I almost missed my cruise!

[soremekun]

I almost missed my cruise today.  Yes, I know I should have traveled the day *before* the cruise but I had to work.  So, I had to travel on Saturday, the day of the cruise.

 

My flight was JetBlue, originally scheduled to leave at 6:30am and arrive in Orlando at 9:55am.  From there, I would then hop on a prearranged shuttle to Port Canaveral.

 

Here's how it played out:
An email arrived while I was sleeping at 12:48am informing me the flight has been delayed to a 9:00am departure arriving at about 12:30pm.  The email suggests I arrive at the airport early, so I leave home at 4:30am.

 

At the airport, an announcement informs us the flight has been cancelled and shortly thereafter at 5:14am an email follows up repeating that the flight has been cancelled.  I visit the JetBlue desk and they rebook me on an American Airlines flight.  The flight went from Boston to Philadelphia with a connecting flight to Orlando that lands at 1:30pm! However, cruise check in ends at 2:30.

 

The shuttle dispatch informed me I have until 3pm to get to the port to check in.  When I arrive at the pickup spot, the shuttle arrives shortly after and we make our way to the port.

 

At 2:34pm, a rep from Carnival calls me and asks what my plans are.  I informed her I am on my way and will be there by 2:55pm.  I get to the port at about 2:53pm and rush through to check in and get on the ship.  That was a stressful situation!  But I made it.

 

Lesson: It is best to make your way to the port city a day in advance.

Edited February 18 by soremekun

[sunnyday60]

Wow.  Enjoy the rest of our cruise buddy!

[fla33023]

That was soclose! But you're now on a cruise so have a fabulous time!

[staceyglow]

Yes, if you are flying, always go the day before.

 

My brother and his GF missed a cruise out of Miami on Virgin because of flight delays.

[kwokpot]

It's the WINTERTIME in the Northeast..................

[Purvis1231]

Enjoy the cruise, it seems you have the right attitude. 

[BallFour4]

 I listen in to the port audio here in Galveston on my ham radio and often we hear about people that make the terminal door just as they are closing it, documents in hand they are hustled to the ship in less than ten minutes.
 A different scenario today as we watched a couple cross Harborside Drive late and a few minutes later they are headed back to the parking lot. That's a long walk...

Enjoy your cruise! We sail the Icon in a few weeks.

.

Edited February 18 by BallFour4

[TeresaJ]

Glad you made it! Sounds stressful. Have a great cruise.

[soremekun]

10 minutes ago, staceyglow said:

Yes, if you are flying, always go the day before.

 

My brother and his GF missed a cruise out of Miami on Virgin because of flight delays.

Oh no!  That stinks.  I'm sorry they missed their cruise.  Did they make it to Miami or did they run out of time at a connection airport?  If they made it to Miami, did they just enjoy their time there?

[staceyglow]

2 minutes ago, soremekun said:

Oh no!  That stinks.  I'm sorry they missed their cruise.  Did they make it to Miami or did they run out of time at a connection airport?  If they made it to Miami, did they just enjoy their time there?

I think they landed in Miami, but missed the cruise.

 

They wound up just doing a land-based vacation in Florida.

 

And no, they did not have trip insurance.  They will going forward.

[soremekun]

12 minutes ago, BallFour4 said:

 I listen in to the port audio here in Galveston on my ham radio and often we hear about people that make the terminal door just as they are closing it, documents in hand they are hustled to the ship in less than ten minutes.
 A different scenario today as we watched a couple cross Harborside Drive late and a few minutes later they are headed back to the parking lot. That's a long walk...

Enjoy your cruise! We sail the Icon in a few weeks.

.

Getting to the doors a few minutes past last call must be a major disappointment! 

[MEUB1112]

Glad you made it,  goodness that is close. Bought trip insurance for next two cruises because of an incident like yours. Have a Great Time!!

[hurricane0226]

47 minutes ago, TeresaJ said:

Glad you made it! Sounds stressful. Have a great cruise.

have yourself a celebration drink for at least making it, enjoy

[jerseygirlinAZ]

Your post stressed me out, lol!  Glad you made it!  Have fun!

[PlanoTim]

I'm glad you made it.  The surprising part of you story is that JetBlue (or any airline) was willing to book you on another carrier.  It seems like that happens so rarely these days.  Now you can breath a sigh of relief and enjoy your cruise.

[rrraydon]

My next 3 cruises I fly in the morning of 🤞... living life in the fast lane..woohoo!!  🤪

 

Have a great cruise!

[sparks1093]

I am betting that first drink of the day tasted extra sweet. Thank you for posting your experience. DW and I are fortunate that we have the ability to always fly in the day before but there are many people that don't have that luxury.

[pe4all]

9 hours ago, PlanoTim said:

I'm glad you made it.  The surprising part of you story is that JetBlue (or any airline) was willing to book you on another carrier.  It seems like that happens so rarely these days.  Now you can breath a sigh of relief and enjoy your cruise.

American and Jetblue used to be code-share partners so maybe they still have a bit of love for each other!  Hopefully the rest of Soremekun's cruise will be stress free.

[Ranyw]

Thanks for sharing! I hope this helps other cruisers.  Have a great time!

[ninjacat123]

Wow!! That was a nail biter!! I feel nervous driving to a port the day of (Jacksonville, 6 hours away) is as far as I will go, but airlines add another level of stress. Glad you made it👍

[pirate4me2]

Dang, I would have been in a panic all morning! Glad you made it, enjoy the relaxation. 🙂 

[Haljo1935]

I'm generally an early (very early) morning of person except distant foreign ports, where I do 2-3 days prior. Last cruise (Dec San Diego) I squeezed the wallet and booked flight day before; I was rewarded by AA canceling the flight ✈️ and an airport sleepover. Sooooo worth it 👀

my nails have still not grown back.  

[staceyglow]

2 minutes ago, Haljo1935 said:

I'm generally an early (very early) morning of person except distant foreign ports, where I do 2-3 days prior. Last cruise (Dec San Diego) I squeezed the wallet and booked flight day before; I was rewarded by AA canceling the flight ✈️ and an airport sleepover. Sooooo worth it 👀

my nails have still not grown back.  

But I bet you didn't miss your cruise!  😃

[UGACamper]

Would Fly2Fun have helped in this instance? Looking at booking it for day of flight in July to SFO from ATL. As a novice flyer, even though it’s a couple hundred more than what I would pay normally, I feel like the peace of mind is worth that. 

[Ferry_Watcher]

As someone who works at a cruise ship pier, I know it is helpful if you are running late for a cruise that you let the folks at the terminal know.  Passengers should find the contact phone number in the first couple of pages of their ship boarding info.  While the ship has the final say on when the gangway gets pulled, if the managers at the terminal know that a passenger is on their way, and there is a chance that they will arrive within a reasonable time before the ship is set to sail, then the pier-side managers will try to work with the ship and longshore up until the very last minute before the gangway is pulled. 

 

Sometimes it is passengers arriving and our terminal doors are already locked.  A manager will radio up to the check-in area to see if it is still possible to get the late passengers on-board.  The ship usually has a officer present in the check-in area, especially just before we close down.  If the officer says we can get the late passengers on, the manager at the door will make sure that the late arriving passengers have their citizenship documents/IDs all in order and then we get the passengers up to the security screening asap, then thru check-in and then on to the ship.  Over the years there have been a few times that check-in was already shut down, and the late passengers were checked-in onboard.  As long as we know their citizenship documents were okay, the ship can check them in.  It's rare, but it has happened.

 

The pier-side staff really wants to get all passengers on-board, but sadly it doesn't always work out.