Muster drill strategy

[disneymagicgirl]

It seems like we are always on deck 4 in the direct, hot, afternoon sun.
I have always had an infant, young toddler with me so they usually excuse me early. I think that gravy train has ended now though as our youngest will be 3 on our next sailing.
At least I now know to bring a battery operated fan/mister and lather everyone in sunscreen.

 

[cyclenut]

Please don't show up on the late side. It makes all those who arrived on time, as they should, stand close together in the heat longer. You are holding up the muster drill when you're late and no-one will like you for it. They cannot start their briefing until everyone is present.

I am sure you have observed many muster drills. They all start at the same time. The lifejacket demo starts at the same time. Everyone should be there before the lifejacket demo starts. I wouldn't want to advocate for that. However, there is really no reason to try and be first to muster either. If you already know where it is because you checked earlier and know how long it will take to get there from where you are, then yes, you can arrive a little later than most and not hold anything up.

Now, if everyone did this, it would be a bit of an issue. So, Disney would not be an advocate for my suggested method. They want to encourage everyone to be there immediately and not dawdle or wait.

 

[Dug720]

It seems like we are always on deck 4 in the direct, hot, afternoon sun.
I have always had an infant, young toddler with me so they usually excuse me early. I think that gravy train has ended now though as our youngest will be 3 on our next sailing.
At least I now know to bring a battery operated fan/mister and lather everyone in sunscreen.

You can also check the listings on here and try to book a cabin with an indoor muster station as another alternative.

 

[MelSpees]

I am sure you have observed many muster drills. They all start at the same time. The lifejacket demo starts at the same time. Everyone should be there before the lifejacket demo starts. I wouldn't want to advocate for that. However, there is really no reason to try and be first to muster either. If you already know where it is because you checked earlier and know how long it will take to get there from where you are, then yes, you can arrive a little later than most and not hold anything up.

Now, if everyone did this, it would be a bit of an issue. So, Disney would not be an advocate for my suggested method. They want to encourage everyone to be there immediately and not dawdle or wait.

My experience has been that they do not start at the same time. They start when everyone in that station is there. Therefore, the longer it takes everyone to get there the later it will start and the longer those who were on time have to stand there.

 

[Dug720]

My experience has been that they do not start at the same time. They start when everyone in that station is there. Therefore, the longer it takes everyone to get there the later it will start and the longer those who were on time have to stand there.

The last DCL cruise I was on, it was all at the same time because it was the captain doing it over the loudspeakers with the crew members demonstrating it. That way they ensure that everyone is at least exposed to the information at the same time. And no, he did NOT start until all stations were cleared that everyone was there. So yes, even someone late at Station A will hold it up for Station M (as an example).

 

[cyclenut]

It's hard to tell what is happening at each muster station, but we returned from the WBPC and it appeared there was a cabin missing from our station when the lifejacket demo began. It was over the loudspeaker to ensure everyone was receiving the same message. That is a change from the past where each station started when they were ready.

I really want to be clear about what I intended when I wrote "late side" I am not suggesting someone arrive well after muster has started or be actually "late". I'm suggesting that if you have an issue with standing for a long period or subject to issues with extreme heat (and it's very hot), then I'm suggesting you stay inside near your muster station until it seems the crowds heading to muster have started to die down a bit. It's not about trying to be the last one to muster or wait until someone calls your cabin or starts looking for you. That would be bad. It's about trying to make reasonable adjustments within reasonable confines to make the process more tolerable. Like with most things, a little advance planning and observation of the circumstances can go a long way to assisting you with making this very important muster process a little easier.

Yes, it's also not a bad idea to research which staterooms are at which muster stations. If you are always out in the hot sun at muster but don't want to give up your favorite stateroom, you are always going to be out in the hot sun at muster.