Picking time of arrival at port (NY) & latitudes question

[mitsugirly]

I first noticed on our last cruise in June that they had added a time frame to pick from to arrive at the port to check in.

 

We will be going on the Breakaway to Bermuda in October and once again, this is on some of our parties check-in process.

 

I guess I need some type of confirmation that they don't allow you to board the BA prior to 12 noon? I know I have received something saying they won't be boarding until noon and our Dawn cruise didn't allow us to board until noon, so I just wanted to make sure that's actually the case and them not just "saying" not to show up until then (which has been what it was in the past at other ports).

 

If they do not allow you to even start boarding until noon, can someone tell me why in the heck do they have time slots on the site as early as 9:30am??? :confused: Why would anyone want to arrive at 9:30am and sit around waiting for 2 1/2 hours before they could get on the ship? Maybe I'm misunderstanding this....

 

Also, this time around we will be Platinum and it states: "As a Haven or suite guest, a Platinum Latitudes Rewards member or a guest with air travel or transfers provided by Norwegian, you do not need to select your arrival time to the pier. We ask that you arrive no earlier than 9:30 am - 10:00 am and no later than 1 hour prior to departure and we will get you settled in."

 

So obviously I don't have to put in a check-in time, but do I just show up whenever I want? Then they do what??? Just take us with the next group that's called? Obviously we want to board with the rest of the family (3 other families, my children) so we will come when they do for whatever time slot they pick. But, I'm just wondering about this "check-in" time and how it works for getting on board. I don't want to be split up from my family so that we can all get our boarding pictures taken together by the photographer.

 

Thanks in advance on any explanations on how this all works. :)

[xriva]

Unless you are in the Haven, there are a lot of lines, so the entire boarding process becomes an exercise in line management.

 

There is a line to check in. Latitudes members have their own line, but there are a lot of Latitudes members. If you get to the port early, you can avoid a long line here and check in quickly.

 

Advantage? Shorter lines. Disadvantage? You check in quickly but can't get on the ship.

 

There is a line to board. Usually, you get a boarding number based on when you get into the waiting room - which is based on when you check in. However, there is usually a seating area and there may be water and juice. So, you may prefer sitting in the boarding line to standing in a check-in line.

 

Advantage? Early arrivers board first. Disadvantage? It's a boring wait. Bring a book.

 

Once you board, there are other lines, but they don't matter, because you're on vacation.

[snorkelmom19]

Hey Audigirly!

 

I would give yourself plenty of time if you are driving in.

 

On our Mid-July cruise, there was an event going on near the port area and we had to circle around for about 45 minutes before we were allowed to go where we needed to go. Then there is the dog sniffing security check and then the wait for the very large (but very slow) freight elevator to take you down to the porters, so then you take a freight elevator up to the check in area.

 

We got into the city around 9:30 and were checked in and waiting to board at about 11:00, and we were in a suite, so didn't have to wait in a long check in line.

 

The directions on the East Coast Departures Board are really good, it helps to have the photos as reference.

 

Since we seem to have similar likes, and have taken many of the same ships/itineraries, I rated my Breakaway cruise ahead of the Star and below the Dawn--(Not so great weather, packed ship, surprise reduced port time, and mostly just ok food. Will look for your review.

 

I don't know if you read my review, but after seeing your Tobacco Bay pics we had to check it out. Took a taxi as soon as the ship cleared and had the place to ourselves for an hour and a half. Best money I spent on the trip. Thanks for sparking my interest.

 

Have a great trip!

[mizLORInj]

Hi Mitsugirly. I enjoy your reviews.

 

We have cruised from the NY port many times. We have been getting off a ship and seen people sitting in the port waiting area--probably as early as 9am--but they were waiting before security and check-in. So some people do arrive very early.

 

We are platinum as well and got the same message about not needing to select a check-in time.

