Pier Runners - tell us about your close calls

[MacBrokefoot]

We've all seen the videos on You Tube, or have witnessed the real thing from both points of view. So tell us your story - why were you late? did you make it? what happened? Witness a great Pier Run, tell us about it.

 

Pier Running has to be one of those times when you say to yourself - "One day we'll look back and laugh about this!" :D

[mavis2222]

I witnessed it on the Miracle over Thanksgiving 2009 when leaving St Marteen. A group in a van came back late about 40 minutes. I guess it was a carnival tour since the ship waited.

 

Its ironic how all the people yelling at these people from the decks and balconys telling the ship to "leave them" and acted liked they were all pissed off or somthing. Like it was effecting there vacation..They wont miss any meals or sleep over it. The next port was right around the corner. I could of swam there quicker.

[vacruizer]

Our first cruise was on the Miracle in 2006. I had done my research here but had to really work to convince dh it was safe to take an independent tour. Our first port was Grand Cayman. We were so excited - neither one of us had ever been out of the U.S. before. We booked the stingrays and rum point tour with a company very highly recommended here on CC.

 

I should have known something wasn't right when we got to the pier at the designated time, found the owner, and still waited another hour before we departed. Several of us talked to the owner making sure he knew our last tender time and compared our watches on ship time to his. He said no problem - you'll be back with at least an hour to shop. Seems we were waiting for the rest of tour which was coming from the Valor who came into port 2 hours later than we did.

 

The tour was wonderful. Our guides were great and the stingrays an incredible experience. Rum Point is one of the world's beautiful beaches. By the time we were at Rum Point, it was 1pm by our watches and our last tender time was 3pm. We talked to the guides. "no problem - island time!" they said. We finally left Rum Point about 30 minutes after what had been announced for the boat ride back across the bay. After that, we knew we had about a 20 minute bus ride back to town and that Georgetown traffic could be messy.

 

At 20 minutes to our last tender time, we were still on the boat while we toured some canals looking at big houses and iguanas. I was starting to panic. Most of the tour was from the Valor and had two more hours so they were having a great time. By the time we got loaded on the bus and back to Georgetown, it was 2:55pm. We made the driver pull over near the tender pier instead of going to the lot we started at, grabbed our stuff and ran across traffic. We made one of the last couple of tenders. By the time we got to our room to put away stuff, the ship was already sailing early. :eek:

 

It was a pretty scary experience thinking we might miss the ship. I learned to be very careful with booking independent tours. This one was supposed to have beach time at 7 mile we never got to AND an hour of shopping back at the pier. I now make sure any independent tours arrive back at least 3 hours prior to the ship leaving. Otherwise I suck it up and do the ship tour.

[cmjb4ever]

On my first cruise, at our first port, several people were late. The ship kept making announcements and finally we started to push away from the dock. Just as we were spinning around to head out of the port, my husband and I watched several people running up to the dock and waving. It was obvious they had missed the ship. We didn't turn back- I think we had a far trip for the next port the next day. I ended up seeing them on the ship later in the cruise, so they must have caught up to us via plane or a small boat or something. I'm sure it was at their expense though.

[Electricflyer]

In 2005 on the Destiny at Aruba I watched a young man dragging 2 young ladies down the pier as they were getting ready to cast off. The girls were obviously drunk to their eyeballs after spending the day at Carlos & Charlies a block from the pier. This poor guy had his hands full. The girls just wanted to stop and wave at everyone on the ship, when all of people on the ship were trying to get them going. He was literally dragging them down the pier and the girls were oblivious to the need to get on the ship. Luckily the ship waited since they were in eyesight of the bridge but as soon as the last one put a foot on the ship they pulled the gangplank.

[MacBrokefoot]

Man, I cannot imagine standing on the pier and watching the ship pull away. Especially if they just cast off and are only mere feet away from you.

[mavis2222]

Now you see why the Carnival Tours cost more then the others?..The differance is the "insurance" you get in case there late getting back.

