Aqua Class boarding?

[wilsonzoo]

Solstice to Alaska, May 26th

I'm reading that our Aqua Class cabin gives "priority boarding".  Does that mean that we can show up and board at any time, regardless of what time we booked our "health questionnaire/boarding time" for?  We are currently scheduled for 1-1:30 but I would love to be lounging on the deck closer to noon! 

[cruisestitch]

Just now, wilsonzoo said:

Solstice to Alaska, May 26th

I'm reading that our Aqua Class cabin gives "priority boarding".  Does that mean that we can show up and board at any time, regardless of what time we booked our "health questionnaire/boarding time" for?  We are currently scheduled for 1-1:30 but I would love to be lounging on the deck closer to noon! 

No, that is not what it means. Only suites can go on board at any time. All other passengers have assigned boarding times.  
 

Prior to the shutdown, there were different queues for different stateroom classes. But that has not been reinstated since the start up. The fact that they have not removed that language from the description of Aqua means that maybe someday they will go back to that system, but right now you’re going by boarding times

[cruiserchuck]

On our Solstice cruise from Los Angeles last month, they did give priority boarding to Aqua class.  We had a 12:30 pm assigned boarding time, but arrived early, and were able to board at about 11:10 am.  They started boarding at about 10:30 am for suites, at 11:00 am for disabled/wheelchairs, and at 11:10 for Elite Plus/Aqua.  

Edited May 13, 2023 by cruiserchuck

[JintyGirl]

No, BUT, we had the 1st boarding time for a recent departure from LA. Boarding was delayed and didn’t start until an hour after it was supposed to. Celebrity staff said there was a coastguard drill being performed on the ship. There were 100s of passengers waiting to board. 
At 12:30, retreat guests were allowed to board. Following that they called Aqua class and Elite and Elite+ guests. 
So, if you’re unfortunate to experience a delay in boarding, you may get on before others if in Aqua Class. 

[Ken the cruiser]

On the 6 Celebrity cruises we’ve cruised on since it started back up, we have never seen anyone turned away from checking in if they “accidentally” arrived before their scheduled checkin time. I know when we arrived each time, all they wanted to see was our CDC cards and negative antigen tests (if applicable) before being allowed to proceed. Personally, I think they are just “suggested” arrival times to keep the flow somewhat balanced. But, that’s just my opinion from over here in the peanut gallery. 😁

[cruisestitch]

Probably so, but it isn’t an aqua class privilege. And that is what the OP was inquiring about

[jelayne]

The boarding for a recent cruise was delayed.  We were not in a suite and from what we could see people were arriving within their assigned time ( they checked us and others arriving at the same time for boarding time).  We were sent to a specific section of a large waiting area and when boarding started for non-suites was by area in the waiting room not by cabin class. 

[keesar]

On our recent cruise, there were no special lines for Aqua class or any others except for Suites.  People were waiting for their times to be called outside.  Luckily, it was not raining or hot outside. 

[Ken the cruiser]

6 hours ago, cruisestitch said:

Probably so, but it isn’t an aqua class privilege. And that is what the OP was inquiring about

Thank you so much for clearing that issue up. But my observation was more of the general practice of what has happened when we have reached the terminal on each of our prior cruises, regardless of whether we were in an Aqua, Concierge or Veranda cabin.

[Fly and Sail]

8 hours ago, cruiserchuck said:

On our Solstice cruise from Los Angeles last month, they did give priority boarding to Aqua class.  We had a 12:30 pm assigned boarding time, but arrived early, and were able to board at about 11:10 am.  They started boarding at about 10:30 am for suites, at 11:00 am for disabled/wheelchairs, and at 11:10 for Elite Plus/Aqua.  

Interesting. I didn’t see that being offered anywhere and had a chat with the CC concierge about that this afternoon.

[indy406]

We showed up about an hour before our designated check-in time in February for a Reflection cruise out of Port Everglades. We weren't trying to cut the line or pull something, we were at the mercy of the hotel shuttle van to the port. Lots of hubbub in the drop-off area as usual but we walked right into the building and were in line just a few minutes before starting to be processed. Nobody asked us our check-in reservation time. We were on the ship probably 15 minutes later. My guess is there was no problem because we arrived when the line was short. We likely would have been held outside until our designated time if the place had been packed. So I think it's probably OK to show up early. What's the worst that could happen? You have to be waiting somewhere.