Embarkation Day - How early is too early to arrive at the Navigator of the Seas Terminal?

[CableKC]

I'm looking at a possible Navigator of the Seas cruise in the summer and considering flying in on the morning of the cruise embarkation Day.   I figure that I can fly in and arrive at the Cruise Terminal by around 9:45am on the Monday morning of the Embarkation Day.

Is that too early to arrive at the port?

How long should it take to get through the entire check-In and customs process?

I assume that the entire process shouldn't take too long for a large party.   But I'm concerned that we'd arrive too early and have to sit in the terminal until around 12pm since I assume that everyone should be off the ship from the previous cruise at 11am.

Any input would be helpful.

Thanks in advance.

 

[BowTieBrigade]

It’s been more than a year, but when I last sailed on Nav, nobody at the port was checking arrival times. 

[Temeculaguy]

We went on Navigator this last spring, we got there about noon but we drove , some got on before us but not that many, the ship empties out at about 9 and starts boarding just before noon, rooms didn't open till 1 or 1:30. At 9:45, my guess is you will be sitting in a chair for two hours in the terminal then another hour or two in the windjammer. Fly in the day before and take your time. The whole process took about 30 minutes but between 9 and noon much of the crew goes ashore and it takes hours to clean the rooms, they lock the hallways so nobody gets in until all the rooms are ready. Much of the rest of this ship is closed off, the pool deck and some other areas are pretty much it until about 1 pm. With airlines today, I wouldn't risk a same day arrival especially with checked luggage , I'm nervous about a one day prior arrival but I've done it and been fine. I've never flown in same day but have flown out same day at the end of a cruise when luggage isn't an issue.

[teddy]

When you check in online for your cruise, approx 45 days before, you will choose one of the available times to arrive at the terminal. 

[ScottD]

5 hours ago, CableKC said:

I'm looking at a possible Navigator of the Seas cruise in the summer and considering flying in on the morning of the cruise embarkation Day.   I figure that I can fly in and arrive at the Cruise Terminal by around 9:45am on the Monday morning of the Embarkation Day.

Is that too early to arrive at the port?

How long should it take to get through the entire check-In and customs process?

I assume that the entire process shouldn't take too long for a large party.   But I'm concerned that we'd arrive too early and have to sit in the terminal until around 12pm since I assume that everyone should be off the ship from the previous cruise at 11am.

Any input would be helpful.

Thanks in advance.

 

You will be assigned a check in time of your choice when you do your online check in about 45 days before your cruise...thats when you should arrive at the terminal

[monctonguy]

How strict or closely do they follow those check in times? I know previous to Covid, I would show up at around 10am no matter what and was usually on the ship before 11am.

 

Has this changed or still the norm?

[BowTieBrigade]

17 minutes ago, monctonguy said:

How strict or closely do they follow those check in times? I know previous to Covid, I would show up at around 10am no matter what and was usually on the ship before 11am.

 

Has this changed or still the norm?

Varies port to port. They’re supposed to follow check in times but some don’t. 

[monctonguy]

Tampa on Brilliance for me. Cruised out of here a few times with no issues showing up early so hopefully that's the case in 19 days!

[Maggie M]

We're heading out on the Navigator next week for a 7-day cruise and the earliest check-in time available was 11am. I read somewhere that you have an hour buffer (before and after) for arriving. So technically, we could arrive at 10am or noon and be fine to check-in.

I would also suggest trying to fly in at least the day before to give yourself some time in case something goes wrong (delays, cancellations, lost luggage, etc) just to be safe! I don't see them denying boarding to someone who arrives outside their "check-in window" though - especially if they're running late and it's close to sail time.

Just be sure to have all your important documents, medication, etc in your carry on luggage since it may be a few hours (they have until 4pm I think) before you get your luggage that was dropped off with the porters. If you do get there early, you can tour the ship - we always check-out the spa and make our reservations for the week then have a leisurely lunch in the Windjammer before we head down to our room to unpack. They usually make an announcement of when your rooms are ready and then they unlock the hallways. I hope this helps! Enjoy your cruise! 

[Ampurp85]

I am an advocate of flying in the day of the cruise if you are solo and it's the first direct flight out. If you don't meet those requirements, you should fly in the day or night beforehand unless you absolutely can't. Also keep in mind the time it takes to get any check luggage, get to the taxi/Lyft/Uber area and then finally start the journey to the port.

That being said, the LAX cruise port is small and doesn't really have much in the way of a waiting area. They will enforce check-in times because of this. This also means getting on a ship early may not be an option because disembarkment is often delayed. So, if your flight arrives around 9:45 and you have an 12pm check-in you will probably wait at least an hour. 

