Port Arrival Time Selection

[crazy4wdw]

I’ll post in more detail on my short trip report, but here’s what happened to us last Saturday (28 October) on the Fantasy.

Our PAT was 12:15 with BG 11. I booked an 11:45 shuttle to put us at PC right after noon. Shuttle guy convinced us to take the 11:15 shuttle and said it wouldn’t be an issue. Ha!

We proceeded to stand around for almost an hour outside. They had lines set up for 11:15/11:30/11:45/etc - no one showed up for any of them! Finally a little after noon, they let the 12:15 people get in a line. We breezed right through security and when we got in the terminal they were already doing BGs 1-30. Right on the ship at that point.

There were probably at least 100 people in the 12:15 line. I guess they were dropping off the DCL bus people on the side of the terminal, but when we went inside, no evidence of them either.

I think the new system is terrible but since our cruises next year are out of Ft. Lauderdale, I guess I won’t worry about it.

I had a similar experience. My PAT for this cruise was at 12:30 PM. I had to be out of my hotel at PC at 11:00 so parked in the parking garage next to the cruise terminal and sat in the car until around 12:10 PM. By the time I walked to the cruise terminal, they had removed the line for 12:30 PM arrivals and started general boarding for everyone. I was quite puzzled as to what had happened and wondered if a lot of people had shown up earlier and were allowed on board.

 

[lanejudy]

I was quite puzzled as to what had happened and wondered if a lot of people had shown up earlier and were allowed on board.

Likely it depends on how well boarding moves, which can vary by cruise. If they get a timely (or even early) start with boarding, the crowds may thin out before 12:30pm therefore negating the need to follow PATs in the afternoon. If boarding gets a delayed start, it all takes longer. When boarding begins is not always under DCL's control.

PAT was designed with the launch of the Dream to manage crowds in the terminal due to fire code. The terminal was built for the Magic and Wonder with their smaller passenger capacity. When folks arrive early, the number of passengers in the terminal would be over fire code, hence the need to make people wait outside. As the crowds in the terminal board the ship, there is more space in the terminal to allow more to enter.

I think the changes since Covid that no longer allow Plat (and now Pearl) automatic early arrival and boarding, combined with the changes to the bussing from WDW resorts arriving earlier, has everyone feeling the impact of PATs more now than in the past.

 

[Alicatt]

Does anyone have experience booking PAT for Port Everglades? I'm just curious if it is different.

 

[Calantha]

Does anyone have experience booking PAT for Port Everglades? I'm just curious if it is different.

So I think the first set of people with PATS for PE would have been logging in about 10/25 and there might be 2 cruises since then (11/30 and the 12/4).

We'll be doing our check in on December 9th, so I think over the next few weeks we'll be able to get a sense of how it is working.

 

[lanejudy]

Does anyone have experience booking PAT for Port Everglades? I'm just curious if it is different.

I think the process of selecting PAT is similar regardless of port.

However, speaking of Port Everglades in particular, there likely are considerably fewer early PATs/boarding groups reserved for DCL Transfers than at Port Canaveral. Either that or some of those will remain "empty" and the later PATs/BGs will simply move faster as the empty ones are skipped. I believe Port Everglades is a DCL-dedicated terminal so I expect it will function much like Port Canaveral; unlike shared terminal space in some other ports (Miami, Vancouver, San Diego, etc.).

 

[lscrivan18]

So are gold and lower getting PATs of 1 or even after 2 Seems ridiculous. However, we got a very late PAT summer 2022. Got there early, and after maybe 10 minutes, they called open boarding,

I completed my first DCL cruise last month on the Dream from NYC. Drove to port. I finished online check-in at 12:07am and I got a PAT of 12:45 and BG 14.

Being that P.C. has many options to snag an early PAT (all Disney hotels and Hyatt MCO) and circumventing your tier level, it makes sense PAT's are later since there's a higher pool of guests taking the early arrivals.

 

[MJB03]

Does anyone have experience booking PAT for Port Everglades? I'm just curious if it is different.

We are on the first Dream cruise out of Port Everglades on 11/20. I am platinum and checked in right at midnight. We got BG 7 and PAT 12-12:15. I thought perhaps the later PAT was since we are the first cruise out of PE, but after reading this thread, I'm not so sure. I don't remember noticing too many earlier PATs in the FB group for our cruise.

 

[Alicatt]

Thanks for the info. I'm only silver so I'm guessing around 1. I have to check out at noon so I'll be there early anyway.i hope the weather is nice!

