Is Priority Access Worth It?

[Twocoasts]

On 6/19/2022 at 11:01 AM, aggie311 said:

With cruises getting busier now that it is summer, also curious if this is worthwhile. Does anyone have any recent experiences? I’m on the Epic out of Barcelona in July. 

Well, I fell for the marketing and bought it. We boarded the same cruise you are on in Rome. We were through Security and on board in less than 30 minutes. We arrived at 11 and the cruise terminal was empty. Maybe 10 other passengers total. This cruise in particular makes boarding really easy because only half the ship turns in each port vs. the entire ship embarking. We did use the extra spa credit and had room service a couple of days for breakfast, but if I had to do it over again, I would have skipped the Priority sell. 

[chip0320]

On 5/3/2022 at 8:49 PM, Mike A said:

We have Priority Access with a Club Balcony on the 5/29 sailing of the Joy out of NY. It should be interesting to see how they handle this as NY embarkation has been a mess on the sailings to Bermuda the last month. 

Mike, we purchased this for the joy out of NY on 7/10 and wondering if it was worth it to you? Thanks so much 

[complawyer]

as a practical matter, i would say no. even if you do priority boarding, the ship isnt going anywhere for a few hours. you may be able to sit around, eat and drink, but i dont think that's worth the price of admission. in18 cruises since 2010 (all on ncl) i dont think it ever took us more than an hour to board, then we were hustled to the buffet along with a few 1000 of our closest friends, all trying to get a seat, or to the pool area (still trying to find a seat) and fight off all the attendants trying to sell us the daily frou frou drinks at around $8.00 per, but you get to keep the special cup (plastic no less) which becomes s piece of junk when you finally get home.