[teddy]

When you select a check in time, you select a window, such as 1100-1130. That’s the leeway.  
 

Yes, I am aware that Suites and people who have purchased the Key have their own rules, and most of the time, their own lines.  I’m also aware that some ports don’t enforce the times like others do.  

Arriving earlier than the assigned time, no matter the justification, just adds to the confusion of Embarkation day. 

Boarding Voyager in Boston back in October was a disaster because of all the people who disregarded their assigned times.  

[smokeybandit]

In July we got to the port at 10:15 and they were already boarding by the time we got through check-in.

[CableKC]

3 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

I am an advocate of flying in the day of the cruise if you are solo and it's the first direct flight out. If you don't meet those requirements, you should fly in the day or night beforehand unless you absolutely can't. Also keep in mind the time it takes to get any check luggage, get to the taxi/Lyft/Uber area and then finally start the journey to the port.

That being said, the LAX cruise port is small and doesn't really have much in the way of a waiting area. They will enforce check-in times because of this. This also means getting on a ship early may not be an option because disembarkment is often delayed. So, if your flight arrives around 9:45 and you have an 12pm check-in you will probably wait at least an hour. 

I am considering flying in on embarkation day and out on the same day as disembarkment day to simply save costs.

The flight that I am considering is the 1st flight of the day through Southwest ( yeah, I know ).    But it shouldn't be a major issue unless something really strange comes up since the dates that I am considering doesn't fall around a major travel holiday and it's on a Monday between 2 major travel hubs.

 

 

[Maggie M]

I know some people that LOVE Southwest - I just haven't flown them enough to give an opinion! Now, Spirit airlines on the other hand...I will never fly with them again. Best of luck to you - I hope everything goes smoothly! 

[Ampurp85]

1 hour ago, CableKC said:

I am considering flying in on embarkation day and out on the same day as disembarkment day to simply save costs.

The flight that I am considering is the 1st flight of the day through Southwest ( yeah, I know ).    But it shouldn't be a major issue unless something really strange comes up since the dates that I am considering doesn't fall around a major travel holiday and it's on a Monday between 2 major travel hubs.

 

 

I have flown SWA on embarkment, it is always the first flight and never any problems. But it was solo, having children or other people can slow or alter the process. I always have to fly out after disembarkation. It works out fine.

I did a back-to-back on Navigator this past Sept and embarkment and disembarkment were a mess. It was hurricane season, and we were avoiding one, so ports changed and so did check-in times.

[Maggie M]

I guess it's always good to keep in mind that flexibility is key when cruising. You never know when the itinerary may change...

[CableKC]

1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said:

I have flown SWA on embarkment, it is always the first flight and never any problems. But it was solo, having children or other people can slow or alter the process. I always have to fly out after disembarkation. It works out fine.

I did a back-to-back on Navigator this past Sept and embarkment and disembarkment were a mess. It was hurricane season, and we were avoiding one, so ports changed and so did check-in times.

Where do you usually fly out of?

I was considering a 1:15pm flight out of LAX on Disembarkment day.    How long does customs take to get through for a larger Party of 7?

I roughly calculate that if I get off the boat by 9am that I should be able to get through Customs, drive to the airport ( either via Car Rental or Shuttle ) and get to the gate by 12:30pm to catch the flight leaving at 1:15pm on a Friday.

The other option is to fly out of Long Beach, but the flight is much later in the afternoon and I prefer not to wait around for 4 or 5 hours.

[Maggie M]

I'm nervous that we're going to be cutting our disembarkment too close with our 12:45pm flight too...EEEK. There's only 2 of us and we'll probably just go to guest services while on board and ask for tickets to LAX via Royal Shuttle so we can ensure we'll make it in time - they still have that option right?

[Skippy67]

If you're sure about getting to the port at 9:45, make a note of the date you can check-in so you can go online to reserve an early time; the earliest I've gotten is 10:30. At my last sailing from the Port of LA in August, they had designated lines for different check-in times and took less than 30 minutes to be on the ship.

[Va4fam]

4 hours ago, Maggie M said:

I know some people that LOVE Southwest - I just haven't flown them enough to give an opinion! Now, Spirit airlines on the other hand...I will never fly with them again. Best of luck to you - I hope everything goes smoothly! 

I loved Southwest but they have spent the past 3 years not loving me back.  Let my elite status go this year after too many delays, cancelled flights, and chaos.  I kept track of all of my flight segments and in 2022 they were 2 for 30 on getting me to my destination within 30 minutes of scheduled arrival.  18 of my flights were delayed more than 90 minutes, 6 more were cancelled.  

