How is this possible? NCL cruise picking up new 7 day cruisers in middle of cruise

[3redheads]

Bear with me because this is hard to explain.

Epic October 2018 shows the following sailings on the website:

From Civitavecchia Oct 3-10th 7 day cruise

From Barcelona, still the Epic from Oct 7-14th 7 day cruise

 

I called NCL and they said that it's correct. On the 3rd-10th cruise, it stops in Barcelona on the 7th and picks up new passengers for their 7 day cruise.

 

I've never seen this with any sailing I've been on. So in essence, you have two different set of passengers sailing on the same ship, but the embark and disembark on different days.

The rep talked to his supervisor. This makes no sense. The rooms would already be booked? Am I dense and just not getting it?https://www.ncl.com/vacations/europe-cruises-oct-2018-?destinations=4294960640&sailmonths=4294953370#

not sure why the first sentence is so big...tried to correct it

Edited April 6, 2017 by 3redheads
hit enter too soon

[Longstockingpippi1]

Bear with me because this is hard to explain.

 

Epic October 2018 shows the following sailings on the website:

From Citavecchia

 

Think your post got cut off.

 

Yes this year they have a revolving door with the Barcelona/Rome cruises, very unique. Some of us board in Barcelona for a 3 day cruise, others board in Barcelona for a 7 day cruise. Those of us that disembark in Rome will be replaced by a group of cruisers that will sail for a week (Rome to Rome). Something for everyone and I guess they are doing it 2018 also. Confusing but nice!

[KeithJenner]

This has been happening on this itinerary for years. They even had a go at letting people on in Marseilles as well a few years ago.

 

Most people board in Barcelona, but the number boarding in Rome has increased over the years.

 

It works well. If you board in Barcelona you could be unaware of the Rome boarding. It's slightly different for those who board in Rome as the Barcelona day includes a proper muster drill etc, so it can be disruptive.

 

I believe they are doing similar in the Baltics from this year, letting some people board in Rostock, whilst most get on in Copenhagen.

[3redheads]

Think your post got cut off.

 

Yes this year they have a revolving door with the Barcelona/Rome cruises, very unique. Some of us board in Barcelona for a 3 day cruise, others board in Barcelona for a 7 day cruise. Those of us that disembark in Rome will be replaced by a group of cruisers that will sail for a week (Rome to Rome). Something for everyone and I guess they are doing it 2018 also. Confusing but nice!

 

I hit enter too quickly:D

 

Thanks for the replies. Seems like a logistical nightmare. I guess if you book a room for the Barcelona itinerary, someone who boards earlier in Rome cannot book that room. Very interesting!

[KeithJenner]

Think your post got cut off.

 

 

 

Yes this year they have a revolving door with the Barcelona/Rome cruises, very unique. Some of us board in Barcelona for a 3 day cruise, others board in Barcelona for a 7 day cruise. Those of us that disembark in Rome will be replaced by a group of cruisers that will sail for a week (Rome to Rome). Something for everyone and I guess they are doing it 2018 also. Confusing but nice!

 

 

 

It isn't just this year.

 

I first did this itinerary in 2012 and they were doing it then. I think it's been the same since the Epic was introduced in about 2010.

[3redheads]

It isn't just this year.

 

I first did this itinerary in 2012 and they were doing it then. I think it's been the same since the Epic was introduced in about 2010.

 

Did it cause any issues?

[TrumpyNor]

I actually did a 7 days cruise with the Epic in 2013 where there were four (4!) different embarkation/disembarkation ports during the 7 days (Barcelona was the main embarkation port, but you also had the option to start your 7 days cruise in Marseille, Rome and Palma de Mallorca). Didn't notice any problems whatsoever with it - we embarked in Barcelona - to me it felt like any other cruise I have been on, except that organizing a CruiseCritic Meet&Greet on board was not easy (with 4 different roll calls going on at one point). ;)

Edited April 6, 2017 by TrumpyNor

[KeithJenner]

Did it cause any issues?

 

 

 

Not for Barcelona embarkation.

 

Rome embarkation has a few issues. Freestyle dailies are numbered from Barcelona, for example, and as I said above, the Barcelona stop can cause problems if you are onboard during muster etc.

 

Nothing serious though.

[don't-use-real-name]

Yes very interesting in keeping the cabin service very busy - lets see this cabin gets a complete make-over new cruisers

boarding and these just a touch-up for guests already on board.

[OnTheGoMom921]

We did the Epic Med cruise in 2014, they had both embarkation at Barcelona and Civitavecchia. We boarded in Barcelona, and were not bothered by the Civitavecchia embarkation at all. In fact, had we not known this occurs, we would have been completely unaware. Reason being, we had a tour booked in Rome, our tour guide meets us at 7:30 am. Those embarking at Rome are not even getting on ship until 11 am or so, we didn't get back until 7 pm in evening, all were onboard already. The only time we were aware, was those who needed to do muster boarding in Rome. There was an announcement made and excluded those who boarded in Barcelona.

The cabins that are booked in Barcelona are not part of the inventory offered for Rome departure, and vice versa. Most people did board in Barcelona.

It was a bit different from our typical 1 port embarkation/disembarkation, but not much. For instance, we did visit both roll calls (example Oct 3, Rome & Oct 7 Barcelona) and some people wanted to do some group private tours together, but were not available to meet us at the Meet & greet on our first sea day, because they weren't boarding until 2 days later.

