Debarking early

[rsuther223]

We are considering a transatlantic on Celebrity. One couple would like to get off the ship early but was told they have to book and pay a deposit before their question can be answered. Has anyone had this come up before. Thanks in advance.

[cruisestitch]

This is called downline disembarking. It has to be applied for, and now there is a fee, which I believe is $65 pp. it has to be accepted by the local authorities at the port you wish to disembark at.

 

I did it a few years ago after a westbound transatlantic, leaving the ship at Port Canaveral.

 

There are some passengers on the upcoming Eclipse Eastbound TA who are wishing to disembark in Cork so they can make it to Southampton in time to take a Cunard ship westbound. It's up to the authorities in Cork to decide to allow this or not.

[leaveitallbehind]

By getting off early do you mean at a port of call other than the final one or just early on the final day of the cruise? Both can be arranged but leaving the ship prior to the final port of call will require prior arrangement with the cruise line and may result in an additional charge if special immigration and customs arrangements need to be made. You will also likely need prior acknowledgement with the port of call in question. Early disembarkation at the final port of call can easily be arranged on board with guest services.

 

BTW never heard of having to book and pay a deposit first before being able to have these questions answered by the cruise line. Sounds more like a questionable TA trying to get your business.

[cruisestitch]

A further thought to the OP...if your friends are considering disembarking in Cork be sure to check out your Roll Call, where you may find others planning to do the same.

 

And I agree about the Travel agent....sounds a bit "off" to me.

[jelayne]

The down line disembarking fee was $ 65 for the cabin not pp when we got the approval a few months ago.

[rsuther223]

Thanks for the information. Our friends want to get off in Lisbon, and he needs to get back to work! I will let them know.

[Pushkin]

Our family group got off a day early at our Naples stop on a BCN-BCN cruise last summer. I contacted Celebrity several months ahead of time and requested permission. They emailed me a confirmation. At that time I was told to go to Guest Services once on the ship and let them know our plans. The night before we debarked, Guest Services requested our passports for the Naples custom agents to review the next morning We wanted to get off the ship around 8 am and wound up getting off around 8:30 or so. Also you should settle up your account the night before. After we received the go-ahead at 8:30, we just walked off the ship with our luggage.

 

I stressed about it a lot, but it went smoothly. Good luck!

[rsuther223]

Thanks Pushkin!

[Wine-O]

I wonder why you had to show your passport to a customs agent in Naples. When you disembark in Civitavecchia, there's no customs/immigration -- you walk off the ship, pick up your luggage, and take off.

[Fouremco]

I wonder why you had to show your passport to a customs agent in Naples. When you disembark in Civitavecchia, there's no customs/immigration -- you walk off the ship, pick up your luggage, and take off.

I imagine it's because your entry status changes if you disembark at other than the designated final port.

 

A case in point: In 2014, my wife encountered a medical issue mid way through a 14-day Southern Caribbean cruise. The Eclipse's medical staff strongly recommended that we fly home from the next port, which happened to be Castries, and Guest Services had to make the necessary arrangements with the St. Lucian authorities to allow us to disembark. They explained to us that although we would be leaving the island the same day, we were no longer entering the country as cruise passengers and were now subject to the same entry requirements as any other tourist visiting the island. That included showing our passports.