Early flight after disembarkation

[LessShoesMoreTravel]

I am taking a round trip Alaska cruise out of Seattle.  I originally had an 11:30 a.m. flight out of Seattle.  JetBlue recently cancelled that flight and rebooked me for 10:20 a.m.. What are the odds I could make that flight if we left as soon as the ship allowed?

[Ferry_Watcher]

I would not recommend a flight that early.  The 11:30 AM was doable, but the 10:20 really isn't.

 

SeaTac is crazy busy during the summer months.  Traffic gets so bad that it can back up to the highway.  There are long TSA lines, and lines to drop off your luggage (With an early flight, you won't be able to take advantage of Seattle's free Port Valet program).

 

Also, depending on the day you are disembarking, you could be on one of three ships sending passengers to the airport all at the same time.

[CruiserBruce]

This is discussed almost daily on the West Coast Departures board, where Seattle,  as it's not in Alaska,  is covered. 

 

There is no way you make a 10:20 flight. 11:30 is the earliest recommended flight.

[KeepCalmBearOn]

3 hours ago, LessShoesMoreTravel said:

What are the odds I could make that flight if we left as soon as the ship allowed?

 

Not great.

Not impossible, but not a risk I'd take.

[LessShoesMoreTravel]

Thank you.

[LEMJMcC]

We're planning (with God's grace) to catch a 10:30 AM flight out of SEA-TAC after our Alaska Cruise on Quantum in July...but we are planning to self-disembark and we have the TSA Precheck.

Edited January 25 by LEMJMcC

[Ferry_Watcher]

1 hour ago, LEMJMcC said:

We're planning (with God's grace) to catch a 10:30 AM flight out of SEA-TAC after our Alaska Cruise on Quantum in July...but we are planning to self-disembark and we have the TSA Precheck.

 

At least the Quantum is the only ship in Seattle on Mondays.  It does sail full, so expect 4,800 - 4,900 fellow passengers.  I think that the Quantum begins their disembarkation just after 6;30 AM, as long as the CBP Officers and pier-side staff are all in place.

[nolatech]

I'm curious about this as well.  We are staying on NCL in a Haven suite for the first time, and I've heard that you get priority disembarkation. If this is true, does anybody know how much time that saves? We will be leaving June 30th, and there is only 1 direct flight but it's at 10:22am. We have TSA pre check and clear, so hoping to save the $1500 on ticket price differences if it makes sense. 

[julia]

4 hours ago, nolatech said:

I'm curious about this as well.  We are staying on NCL in a Haven suite for the first time, and I've heard that you get priority disembarkation. If this is true, does anybody know how much time that saves? We will be leaving June 30th, and there is only 1 direct flight but it's at 10:22am. We have TSA pre check and clear, so hoping to save the $1500 on ticket price differences if it makes sense. 

Please check the port schedule and see how many ships may be disembarking on the same day.  Your "priority" may be shared with a few thousand others, all trying to get to SeaTac.  Can you make it?  Will you make it?  Yes? No?  No one here can give you any guarantees, so it's completely up to you and your willingness to gamble.  

[KeepCalmBearOn]

13 hours ago, nolatech said:

I'm curious about this as well.  We are staying on NCL in a Haven suite for the first time, and I've heard that you get priority disembarkation. If this is true, does anybody know how much time that saves? We will be leaving June 30th, and there is only 1 direct flight but it's at 10:22am. We have TSA pre check and clear, so hoping to save the $1500 on ticket price differences if it makes sense. 

 

Trying to save money makes sense, but I never like to end a vacation with stress.

 

Also figure out what it will cost you if you DON'T make a 10:22am (doors close at 9:52am).

 

The point about how many ships are in port is important, so is how many passengers on your ship have priority disembark. It isn't just suites, but levels in the loyalty club too.

[julia]

15 hours ago, nolatech said:

. We have TSA pre check and clear, so hoping to save the $1500 on ticket price differences if it makes sense. 

Yes, a $1500 difference in ticket prices totally makes sense.  Have you looked at a 10:22 flight for the next day?  It will probably be the same $$ (or close), so perhaps just spring for a hotel, see some of Seattle, and take the stress out of this all together.

[nolatech]

7 hours ago, julia said:

Yes, a $1500 difference in ticket prices totally makes sense.  Have you looked at a 10:22 flight for the next day?  It will probably be the same $$ (or close), so perhaps just spring for a hotel, see some of Seattle, and take the stress out of this all together.

 

9 hours ago, scottca075 said:

 

Trying to save money makes sense, but I never like to end a vacation with stress.

 

Also figure out what it will cost you if you DON'T make a 10:22am (doors close at 9:52am).

 

The point about how many ships are in port is important, so is how many passengers on your ship have priority disembark. It isn't just suites, but levels in the loyalty club too.

 

18 hours ago, julia said:

Please check the port schedule and see how many ships may be disembarking on the same day.  Your "priority" may be shared with a few thousand others, all trying to get to SeaTac.  Can you make it?  Will you make it?  Yes? No?  No one here can give you any guarantees, so it's completely up to you and your willingness to gamble.  

Trust me, I get all that! I will probably just take a later flight. I was mostly curious about any time saved being in the Haven on NCL. There is one other ship disembarking that morning. 

