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

[Ampurp85]

48 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.

Sorry to say but your post comes off 100% rude and judgmental. Your comparison is not applicable. You are saying you either do this or you should not be vacationing. 

[Midwest Cruiser]

1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said:

Sorry to say but your post comes off 100% rude and judgmental. Your comparison is not applicable. You are saying you either do this or you should not be vacationing. 

This is MY honest opinion, I'm not saying don't vacation at all. Most people don't have the money to just throw around on the great risks associated with a flight the day of Embarkation. Yes there is the insurance aspect, but I don't like the thought of people relying on the Insurance for that. If most people lose out on a vacation because of missed flight for a cruise, that probably won't be able to have another cruise until the next year. 

 

This is reality.

 

[Xaa]

18 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

I wouldn't advise it to anybody/for everybody.

You realize that your post was in response to one where she explicitly said she wouldn't advise it to anyone?  She's not advising anyone to rely on insurance if common carriers fail.  She stated what she does with a disclaimer for the masses.  Then you likened it to reckless driving and called it disingenuous.  I don't think it really is your opinion that she's disingenuous @Midwest Cruiser

 

[Midwest Cruiser]

2 hours ago, Xaa said:

You realize that your post was in response to one where she explicitly said she wouldn't advise it to anyone?  She's not advising anyone to rely on insurance if common carriers fail.  She stated what she does with a disclaimer for the masses.  Then you likened it to reckless driving and called it disingenuous.  I don't think it really is your opinion that she's disingenuous @Midwest Cruiser

 

That is exactly the way I read and understood the comment, that because she was taking that chance, that's a main reason(not only obviously medical) why she had insurance. Thanks for letting me know I don't know what my own opinion is... Have a good day we will agree to disagree.

[Xaa]

That we will.

It was of course just MY honest opinion (see what I did there?) of what your opinion was.  I'll stand corrected there.  

[Ampurp85]

2 hours ago, Midwest Cruiser said:

That is exactly the way I read and understood the comment, that because she was taking that chance, that's a main reason(not only obviously medical) why she had insurance. Thanks for letting me know I don't know what my own opinion is... Have a good day we will agree to disagree.

Actually, that was not the reason I have travel insurance. I only mentioned it because if you spend money on vacations, you should have travel insurance. 

[CableKC]

On 1/10/2023 at 6:01 AM, Maggie M said:

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! 

Maggie M, just following up on this.   What time did you arrive at the Cruise Terminal and how did it go?

Was it too early?

If so, how long did you wait at the Terminal itself?

I finally decidedon which cruise I will go on and am starting to look at airfare.   I'm hoping that an arrival time of 930am to 10am isn't too early.   One of the things I wanted to do was to be able to arrive early and walk around and enjoy the ship before it sails.  You know, get my money's worth.

[CableKC]

On 1/10/2023 at 2:53 PM, Va4fam said:

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

Va4fam,

Did you go on your cruise yet out of LA?

Let me know if you were able to disembark and get to LAX before your 105pm flight out.

Thanks,

[WAYNO]

1 hour ago, CableKC said:

Va4fam,

Did you go on your cruise yet out of LA?

Let me know if you were able to disembark and get to LAX before your 105pm flight out.

Thanks,

Please allow me to share my latest experience...

 

I'm not here to bellyache, but to share that every cruise is a different experience.

 

Feb 3rd was our 2nd voyage on Navigator in a short period.  Earlier in this thread I shared some experiences from the November cruise. 

Our airplane landed on time, we got to the port extremely early, 10-ish, and they again ushered us onto the ship early, 10:15-ish.  The cruise was wonderful.

Getting off this time was somewhat extended.  Because we bought the shuttle from the ship, our disembarking time was 8AM.  We were at the gangplank at 8AM, but we didn't make it thru customs til 8:30.  We walked toward the bus area, to discover the three buses were already full, and they hoped some buses might return.  There were close to two more busloads of people without their scheduled ride.  They could not promise us when, or even if,  transportation might be provided.    Really?

