.

D.

We will be doing a B2B at Venice in October. Thank you for bringing up this topic as it has never entered my mind that we might have to wait before leaving the ship. As we are planning our 3 days now it certainly will come in handy.

I will schedule things within Venice for that day and will ask about our return to the ship on the final day.

Fran

We are considering doing back-to-back cruises on the same ship. Our cabin number may or may not be the same.

 

Will we have to disembark at the end of the first cruise and go through the embarkation process again?

 

D.

Check out some other questions and answers on the same subject:

Back 2 Back Cruise Questions

Enjoy! :)

Pete

Have you guys done a back to back out of Galveston?? Our first one ever is coming up in April next year and wondering how RC and that particular port handles the b2b??

Pete

Maybe you have taken a cruise on a b2b out of Galveston........I know you are scheduled for one about 2 months before we do the same thing.

Have you heard anything how Galveston will handle the b2b process?

Thanks

Pete

 

Maybe you have taken a cruise on a b2b out of Galveston........I know you are scheduled for one about 2 months before we do the same thing.

 

Have you heard anything how Galveston will handle the b2b process?

 

Thanks

Just a few post down on this thread there is a link to the other B2B thread that I commented on about how Rhapsody and Splendour handled us. We've done five pairs of B2Bs and they have all been slightly different to the sharp mind but for all practical purposes the important stuff was exactly the same. I've read a lot of comments that differ from our expirence but I think most of that was due to customs and immigration individuals - not RCI and not rules.

Yea I read that.......but I think all of them are slightly different........where to meet, how to clear customs etc.......I just hope we don't have to get up at the crack of dawn. Also not sure when you get your new seapass card..........of course since the Voyager isn't even in Galveston yet.......nobody knows the ins of that process with that ship and port.

I expect a full report when you get back before we sail:D

Yea I read that.......but I think all of them are slightly different........where to meet, how to clear customs etc.......I just hope we don't have to get up at the crack of dawn. Also not sure when you get your new seapass card..........of course since the Voyager isn't even in Galveston yet.......nobody knows the ins of that process with that ship and port.

 

I expect a full report when you get back before we sail:D

The Guest Relations Manager will send you a letter sometime before the last night outlining how it happens. You'll get the new seapass when you meet the morning of the changeover. You will not need to get up at the crack of dawn! Promise :) The GRM will likely be the Splendour GRM that handled our last B2B (according to him) He is great but all of them go to the same school for handling B2Bs. Customs regs treat a B2B as one voyage so you clear customs at the end of the two cruises. You just "present yourself to imigration" with proof of citizenship for the stopover between the cruises. It takes about five minutes and either cuts in the middle of the lines (if they take too long) or waits until everyone leaves the ship (about 9:30-10:00) and then you martch thru with your smile and pass port. After you go by immigration you are free to do what you wish for the rest of the day. You just go right back up the stairs when you are ready to board and get your new picture when you re-board.

The most important thing you need to do is let Guest Relations re-swip your credit card on the next day. Otherwise your account will revert to a cash account and when / if you reach $500 you will be cut off and told to go to the GR desk. It's rather rude and embarrasing.

WEll the nice thing is we have the same aft cabin jr. suite for both legs of the b2b so we don't have to move cabins. I meant immigration and not customs......but are your custom limits doubled for a back to back or is it the same limits as one 7 day cruise?????

Also when you did yours on the Splendour did you have free reign of the ship or were any areas off limits?? Sorry for all the questions but this will be our first b2b and we are really looking forward to it.

WEll the nice thing is we have the same aft cabin jr. suite for both legs of the b2b so we don't have to move cabins. I meant immigration and not customs......but are your custom limits doubled for a back to back or is it the same limits as one 7 day cruise?????

 

Also when you did yours on the Splendour did you have free reign of the ship or were any areas off limits?? Sorry for all the questions but this will be our first b2b and we are really looking forward to it.

Don't be sorry at all.....it brings back such good memories and we are just as excited about our next B2B as you are. :D

It is great not to move but even if you do it is just so easy.....Customs treats your B2B as one voyage meaning the limits do not double. Over the years (flying lots and cruiseing 5 B2Bs) I've tried to get 'em to do just that. The answer is always the same. To be two voyages and count double limits you have to stay in the country 48 hours. So, a B2B doesn't count. I use to fly between the Bahamas and FLL three times a week end hauling live bait to private boats in the islands. They always wanted me to bring back "bargins" and customs had a fit every time.

About the ship....we learned how to come and go from the cabin. Nothing was "off limits" but with lots of cleaning going on we tried to stay out of the way. One time one of the pools was empty so we didn't use it :p

The best time was on Rhapsody - they had a lunch for us in the upstairs dinning room. We ate with almost all of the senior officers and basically had a social hour that lasted nearly three hours. That was an exception but with a large ship like Voyager it seems to be more likely.

ooooohhhhh that lunch with the sr officers sounds nice.......but I won't count on it:) Thanks for the explanation on the customs......makes sense......not that we ever buy anything anyway.....LOL........

