Staggered Boarding??

[Riocca]

We are on Caribbean Princess sailing from Southampton on the 26th May and of course the same discussion is going on on the Roll Call thread, there is a copy of our post on there:

 

"Just to add both P&O and Cunard have tried - and failed to introduce staggered boarding times at Southampton (it is their home port) so not sure if Princess will have any more luck. But if they do Southampton City centre and in particular West Quay shopping Mall is only a short distance from Ocean Terminal as are some of Southampton's Historical sites. So personally if for any reason Princess do insist on keeping to boarding times we will just off-load our luggage (the car is being valet parked) and we will stroll into Southampton for some retail therapy".

 

I would estimate the City Centre is about 20 - 30 minutes walk but taxis should be available for those not wanting to walk. As you drive to the port by taxi or bus you will get to see just how close the terminal is to the shopping centre.

 

Carol & John

[dog]

So after waiting around the pier for up to four hours, they can get onboard five minutes faster than those without preferred boarding status.

 

Seems to fit in nicely with the way they treated us early bookers, offering $750off the cruise price I had to pay to those who booked right after we made final payment. they called it a sale for new bookings only. before I made final payment my TA was told if the priced dropped after final payment I would get the lower price. this didn't happen, but we were able to change cabins, while others had different treatment in this situation.

my point Loyalty doesn't seem to matter to them.

[pegpowell]

RaMar and dog

 

This statement is part of the staggered boarding for my sailing.

 

"Elite, Platinum and Full Suite

passengers may check-in at their leisure anytime between 11:30 am to 1:30 pm."

[dog]

RaMar and dog

 

This statement is part of the staggered boarding for my sailing.

 

"Elite, Platinum and Full Suite

passengers may check-in at their leisure anytime between 11:30 am to 1:30 pm."

 

Lucky!

 

I am platinum and I do not have that message.

 

Fb princess guy told me I had to come at 3 pm. For emerald deck, then I would get priority boarding.

 

I wonder if personalizer shared this boarding info withthe crew?

 

My cruise is on sale over here in London.

[pilot]

Asked my travel agent to check on the reason for staggered boarding for my June Star Princess cruise to Alaska from Seattle.

 

This is her reply:

 

Ok according to the cruiseline they are stagerring it due to the ship being scrubbed down for a norovirus!

 

I don’t know how or why they are still scrubbing it down for a 6/17 cruise since that is more than a month

 

Away but she claims that is why they are doing staggered boarding.. it is being done based

 

On the deck you are birthed on but she said it is possible you will be on way prior to those times!

 

 

I will continue to research to see what I hear or find!

 

 

Sounds like Princess doesn't know why they are doing staggered boarding!!!!

[bphman]

We're sailing on July 8 from Southampton and am very disappointed. We are taking Princess transfers from Heathrow and should arrive by Noon. There are going to be a lot of passengers arriving on overnight flights who haven't slept in over 24 hours who are going to face-plant when they arrive at the pier. They are now expected to wait until up to 3:30 to BEGIN the boarding process and will be denied a meal to boot. Guess I'll never make Elite!

[bphman]

Got off the phone with Princess tonight and the woman I booked with seemed surprised by the staggered boarding. She acted as if it were something new which this thread certainly states it is not. I asked about the Chef's Table and Ultimate Ship's Tour and she said that they would be by lottery and that boarding time would not affect your chances as long as you made the time cutoff. When we were on the Sapphire a few years ago, they almost cancelled the Chef's Table since they did not have enough interest. That surprised me. The Ultimate Ship's Tour was another story. Several people signed up and we were originally declined even though we were the first to sign up. You had to pre-pay and this, I believe, was the great equalizer and the probable reason we eventually made the cut. We had rough seas and there were several people sick in the corridors and here were several no-shows so we had a nice small group. I would like to do the Chef's Table since we are celebrating our 30th on board. Is the Upgrade Fairy listening?

[caribill]

The Ultimate Ship's Tour was another story. Several people signed up and we were originally declined even though we were the first to sign up. You had to pre-pay and this, I believe, was the great equalizer and the probable reason we eventually made the cut.

 

The UST, just like shore excursions, is added to your onboard account. There is no pre-payment.

[jamscckmc]

I know the Alaska cruises have just begun, but does anyone know if Canda Place has changed to staggered boarding? How unfair that some passengers get a hot lunch while others have to wait outside for hours, then have to run to the muster with no lunch! Thanks.

[KirkNC]

Some have posted that Disney Cruise Lines does staggered boarding.

 

Thats possible as I have never sailed Disney. If this wasn't so irritating it would be funny. All the different reason thrown around and all the different answers from Princess and TA's to the same questions, typical, the one hand does not know what the other is doing.

[bellebaby]

I know the Alaska cruises have just begun, but does anyone know if Canda Place has changed to staggered boarding? How unfair that some passengers get a hot lunch while others have to wait outside for hours, then have to run to the muster with no lunch! Thanks.

 

Hello... We're departing from Canada place on May 22. So far, no mention of staggered boarding. I called Princess earlier this month and they confirmed we will not have staggered boarding.

 

Another reason we prefer Vancouver...

 

B

[dog]

Heard from a couple of friends who left out of southampton on grand recently. They just walked in as usual & didn't pay attention to notifications re:staggered boarding. They are platinum.