Our flight was 1:30 PM, so I wasn't worried beyond the inconvenience of standing and waiting for an extended period.  Other folks had earlier flights and were understandably stressed.  There was a lot of very frantic taxi and Uber calls being made.  Uber was scarce, and other shuttles that I've used were already booked. 

We finally had a smaller shuttle arrive at 10:30.  We boarded and got to the airport at 11:30.  We were okay.  Folks with earlier flights might not have been. 

My point to all this, we cannot predict transportation or traffic snafu's, so I allow myself extra time.  In this case, I'm glad I didn't book the noon flight. 

 

 

[Va4fam]

9 hours ago, CableKC said:

Va4fam,

Did you go on your cruise yet out of LA?

Let me know if you were able to disembark and get to LAX before your 105pm flight out.

Thanks,

Yes.   We departed the ship at 7:45 AM with our bags, breezed through customs, and in the parking lot waiting for a Lyft by 8 AM.   Took about 20 minutes for the Lyft driver to arrive and another 45 minutes to get to LAX arriving just after 9 AM.

[CableKC]

On 2/22/2023 at 10:36 PM, WAYNO said:

Please allow me to share my latest experience...

 

I'm not here to bellyache, but to share that every cruise is a different experience.

 

Feb 3rd was our 2nd voyage on Navigator in a short period.  Earlier in this thread I shared some experiences from the November cruise. 

Our airplane landed on time, we got to the port extremely early, 10-ish, and they again ushered us onto the ship early, 10:15-ish.  The cruise was wonderful.

Getting off this time was somewhat extended.  Because we bought the shuttle from the ship, our disembarking time was 8AM.  We were at the gangplank at 8AM, but we didn't make it thru customs til 8:30.  We walked toward the bus area, to discover the three buses were already full, and they hoped some buses might return.  There were close to two more busloads of people without their scheduled ride.  They could not promise us when, or even if,  transportation might be provided.    Really?

Our flight was 1:30 PM, so I wasn't worried beyond the inconvenience of standing and waiting for an extended period.  Other folks had earlier flights and were understandably stressed.  There was a lot of very frantic taxi and Uber calls being made.  Uber was scarce, and other shuttles that I've used were already booked. 

We finally had a smaller shuttle arrive at 10:30.  We boarded and got to the airport at 11:30.  We were okay.  Folks with earlier flights might not have been. 

My point to all this, we cannot predict transportation or traffic snafu's, so I allow myself extra time.  In this case, I'm glad I didn't book the noon flight. 

 

 

Thanks for your response and experience.

My flight leaves LAX at 1:15pm on a Friday.   I would estimate that I can get to LAX no later than 11:30am to give us enough time to check in our luggage and get to the gate.  So, the hope is that this should be enough buffer time for us to get to LAX even if there is delays.

Can anyone else share their experience with taking the Royal Caribbean shuttle leaving on Disembarkment day to LAX?

I wonder if this is a common issue with the Cruise Port and the Royal Caribbean Shuttle service that goes to LAX.

[Maggie M]

On 2/23/2023 at 12:28 AM, CableKC said:

Maggie M, just following up on this.   What time did you arrive at the Cruise Terminal and how did it go?

Was it too early?

If so, how long did you wait at the Terminal itself?

I finally decidedon which cruise I will go on and am starting to look at airfare.   I'm hoping that an arrival time of 930am to 10am isn't too early.   One of the things I wanted to do was to be able to arrive early and walk around and enjoy the ship before it sails.  You know, get my money's worth.

Sorry for the delayed reply. Our check-in time was 11am I believe and we got there at 1015...they didn't let our line (designated for our specific check-in time) start moving until about 1045/1050. So they were pretty strict with our arrival time window. I hope this helps. Trying to get on when check-in opens will help you better ensure that you get the arrival time window you're looking for and can make the most of your ship time!