Reason to travel 1-2 days prior to cruise

[Woofbite]

12 hours ago, Roz said:

 

 

I've used Quick Shuttle in the past, but their current schedule doesn't work for me. 

I was unable to get space on HAL shuttle last year and took Quick Shuttle.  Driver was new, toured Seattle trying to find their stops then made half a dozen stops in Canada promising an increasingly concerned load of passengers they would have no problem making their cruises.  Repeated assurance we would arrive on time.  We were so late, a HAL rep grabbed a wheel chair for me, rushed through U.S. control, Canada control and at HAL check-in desk was told to get me on board and they would finalize their paperwork there.  They were moving the gangway as I entered the ship. 

I wonder if the other passengers made their cruises.

Never "Quick" Shuttle for me again.

 

[3rdGenCunarder]

7 minutes ago, Woofbite said:

I was unable to get space on HAL shuttle last year and took Quick Shuttle.  Driver was new, toured Seattle trying to find their stops then made half a dozen stops in Canada promising an increasingly concerned load of passengers they would have no problem making their cruises.  Repeated assurance we would arrive on time.  We were so late, a HAL rep grabbed a wheel chair for me, rushed through U.S. control, Canada control and at HAL check-in desk was told to get me on board and they would finalize their paperwork there.  They were moving the gangway as I entered the ship. 

I wonder if the other passengers made their cruises.

Never "Quick" Shuttle for me again.

 

 

Wow! Good for HAL, having someone ready to greet you and expedite your boarding. 

[Woofbite]

I always wondered if it was because they knew I was booked in a Neptune Suite and hadn't shown up.

[DaveOKC]

14 hours ago, sunviking90 said:

Great advice to arrive early, and especially be in the port city the night before. I certainly understand that it is cheaper to fly into SEA from many parts of the US, but I would be very nervous to face a 4 hour bus ride and an international border on the day of my cruise. 

We did the 4 hour bus ride a few years ago.  We were going to Vancouver a day ahead of our cruise, so plenty of time.  Along the way we had to stop and pickup passengers from the previous bus which had broken down and most of those passengers were on a cruise that day!  I do not know for certain, but I doubt that they made it (we got off at a stop earlier).  So even taking the bus is not a guarantee when arriving the same day.

[AKJonesy]

16 hours ago, acctgtogo said:

I like the idea of taking the bus from Seattle to Vancouver.  Does it have a name?  Searching online shows many options - not sure which are good.  Also, is there a bus that goes from Canada Place but to SeaTac?  Thanks.

@acctgtogo Quick Shuttle both from Seattle to Vancouver and return with several different departure places.  

Edited October 7, 2023 by AKJonesy

[AKJonesy]

11 hours ago, VermeulT said:

Amtrak runs a train and several buses from downtown Seattle to Vancouver.

How does that work for Canadian Customs then?

[dawnvip]

Our very first cruise, DH and I were delayed and re-routed. We were thankful that our plans included an overnight in MIA before embarkation but our luggage was also delayed. My luggage met the ship in MIA, but DH had to wait 3 days until first port to retrieve his. It was a real wake-up call for us, and now we always "cross-pack" so that we will both have something to wear!

 

We have also stayed at airport hotels, less than an hour from home, if early morning flights in winter are booked. You never know what will happen with traffic and weather!

 

We tend to book direct flights whenever possible to avoid delays, missed connection and missing luggage. Not guaranteed but it helps. If we're flying within North America, we'll usually arrive night before embarkation. If we're flying overseas, then 3 nights ahead.

[3rdGenCunarder]

3 hours ago, AKJonesy said:

How does that work for Canadian Customs then?

 

I've done the train and that's easy. The train does not stop at the border for inspection. You get off the train in Vancouver and collect your luggage (if you did checked luggage) from the platform (sidewalk) by the train. Go into the station, show your passport (I don't recall having a form to fill out, but maybe we did--it was pre-covid), and you're good to go. 

 

I've heard that the bus crossing (which is at the border, not Vancouver) requires you to take your luggage from the bus, through customs, and then back to the bus. 

[Roz]

22 minutes ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

I've done the train and that's easy. The train does not stop at the border for inspection. You get off the train in Vancouver and collect your luggage (if you did checked luggage) from the platform (sidewalk) by the train. Go into the station, show your passport (I don't recall having a form to fill out, but maybe we did--it was pre-covid), and you're good to go. 

 

I've heard that the bus crossing (which is at the border, not Vancouver) requires you to take your luggage from the bus, through customs, and then back to the bus. 

Sometimes they have you retrieve your luggage and sometimes not.  On my cruise 2 weeks ago we didn't have to do it coming or going.  They want to keep people guessing for security reasons. 

[cbr663]

We also had flight issues for our Alaska cruise in May.  Luckily we booked to arrive 2 days prior to the cruise.  Our first flight was cancelled and we were rebooked on another later flight.  After checking in for that flight our second leg was cancelled and we had to fly out the next day.  We ended up losing a day in Vancouver and had to pay for the missed hotel room day.  Luckily our travel insurance reimbursed us for the hotel room.

 

We are leaving next week for a land based trip and just today DW said, "well, no changes to the flight yet." lol.