 

Carnival tours will wait for you.

 

Another one that was "close" to a close call..Cant really call it that though..

 

I was on the Ledgend in Martinique. We took a cab to a downtown spot to a ferry terminal, then took a boat to another remote island about 5 miles away I guess. Spent the day at the beach, then got on the boat and rode back. But the capt decided to help one of his fellow tenders by towing him to a remote spot in town to get repairs while our boat was still full of people. Of course we went at a snails pace the whole time, passing by the ship into town but had to go to the other side oppisate of ship to drop us off afterwards. After the tow, the Capt decided he would drop us off at the sea wall right in front of the ship which would be great.."Red carpet service", but that failed after 15 minutes when he realized the water was to rougth and then took us back to where the original dock was. I watched the ship "dissapier" in the distance.

For some reason we all decided to walk back to ship which wasnt to bad actually and made it about an hour before it left.

[lizpdfb]

This is why we bought our excursions through the cruise ship. After shelling out thousands for our family four for the cruise, an extra $50 to book through Carnival was not a big deal and a fair trade for peace of mind.

[salty dingo]

By the time we got loaded on the bus and back to Georgetown, it was 2:55pm. We made the driver pull over near the tender pier instead of going to the lot we started at, grabbed our stuff and ran across traffic. We made one of the last couple of tenders.

We had a similar late arrival to the tender pier at CG... but the line streched waaaay down the street! We checked the sign at the front of the line and it was indeed for our ship. So by the time we got to the front of the line it was nearly an hour AFTER the last tender was supposed to have departed. However, they do not stick to any sort of deadline if there are still people waiting in line. They stay until the last customer is served!

 

I have seen that sort of line on more than one cruise. If too many people wait until the last minute to return, naturally a big line forms and the ship is going to leave late. Just the way it is!

[scchasgal]

Our Dream cruise a couple of weeks back we had two folks miss the ship. A father and son got off the ship in port and mom and daughter stayed onboard. We kept hearing them get paged. At 1/2 an hour after we were suppose to leave we finally pushed off.

 

Departure time was suppose to be 3 pm and the father thought it was 5 pm.

[Tapi]

I've personally experienced it 2 times (both times excessive amounts of alcohol were involved). Just for the record, this was pre-wife and pre-kids :rolleyes:

 

1998 - Viking Serenade - Ensenada, MX

While partying at Carlos and Charlies we realized that it was 3:30pm and the ship was departing at 4pm. Our group (about 20 of us) RAN outside, split up, and grabbed any taxi that would take us back. I personally boarded the ship as they were starting to remove the chains on the railing. The ship departed shortly thereafter and it wasn't until all of us met up for dinner later that night that we learned that all of us had actually made it onboard.

 

2003 - Fascination - Cozumel, MX

Also involved another Carlos and Charlies. I was with friends, but for some reason, I thought it would be a good idea to stay behind to shop for presents for everybody back home while my fellow cruisers headed back to the ship. As I finished shopping, I realized that I didn't have any money, and I couldn't find an ATM. The taxi driver that I found wouldn't take me back to the ship unless I showed him the money first. By this time (close to 10 o'clock at night) the streets looked deserted. I started to panic, but finally found an ATM, withdrew enough Mexican pesos to pay the cab driver to take me all the way back to MIAMI, and finally made it onboard with a few minutes to spare.

 

Morale of the story: ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS, know what time it is and don't drink too much.

[Tapi]

This is why we bought our excursions through the cruise ship. After shelling out thousands for our family four for the cruise, an extra $50 to book through Carnival was not a big deal and a fair trade for peace of mind.

 

My wife ALWAYS wants me to book Carnival excursions. She says that the peace of mind alone is worth the extra money. PLUS, I know that I will NOT hear the end of it if we're left behind at some port of call because I was too cheap to book the excursion through Carnival.

