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Missing The Boat


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Saw a guy nearly miss Rhapsody's departure in Roatan, Honduras. Saw him running as fast as possible onto the pier with about 2-3 minutes left.

I was just shaking my head thinking "You gotta plan these things better, dude."

Here's a question: Do they have their passports or did they leave them on board?

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52 minutes ago, SPS said:

Here's a question: Do they have their passports or did they leave them on board?

I have read that a ship’s officer will open the safe and remove passports and wallets, etc if they are there.  Apparently the personal effects are left with some official(s) at the port.  I cannot confirm any of this.

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Unless there is a health related issue I will never push my time in port, I will always arrive back early if I can help it, I know life can throw too many curveballs and there is far too much that can go wrong.  Lets just say Murphys Law seems to apply so I plan accordingly, and am always prepared for a worst case scenario.  The stress of arriving right on time  dockside would drive me absolutely insane. 

 

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1 hour ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

I have read that a ship’s officer will open the safe and remove passports and wallets, etc if they are there.  Apparently the personal effects are left with some official(s) at the port.  I cannot confirm any of this.

That is pretty close to what was shared from a crew member.  In his old job role he was the person that passed the passports and belongings to the port officials in those situations.  

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When I was in 7th grade (back in ‘90), my parents and I almost missed the boat in Barbados. We had hired our own cab driver to take us around the island and then ran into an issue with 2 flat tires making our way back to the boat. We were running up the pier in our bathing suits and flip flops as they were pulling up the gangplank. We didn’t even have passports back then but we joked that we could have learned if my dad’s AmEx would have lived up to its “don’t leave home without it” slogan.

I’ve been on 5 cruises as an adult and, because of that experience, won’t go on any cruise-sponsored excursion... even if it means paying more.

 

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My wife and I are always punctual. Most appointments we show up in the parking lot 10-15 minutes early. For something as major as airline or cruise travel, being there an hour or more early is normal for us.

I never "freelance" cruse excursions. Excursions booked through the ship are vetted by RCCL and are generally guaranteed to return you on time. I have heard that if an RCCL booked excursion you are on is late due to some thing out of their control, the ship will wait a reasonable amount of time or RCCL is responsible for getting you wherever you need to be next. Generally, RCCL excursions are well run, deliver on the experience as promised and get you back in time. That does not mean you can not forgo all personal responsibility. I SCUBA dive often on cruises and though transportation, boats, gear and leaders are usually good to excellent, you still have to be responsible for your own safety or you could die. That is a bit extreme but the point is, no matter how well your off ship activities are planned and organized, if you are not prepared or act stupid, bad things can happen.

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14 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

Truthfully, I am so paranoid about missing the boat.  I get back hours early.  

I'm beyond paranoid because I have a serious fear of flying so I CANNOT miss getting back on the ship. I mean cannot under any circumstances miss getting back on the ship. I will never chance it. Back on WELL before the time. I won't book excursions outside the cruise line, pay more for peace of mind is my motto, Money well spent in my book. 

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We watch some runners from our balcony once. They were allowed on the ship, but it delayed departure. Hard to feel sorry for someone like that. It might help if the ship time was the same as port time. Last Feb. Ship time was 1 hr different from port time in Belize. Made it confusing for catching our excursion. But what the heck, they have Belikan Beer! If you get to Belize there is an awesome woodcarver there. The best shopping is behind pier 4 where the locals are.

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20 minutes ago, SpeedNoodles said:

"The Royal Caribbean ship was just moving away from the pier as the two of them looked annoyed with themselves."

^^^^ This is the appropriate reaction for such a situation ... annoyance pointed in the correct direction. ^^^^

A rare sight in these modern days of "Nothing could possibly be my own fault!"

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On the HOTS FB page lots of Americans just use drivers license and birth cert to board, what if they get stuck in Honduras and miss the boat. Can you travel internationally with such documents? 

 

I'll be taking my passport with me if I leave the ship. 

 

 

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10 hours ago, Morganno said:

On the HOTS FB page lots of Americans just use drivers license and birth cert to board, what if they get stuck in Honduras and miss the boat. Can you travel internationally with such documents? 

 

I'll be taking my passport with me if I leave the ship. 

 

 

Travel agents recommend using passports so you can fly back to the US or to other countries.  Now other blog members have commented that documents from your stateroom safe will be delivered to the port representative if you are stuck behind.

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On Adventure the walk way to the peek a boo bridge is my hang out spot to watch the runners, actually it was a group of us.   In Bermuda we saw a family just leisurely walking down as the ship was pulling away the gang plank.  People on the pool deck and balconies are screaming run!  They finally looked up to see what the ruckus/noise was about.  SHOCKER....a few seconds later after they realize that they are the only people left you see them running.  One minute later and the gangplank would have been pulled up.