[MoneyGuy]

We’re flying to Miami three days before our departure in February. Hotel is booked in Miami. I’m concerned that something might happen that causes us to miss the first hotel night without being able to cancel a night within 24 hours of hotel arrival (and not get the first night refunded, as happened to us recently on a trip to Reykjavik).

 

We’re flying Edmonton-Toronto-Miami in one day so there is a real chance something may happen. I’ll have to call the hotel to ask about their cancellation policy. 

[sambamama]

I had to do the luggage customs removal for Seattle and it was a nightmare. I just flew into Madrid and had to clear customs at 5:30 in the morning, and that was a nightmare. Every time I clear customs in Miami (and I have Global Entry and TSA Precheck), it's a nightmare. I would never fly in for a domestic cruise less than 2 nights before, and an international one less than three. I also recommend people buy luggage trackers (the Apple ones if you have an IPhone, the Tile ones if you have an Android) as that helps if your baggage gets lost. Obviously it's better if you travel without checked baggage, but I've never been able to manage that. I am managing to travel with one checked bag and a carryon, sometimes however. 

[Bxc53]

2 hours ago, MoneyGuy said:

We’re flying to Miami three days before our departure in February. Hotel is booked in Miami. I’m concerned that something might happen that causes us to miss the first hotel night without being able to cancel a night within 24 hours of hotel arrival (and not get the first night refunded, as happened to us recently on a trip to Reykjavik).

 

We’re flying Edmonton-Toronto-Miami in one day so there is a real chance something may happen. I’ll have to call the hotel to ask about their cancellation policy. 

I’ve had several similar situations where the airlines didn't get us to the destination the same day as originally promised. I have had good luck calling the hotel directly ( not the national rez center) and asking nicely for the best person to discuss a ‘ reservation modification’  .  Explaining the situation ( airline issues) always got a courtesy cancellation. 

[MoneyGuy]

25 minutes ago, Bxc53 said:

I’ve had several similar situations where the airlines didn't get us to the destination the same day as originally promised. I have had good luck calling the hotel directly ( not the national rez center) and asking nicely for the best person to discuss a ‘ reservation modification’  .  Explaining the situation ( airline issues) always got a courtesy cancellation. 

Maybe our mistake for the Iceland trip was my wife phoned. I’m not as nice as she is.

[FlyingCruiser2]

We live less than 4 hours from 4 of the Florida ports and still go down and stay near the port the day before!  

[Himself]

On 10/6/2023 at 10:55 AM, DaveOKC said:

Two weeks ago we were traveling from Oklahoma City to Vancouver, leaving at 6 AM and arriving in Vancouver at Noon.

Figured that being mid-Sept that this would not be a problem - WRONG.

Missed our connection in Dallas, even with a 2.5 hour connection time.

When we arrived in Dallas were told that we were rebooked for next day, which would likely not work.

Was able to convince American that we needed to get to Vancouver that evening, even if it was very late.

They rebooked us to Vegas and then to Vancouver on Air Canada. 

Got to hotel at 11 PM - would have never made a cruise that day.

 

In the end we (and our luggage) made it to Vancouver, but it was a minor miracle that we made it, so morale of the story is - arrive at least one day early to your departure port, regardless of the time of year.  We had alot of hassle and made it, but if we did not it would have been a real mess, potentially with no luggage for two weeks, even if we made the ship.

I NEVER fly in on the day of a cruise.  I always go a day or two before.

[Sea42]

21 hours ago, MoneyGuy said:

We’re flying to Miami three days before our departure in February. Hotel is booked in Miami. I’m concerned that something might happen that causes us to miss the first hotel night without being able to cancel a night within 24 hours of hotel arrival (and not get the first night refunded, as happened to us recently on a trip to Reykjavik).

 

We’re flying Edmonton-Toronto-Miami in one day so there is a real chance something may happen. I’ll have to call the hotel to ask about their cancellation policy. 

Also, check what coverage you may have with the credit card you use to book the hotel. Some include basic insurance coverage for these situations.

[CruiseMGM]

We took a Seattle r/t to Alaska August of 2022, and it's the first EVER that we've flown in the day of embarkation. Our flight was LAS-SEA and we got the first in the morning flight. We did it with eyes wide open, figured the cruise had been so cheap that if we missed it, we'd just fly home. Everything went smoothly and we had no problems, but I suspect we were just lucky. I don't think I'd ever do that again. Heck, even when we've sailed out of San Diego, we drove the car down and stayed overnight before embarking next day.

 

For what it's worth, our last cruise was Mediterranean and we flew in with 2 nights in a hotel before embarking. Good move, as far as I'm concerned, and we enjoyed our jet-lagged time on the ground before getting on the ship. We also go with carry ons only any more, especially after a huge fiasco in 2022 where we were abandoned by the airline in Germany on our way to Switzerland! And we weren't even supposed to go to Germany! But that's another story! 😆

[bluesplayer]

We were on a cruise in March years ago from Valparaiso to Buenos Aries.  Several US flights were delayed due to thunderstorms.  About a dozen folks missed the sail away in Valparaiso and then went to our next port Puerto Montt.  The ship had a sea day before arriving.  The Zaandam ended up not stopping there either as there were fires on land and was extremely smokey.  Again the ship had another sea day and finally after 5 days of chasing the ship the folks were able to board.  The areas there are remote and transportation difficult.  They missed 1/3 of the cruise.