Embarkation

[nissach]

How does NCL organize embarkation? Is it just show up, check in and wait your turn? Do they have staggered check in like some Carnival ships where you sign up for a time?

If our ship is scheduled to leave at 5:00pm, I would assume check could start around12:00?? Just trying to plan the train ride to the port from London and need a little more info to pick the right train time to arrive at the port.

Thanks!

[SquishTheWhale]

You should be able to pick an arrival time on your online check in- although this doesn't show up sometimes until closer to the date. Boarding probably starts around midday but people will arrive as early as 9 or 10am. So kind of up to you, you just may be waiting around to board. On our upcoming Escape cruise it departs at 4am and I selected the first arrival time which was 9.30am-10.30am I think. However, arrival times are not generally enforced so you can arrive whenever.

 

Get an earlier train than you calculate you need. No strikes at the moment, but train delays and cancellations are not abnormal here in the UK, as are rail replacement bus services which make your journey take longer. And you never know when the strikes may start again- last time they lasted months and caused chaos on trains in and around London. The joys of the british rail network! I assume when you say the port you are departing from Southampton?

[KeithJenner]

As you are leaving from Southampton and NCL are only just starting sailing from there regularly, there could be some differences to the usual procedure in other ports. I've sailed from Southampton on NCL a couple of times, and it was fairly standard, but there may be some differences.

 

NCL have apparently started allocating arrival times when you check in. I don't really know the details of that, as I have never encountered this myself (whether due to the ports I've boarded at or latitudes status, I'm not sure). I don't know whether they will be doing this in Southampton or now.

 

What has been reported is that you can pretty well ignore that arrival time anyway (although you never know, they may enforce it in Southampton).

 

When you arrive you should be given a boarding number (usually given on arrival and before you check in, although that can also change from port to port). Once you have checked in then you wait for your number to be called.

 

Embarkation itself usually starts at around midday, so you will need to arrive a little while before that to get onboard as one of the first. Checkin usually starts a while before that.

 

If you sail at 5pm then you will need to be there for 3pm.

[nissach]

You should be able to pick an arrival time on your online check in- although this doesn't show up sometimes until closer to the date. Boarding probably starts around midday but people will arrive as early as 9 or 10am. So kind of up to you, you just may be waiting around to board. On our upcoming Escape cruise it departs at 4am and I selected the first arrival time which was 9.30am-10.30am I think. However, arrival times are not generally enforced so you can arrive whenever.

 

Get an earlier train than you calculate you need. No strikes at the moment, but train delays and cancellations are not abnormal here in the UK, as are rail replacement bus services which make your journey take longer. And you never know when the strikes may start again- last time they lasted months and caused chaos on trains in and around London. The joys of the british rail network! I assume when you say the port you are departing from Southampton?

 

Yes correct Southampton. Thanks for the tip about strikes. I was [planning on taking an earlier train, say 10:00 am or so.

Do you think it would be better to head out to Southampton the day prior to the cruise? Are there things to do and see in Southampton?

[KeithJenner]

Do you think it would be better to head out to Southampton the day prior to the cruise? Are there things to do and see in Southampton?

 

That depends a bit on how long you have in London, and how much opportunity you have to spend time there generally.

 

Southampton itself is OK. There are a few things to do (SeaCity is supposed to be good if you fancy going to a museum about the titanic before boarding a ship), but for me it is more of a gateway to other places rather than somewhere to spend much time.

 

I wouldn't worry too much about the trains. You have plenty of time to get there, and on most days the trains aren't on strike. If you are sailing on a Sunday then I would probably get there earlier as the service often isn't great anyway.

 

Worst case, you would have to get a taxi or something, which would be a bit pricey, but you aren't going to miss the ship.

 

If you want to keep your options open then have a look at the Premier Inn or Travelodge websites and book a hotel for the night before if the cancellable rate is any good. That way, if you find there is any trouble nearer the time you have the option of travelling down the previous day. Just remember to cancel them if you don't use them. West Quay Premier Inn is the best placed one.

 

The other option would be to spend the day in London and then travel down in the evening. That doesn't solve the problem with train strikes though, as you still need to make the journey that evening.

 

I wouldn't give up time in London to be in Southampton particularly, although I do like not having to travel far on embarkation day

[BirdTravels]

How does NCL organize embarkation? Is it just show up, check in and wait your turn? Do they have staggered check in like some Carnival ships where you sign up for a time?

If our ship is scheduled to leave at 5:00pm, I would assume check could start around12:00?? Just trying to plan the train ride to the port from London and need a little more info to pick the right train time to arrive at the port.

Thanks!