 

[mmouse37]

For our recent NYC to Bermuda cruise on 10/7/23 we had 8 cabins with all different PATs and boarding groups. Our friends who were first timers got a much later PAT than we as Pearl and our son who is Platinum. We both actually had the same PAT and boarding group. In NYC they had corrals set up with different PAT times listed. They were very strict on the PATs and would not let you in the terminal until your PAT. We were asking where our friends should wait as they would not even let them wait near us in our corral but there was no corral for the 1:30 PAT people yet (they changed the times on the corrals as different PATs entered the terminal). We had 11:15 PAT so our friends had over a 2 hour wait until their PAT (we all used the same car service so they arrived with us). Our friends were sent to the adjacent terminal to wait. They were told there was seating and coffee available in the terminal and someone would announce in the other terminal when the later PATs were allowed in.

But, at 12:30 we saw them enter the ship. Apparently boarding was going very smoothly and they started open boarding around 12:20 or so. They went and got our friends and told them they could enter the terminal. They had boarding group 27 and we had boarding groups 2 and 3 and I knew it would not take 2 hours to get to boarding group 27 and I was right since they let them in much earlier than their PAT.

MJ

 

[MommyCMickey]

Does anyone have experience booking PAT for Port Everglades? I'm just curious if it is different.

Just checked in last night for Everglades and got boarding group 8 with a 12:00 PAT. We are silver and driving to the port

 

[epcotrulz]

Checked in this past Sunday for my Dream cruise out of PE. I’m platinum and driving to the port, I got 11:45 PAT, BG 7 …

 

[Alicatt]

Silver with a 12 PAT gives me hope!

 

[onesam319]

I haven't seen this addressed yet in this thread. My PAT is 12:45 for our December 1st cruise on the Wish. The last time we cruised we weren't even allowed to enter the parking garage until our PAT. Are we allowed to arrive at the parking garage earlier than our PAT? If we don't get on the ship until 1, will the Marceline Market and/or an MDR still be serving lunch?

 

[crazy4wdw]

I haven't seen this addressed yet in this thread. My PAT is 12:45 for our December 1st cruise on the Wish. The last time we cruised we weren't even allowed to enter the parking garage until our PAT. Are we allowed to arrive at the parking garage earlier than our PAT? If we don't get on the ship until 1, will the Marceline Market and/or an MDR still be serving lunch?

Just returned from a 7-day on the Fantasy. I arrived at the cruise terminal about 1 hour and 15 minutes prior to my PAT and was able to park in the parking garage at the cruise terminal without any issues.

 

[NAB]

I haven't seen this addressed yet in this thread. My PAT is 12:45 for our December 1st cruise on the Wish. The last time we cruised we weren't even allowed to enter the parking garage until our PAT. Are we allowed to arrive at the parking garage earlier than our PAT? If we don't get on the ship until 1, will the Marceline Market and/or an MDR still be serving lunch?

Yes you will still be in time for lunch after one. I think the market is open pass 2 that day but all other days is closed at 2 for lunch.

We didn’t even eat I. The market first day we ate ate the bbq pool place so good. The Taco place on the pool deck had a line everyday too.

 

[Lesverts]

Quicky question. If your PAT is 12:30 and it is about a 20 minute drive to port. When should you leave the hotel? My normal thought would be to just leave the hotel at 11am and hope for the best because either way you are waiting somewhere

 

[lanejudy]

Quicky question. If your PAT is 12:30 and it is about a 20 minute drive to port. When should you leave the hotel? My normal thought would be to just leave the hotel at 11am and hope for the best because either way you are waiting somewhere

Reports from Port Canaveral are that arriving early does not get one into the terminal for check-in any earlier. You'll be held outside in a holding area for those with your PAT. I don't think there is any seating, unless you remain in your car in the parking garage while waiting.

 

[Lesverts]

Reports from Port Canaveral are that arriving early does not get one into the terminal for check-in any earlier. You'll be held outside in a holding area for those with your PAT. I don't think there is any seating, unless you remain in your car in the parking garage while waiting.

It is Port of Melbourne. Just figure I am going to be waiting somewhere regardless

 

[sjuncfan]

Checked in this past Sunday for my Dream cruise out of PE. I’m platinum and driving to the port, I got 11:45 PAT, BG 7 …

I checked in this morning for the 12/18 cruise out of Port Everglades. I got the same as this poster - 11:45 PAT and BG 7. I also didn't stay up last night, I checked in around 5:30 ET this morning.

I am only gold though. I wonder if these shorter cruises have fewer gold and above people on them.

 

[ehh]

We also got later BG/PAT while being Gold and completing check-in by 12:02, not a fan.

Couple of questions from someone who always drives from WDW to PC that may seem frivolous but I'm curious:

1. Is boarding DCL Transport at WDW 'the last time you touch your luggage'? Said another way, do they just handle your luggage once the bus gets to the port, or do you need to offload it and deal with it?
2. Is it possible to not ride DCL Transport, but give them your luggage and then drive yourself?

I wouldn't mind having a luggage valet and earlier PAT for a nominal fee...