Never Saw The Need For FTTF - Why Bother?

[Thebosn1]

I have never experienced a really long delay in boarding or been denied access to my cabin so long that I have seen the need to pay for FTTF. It seems like everyone is shelling out the money for it but is it really needed?

 

I'm only gold so no priority boarding or anything, and yet I have never taken very long to board, and I have never been kept out of my cabin for more than an hour or so.

 

I'm just wondering, has anyone gone without FTTF and experienced a long delay, and then found it to be a huge difference when they paid for it?

[riffatsea]

Everyone travels differently so you may not understand why we were happy to buy FTTF.

We like getting on early and getting off early!

We like being able to get onto tenders early too.

It is not a necessity but we really like those perks so are happy to buy the privilege since we won't get to platinum status any time soon!

[snc_cam]

"Needed" is determined by the people who are looking for it or not. For my wife and I, it is a very nice convenience and after paying over $1000 for the cruise, another $50 for some added convenience is worth the money. We tend to get to the ports early and like to get settled and a lunch without a lot of waiting. Some people will agree with this, others will not. Personal choice.

 

Steve

[Thebosn1]

Everyone travels differently so you may not understand why we were happy to buy FTTF.

We like getting on early and getting off early!

We like being able to get onto tenders early too.

It is not a necessity but we really like those perks so are happy to buy the privilege since we won't get to platinum status any time soon!

 

I understand it is a personal choice and for peace of mind and all that. My question was, has anyone had experiences where FTTF has acyually made a big difference from a time when they did not purchase it?

[snc_cam]

Prior to them offering F2F, I was at the port by 1030. Wouldn't be onboard the ship much before 1230, and this was in both Tampa and Port Canaveral. Now, if I get there by 1030 with F2F, I can be onboard by 1115, settled in my cabin where I don't have to lug my carryon, and enjoying lunch with no crowd. And that doesn't include the hassle of dealing with rude people trying to get off early once returned to port.

[mobydog]

We have sailed the Western Caribbean before on Carnival. I almost did not rebook another Carnival cruise again because what a nightmare we had with the tendering process on our first one. The whole get a tender ticket from here, then sit in a completely different area here and wait to be called etc. was super annoying and took us over 1.5 hours to get off the boat in Belize. We are only in port for a finite amount of time and we plan a full day of activities for each port when we cruise. Losing so much time killed us.

 

This past cruise we got a FTTF...It was worth it for our family of four (I looked at it as a $12 per person week long benefit). It was fantastic to walk up to Guest Services and be instantly escorted down to the tender in front of everyone else. No need to scramble in the morning to debark with all the sticker/waiting business.

 

Additionally, we have never gotten on a ship before where our room was ready so we always had to tote our carry on luggage around with us for a few hours. Huge pain since we do not check our dive computers, regulators or camera gear. It was nice to have a ready room where we could drop our gear, kids could put on swim suits etc.

 

I loved being able to pop into Guest Services with no line and instant service.

 

It was nice to be Debarkation Group 1. Since we live in Florida and are driving we have always landed in the last group (we bring too much crap along to self debark).

 

So for us, in the big scheme of things, it was well worth the $49.95 and would totally do it again.

[Thebosn1]

Prior to them offering F2F, I was at the port by 1030. Wouldn't be onboard the ship much before 1230, and this was in both Tampa and Port Canaveral. Now, if I get there by 1030 with F2F, I can be onboard by 1115, settled in my cabin where I don't have to lug my carryon, and enjoying lunch with no crowd. And that doesn't include the hassle of dealing with rude people trying to get off early once returned to port.

 

OK there ya go. Thanks. I guess I have just been lucky all this time. Only have two cruises left till platinum, and I'm pretty cheap so I guess I will see if my luck holds. Thanks. :)

[maldenmusic]

Weused to experience long lines in Mobile but I have to admit that NOLA, which is where we not cruise from, is not too bad. However, I have trouble walking due to some (hopefully short term) orthopedic problems so the thought of getting to take my carry on stuff directly to my cabin and not have to lug it around for a few hours made my decision for me. I will find out on this upcoming cruise.

[Thebosn1]

Weused to experience long lines in Mobile but I have to admit that NOLA, which is where we not cruise from, is not too bad. However, I have trouble walking due to some (hopefully short term) orthopedic problems so the thought of getting to take my carry on stuff directly to my cabin and not have to lug it around for a few hours made my decision for me. I will find out on this upcoming cruise.

 

Makes sense. Thanks! BTW, we would love to cruise out of NOLA.

[Joie]

We just had it on the freedom last week....and it was a very very good idea. Couple of times we used the service desk and got waited on in 2 min....and there were people in line for a long time cuz we stopped at the store and came back out....had hardly moved. And then paying our bill on last night we walked up ...paid and done....it all of about 3 min. There were 22 people in line.....NOPE cant stand in line that long !!! Well worth it also for getting in the cabin.....being unpacked and eating lunch without our carry-ons.

And at Grand Cayman we went to service desk and were escorted downstairs and right on to the tender.....very nice.

I am a big fan.....although next cruise is our Platinum.....so we are getting there shortly.

[SDcruiser66]

That is why it is an optional purchase. Do what u like! I found it to be a great purchase on our cruise to Hawaii.

 

 

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[KPfromCT]

There are several posters on here that will tell you it is a waste of money.:rolleyes:

This will be our first cruise with it, only because it's usually SOLD OUT, and never seemed to open back up.