[Va4fam]

1 hour ago, Maggie M said:

I'm nervous that we're going to be cutting our disembarkment too close with our 12:45pm flight too...EEEK. There's only 2 of us and we'll probably just go to guest services while on board and ask for tickets to LAX via Royal Shuttle so we can ensure we'll make it in time - they still have that option right?

Our flight leaving LAX is 1:05 pm.   Should be plenty of time even with typical LA traffic.

[CableKC]

52 minutes ago, Skippy67 said:

If you're sure about getting to the port at 9:45, make a note of the date you can check-in so you can go online to reserve an early time; the earliest I've gotten is 10:30. At my last sailing from the Port of LA in August, they had designated lines for different check-in times and took less than 30 minutes to be on the ship.

Given the likely arrival time and a guess-timate of how long it will take to get through baggage claim and shuttle pick up ( or car rental ), I would expect that the arrival time at the port would be no earlier than 9:45am....give or take 30 minutes.     I will look into check-in times to see when the earliest that I can check in.   I don't mind boarding early and wandering the ship before the 1pm-ish time that we can enter our cabin.  I just know that with kids and a grumpy wife that's been up since 5am for a 6am flight, sitting in the cruise terminal for an extended period of time would be a bad start to a family trip.

[WAYNO]

I am guilty of nearly always arriving at a terminal, early.  Being always early, I am never late. Sometimes I share  the line with other early birds as the line trudges along slowly, other times we are ushered in quickly. 

 

Most recently, (Nov '22), after landing at LAX early on the day of our cruise, but not assigned a gate nor allowed to de-plane til an hour later, it reinforced why I get most places as early as possible.  Our shuttle got us to the ship at 1030.  There, we saw many hundreds of other early birds standing on a sidewalk, mostly obscuring any signage of where folks were supposed to be, including obscuring the entrance for suite guests.  There was no help from the ship or port of any kind to get folks organized or to direct guests where they should be.  We only found by accident, the suite entrance, with the help of other passengers trying to find their correct line.  And once we were in the correct line, and still quite early, 5-minutes later we were on the boat. 

 

My point... Even the cruise ports and ships understand, passengers do their best to be there at the correct time.  Passengers don't always have control of transportation schedules.  The ships do their best to get folks boarded in spite of being out of their scheduled boarding window. 

[BennyandBo]

5 hours ago, CableKC said:

I am considering flying in on embarkation day and out on the same day as disembarkment day to simply save costs.

The flight that I am considering is the 1st flight of the day through Southwest ( yeah, I know ).    But it shouldn't be a major issue unless something really strange comes up since the dates that I am considering doesn't fall around a major travel holiday and it's on a Monday between 2 major travel hubs.

 

 

If your going to fly in the morning of to save money, then split the difference and at least get travel insurance.

[CableKC]

5 hours ago, BennyandBo said:

If your going to fly in the morning of to save money, then split the difference and at least get travel insurance.

Thanks for the suggestion.   I will take that into consideration.

[Temeculaguy]

8 hours ago, Va4fam said:

I loved Southwest but they have spent the past 3 years not loving me back.  Let my elite status go this year after too many delays, cancelled flights, and chaos.  I kept track of all of my flight segments and in 2022 they were 2 for 30 on getting me to my destination within 30 minutes of scheduled arrival.  18 of my flights were delayed more than 90 minutes, 6 more were cancelled.  

I have had a similar experience on SW lately although I don't have nearly the detailed or compelling statistics you have, well done. I have found the first flight of the day seems to have the best odds as the aircraft has usually has spent the night at that airport. As the day wears on, the delays and cancellation odds seem to increase. I must admit I now use SW as a last resort when years ago i started my searches with them. They still dominate some airports and some routes in California, especially with airports like San Diego near me that keep me coming back on occasion hoping they get back to their pre-pandemic efficiency. Right now I don't trust them and their December debacle where more than half the cancelled flights in the US were theirs has me wary of them especially for cruises that have a time certain start.

[Maggie M]

15 hours ago, Va4fam said:

Our flight leaving LAX is 1:05 pm.   Should be plenty of time even with typical LA traffic.

OK, sounds good, thank you for the encouragement!

[Ampurp85]

To answer your question, I fly out of MDW in Chicago which is a hub. 

