Alaska Boarding in Seattle - Almost forgot!

[Tyler919]

On our Alaska Oosterdam boarding in Seattle, we arrived earlyish (1115) and as we checked in, our key card folder was annotated with a "5" and they told us we could board when that number was called. At 1130 promptly the number "1's" were called and we waited patiently while some go their photos taken and some boarded by going around the Photo Booth. Midway through the "3's", a nice young lady from the terminal came up and asked us if we wanted to board. We explained we were 5's and she said "Oh that's only for Photos, you can board through this door anytime!", and she pointed to a side door with a security person in place to check key cards.

 

No one else had figured it out either...we trundled through with no photo happily and were aboard long before we would have been.

[wander]

I wonder if the "nice young lady" was actually correct? I thought the numbered group system was used as a part of "crowd control" for the check in process on the ship itself AND to prevent long standing lines to get through the ship's x-ray (or whatever it is) machines. That is the actually getting from terminal waiting area to cabin "bottle-neck" point.

 

Anyhow - it was great for you. I just was thinking that may not always be an option and did not want folks to necessarily expect this option available to them. (Yes, I have boarded in Seattle a number of times and I simply walk through the photo area with a pleasant "No thank you" and a wave.)

[Krazy Kruizers]

In Seattle I was taken to a different check-in desk instead of the Deluxe Suite area.

They never even asked if we wanted our pictures taken. I was wheeled through that side door and on the ship within 5 minutes.

[sail7seas]

The 'nice young lady' was mistaken and didn't understand.

You should have been permitted boarding in the groups going right after wheelchairs were boarded.

 

[Crusin Kelly]

we were in boarding group #9 last week at about 11:15 - we spent the 10-15 minutes we waited sizing up the other passengers - the group of ~2000 people we would be spending the next 7 days with. We went directly to the main dining room and had a nice lunch - then to the room where the bags arrived in ~ 10 minutes, unpacked and were up on deck for muster and sailaway . . . no problems with process.