We are just looking forward to a leisurly breakfast in the dining room instead of the Windjammer and not at 6am:eek: Then after getting our new seapass card and clearing immigration........we will probably just go to the solarium and RELAX.....and watch all the new cruisers come on board once they begin the boarding process........

It must be a strange feeling not to have your luggage sitting out on the last night of the first leg of the b2b........everyone is sad and you still have a smile on your face:)

Appreciate the info.....check this thread from time to time in case I have more questions or in case either of us find out more information.

Thanks

My pleasure! It is a very special feeling when you don't put your bags out. It is also great when the dinning room staff finds out you are back to back. The breakfast is fun to when you just walk in without dragging a bag. Of course you know you can do that on your last day too. Your cabin attendant will allow you to leave your stuff in the cabin and use it as long as you need it. I usually tell 'em to go ahead and make up the bed if they want to. You start to feel like it's your ship after a while.

I'll post the Voyager way as soon as we return in February.

Also, if you have anything you'd like to email I do have a V-card in the user profile. Please drop us a line.

Thanks Pete........we'll definetly stay in touch...........;)

We did a B2B on Splendour last month from Venice. There was no need to get off the ship although we did. We had new cards for the second week and each week was charged seperately to our CC. Gratuties were also charged a week at a time.

When we came back to the ship the fire doors leading to passages to the cabins were all closed but when we said we were B2Bers we were allowed to go to our cabin. There was a lunch for us in the dining room which avoided the scrum of the buffet with all the new folks.

I don't know if it was because we were B2B but we and the other 3 couples who were invited to dinner at the Captain's table were all B2B.

Only downside was the shows were the same each week. The menus were too but there was a wide enough choice.

We did a B2B on Splendour last month from Venice. There was no need to get off the ship although we did. We had new cards for the second week and each week was charged seperately to our CC. Gratuties were also charged a week at a time.

When we came back to the ship the fire doors leading to passages to the cabins were all closed but when we said we were B2Bers we were allowed to go to our cabin. There was a lunch for us in the dining room which avoided the scrum of the buffet with all the new folks.

I don't know if it was because we were B2B but we and the other 3 couples who were invited to dinner at the Captain's table were all B2B.

Only downside was the shows were the same each week. The menus were too but there was a wide enough choice.

Splendour seems to always do it right. :)

Pete

Read your previous posts via your link and would like to thank you for all the good info you posted.

Our first B2B was on the Radiance out of Miami and we were taken to immigration as a group when everyone else had disembarked, it was very quick and smooth. Our upcoming one will be in Hong Kong on the Rhapsody, it will be interesting to note the differences.

Pete

Read your previous posts via your link and would like to thank you for all the good info you posted.

 

Our first B2B was on the Radiance out of Miami and we were taken to immigration as a group when everyone else had disembarked, it was very quick and smooth. Our upcoming one will be in Hong Kong on the Rhapsody, it will be interesting to note the differences.

It is my pleasure! :) Rhapsody is one of our favorite ships. It will be interesting how they handle the Asian market. I heard from one of the RCI officers in the advanced party to the Asian ports that the relationship with the local officials and all of the "pre" meetings were very positive and easy to get along with. Seems that they did not run into any tough compliance issues. I suspect that everything will be smooth and easy. :)

On Enchantment, we were SUPPOSED to get our new seapass cards in our cabin and they were SUPPOSED to be linked to our Credit card from the first week! NOT and NOT!

We were escorted off the ship, (6 all together)...customs looked at our passports for 2 seconds, and we were back on the ship. We changed cabins (had an Aft JS over the spotlight lounge.....SUPER noisy. If you attend karaoke or are a partier, etc, it's OK. SUPER vibration too! :eek: BLECH.

The cabin attendant did move our stuff for us....only packed the non-hanging stuff.......she moved all the rest on the hangers.

we did get the letter, just nothing happened according to the letter.....

We LOVED our table AND servers...and the maitre d recognized me from Serenade in 2006..SO.....he rearranged sections and staf and we got our same table AND same staff in the DR. The meals were the same, but sometimes we switched what we wanted. Really, the DR staff was the reason we didn't cancel the second half. We HATED our cabin the 1st half, the guest relations people, save for the manager, were rude, tendering was a mess.....(no one told us there were steps to the tender, and they said that there was no other way...get serious...how do wheelchair-bound people get on???)

anyway...B2Bs are fun, just don't expect the letter to march what actually happens. WHen i went to get ice cream and my acount reverted to cash after i used up my OBC from RC Customer service, the GR people told me to go get my CC. I said No...the letter from so and so says this, and you will deal with it...i will not be inconvenienced and my ice cream is melting.

30 seconds later, the GR people call Ben & jerry's and the gal there said it was all fixed. go figure!