[TracyL]

I had booked a fishing trip in Alaska for my husband and a couple of friends, there was a 4th man that joined their group. While they were fishing, we went shopping. I found an eternity ring that I wanted to buy, however, I didn't want to buy it until my husband returned (since it was such a large purchase) so that we could talk it over. The jewelry store told me they would size it and and let me wear it until my husband came back (they didn't even ask for ID, the ship I was on, or my credit card). I kept going down to the dock to see if the boat was in yet and it was getting closer and closer to the time we would leave and no boat. About 45 minutes before we were due to leave, I decided to go ahead and buy the ring without talking to my husband. About 30 minutes before we were supposed to leave, I headed back to the dock again and this time saw the 4th man that was on the boat running as fast as he could toward the ships. Come to find out, he was on a different ship that was due to leave 5 minutes after the boat finally came back. We never knew if he made his ship, however, ours had a long line of people waiting to get back on the ship and we ended up leaving about an hour late. I hope this man's ship was late leaving also.

[vacruizer]

We had a similar late arrival to the tender pier at CG... but the line streched waaaay down the street! We checked the sign at the front of the line and it was indeed for our ship. So by the time we got to the front of the line it was nearly an hour AFTER the last tender was supposed to have departed. However, they do not stick to any sort of deadline if there are still people waiting in line. They stay until the last customer is served!

 

I have seen that sort of line on more than one cruise. If too many people wait until the last minute to return, naturally a big line forms and the ship is going to leave late. Just the way it is!

 

The bus driver kept telling us not to worry and that there would be a long line. Got there, no line at all, we ran across the street, showed our ID and walked right onto the tender that was almost full.

[Kstofflet]

We arrived late to the port with many other folks in St Thomas after the sky ride at paradise point broke down. We purchased the lift tickets through Carnival. We ended up having to traverse down the hill. Of course we timed our departure from the top of the hill 1 hr before departure before the sky ride stopped working. No auto rides were offered. Walk or nothing... Carnival waited and ended up refunding everyone's tickets. Now mind you, my 4 year old son and his grandmother were already on the ship wondering why we didn't show up for the later dinner. I was just with my husband.

[jetskier]

Cozumel Dec 2006

 

Taxi slams into my rental car as I make a left turn. Time is 2pm. Last tender is 4:30.

 

By Mexican law, you have to go to the police station where statements are taken, a hearing is held and any fines/damages are paid before you are released. At 4pm, I convince the police to let my wife go. At 4:20, we reach an agreement where the Avis manager will pay my $25 fine and charge it to my credit card. Car was covered by the insurance. Thank goodness I took out full coverage with ZERO deductable. Otherwise I would have had to come up with $600 for the deduct.

 

I made it from the police station in downtown to the Puerta Maya pier in time to catch the last tender to the ship.

 

Dave

[Bonneville02]

I'm still sort of new to cruising, and I tend to travel alone. I really don't know enough about the various ports to wander off alone, so I always book shore excursions from the cruise line.

[deborahjo]

2007 Carnival Liberty We were in Nassau . Took a Carnival excurison snorkling. It said transportation provided. (I had a really bad leg. Had to have transportation) When we got to the tour guides they had a golf cart to ride in while we WALKED to the boat. DH went to talk to tour guide. They allowed me to ride the 3 1/2 miles. We were very upset.

 

The excursion was running late. When we rounded the bay to where the cruise ships dock we had 30 minutes to dock and get back to the ship. Once we docked the tour personel told us there was no transportation provided. We had to hike that 3 1/2 mile back to the ship with my bad leg. So much for transportation provided.

 

We hiked it as fast as we could back. They were calling names when we were boarding. There were many people behind us running as fast as they could.

 

When we got back on ship we explained to Carnival and of course their response was they do not control the tour operators. Makes me really not trust them.

[salty dingo]

When we got back on ship we explained to Carnival and of course their response was they do not control the tour operators. Makes me really not trust them.

One more reason to book private tours... you have to do your research ahead of time to pick the good ones.

