Docking and disembarkation time in Civitavecchia

[QuangFre]

Hi all,

 

Question to past Koningsdam cruisers who disembarked in Civitavecchia?

I am wondering what the actual disembarkation time for Koningsdam in Civi is? According to official schedule it is 7 am. This would be a bit late for my flight from FCO so I would appreciate any info from fellow cruisers ?

Btw, I called and Holland told me to contact crew staffs when boarding.

 

thanks

 

Garrick

[Sir PMP]

Figure the earliest would be 7:30am, then you need a shuttle to the gate to find transportation. And then it will take a couple of hours to get to Fiumicino..

[DC1979]

I am just off the Koningsdam in Civitavecchia and it was somewhere between 7 and 7:15 when they called the first group to disembark.  

[cruise47]

You forgot going security at the air port and checking your luggage.

[QuangFre]

Thanks . I am curious what the actual docking time was DC1979? Holland told me they can give me priority disembarkation so I presume they can make disembarkation soon after docking.

if not, I may have to disembark the night before in Naples.

[DC1979]

I believe we docked around 6:30AM if I recall correctly.  They called for the expedited group first, which was around 7-7:15 and after that they started calling out the groups by color. Honestly I would not expect to be able to disembark prior to 7AM, and I wouldn’t feel comfortable booking a flight that required me to do so.  What time is your flight? 

[QuangFre]

Thanks again DC1979. Your info is really helpful.

Was it Naples the night before for your cruise. My flight is at 10 am to Zurich. I already booked taxi service from the cruiseport but still feeling uneasy. Probably will plan to disembark in Naples then.

[DC1979]

Yes Naples was the night before.  I think 10AM would be potentially doable if all the stars aligned, but one little snag could create a major headache.  Honestly I don’t think the stress would be the best way to end a vacation.  

[kazu]

26 minutes ago, QuangFre said:

Thanks again DC1979. Your info is really helpful.

Was it Naples the night before for your cruise. My flight is at 10 am to Zurich. I already booked taxi service from the cruiseport but still feeling uneasy. Probably will plan to disembark in Naples then.

 

YIKES - 10 AM?  

 

Assuming you don’t hit rush hour, it’s close to an hour to the airport from Civi.  You need time to get through security there and all that good stuff too.

 

I was actually looking at flights for my upcoming cruise and nixed the noon flight to Santiago de Compostela and probably will do the 2 pm one.  But, I tend to be cautious.

 

If I were in your shoes, I think I would look at disembarking at Naples - but do talk to HAL as you need to make arrangements to do so.

 

Earliest disembarkation is self disembarkation - that means you mange your own luggage to get off.  

[MisterBill99]

2 hours ago, Sir PMP said:

Figure the earliest would be 7:30am, then you need a shuttle to the gate to find transportation. And then it will take a couple of hours to get to Fiumicino..

 

How does that work? Do you have to take the shuttle with your luggage before you get to your booked transportation to the airport? And a couple of hours to FCO seems excessive unless there is a LOT of traffic.

 

I'm going to be doing this in a couple of weeks but my flight isn't until 2:50pm. Fortunately I have lounge access at the airport.  Last year when we sailed into Amsterdam I had a 10:50am flight and made it with no problem, even with terrible delays at the airport, but the port there is obviously much closer to the airport.

 

What is the earlier time that HAL recommends/will let you buy a ticket for thru their website? For AMS it was 11am. I didn't buy thru them last year but did this time.

Edited June 5, 2019 by MisterBill99

[cruisemom42]

1 minute ago, MisterBill99 said:

 

How does that work? Do you have to take the shuttle with your luggage before you get to your booked transportation to the airport? And a couple of hours to FCO seems excessive unless there is a LOT of traffic.

 

I'm going to be doing this in a couple of weeks but fortunately my flight isn't until 2:50pm. Fortunately I have lounge access at the airport. 

 

Most private transportation booked in advance will meet you right at the dock. But if you have any doubts, you should ask them.

 

Generally you will be at the airport in just under an hour. Of course, there are no guarantees but a two-hour trip would be really rare.

[QuangFre]

Hi cruisemom42,

 

Thanks for your idea. Yes our driver ( van) will pick us up from the dock and we won’t have any serious luggage(all carry-ons) so should be able to make it out fast.

It is doable but does not leave any room for error. 

From my previous disembarkations at this port, I always got out before 7 but those times were with Celebrity and NCL. Lesson learned !

[MisterBill99]

3 minutes ago, QuangFre said:

From my previous disembarkations at this port, I always got out before 7 but those times were with Celebrity and NCL. Lesson learned !