 

Two main reasons for us.......

It will be HEAVEN to get on the ship and go directly to the cabin and put the luggage down, and not have to drag it around the Lido deck, while maneuvering the buffet, etc.

Secondly, have you SEEN the lines at Guest Services?:eek::eek:

If you see the FTTF line, it's usually empty. It's a wonderful thing.

[Jenhem31]

I purchased it for my first cruise which is in April. We have a suite so we already have priority boarding. I don't personally care about getting on or off the ship quickly. Lines don't bother me either. I simply wanted access to my room immediately and expedited baggage delivery. It's worth the $50 just for that to me.

 

I'm not interested in dragging my carry on around when it's going to have a bottle of vino and a 12 pack of coke in it. It'll be very heavy very quickly!

 

 

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[lovebears]

Where do you find the F2F to purchase???

[Jenhem31]

Where do you find the F2F to purchase???

 

 

It's sold as an excursion. Often it is sold out, they only sell a small amount per cruise.

 

 

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[winddawn]

I have never experienced a really long delay in boarding or been denied access to my cabin so long that I have seen the need to pay for FTTF. It seems like everyone is shelling out the money for it but is it really needed?

 

I'm only gold so no priority boarding or anything, and yet I have never taken very long to board, and I have never been kept out of my cabin for more than an hour or so.

 

I'm just wondering, has anyone gone without FTTF and experienced a long delay, and then found it to be a huge difference when they paid for it?

Some people like the services FTTF offers.

 

I have read of cases where if boarding is delayed, that Carnival has refunded the cost of FTTF since it wasn't able to deliver the service. We all know that sometimes things outside of Carnival's control happen.

 

Each to his own. Just as some people prefer one excursion over another, some people prefer FTTF.

[winddawn]

There are several posters on here that will tell you it is a waste of money.:rolleyes:

This will be our first cruise with it, only because it's usually SOLD OUT, and never seemed to open back up.

 

Two main reasons for us.......

It will be HEAVEN to get on the ship and go directly to the cabin and put the luggage down, and not have to drag it around the Lido deck, while maneuvering the buffet, etc.

Secondly, have you SEEN the lines at Guest Services?:eek::eek:

If you see the FTTF line, it's usually empty. It's a wonderful thing.

Not to mention earlier luggage delivery. That is wonderful. I can usually get all settled in my cabin and get cleaned up before others even get their luggage. Love, love, love that.

[dna529]

I have only used it once in July, but found it to be worth the money for a family of 4 with 2 kids. I think if it was just my husband and I cruising I would probably be cheap too and not buy it! But with kids it is easier not to have to wait in line and to have the room ready.:)

[Thebosn1]

We just had it on the freedom last week....and it was a very very good idea. Couple of times we used the service desk and got waited on in 2 min....and there were people in line for a long time cuz we stopped at the store and came back out....had hardly moved. And then paying our bill on last night we walked up ...paid and done....it all of about 3 min. There were 22 people in line.....NOPE cant stand in line that long !!! Well worth it also for getting in the cabin.....being unpacked and eating lunch without our carry-ons.

And at Grand Cayman we went to service desk and were escorted downstairs and right on to the tender.....very nice.

I am a big fan.....although next cruise is our Platinum.....so we are getting there shortly.

 

Yep, looks like lots of good reasons.

 

Thanks everyone, good stuff. Like I said above I have been lucky so far, and I only bring one small backpack to carry and usually head right to the lido for a cocktail so I guess I just have not noticed any long waits. ;) Never had to wait long for luggage either, or to get in the cabin but I can see where it would be a pain if we did. I hope to be platinum by next spring at the latest so I tink I'll keep rolling the dice. Thanks for the feedback! See ya on the ship!

[asirs]

Just used it on Magic. Were on board in under 10 minutes; room was ready immediately; luggage delivered by 1:30; were able to change from early dining time to anytime for 8 people no waiting list or pagers; priority tenders; dedicated customer service phone line and line at the desk; VIP disembarking. Personally, when traveling with kids it was worth the $!

 

 

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[erby2283]

Prior to my last cruise, I had been on one Carnival cruises without FTTF and one with. This last time out of Tampa, I was so happy I did. Embarkation was delayed by hours and I was personally escorted to the front of the line (not sure if the woman just liked me and took it upon herself to bring us there bc usually there's just a separate line for FTTF but nonetheless, she took us straight to the front).

 

I enjoy getting one and being able to drop off my soda that I carry on and being able to immediately unpack b/c my bags are usually there before we get to the room! We also enjoy not having to wait at Guest Services.

 

To me, it's definitely worth the $50!

Edited March 25, 2014 by erby2283

[awhcruiser]

We like to get onboard ASAP, grab some lunch, change into our swimsuits and hit the pool until muster drill. It makes a big difference in the amount of wait time. We did not do FTTF the first time it was offered and got group 11 so the wait was about an hour longer to board.

[dwayneb236]

Worth every penny for us.

[mobydog]

Where do you find the F2F to purchase???

 

 

It was sold out when we first booked our cruise. I checked back every day and finally one popped up as available. I was glad it did!

[Anyislandwilldo]

Last month in Miami, we walked up to the check in area and stood in line for 30 seconds waiting to be waived to the counter. The agent behind the counter waived at us and then told the people next to us that she was taking FTTF first. That made us feel so special. It's the little things in life :)