Earliest check in time at Miami port

[jaedam0820]

We are scheduled at 11am for our check-in at the Miami port. Is this the earliest possible check in? Reason I asked is because when we checked in at 12noon at the Symphony of the Seas last May, we did a lot of standing and waiting. We would have senior with knee problems this time around (Freedom of the Seas) and we'd like for her to experience long lines getting inside. Any tips for us?

 

 

[JustMeJoe]

13 minutes ago, jaedam0820 said:

We are scheduled at 11am for our check-in at the Miami port. Is this the earliest possible check in? Reason I asked is because when we checked in at 12noon at the Symphony of the Seas last May, we did a lot of standing and waiting. We would have senior with knee problems this time around (Freedom of the Seas) and we'd like for her to experience long lines getting inside. Any tips for us?

 

 

We have a 10:30 for Explorer in Sep 2022.  Had an 11:00 in May 2022 for Explorer and waited about 10 minutes to start boarding.

[jaedam0820]

10 minutes ago, JustMeJoe said:

We have a 10:30 for Explorer in Sep 2022.  Had an 11:00 in May 2022 for Explorer and waited about 10 minutes to start boarding.

Is it normal for the people to be standing outside and wait for the doors to be opened at 12noon? That's what we experienced last time when we boarded the Symphony. Our check in time was 12noon but we only got to our cabin at 1:30pm (we went directly to our room).

[Pooch]

24 minutes ago, jaedam0820 said:

We are scheduled at 11am for our check-in at the Miami port. Is this the earliest possible check in? Reason I asked is because when we checked in at 12noon at the Symphony of the Seas last May, we did a lot of standing and waiting. We would have senior with knee problems this time around (Freedom of the Seas) and we'd like for her to experience long lines getting inside. Any tips for us?

 

 

You’d LIKE her to experience long lines???

[jaedam0820]

17 minutes ago, Pooch said:

You’d LIKE her to experience long lines???

Oh sorry. Lol.  mean, we'd like for her NOT to experience the long lines. 

[Ampurp85]

10:30 is the earliest possible check-in and if the ship is not ready then you will have to stand in line and wait. People will often come early and mess up the line for people with scheduled times. It is hit or miss on whether POM enforces the scheduled check-in times.

[bryresangel]

What ship? We were on the Jewel out of Miami and had an 11:30 time. I think 11:00 was the earliest. We were early (around 11am) due to me scheduling an uber from Ft Lauderdale early because I'm paranoid, but the line was not bad and it moved very fast. They took us upstairs and there was a waiting room to sit in until boarding began. They called people by their time, so when the 11:30 people were called, we got up and boarded. It was pretty painless, but it's a smaller ship and they were still operating under restricted capacity at the time. I hope it goes similarly well for you!

[Traveling Mike]

What you need to remember is they cannot let you board until everyone from the previous cruise is off the ship and they get clearance from the customs authority.  If they have people with covid or hurt during the cruise it can take longer to clear customs.  That is why some of the time you have 11 am and you are on the ship at 11:10 am.  And other times you have 11 am and you do not get on the ship until 12:30 pm.

[TRzeleney]

If you're really wanting to avoid lines, you could look at purchasing the Key which gets you priority boarding within your scheduled time. Of course, that is an added expense. If you were already getting Voom internet and can get a good deal, then it could be worth it to you.