 

We do not prefer to sit around and wait at the port for hours. I'd rather arrive nearer boarding time and take my chances with the lines because you never really do know. I am sometimes surprised how short the lines are around 11 or 11:30. Being platinum you will get a low boarding number. And Make sure you tell them you are platinum so you are directed to the right (hopefully shorter) line. Also, NYC has more staff start at 12 noon, so the line for platinum before then has had only 2 people doing platinum/gold, etc. check-in, and at noon a bunch more people suddenly appeared to help with check in. Then things moved quickly. Not sure they still do this but I will let you know when I get back!

 

You can still get a photo taken together. That is set up just beyond the check-in area but before the boarding area.

 

Boarding usually starts somewhere between 11:30 and noon. Rarely is it before 11:30--and the only time I can remember that it was was when we were on Gem--not Breakaway.

Edited August 16, 2015 by mizlorinj

[mjkacmom]

We arrived at 9:45, and boarded at 12:30. We got a good parking spot,mand didn't have a long wait for the elevator, no lines checking in, and managed to get seats. Plus, the traffic wasn't too bad yet. We went directly to the two MDR's, got seated, and by the time we were done eating, and then checked out our cabins, it was time for the muster drill!

[Puma03]

We just got off the BA this morning. We arrived last week at around 10:30 and were on the ship by 11:15. After going through security and checking in we waited no more than 5 minutes to be boarded.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Laszlo]

Our last BA cruise was 2013, long before you had to pick an arrival time. We drove and arrived at the pier at 9am. Unloaded our luggage and had our cabin cards by 9:30 with boarding group 5. The only reason we arrived this early was we new with wanted Vibe passes. We boarded at 11:15.

 

We are on the Escape in February and plan to do the same thing. Arrive at 9am sit around for 2 plus hours and hope to get a Vibe pass

[maywell]

Because the lines at the NY port are long at 11am for the 12pm boarding - if care for having lunch bit earlier than the crowds, get there before 11am since it not too many people by then. Quick 10-15 minutes getting both X-ray and your sail card then just basically sitting down in the waiting area for your boarding # to be called. Last time, I got onboard at around 11:30am after getting there at about 10:45am - Glad I did that because it look like a sea of people at 11am waiting to be x-ray, while at 10:45am hardly anyone was on that line. :eek:

[mizLORInj]

So the boarding time does vary.

 

I have a friend boarding Breakaway today. She arrived at the port at 10:15, was checked in by 10:45, and was given boarding group #25. She sees lower boarding #s around her (waiting area) which were given to people who were behind her in line. (don't pay much mind to this as they call multiple numbers for boarding at the same time)

 

She said they are announcing that general boarding will begin at 11:30. :)

[emmak8]

It seems there is no magical right time to arrive. We usually get to the port by 11AM.

[mitsugirly]

Unless you are in the Haven, there are a lot of lines, so the entire boarding process becomes an exercise in line management.

 

There is a line to check in. Latitudes members have their own line, but there are a lot of Latitudes members. If you get to the port early, you can avoid a long line here and check in quickly.

 

Advantage? Shorter lines. Disadvantage? You check in quickly but can't get on the ship.

 

There is a line to board. Usually, you get a boarding number based on when you get into the waiting room - which is based on when you check in. However, there is usually a seating area and there may be water and juice. So, you may prefer sitting in the boarding line to standing in a check-in line.

 

Advantage? Early arrivers board first. Disadvantage? It's a boring wait. Bring a book.

 

Once you board, there are other lines, but they don't matter, because you're on vacation.

 

So I'm still trying to figure out if they don't start allowing you to board until 12 noon? You said you will be waiting (if you check in early), but didn't mention the time, which is what I'm really looking for a confirmation on.

 

I don't mind waiting in a line but getting there super early just to avoid the lines and then have to still wait for hours to get on the ship can potentially become a problem with my grandson...who is hyper, who is hard to entertain for long periods of time, and the list goes on. :o

 

Hey Audigirly!

 

I would give yourself plenty of time if you are driving in.