Some people will say that it was because the time change, but I always laugh at that.  1. The clocks on the ship are changed.  2, The compass states the time change.  3. Every 10-15 mins one hr prior to debarkation over the PA regarding the time change.  

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10 hours ago, Morganno said:

On the HOTS FB page lots of Americans just use drivers license and birth cert to board, what if they get stuck in Honduras and miss the boat. Can you travel internationally with such documents? 

No.  That is the drawback to cruising without a passport..you technically can't on a plane to get home without a passport.

10 hours ago, Morganno said:

I'll be taking my passport with me if I leave the ship. 

The ship knows who hasn't come back at a port.  If they're getting ready to sail and leave someone behind they will have security enter their stateroom to attempt to retrieve documents like the passport.  Then they leave it with the agent at the port.  They will know based on the documents that were used to get on the ship whether a passport even exists. 

Some people don't like to take their passports off the ship for a variety of reasons (potential theft, loss, getting them wet/destroyed) and will take copies.  Copies just make it easier for the Embassy to expedite what is needed to set up travel back home, but if you have the actual passport you will be one step ahead.  I'm definitely on #teampassport when I leave the ship.

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I synch my watch and phone to ship time as we're leaving ship and aim for 30-60 minutes early depending on where we'll be in port. Has a ship ever left early?

You need to know how far away you are from the ship and the minimum time to get back (walk, cab, etc). I only have 4 cruises under my belt but reading this thread you might be afraid to take a non-RC excursion (we've done 2 and loved them and were something RC did not offer) or race back to the ship hours early just so you don't miss the ship.

Bottom line - know where you are at all times and how long it will take you to get back to the gangplank. For example, there can be "state" security to re-board before you get to the ship.

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On 8/7/2019 at 6:41 PM, WAAAYTOOO said:

Truthfully, I am so paranoid about missing the boat.  I get back hours early.  

Me, too.

 

I'm a natural worrier, and missing the ship is a big one for me.  So, although I've been to St. Thomas 3 times, 

I have yet to garner the courage to venture over to St. John.  ?   Stupid phobias.

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On 8/7/2019 at 6:43 PM, JohnK6404 said:

We're with you! We get back with at least one hour to spare... usually two hours or so if possible!

It's nice to relax, shower and change before dinner.

@WAAAYTOOO & @JohnK6404

Agreed!  We've been to most of the ports we now visit - so there is no need to push it.  Yes, the idea is to relax and  not worry while on vacation.

Ditto.  We too like to take our time getting ready for dinner and a pre-dinner visit to the Diamond Club.  We enjoy meeting cruisers who also cruise often.

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Earlier this year in Cozumel two RCI ships were parked next to each other and I had a 9th floor Balcony on the gang plank side of the IOS. As the time came to start the departure, I believe 1830, I could see the security guys holding up fingers to indicate how many were still missing. As people were struggling to get to the boat the two ships passengers started screaming at them to run and other calls. I have to admit it was really fun yelling between the ships at the runners. As it got closer to 1900 the drunker the people looked coming back to the ship trying to stay within the bright red lines on the dock. We finally left at 1910, forty minutes after the on-board time. I was shocked they waited that long but it was our last port of call so they know how much flex time they have making it back to Fort Lauderdale. I actually missed a show because it was so fun!!! :3_grin:

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18 hours ago, Morganno said:

On the HOTS FB page lots of Americans just use drivers license and birth cert to board, what if they get stuck in Honduras and miss the boat. Can you travel internationally with such documents? 

I'll be taking my passport with me if I leave the ship. 

I leave my passport in the safe, it would be a pretty bad situation if I lost it while in a country, I wouldn't be allowed to enter the United States at disembarkation. 

This is why you should cruise with a passport though, and as stated, the ships officers will leave it with the country officials at port. Otherwise, with just a birth certificate in hand, you'll be having a fun afternoon at a U.S. Embassy.

I suspect some of these rules will apply in the situation of missing cruise ship and only having Birth Certificate & Government issued ID

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/emergencies/lost-stolen-passport-abroad.html

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I believe that if the ship knows why someone has been delayed and it is a reasonable wait, they will wait.  It's those folks who just don't come back on time and haven't bothered to try and signal "we're on our way !!" that get left. If they are aware that an excursion has been delayed (even if it is not one of theirs) I think they will try and accommodate.  I will never know b/c I will never be that brave !

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17 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

I believe that if the ship knows why someone has been delayed and it is a reasonable wait, they will wait.  It's those folks who just don't come back on time and haven't bothered to try and signal "we're on our way !!" that get left. If they are aware that an excursion has been delayed (even if it is not one of theirs) I think they will try and accommodate.  I will never know b/c I will never be that brave !

Yes. I've heard that before (years ago) as long as you can communicate back to the ship, they will try and wait, they don't want to leave anyone behind either.

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