[julia]

On 1/26/2024 at 5:14 PM, nolatech said:

 

 

Trust me, I get all that! I will probably just take a later flight. I was mostly curious about any time saved being in the Haven on NCL. There is one other ship disembarking that morning. 

You're welcome.

[ATSEAMYLIFE]

On 1/26/2024 at 10:55 AM, julia said:

Yes, a $1500 difference in ticket prices totally makes sense.  Have you looked at a 10:22 flight for the next day?  It will probably be the same $$ (or close), so perhaps just spring for a hotel, see some of Seattle, and take the stress out of this all together.

Exactly what I would do.  Much less stress.  We stay over often until a Monday and fly home as it's usually cheaper and more early AM flight options.  Our most recent cruise on the Wonder of the Seas we had to divert to San Juan for a medical emergency and our seven day cruise turned into an eight day with debarkation on Monday instead of Sunday.  We were advised on Saturday of the change.  Since our flight wasn't until Monday we were fine, but there was a lot of frantic phone calls from the ship.  

[psuboater]

On 1/26/2024 at 6:36 AM, scottca075 said:

 

Trying to save money makes sense, but I never like to end a vacation with stress.

 

Also figure out what it will cost you if you DON'T make a 10:22am (doors close at 9:52am).

 

The point about how many ships are in port is important, so is how many passengers on your ship have priority disembark. It isn't just suites, but levels in the loyalty club too.

I just responded on another thread, but SEA in the summer can be a MESS. I departed to NY on a day 3 ships disembarked in June. It took 45 minutes to do bag drop with Sky Priority access.

 

TSA Pre Only can also have its set of headaches at SEA. There are more times than not that TSA Pre is 45+ minutes. The only "10 minutes or less" guarantee is with TSA Pre Check WITH Clear. 

 

Factor that you're coming in on a Monday, you're going to be fighting with traffic half of your trip getting into the city if you're on Quantum, who has their Pier north of downtown. NCL, downtown at Pier 66 will also face gridlock trying to get to the highway from downtown. Return to Office is back in full force, as is all of the traffic.

 

Also adding, that on my 2022 trip on Quantum, we ran into customs delays and didn't start disembarkation until 8:30am. There were a LOT of stressed out people who were trying to get out ASAP, fight for a cab/uber, and try to make it through.

 

You'll see people say "oh I got a 10:30am no problem" - and those people are very lucky. SEA is known for being too small based on the passengers it intakes, and that spills over into a lot of delays.

 

If you're tight for time, also ask your driver to drop you off at Arrivals. It's only an esclator up to the Depatures floor and you'll save 10+ minutes on your car trying to fight for Departure access.

Edited January 30 by psuboater

[Texed]

United changed our flight from 12:28 PM to 11:02 AM.  Is this doable?  We are in Business Class, TSA pre check.

[CruiserBruce]

2 hours ago, Texed said:

United changed our flight from 12:28 PM to 11:02 AM.  Is this doable?  We are in Business Class, TSA pre check.

Day of the week? Ability to be in the first groups off the ship?

 

Doable, but you need to be able to carry your bags off, and grab the first cab you see.

[KeepCalmBearOn]

12 hours ago, Texed said:

United changed our flight from 12:28 PM to 11:02 AM.  Is this doable?  We are in Business Class, TSA pre check.

 

Is this in Seattle? If yes, it depends on the day of the week and how many other ships are in port that same day. It is doable, but much tighter than I'd be comfortable with.

[Texed]

14 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

Day of the week? Ability to be in the first groups off the ship?

 

Doable, but you need to be able to carry your bags off, and grab the first cab you see.

 

4 hours ago, scottca075 said:

 

Is this in Seattle? If yes, it depends on the day of the week and how many other ships are in port that same day. It is doable, but much tighter than I'd be comfortable with.

 

Yes, it is from Seattle port.  We can get off the ship early.  We can handle our own bags. We will be debarking on a Friday.  And, I am not comfortable with the tight schedule either.  We were planning on hiring a transfer service if we stay on the flight.

 

Thanks for your input.

Edited February 4 by Texed

[Ferry_Watcher]

So if you are at Pier 91 on a Friday you will have the 4800/4900 Ovation OTS begin their disembarking between 6:30 & 6:45 AM, and the 3,000 passenger Edge beginning their disembark around 7 PM, or just slightly after.   There is another cruise ship dock in Seattle, Pier 66, but lucky for you it does not have a ship in port every Friday - hopefully there won’t be a ship there on the day you disembark.

 

Making it to the airport for a 11:05 flight will be tight.  Even with a transport service, there are only 3 lanes into the pick up area at Pier 91 - buses, taxi, and private car/hired drivers.  Uber and Lyft has its own pickup area about a 10 minute walk away.  So even with a hired car, your driver could be caught in a slow moving line approaching the pick up area by the terminal.  Friday mornings are a zoo at Pier 91 as the 8,000 or so passengers leave, and the ‘early bird arrivals’ show up to be first on board.

 

Do try to be off as early as your ship allows, carry your own bags, but also expect long lines to tag and drop off your luggage, and long TSA security lines.  Unfortunately, SeaTac is just super busy, especially during the summer months.

 

Good luck!