 

On our Mid-July cruise, there was an event going on near the port area and we had to circle around for about 45 minutes before we were allowed to go where we needed to go. Then there is the dog sniffing security check and then the wait for the very large (but very slow) freight elevator to take you down to the porters, so then you take a freight elevator up to the check in area.

 

We got into the city around 9:30 and were checked in and waiting to board at about 11:00, and we were in a suite, so didn't have to wait in a long check in line.

 

The directions on the East Coast Departures Board are really good, it helps to have the photos as reference.

 

Since we seem to have similar likes, and have taken many of the same ships/itineraries, I rated my Breakaway cruise ahead of the Star and below the Dawn--(Not so great weather, packed ship, surprise reduced port time, and mostly just ok food. Will look for your review.

 

I don't know if you read my review, but after seeing your Tobacco Bay pics we had to check it out. Took a taxi as soon as the ship cleared and had the place to ourselves for an hour and a half. Best money I spent on the trip. Thanks for sparking my interest.

 

Have a great trip!

 

 

Hiya snorkel mom!

 

We will be coming from a hotel and will have to have some type of shuttle service to get there. Some are flying in and others are driving (a bus) in so they will be parking at the hotel and we'll all have to shuttle in. So I don't think directions will be needed for us.

 

So they let you board at 11? Or is that only because you were a suite?

 

Sorry to hear that your BA cruise was below the Dawn. :( Ugh. The Dawn is officially my least favorite ship of the fleet to date, so not encouraging. :o Since we have been on the Getaway, at least I have somewhat of a bit of knowledge as to what to look forward to. I do remember thinking to myself that I really missed the smaller/less crowded ships when I was on the GA. But there was so much to do on it and such a beautiful ship. I just didn't like how packed it was and the lines and on the GA we were shut out of every show because I didn't realize you had to actually reserve your spot at the show prior. This time, I now know and have made my reservations. I'm hoping for a better experience than my GA cruise. Fingers crossed.

 

Glad to hear you had a great time at Tobacco Bay. No I didn't see your review. Give me a link. I would love to read it. :)

[mitsugirly]

Hi Mitsugirly. I enjoy your reviews.

 

We have cruised from the NY port many times. We have been getting off a ship and seen people sitting in the port waiting area--probably as early as 9am--but they were waiting before security and check-in. So some people do arrive very early.

 

We are platinum as well and got the same message about not needing to select a check-in time.

 

We do not prefer to sit around and wait at the port for hours. I'd rather arrive nearer boarding time and take my chances with the lines because you never really do know. I am sometimes surprised how short the lines are around 11 or 11:30. Being platinum you will get a low boarding number. And Make sure you tell them you are platinum so you are directed to the right (hopefully shorter) line. Also, NYC has more staff start at 12 noon, so the line for platinum before then has had only 2 people doing platinum/gold, etc. check-in, and at noon a bunch more people suddenly appeared to help with check in. Then things moved quickly. Not sure they still do this but I will let you know when I get back!

 

You can still get a photo taken together. That is set up just beyond the check-in area but before the boarding area.

 

Boarding usually starts somewhere between 11:30 and noon. Rarely is it before 11:30--and the only time I can remember that it was was when we were on Gem--not Breakaway.

 

Hi. Thanks for the comment about enjoying my reviews. I appreciate it.

 

I think we will probably take our chances too and come later. We have usually shown up to all the ports around 11-11:30am for other cruises with no issues. If there is one, I guess we'll just deal with it. I guess it's better than waiting for hours. Sooner or later, we'll get on.

 

The reason I ask about them separating us is this has happened before when we (the hubby and I) got pulled for VIP and my oldest daughter and her family did not. We were not able to get the "family" picture taken with all of us and I don't want that to happen again....especially since there's 4 families involved this time and it's the first time I'll have all 4 of my kids with me on a cruise together. :)

 

 

 

We arrived at 9:45, and boarded at 12:30. We got a good parking spot,mand didn't have a long wait for the elevator, no lines checking in, and managed to get seats. Plus, the traffic wasn't too bad yet. We went directly to the two MDR's, got seated, and by the time we were done eating, and then checked out our cabins, it was time for the muster drill!