[lafngas]

What about passengers on the Riviera deck? That deck was not mentioned in the staggered boarding list.

Will Princess start timing their airport transfer buses to coincide with which deck you are on?

[Cuizer2]

Will Princess start timing their airport transfer buses to coincide with which deck you are on?

 

How? There will be people from many different decks on the bus.

[mr green]

Hi All

 

No e mail

 

but from web site info for cruise next month

 

CHECK-IN INFORMATION

To ensure a smooth start to your voyage, we operate a staggered check-in

schedule. Please arrive at your scheduled check-in time as noted below,

determined by your deck and cabin number. Passengers arriving prior to their

check-in time will be asked to return at their scheduled time. Boarding will

commence shortly after check-in. All passengers must be onboard by 3:00 pm.

 

12:00 pm - Dolphin Deck/Cabins D103-D737

12:30 pm - Caribe Deck/Cabins C101-C753

1:00 pm - Lido Deck & Aloha Deck/Cabins L101-L308 & A201-A749

1:30 pm - Baja Deck/Cabins B201-B751

2:00 pm - Emerald Deck/Cabins E101-E733

2:30 pm - Plaza Deck/Cabins P201-P337

 

yours shogun

 

If Princess tries to pull this with me I will say 'Good Bye, to Princess!!!'

[dog]

What about passengers on the Riviera deck? That deck was not mentioned in the staggered boarding list.

Will Princess start timing their airport transfer buses to coincide with which deck you are on?

 

No, I've been told to be at Victoria coach station at 11am for transfer and don't board until 3 pm. Ride there is less than 2 hours.

[jamscckmc]

Thanks bellebaby, Hope it stays that way till Sept. We are staying right there at the Pan Pacific and after check out time don't want to have to wander the streets with our carry-ons!

[Josy1953]

Still no reply from Princess (over a week since I emailed them) so while I was in town this morning I went into my TA and asked her to call Princess to ask what the situation is for Elites with regard to staggard boearding. She put the phone on speaker so that I could take part in the converstion. The Princess agent stated very clearly that ALL passengers regardless of status will be asked to leave the port and return at their assigned time if they arrive early. We will still have preferred boarding within our assigned time. I have just cancelled our overnight Southampton Hotel and we will now drive down on Staurday morning because we do not want to hang around Southampton for over 2 hours after we have checked out of the hotel before we can go to the port.

 

I think that this maybe the final straw that will break this particular camel's back. The Princess offering is getting less and less attractive when compared to other lines, it is time to spend a few pounds more to get back some of the pleasures of cruising. We can no longer enjoy lunch in the MDR, the food has declined over the last few years, the service on board has declined, there is a lack of will on behalf of the staff on Princess ships to enforce Princess's own rules with regard to dress codes, what will they change for the worse next ?

[KirkNC]

Has anyone actually heard or seen someone turned away that tried to board at the wrong time or is this another one of these unenforced rules?

 

Princess should take note that this thread has almost 25,000 views and I doubt any of them think this is a good idea. Nothing like ticking off 1/2 the ship prior to sailing. This will just cause us to concentrate on HAL and X in the future.

[RaMar]

RaMar and dog

 

This statement is part of the staggered boarding for my sailing.

 

"Elite, Platinum and Full Suite

passengers may check-in at their leisure anytime between 11:30 am to 1:30 pm."

 

I received a booking notification from Princess regarding our upcoming cruise in July and it doesn't mention the above quote anywhere. The least they could do is provide complete information so that passsengers don't waste their time waiting frustrated outside the pier.

[Captain Canuck]

..sounds like the new company slogan for Princess

[hubofhockey]

..sounds like the new company slogan for Princess

 

to be fair, it seems as if many cruise lines are cutting way back and are only competing on price and customer service is a thing of the past.

 

i'll show up at the cruise terminal in southampton close to noon even though are check in is 2:30. if they turn us away, we'll check our bags and get lunch (an expense that i wasn't expecting when i paid for my cruise) and then come back a little after 2:00. but we'll give X more of a look for our next cruise without the kids.

[caribill]

Has anyone actually heard or seen someone turned away that tried to board at the wrong time or is this another one of these unenforced rules?

 

 

It was enforced for the Star sailing on March 19 in San Francisco. There were posts of people very upset that they were not even allowed to wait outside the cruise terminal, and when they returned at the appointed time found themselves at the end of a very long line.

[goodie2shoes]

But it was not enforced on the Star in San Francisco on April 20, when we boarded. There is no consistency to it.

I think the reason they enforced it on March 19th was because of the problems with disembarking, and the number of people on the sidewalk, which created a hazard to anyone who wanted to walk by. I suspect the City took notice of the mess and strongly suggested that Princess do something about it.

[sail7seas]

It was enforced for the Star sailing on March 19 in San Francisco. There were posts of people very upset that they were not even allowed to wait outside the cruise terminal, and when they returned at the appointed time found themselves at the end of a very long line.

 

 

:confused: Where were they expected they go? They probably didn't have cars, probably were totting carryons...... what were they supposed to do? Stand on the curb across the street..... in possible rain?

 

Nice way for a cruise company to treat their 'guests'.

Hopefully they'll find a better way to handle congestion at some of these ports and REALLY hopefully none of the other "Carnival Family of Ships' will decide they like this plan. :(