 

Or you can just trust Carnival :D!

[Luvsnorkeling]

DH and I were in a jewelry store in Jamaica trying to barter with the store owner for a lower price. We knew time was getting close to sail time, but we had seen a line of taxis outside the shopping mall. "We'll just take a taxi back." So on we went with our negotiating. Finally, we knew we HAD to go. Walking outside we got the shock of our lives! NO taxis in sight! We looked at each other and without a word, both of us took off running. Neither of us was in shape to run a mile, but when one would slow down the other would look back and yell--"You can't stop! The ship will leave us!!" We ran up the pier just in time to see the crew starting to pull the gangplank. We barely made it. Once aboard, we almost passed out. We had to rest before we could even return to our cabin. We NEVER want to cut it that close again!

 

But then...we were in Grand Cayman snorkeling a few years later. We were by ourselves at a spot we had found on our honeymoon years earlier. All day long, taxis had been running up and down the road near our snorkel site. We knew we could flag one down with no problem, and we planned to give ourselves plenty of time. But when we got ready to leave, suddenly there were no taxis coming, and it was too far back to town to walk. DH started trying to flag down private vehicles to offer them a small fortune to take us back to the ship. However, we were dripping wet and in swimsuits, so no one wanted to stop. He almost got run over a few times. Meanwhile, the hands on our watch were moving closer and closer to sail time. We started to panic. Then a taxi came! As it got closer, we saw it was totally packed with other passengers. We were in despair as we saw it drive past us without even slowing down. But the driver must have radioed our dilemma to a colleague because in a few minutes here came another taxi that was empty. He pulled over, and we just caught the last tender back to the ship.

 

Have we learned our lesson?? Sure hope so. We still won't take ship's excursions (hate getting finned in the face when the cattle boat stops at the snorkel site and 200 people jump in the water), but we will give ourselves AMPLE time to get back to the ship from now on.

[pokergirl34]

We haven't (yet anyway) had any close calls, but we did see a pier runner in August.

 

We were at San Juan, Puerto Rico and when they were just getting ready to pull the gangway off, a man comes running--fast--in flip flops from the street. Everyone was yelling at him to hurry (in a joking way) and everyone applauded when he made it.

 

The funny thing was, he had about 20 minutes more since Carnival's golf excursion was late and that was why they didn't pull the gangway earlier! The golfers received the same yells and applause when they finally arrived.

 

It was pretty funny. I have to say it left an impression on us for sure!

[travel girl23]

We left 15 minutes late fairly recently because we were waiting for a Carnival excursion to return. They finally returned and as soon as the last person was on board, we were off.

Another time, we were ready to leave and they kept calling several names over the loud speaker. Finally, we started to inch away from the dock when two girls came flying down the pier. We were leaving without them. Don't know their reason for being late but they were lucky. The pilot boat brought them out to us.

Many times, when we are ready to leave, we see people sauntering down the pier and board at the last minute. Don't even try to hurry. :confused:

[vacruizer]

Many times, when we are ready to leave, we see people sauntering down the pier and board at the last minute. Don't even try to hurry. :confused:

 

We watched two women do this in Cozumel a few years ago. Sail time was 4pm and they kept calling two names. The ship had been blowing it's horn every five minutes. Finally at about 4:15 two women who looked to be in their mid-fifties came sauntering down the pier loaded with shopping bags. Picture the stereotypical wealthy looking older woman - perfect clothes, heels, and even hats. People were yelling and the ship still blowing it's horn when they stopped a police officer about halfway down the pier and began gesturing at the ship and pointing at their watches like they were arguing about the time. :confused::rolleyes: They finally wandered aboard acting like they dared the ship to leave without them. They pulled in the gangway right behind them and sailed really quickly.

[lillian marie]

Last yr on one cruise a couple were late getting to the ship and the man ran but his poor wife-girlfriend? tripped and limped to the ship. We hoped she wasn't hurt very much. They were the last folks to board and they were lucky to make it.