 

 

So this elevator that you speak of...what/where does it take you? Do you drop your luggage off first and then get on or ....? :confused:

[mitsugirly]

We just got off the BA this morning. We arrived last week at around 10:30 and were on the ship by 11:15. After going through security and checking in we waited no more than 5 minutes to be boarded.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

Ok, so I guess they do start letting you board before noon then if that's the case. I'm thinking we will just pick a time of around 11 to show up and we should be fine. I just have to figure out what time to leave the hotel and how long of a drive it will take to be able to time it so that we arrive around that time. :o

 

Our last BA cruise was 2013, long before you had to pick an arrival time. We drove and arrived at the pier at 9am. Unloaded our luggage and had our cabin cards by 9:30 with boarding group 5. The only reason we arrived this early was we new with wanted Vibe passes. We boarded at 11:15.

 

We are on the Escape in February and plan to do the same thing. Arrive at 9am sit around for 2 plus hours and hope to get a Vibe pass

 

Yea, we're not interested in the Viba passes, so I don't think that would be best for us to do.

[Demonyte]

So I'm still trying to figure out if they don't start allowing you to board until 12 noon?

....

So they let you board at 11? Or is that only because you were a suite?

 

 

Nobody here can tell you when your cruise is ready to board exactly, it depends on the disembarkation of previous passengers and all the administrative things they need to do in between.

 

On all NCL ships the boarding usually starts between 11am and noon, mostly on the later half of that timeframe.

[mitsugirly]

Because the lines at the NY port are long at 11am for the 12pm boarding - if care for having lunch bit earlier than the crowds, get there before 11am since it not too many people by then. Quick 10-15 minutes getting both X-ray and your sail card then just basically sitting down in the waiting area for your boarding # to be called. Last time, I got onboard at around 11:30am after getting there at about 10:45am - Glad I did that because it look like a sea of people at 11am waiting to be x-ray, while at 10:45am hardly anyone was on that line. :eek:

 

I wonder just how many people they allow for each slot. The last time I looked, some of the earlier time slots were filled already or saying there was only 1 slot left or 3 slots left. :eek:

 

I just went and picked 10:30-11am and I'm hoping for the best I guess.

 

So the boarding time does vary.

 

I have a friend boarding Breakaway today. She arrived at the port at 10:15, was checked in by 10:45, and was given boarding group #25. She sees lower boarding #s around her (waiting area) which were given to people who were behind her in line. (don't pay much mind to this as they call multiple numbers for boarding at the same time)

 

She said they are announcing that general boarding will begin at 11:30. :)

 

General boarding as opposed to??? Like the suites? Or VIP or what?

[mitsugirly]

It seems there is no magical right time to arrive. We usually get to the port by 11AM.

 

That's what we have done in the past as well and had really good luck with it. :)

[mitsugirly]

Nobody here can tell you when your cruise is ready to board exactly, it depends on the disembarkation of previous passengers and all the administrative things they need to do in between.

 

On all NCL ships the boarding usually starts between 11am and noon, mostly on the later half of that timeframe.

 

While I know each time is going to be different on how long it takes to get the previous passengers off, preparing for the next voyage and so on, I wasn't really asking what time I should get there for this because I know that it would always be different with each cruise. My main concern was that I heard that they don't even start boarding until noon (as in that's the earliest possible time to get on). But, it sounds like they actually do allow passengers to get on earlier at times and that's good enough for me. :)

[mizLORInj]

. . ..

 

General boarding as opposed to??? Like the suites? Or VIP or what?

 

Yes, that's what I mean. They started calling the numbers around 11:40am yesterday. So suites/VIP, etc. were already boarded by that time.