 

That's interesting. I would think that the disembarkation time would be more a factor of the port than the line. The ship wants to get you off as soon as possible. Of course it could also be a matter of where the ship is coming from and how early it gets to Civitavecchia. 

[cruisemom42]

9 minutes ago, QuangFre said:

Hi cruisemom42,

 

Thanks for your idea. Yes our driver ( van) will pick us up from the dock and we won’t have any serious luggage(all carry-ons) so should be able to make it out fast.

It is doable but does not leave any room for error. 

From my previous disembarkations at this port, I always got out before 7 but those times were with Celebrity and NCL. Lesson learned !

 

Still pretty close timing, but at least you will not have the same extensive security as passengers on flights headed to the US...

 

On the other hand, getting off in Naples would also be very easy and pretty stress-free. The fast trains between Naples and Rome take about 75 minutes and the train station is a short-ish taxi ride (or metro ride) from the port.

Edited June 5, 2019 by cruisemom42

[bennybear]

Rome airport can be chaotic,  I think you are cutting it very close.  If you are flying business that gives you faster checkin and security usually.  Sometimes it’s worth checking the change fee for a little later flight.  I did this myself in Venice and was glad I had. Just another option. 

[QuangFre]

Actually I had a flight out of FCO to Vienna last year and it was very fast. Check-in and security only took 40 minutes total.

It varies from day to day and we need to account for some time margin.

[QuangFre]

I am currently at FCO airport waiting for my flight Swiss Air to Zurich.

The Koningsdam docked at 6 am but somehow was not cleared by Port Authority until 7:16 am. I really don’t know why it could not be expedited.

Anyway, I hired RomeCab to pick us up right on the dock and we got to FCO at 8:10.

I purchased Fast track voucher for 8 euros and got through security check in 5 minutes.

 I also did online check-in the day before so we did not need to check in the Swiss air counter. So we got to the gate at 8:30 with plenty of time to spare. The walk to gate D from terminal 1 is rather long, taking around 15 minutes.

So this is my actual experience taking an early flight out after the cruise.

 

[kazu]

3 hours ago, QuangFre said:

I am currently at FCO airport waiting for my flight Swiss Air to Zurich.

The Koningsdam docked at 6 am but somehow was not cleared by Port Authority until 7:16 am. I really don’t know why it could not be expedited.

Anyway, I hired RomeCab to pick us up right on the dock and we got to FCO at 8:10.

I purchased Fast track voucher for 8 euros and got through security check in 5 minutes.

 I also did online check-in the day before so we did not need to check in the Swiss air counter. So we got to the gate at 8:30 with plenty of time to spare. The walk to gate D from terminal 1 is rather long, taking around 15 minutes.

So this is my actual experience taking an early flight out after the cruise.

 

 

Glad to hear things have worked out for you. 🙂 

 

As to expediting the ship - it needs to be cleared by port / custom authorities and only after they have done so can disembarkation begin.  The ship has no say in the matter.

[VMax1700]

4 hours ago, QuangFre said:

The Koningsdam docked at 6 am but somehow was not cleared by Port Authority until 7:16 am. I really don’t know why it could not be expedited.

Because it is Italy.😉 If all the ships want expedited clearance, then someone is still first and someone still last.

[QuangFre]

Thanks Kazu.

I noticed the port authority sending someone over to inspect the ship and he did not show up until 7:08. This was perhaps the reason for the slow clearance.

 

[CruiserBruce]

Just out of curiosity...did you book the flight before you researched the issues getting to the airport?

[QuangFre]

Yes I did book the flight without checking all the potential issues, mainly relying on my past experiences flying from Rome.

Having a reliable airport ride service and flying without check-in luggage along with Airport ‘s fast track pass helped a whole lot.

Otherwise, FCO is a mess and can be problematic for passengers without a lot of time.

[racnwdow]

We are getting off in Naples the morning before and taking the train to Rome.  We wanted to take a 6:00am flight to get home on the same day, instead of a flight that go us home the next day.  You do need permission from HAL to disembark at a different port.

[VMax1700]

53 minutes ago, racnwdow said:

We are getting off in Naples the morning before and taking the train to Rome.  We wanted to take a 6:00am flight to get home on the same day, instead of a flight that go us home the next day.  You do need permission from HAL to disembark at a different port.

Absolutely you do!  And make sure you take a copy of the granted permission to confirm with the front desk when you board.

[Pacemusc]

On 7/7/2019 at 10:56 AM, QuangFre said:

Yes I did book the flight without checking all the potential issues, mainly relying on my past experiences flying from Rome.

Having a reliable airport ride service and flying without check-in luggage along with Airport ‘s fast track pass helped a whole lot.

Otherwise, FCO is a mess and can be problematic for passengers without a lot of time.

Curious, what is a fast track pass?