Whichever port you decide to board from, I'm sure you will enjoy the cruise without any disruption from a second embarkation.

[Dcoy]

This happens all the time on world cruises with other cruise lines. The 94 day one I was on had 5 segments. Som passengers were on for all 5 and others got on and off at the end of each segment. It was like a bus stop, some get on, some get off, some stay.

 

Don

[dltvermont]

I was on a Carnival ship last year that did a similar thing. We boarded in San Juan for a 7 day and when we got to Barbados, some people got off and others got on for a 7 day of their own. Was strange mid week seeing all of the luggage in the hallways to be picked up.

[Petitbotcottage]

On our first cruise on the Pearl, it had sailed from Miami, but we boarded in Jamaica through a Virgin holiday package. No problems apart from the dailies which our day 1 showed day 4 !!

[hawkeyetlse]

Yes very interesting in keeping the cabin service very busy - lets see this cabin gets a complete make-over new cruisers

boarding and these just a touch-up for guests already on board.

I imagine that the stewards prefer not to have to turn over all of their cabins on a single, super stressful turn-around day every week. Rolling embarkation spreads their workload out more evenly over the course of the week.

 

And think about any hotel on land, with people coming and going every day. It's really not that hard for housekeeping to keep track of what kind of service each room needs.

 

As mentioned, NCL only does this for one or two ships, but other cruise lines like MSC and Costa do this with just about all of their ships in Europe, mostly in the Mediterranean. And it has been going on for many years, so it's pretty routine by now and there aren't any issues. (Of course, there can always be issues in people's minds, but logistically, the cruise lines seem to know how to handle things on these cruises.)

[TSUmom]

We did this cruise in May of 2015 and boarded mid cruise in Rome. We wanted more time in Rome so we spent 4 days there. When we boarded the ship was virtually empty because the passengers that boarded in Barcelona were visiting Rome. Our rooms were ready and the muster drill was small. Most on the cruise boarded in Barcelona. The only time it was crazy was when we came back from our Barcelona excursion and a whole new group was boarding to start their cruise. We met a whole group of new people. Plus we did not have to attend the drill on that day.

[gottacruisemore]

I board the Epic in Civitavecchia in September and the muster drill is the one thing I couldn't wrap my head around. Would those of us embarking that day need to be onboard earlier than the all aboard time to do muster? Or could I technically check-in at say 5 p.m. for a 7 p.m. sail away?

[hawkeyetlse]

I board the Epic in Civitavecchia in September and the muster drill is the one thing I couldn't wrap my head around. Would those of us embarking that day need to be onboard earlier than the all aboard time to do muster? Or could I technically check-in at say 5 p.m. for a 7 p.m. sail away?

The last time we did this, departure from Civitavecchia was at 7pm, but the muster drill for newly embarked guests was at 4:30pm. I don't know what your e-docs will say. Usually the check-in deadline is two hours before sailaway, but if you wait until 5pm to check in, you'll miss the drill. (But in that case maybe they would just let you do it when the ship reaches Barcelona and picks up the next batch of embarking guests.)

[gottacruisemore]

The last time we did this, departure from Civitavecchia was at 7pm, but the muster drill for newly embarked guests was at 4:30pm. I don't know what your e-docs will say. Usually the check-in deadline is two hours before sailaway, but if you wait until 5pm to check in, you'll miss the drill. (But in that case maybe they would just let you do it when the ship reaches Barcelona and picks up the next batch of embarking guests.)

 

Thanks Hawkeye. My plan was to treat it like a regular sailing, maybe getting there just a little later so my rooms would be ready.

[cabincop]

Check in for Rome embarkation is usually around 12 they have to process the Rome cruisers which is why you have to arrive earlier. Your EDocs will have the time. Usually 12-2.

 

 

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[Quilting_Cruiser]

I'm on the same sailing as gottacruisemore and I'm really looking forward to having a much smaller group embarking in Rome. We're arranging our own Meet and Greet since the first sea day isn't for something like five days after we board. We want to meet up for tours and just to say hello. Some of us are participating in multiple roll calls since we share a few days with those who embark in Barcelona.

 

I chose this sailing because I sailed out of Barcelona last year and totally enjoyed almost a week pre-cruise, but I've never been to Rome. Having multiple embarkation ports allows me to spend time in whichever city I prefer without an extra flight. I'm confident NCL knows how to handle it without it being a logistical nightmare. As a PP said, the stewards may actually like not having to turn all the cabins on one day.

[Loonbeam]

All the lines do this at times, especially in the Med when all ports are in the Eurozone as it makes customs a non-issue. You may notice that certain sections of cabins are unavailable for a given segment as they try to keep things together to help the stewards. The yield management software is designed to handle it (and can result in some pretty interesting pricing

[3redheads]

Thanks for all of the replies. I admit it sorta blew my mind. I just never considered this way of doing things. It certainly gives a lot more options!

[bigilla]

Hi...in June and July the Spirit will be embarking passengers from Malta too (hopefully us too! ;) )... Ours will be a 10-night cruise.

[Cruising...our happy place]

We have been on two Baltic cruises (one of our favorites....) over the years that departed from Copenhagen. Our German friends boarded in Warnemunde, Germany -- one of the great little coastal towns... Yes, it works well for NCL to board at different ports on the same sailing.

 

 

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[dexddd]

NCL has been doing this at least back to 2008. The Gem's main port in the summer was Barcelona but it also embarked people in Malta. Then they discontinued it for a few years then it came back (the embarking passengers at various European ports).