 

We sail out of Southampton on Cunard and most recently on NCL. We catch a early Southwest train from Waterloo to Southampton central then a cab to the port (we splurge on a weekend Firat seats). Planning to be at the port around 10:30.

 

Check in opens around 10:00 am. Boarding starts around 11:30. The longest line is for security. They board priority guests first (suites, most frequent cruisers), then in boarding groups in the order you arrive.

 

As KeithJenner points out, Southampton is not a frequent NCL port. We found the the local port agents were slow and hampered by their unfamiliarity with NCL systems and processes. We also found that they did not use the terminal gangway (which they will hopefully resolve with more frequent cruises from the port). We embarked via gangways from the dock (like a port call) which was problematic with people dragging bags up the narrow gangways. This slowed the boarding process.

[nissach]

That depends a bit on how long you have in London, and how much opportunity you have to spend time there generally.

 

Southampton itself is OK. There are a few things to do (SeaCity is supposed to be good if you fancy going to a museum about the titanic before boarding a ship), but for me it is more of a gateway to other places rather than somewhere to spend much time.

 

I wouldn't worry too much about the trains. You have plenty of time to get there, and on most days the trains aren't on strike. If you are sailing on a Sunday then I would probably get there earlier as the service often isn't great anyway.

 

Worst case, you would have to get a taxi or something, which would be a bit pricey, but you aren't going to miss the ship.

 

If you want to keep your options open then have a look at the Premier Inn or Travelodge websites and book a hotel for the night before if the cancellable rate is any good. That way, if you find there is any trouble nearer the time you have the option of travelling down the previous day. Just remember to cancel them if you don't use them. West Quay Premier Inn is the best placed one.

 

The other option would be to spend the day in London and then travel down in the evening. That doesn't solve the problem with train strikes though, as you still need to make the journey that evening.

 

I wouldn't give up time in London to be in Southampton particularly, although I do like not having to travel far on embarkation day

 

Thanks...I don't want to give up any time in London if I can help it..so I will just book an early train to get to the port and wait there if we need to. If I know it is a travel day, then I am prepared and OK with that.

[SquishTheWhale]

Yes correct Southampton. Thanks for the tip about strikes. I was [planning on taking an earlier train, say 10:00 am or so.

Do you think it would be better to head out to Southampton the day prior to the cruise? Are there things to do and see in Southampton?

 

No there's not much tourist worthy in Southampton haha, spend your time in London. But as long as you get an early train you shouldn't have trouble getting there in the morning. It's a simple journey from Waterloo to Southampton and only an hour or so, a 9 or 10am train should give plenty of cushion. You'll need to jump in a cab from the station to the pier but it wont take long.

 

If the strikes were still on I might be advising you differentley, but on a standard day if a train is cancelled there will be another one to get, or a replacement bus, so you will get there one way or another.

[fidcar]

We are arriving at Gatwick on a Sunday and travelling to Southampton the day before the cruise. From what I read on line trains do not run from there on a Sunday, and we would have to take the coach bus. Do you know if this is correct?

 

 

te=KeithJenner;52637264]That depends a bit on how long you have in London, and how much opportunity you have to spend time there generally.

 

Southampton itself is OK. There are a few things to do (SeaCity is supposed to be good if you fancy going to a museum about the titanic before boarding a ship), but for me it is more of a gateway to other places rather than somewhere to spend much time.

 

I wouldn't worry too much about the trains. You have plenty of time to get there, and on most days the trains aren't on strike. If you are sailing on a Sunday then I would probably get there earlier as the service often isn't great anyway.

 

Worst case, you would have to get a taxi or something, which would be a bit pricey, but you aren't going to miss the ship.

 

If you want to keep your options open then have a look at the Premier Inn or Travelodge websites and book a hotel for the night before if the cancellable rate is any good. That way, if you find there is any trouble nearer the time you have the option of travelling down the previous day. Just remember to cancel them if you don't use them. West Quay Premier Inn is the best placed one.

 

The other option would be to spend the day in London and then travel down in the evening. That doesn't solve the problem with train strikes though, as you still need to make the journey that evening.

 

I wouldn't give up time in London to be in Southampton particularly, although I do like not having to travel far on embarkation day

[KeithJenner]

I have never done the train from Gatwick to Southampton, but Sunday schedules are often not good. I remember once I did do a similar route on a Sunday and it took hours as it stopped everywhere.

 

I would be nervous about doing it on a Sunday.

[SquishTheWhale]

I think there is a National Express from Gatwick airport to Southampton? Look on http://www.nationalexpress.com

 

That would be my preferred method of transport over rail on a Sunday. National Express are fairly reliable and easy, you can't get on the wrong coach!