I did 7 people in Nov on SWA, I cruised before them, so I was solo but 6 did the first trek over. My brother was in charge of wrangling everyone and he said it was rough. There were bathroom stops, confusion, and attitudes. That was out of FLL and Port Everglades. Port LAX is a pretty messed up port. As I said there is almost no place to wait, the port staff are hit or miss, and people are .......people. I had one of the earliest check-ins which at the time was 11am and I arrived to a mess. My experience was very similar if not the same as @WAYNO

[Cactus527]

Trying to answer your original questions:

We did Navigator in October. We had a check-in time at 10:30 a.m. We arrived at the port at 10:10. We were then directed to wait in line with everybody else that was checking in at 10:30 under a tented area outside after dropping off our bags with the porter. At 10:30, the line started moving and we were able to do the check-in process within about 15 minutes. The thing that took the longest to get on board was the actual checking of documents when you get on the ship. I would say that we were free to go about whatever we wanted to do on the ship by 10:50 a.m.

When we disembarked, we waited as long as possible since we had a later flight in the day. I think we started the disembarkation process at about 8:45 a.m. The lines to get off the ship were ridiculous. We snagged a porter to make our wait through customs much shorter, and we were out on the curb by 9:35 a.m. We had to wait almost 40 minutes for Lyft, but it wasn't terrible outside. If it was raining or cold, that would have been another story. It appeared that all passengers were off the ship by 10:00 a.m.

I hope this helps you with your planning!

 

[Maggie M]

Great info - thanks so much!

[CruisingNewb]

Just an FYI and my 2 cents:

1. I am NOT knocking the flying in on same day as embarkation thing.  We DON'T DO IT, but to each their respective own.  BUT---my experience is that people tend to say, "it's always worked for me" until it doesn't.  Then those same people tend to say, "that was a one off or outlier."  I'm not saying people here say that, but in general.  In terms of a cruise, that is just not a chance I would ever take.

2. The forecast is for rain all the way up to about next Thursday.  Anyone who lives in the downtown LA area (I live in SoCal and my spouse's family live near downtown LA), Sepulveda areas, and LAX areas, know that flooding is a real thing here because of the decades old infrastructure.  The rain and flooding must be factored into ground transportation to and from LAX.

Just things to consider.

[Midwest Cruiser]

@Ampurp85 With all of the Cancelled and delayed flights and with this huge issue this morning, I would absolutely not advise anyone to fly in the day of Embarkation, 1 day early minimum. @CableKC Easy to spend a century note on a hotel then missing the Embarkation. Update 3 is exactly why you don't fly the day of.

 

[Ampurp85]

To each their own with regards to when they fly. Not everyone can fly in the day before, this happens to work for me, and I am willing to take that chance as a solo flier. I wouldn't advise it to anybody/for everybody. Because I don't always know other's circumstances. I never do connecting flights and always start with the first one out. If something happens, I have insurance. There could be just as many cancellations and delays flying in the day before, things happen. 

[Midwest Cruiser]

15 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

To each their own with regards to when they fly. Not everyone can fly in the day before, this happens to work for me, and I am willing to take that chance as a solo flier. I wouldn't advise it to anybody/for everybody. Because I don't always know other's circumstances. I never do connecting flights and always start with the first one out. If something happens, I have insurance. There could be just as many cancellations and delays flying in the day before, things happen. 

There's still flight delays today from yesterday. Even if you were the 1st flight out, you are not guarantied to make the next one. The insurance claim for that is really disingenuous for lack of ability to plan ahead. I'm going on Vacation and not wanting to get reimbursed for not making a flight unless it is completely unavoidable.  

 

This insurance example is basically the same as saying I have car insurance because I can't pay attention and drive distracted.

[Xaa]

15 minutes ago, Midwest Cruiser said:

There's still flight delays today from yesterday. Even if you were the 1st flight out, you are not guarantied to make the next one. The insurance claim for that is really disingenuous for lack of ability to plan ahead. I'm going on Vacation and not wanting to get reimbursed for not making a flight unless it is completely unavoidable.  

 

This insurance example is basically the same as saying I have car insurance because I can't pay attention and drive distracted.

I'm all for going a day early and that's what we do.  Calling the insurance claim disingenuous is a stretch.  This is one of the primary purposes of travel insurance.  it protects you if a common carrier fails to meet its commitments.

I understand no wanting to have to use your insurance.  Nobody ever really wants that.  But expecting a common carrier to make their schedule with a half day buffer is not the same as not paying attention on the road.  That's just overboard as a comparison.

[Midwest Cruiser]

26 minutes ago, Xaa said:

I'm all for going a day early and that's what we do.  Calling the insurance claim disingenuous is a stretch.  This is one of the primary purposes of travel insurance.  it protects you if a common carrier fails to meet its commitments.