------

And don't worry about the time you selected. It's not like they're going to tell you that you can't check in or board.

Edited August 17, 2015 by mizlorinj

[mitsugirly]

Yes, that's what I mean. They started calling the numbers around 11:40am yesterday. So suites/VIP, etc. were already boarded by that time.

------

And don't worry about the time you selected. It's not like they're going to tell you that you can't check in or board.

 

 

Ok, that's what I thought. Thank you. :)

[shout19661966]

Ok, that's what I thought. Thank you. :)

 

First totally love every one of your reviews they were extremely helpful thanks. My wife and I have sailed out of NY twice once on the Jewel and once on the Breakaway. Both times we arrived sometime around 10am. Does this make you get on the ship quicker probably not. But if you don't mind sitting and waiting the earlier you arrive the better. I agree with the person who said they are not going to stop you from boarding their objective is to get as many people checked in and on board as quickly as humanly possible to make their jobs easier. Have a great cruise and be thankful your cruise wasn't cancelled like a lot of people are dealing with now. I cant wait to read your review when you come back.

[laurabegorrah]

So this elevator that you speak of...what/where does it take you? Do you drop your luggage off first and then get on or ....? :confused:

 

It depends on where you are dropped off/park. The terminal's ground floor/street level is where you drop off your luggage, and if you are dropped off down there, you can unload your luggage and then take the elevator to the 2nd floor for boarding. However, if you are parking a the pier, or are dropped off on the 2nd floor, you'll have to take the elevator down, drop off your luggage, and then go back to the floor you started on. lol Thankfully, I normally take the ferry in from NJ, and walk over, so I start on the street level and don't have to go up and down.

 

If you are taking a taxi over, and don't have a huge amount of luggage, I would recommend getting dropped off across the street from the terminal. You might save a bit in time and $$ if you are coming up from Lincoln tunnel area because the taxis have to drive a few blocks past the terminal to get to where they can turn left, and then are funneled up to the 2nd floor.

[mitsugirly]

First totally love every one of your reviews they were extremely helpful thanks. My wife and I have sailed out of NY twice once on the Jewel and once on the Breakaway. Both times we arrived sometime around 10am. Does this make you get on the ship quicker probably not. But if you don't mind sitting and waiting the earlier you arrive the better. I agree with the person who said they are not going to stop you from boarding their objective is to get as many people checked in and on board as quickly as humanly possible to make their jobs easier. Have a great cruise and be thankful your cruise wasn't cancelled like a lot of people are dealing with now. I cant wait to read your review when you come back.

 

Thank you so much for the kind words. I appreciate it.

 

We ended up putting in a 10:30-11am arrival time for everyone else and of course I'll just show up with them. If it was just us, we wouldn't mind coming earlier and waiting, but with my grandson....well, if you read my reviews, you'll understand. It's not in our best "sanity" to be waiting for hours if we can avoid it. :o

 

Wait, why are a lot of the cruises being canceled right now? What did I miss? :confused:

[Demonyte]

Wait, why are a lot of the cruises being canceled right now? What did I miss? :confused:

 

 

A lot since it's been the number 1 topic here for couple of weeks already.

 

NCL decides to go to Australia/Asia with Star and hence Star, Jade, Spirit, Sun and Epic all are rescheduled/repositioned for whole winter 2016 season.

Edited August 19, 2015 by Demonyte

[mitsugirly]

A lot since it's been the number 1 topic here for couple of weeks already.

 

NCL decides to go to Australia/Asia with Star and hence Star, Jade, Spirit and Epic all are rescheduled/repositioned for whole winter 2016 season.

 

Oh. I knew about them switching ships around and was really happy to see the Epic is returning. But, I have only popped on the boards here and there every once in awhile or when I get a notification that someone replied to a thread I'm in. I guess I should do a little more reading. LOL

 

(I thought you meant that people going to Bermuda on the Dawn or BA have been having their cruises cancelled lately.). :o :eek: