Luggage tag question

[newfarmers]

Last night I decided I'd complete some of our luggage tags. Now I'm a university educated guy who enjoys a challenge (love that Sudoku) but those tags have both of us stumped. It really doesn't matter in the slightest as we are not using HAL air but what's with the air details on the tags?

 

Embarkation Airport, Airline, Arrival Date and Flight. Now I reckon this would be the airport you're flying into to board the ship and the related details. Al reckons it's where we're flying out of which makes even less sense. We're flying in to Rome three days before we sail out of Venice so I'm intending on leaving all those details blank because we won't even have the tags on until we repack in Venice on the day we board.

 

Disembarkation Airport etc. Mmmm. Well I'm thinking this will relate to Rio where we fly out of after the cruise. We're staying on so I'm thinking we leave those details blank, again. ALthough maybe the flight details could be useful as they'll see we're not going straight to the airport whne we debark in Rio. Al thinks that this relates to Rome, where we 'disembark' at the end of the flight.

 

Please end this argument (well, friendly discussion:D )

 

pete and al

[hammybee]

Given your intinerary, I would not put the tags on until you reach Venice and or the ship. All that's really needed is your fabulous balcony cabin number.:)

[newfarmers]

Given your intinerary, I would not put the tags on until you reach Venice and or the ship. All that's really needed is your fabulous balcony cabin number.:)

 

 

;) hey Hammy, it's there, in bold!!

[Krazy Kruizers]

We always fly to embarkation ports at least 2 - 3 days before the cruise. Never put luggage tags on until we are ready to leave the hotel to go to the ship.

 

Also we always stay over at ther disembarkation port for at least a day.

 

Thus - we never fill out any of that information on the luggage tags. Just our names and cabin numbers.

 

Why would HAL care what flight and airline we are arriving on and departing on when they will not be in charge of our luggage?

[MHS4]

Pete, when I saw those tags, I had the same response you did. HAL isn't doing my air either way or providing transfers to/from airport either. To avoid any confusion with Airline tags, I'm not attaching the HAL tags until after I collect my luggage in FL. I don't recall Princess asking for that info on their tags (which also had a more prominent place for the cabin #) & I didn't put their tags on until checking out of the hotel & heading for the pier.

 

And why is HAL asking about our flights home? Don't you get different tags for disembarking? Color coded to the time you leave or last name or however they are sorted for pier pickup?

 

Would the HAL-experienced explain the procedure for those who are not doing a post-stay as well?

 

hoping to have confusion cleared up ..

[cdkempton]

Hey Pete & Al,

I don't have any answers for you but enjoyed your asking the questions. Your "friendly discussion" sounds fun. :D Don't think you need to put any of the airline info on your tags. That might be for people flying in the same day as the cruise and leaving immediately for the airport on the way home. Who knows?

However, since you're doing the reverse of our April cruise, I do hope you have an absolutely fabulous time and will report back on your return. Hope that the Rotterdam is all the faithful say she is.

BON VOYAGE!!!!!

Colette

[jtl513]

I don't bother with the "embarkation" airport/flight info either, and only fill out the disembarkation info when we're going straight from ship to plane home via HAL bus transfer to the airport.

 

MH54: the procedure on disembarkation day can vary a little bit by port, and where you're clearing US customs. Usually you claim your luggage on the pier in a tent or warehouse-type area and take them to customs, then to whatever ground transportation you'll be using. However, last month in Vancouver we didn't claim our bags until we got to the airport. It's also possible on many airlines (United is not one) to pay $15 per person to have your bags sent directly from the ship to the airline, so you don't see your bags until you get to your home airport. Go to the disembarkation talk and it will all be explained for your particular port.

[Copper10-8]

Put those puppies on after you reach your embarkation city!

[cruznon]

I usually fill out only the name and cabin# unless flying directly after leaving ship, then I put in that flight info.

[jtl513]

Put those puppies on after you reach your embarkation city!

There are circumstances sometimes where you should put tags on before leaving your home airport: on our cruise-tour last month we were given two sets of tags, one for the land part (first) and one for the ship. In Fairbanks both HAL and Princess workers were pulling bags off the conveyor belt and stacking them in their respective areas, and any bags without tags had to be tracked down after the bulk were hauled off to the hotels by truck.

[MHS4]

I don't bother with the "embarkation" airport/flight info either, and only fill out the disembarkation info when we're going straight from ship to plane home via HAL bus transfer to the airport.

 

MH54: the procedure on disembarkation day can vary a little bit by port, and where you're clearing US customs. Usually you claim your luggage on the pier in a tent or warehouse-type area and take them to customs, then to whatever ground transportation you'll be using. ... Go to the disembarkation talk and it will all be explained for your particular port.

 

So, do I understand this correctly -- you actually SAVE that luggage tag for disembarkation??? For which, you may include the flight info ( which is totally unnecessary when not using HAL bus transfer).

 

And, you spend vacation time attending meetings/talks? in addition to that outside drill? ..........give me a break! Vacation is lack of clock-watching, meeting attending.

 

The port is FLL -- Princess left green or blue or yellow tags for your suitcases in your room -- when your color was called, you disembarked, found the bag in that color coded area, went through customs, found your transport. Simple, efficient. They had left a questionaire the day before asking for return flight time which determined your color.

 

Can someone explain how HAL does this -- why it is necessary to save that original tag (which for me would go into my scrapbook souvenir envelope evening 1 and by evening 6 be well lost beneath 6 days of stuff).

[Boytjie]

So, do I understand this correctly -- you actually SAVE that luggage tag for disembarkation??? For which, you may include the flight info ( which is totally unnecessary when not using HAL bus transfer).

 

And, you spend vacation time attending meetings/talks? in addition to that outside drill? ..........give me a break! Vacation is lack of clock-watching, meeting attending.

 

The port is FLL -- Princess left green or blue or yellow tags for your suitcases in your room -- when your color was called, you disembarked, found the bag in that color coded area, went through customs, found your transport. Simple, efficient. They had left a questionaire the day before asking for return flight time which determined your color.

 

Can someone explain how HAL does this -- why it is necessary to save that original tag (which for me would go into my scrapbook souvenir envelope evening 1 and by evening 6 be well lost beneath 6 days of stuff).

 

You get luggage tags prior to the cruise for embarkation only. Once on board you fill in a disembarkation questionnaire so that HAL can assign you to a timeslot for disembarkation. On that you tell them what your plans are after the cruise: HAL transfer, flight out the same day or staying on in the arrival port. I think the luggage tags were delivered to the cabin the second to last night.

On the last day the cruise director gave a 30 minute disembarkation speech explaining how it will happen the next morning and it was followed by the crew farewell ceremony.

[mbarker]

Day of sailing, put the tags on your bags before you leave home.

 

As a HAL airport meet and greet rep explained, if you are flying in the day of your cruise (regardless of how you bought your air) you should ALWAYS put your cruise tags on your luggage BEFORE leaving home.

 

Tags aren't put on the bags because you have bought the transfer.

 

You do it as a precaution -- if your luggage goes astray and arrives at your embarkation airport after you've gone to the ship, having that cruise tag on the luggage can make the difference between you getting it before the ship sails and not getting it -- especially if the luggage arrives late on sailing day.

 

If you have reported your delayed luggage to the HAL airport reps, they will follow-up with the airline. If the luggage comes in on a later embarkation-day flight, it will go around the carousel with all the other luggage from that flight and once that flight has cleared, airline personnel will check the air tags on the remaining luggage and if yours is there (and the ship hasn't sailed), they will get it to the HAL reps. If they see a cruise tag, it is done immediately, if there isn't a cruise tag, it will wait with all the other leftover bags until they check the record and learn it is destined for the ship.

 

VERY late in the day when it is a race between your luggage arriving and the ship sailing, if you have put HAL tags on your bags, the HAL rep can go to the belt and watch for it, spot it easily, pull it, and get it on its way. If you haven't put the tags on, it will have to wait until the belt clears and remaining luggage is set aside. Those few extra minutes can be crucial.

 

Having the tags on can also be advantageous if a leg of your flight is on a smaller plane because smaller planes can have luggage weight issues. Sometimes, the plane is too heavy and bags must be taken off and will follow you on a later flight. If the bags have cruise tags, the airline knows if those bags are taken off, they run the risk of not making it to the ship in time and the airline will have to foot the cost to get them to the first port. We were told criuse tags don't guarantee the bag will remain on the overweight plane, but it can increase the odds another, untagged bag will be taken off instead.

 

As for including your return flights on the tag, it is, again, just in case -- many passengers get excited/distracted during debarkation and leave luggage behind at the pier. If your homewardbound flights are on the tag, the forgotten bag can catch up with you at the airport. Without the flight info, the HAL pier staff would have no way of knowing you are flying home. It will eventually be sent C.O.D to your home.