I understand no wanting to have to use your insurance.  Nobody ever really wants that.  But expecting a common carrier to make their schedule with a half day buffer is not the same as not paying attention on the road.  That's just overboard as a comparison.

Yes the insurance is there to be used when things fall apart. I whole heartedly agree with that. But doing something that can be easily avoided is what just blows my mind. If work doesn't allow for an extra day off I guess I wouldn't book the cruise just to be on the safe side unless I lived within driving distance of the port. Just common sense I guess.

[CruisingNewb]

With regards to traveling into port cities, ultimately its the traveler's decision.  We can only share our experiences.  

Just to touch on the insurance thing though...

Insurance is great for cancelled trips and what not.  But many people who are cruising and are seeking advice on these boards may be first time cruisers and for many, this cruise may be the one big family trip of the year or whatever.

If getting my money back is the only issue, then yes insurance advice is great.  

BUT---if this is your one big trip of the year and you plan so long and hard with scheduling the vacation window of time, will insurance replace that vacation?  

Put it another way.  Alot of us on here take multiple cruises a year.  So, it still sucks if one of those cruises is cancelled or you miss a flight in for one cruise.  But you have other cruises planned. Insurance is KEY here and extremely relevant.  I advocate for travel insurance in almost any cruise scenario these days.

But the BEST insurance, again not fool proof, is still the tried and true method of arriving early and giving yourselves enough buffer time in order to make alternate plans if needed.

[Xaa]

12 minutes ago, Midwest Cruiser said:

Yes the insurance is there to be used when things fall apart. I whole heartedly agree with that. But doing something that can be easily avoided is what just blows my mind. If work doesn't allow for an extra day off I guess I wouldn't book the cruise just to be on the safe side unless I lived within driving distance of the port. Just common sense I guess.

That's the thing.  You can come up with something foreseeable with every single choice.  That includes booking an arrival a day early as we saw just a few weeks ago.  I understand that it's a risk that you don't want to take and I don't take it either traveling with a family.  Alone, out of a hub city, I just might and even if it didn't work out, it's not a reckless decision nor does it defy common sense.

You mention unless being within driving distance, but cars get in wrecks, they break down.  I personally had my vehicle overheat and require a tow just 2 miles before port on my last trip.  Things happen.  I pad the trip because of the hard stop departure of the ship.  I'm just not willing to call the back up plan of insurance, for a solo traveler out of a hub city, disingenuous.  

[Censored]

On 1/10/2023 at 12:00 AM, CableKC said:

I'm looking at a possible Navigator of the Seas cruise in the summer and considering flying in on the morning of the cruise embarkation Day.   I figure that I can fly in and arrive at the Cruise Terminal by around 9:45am on the Monday morning of the Embarkation Day.

Is that too early to arrive at the port?

How long should it take to get through the entire check-In and customs process?

I assume that the entire process shouldn't take too long for a large party.   But I'm concerned that we'd arrive too early and have to sit in the terminal until around 12pm since I assume that everyone should be off the ship from the previous cruise at 11am.

Any input would be helpful.

Thanks in advance.

 

Once you check in online you will have to select a boarding time.  Im in the same situation coming up next week.  My flight leaves a 6:00am to ft lauderdale, and I will most likely arrive at ship by 9:30 am so it could mean a 2 hour or longer wait.  Earliest to board is usually around 11:am and my earliest I could book on the app was 1:00pm, So I am hoping they will let me through providing the line ups are not crazy like they can be on Oasis class ships out of Bayonne.... it has been a nightmare over there in the past. 

[Midwest Cruiser]

15 minutes ago, CruisingNewb said:

With regards to traveling into port cities, ultimately its the traveler's decision.  We can only share our experiences.  

Just to touch on the insurance thing though...

Insurance is great for cancelled trips and what not.  But many people who are cruising and are seeking advice on these boards may be first time cruisers and for many, this cruise may be the one big family trip of the year or whatever.

If getting my money back is the only issue, then yes insurance advice is great.  

BUT---if this is your one big trip of the year and you plan so long and hard with scheduling the vacation window of time, will insurance replace that vacation?  

Put it another way.  Alot of us on here take multiple cruises a year.  So, it still sucks if one of those cruises is cancelled or you miss a flight in for one cruise.  But you have other cruises planned. Insurance is KEY here and extremely relevant.  I advocate for travel insurance in almost any cruise scenario these days.

But the BEST insurance, again not fool proof, is still the tried and true method of arriving early and giving yourselves enough buffer time in order to make alternate plans if needed.

100% and well stated.