 

Some have expressed a concern that the HAL tag might get torn off in transit. The rep said that rarely happens and if it does, they have a supply so you can fill out another before heading to the ship.

 

And there is no need to "keep track" of the original tag just leave it on the suitcase when you unpack.

[Boytjie]

And there is no need to "keep track" of the original tag just leave it on the suitcase when you unpack.

 

Why keep the original HAL tag on once you have your bags in your cabin? After every flight/cruise segment I remove all tags other than my own ID tag - no need to confuse things with mutliple old tags.

[Copper10-8]

There are circumstances sometimes where you should put tags on before leaving your home airport: on our cruise-tour last month we were given two sets of tags, one for the land part (first) and one for the ship. In Fairbanks both HAL and Princess workers were pulling bags off the conveyor belt and stacking them in their respective areas, and any bags without tags had to be tracked down after the bulk were hauled off to the hotels by truck.

 

Yes, there are exceptions!;)

Btw, my wife tells me your package has arrived (I'm attending a school elsewhere). Yours will be en-route as soon as I get home!:)

[jtl513]

So, do I understand this correctly -- you actually SAVE that luggage tag for disembarkation??? Can someone explain how HAL does this -- why it is necessary to save that original tag ...

For me it's not necessary to "save" the tag ... it never comes off when the suitcase goes under the bed. :) We merely add the disembarkation color/number tag.

And, you spend vacation time attending meetings/talks? in addition to that outside drill? ..........give me a break!

As Boytjieny just said, the disembarkation talk is pretty short, and just before the evening show. They want at least one person from each cabin to attend just in case there's something different than what you happen to be used to ... as there was when we disembarked in Vancouver last month.

 

It's not just HAL's idea to hold the lifeboat muster, that's Federal regulations ... and a very good idea IMO. We had to take life jackets and evacuate our cabins early once, and there was plenty of confusion on the part of some people despite having had the lifeboat muster!

They had left a questionaire the day before asking for return flight time which determined your color.

Same as HAL.

 

Btw, my wife tells me your package has arrived (I'm attending a school elsewhere). Yours will be en-route as soon as I get home!

Unbroken I hope? :D No rush on returning yours, thanks.

[Copper10-8]

.....Can someone explain how HAL does this -- why it is necessary to save that original tag (which for me would go into my scrapbook souvenir envelope evening 1 and by evening 6 be well lost beneath 6 days of stuff).

 

 

HAL does it pretty much the same way. Had a pleasant surprise in Athens two weeks ago where our bags were loaded directly onto the airport bus - no picking up inside the cruise terminal. That wouldn't work in the U.S. where you have to pass by Customs and Immigrations.

BTW, no need to save the inbound HAL tags unless you want to for some specific reason

And you are attending the muster drill, right?;)

 

Unbroken I hope? No rush on returning yours, thanks.

 

Don't know yet - it's unopened but I have faith in your wrapping capabilities!;)

__________________

[MHS4]

Why keep the original HAL tag on once you have your bags in your cabin? After every flight/cruise segment I remove all tags other than my own ID tag - no need to confuse things with mutliple old tags.

 

Ditto.

 

Thanks for the logic of having the tag on in case suitcase is left behind (flight down is scheduled as non-stop; but today one never really knows).

 

I don't mind the safety drill & do know it's federal mandated; just prefer the lounge location that Princess has vs the open deck squish that RC had when we sailed her years ago & that HAL seems to have still. Much easier to endure sitting down after long day starting at 4am.

 

Re the talk -- again, thanks for the clarification. Ultimately that will depend totally on that night -- really not much interest in cruise shows. Most likely if it's that important it will be repeated continuously on one of the TV channels.

[MHS4]

...

If you have reported your delayed luggage to the HAL airport reps, they will follow-up with the airline.

 

On re-reading this, another question came to mind. I did my own air (well, TA did it) & am using taxi, not cattle bus. Where do I find a HAL representative? Will he/she have a distinctive uniform?

 

thanks again

[Copper10-8]

On re-reading this, another question came to mind. I did my own air (well, TA did it) & am using taxi, not cattle bus. Where do I find a HAL representative? Will he/she have a distinctive uniform?

 

thanks again

 

Look for the "red coats" carrying HAL signs in the baggage claim area of your arrival airport

[Boytjie]

Ditto.

Re the talk -- again, thanks for the clarification. Ultimately that will depend totally on that night -- really not much interest in cruise shows. Most likely if it's that important it will be repeated continuously on one of the TV channels.

 

Ours took place during the day (while at sea) and they did rebroadcast it in TV.