Post navigation ← Previous Disney Cruise Line Expected to Enforce Port Arrival Times While Limiting Occupancy to 70% Upon Return to Cruising

[ChiTownZee]

https://disneycruiselineblog.com/20...n5NmZFxaMHGvtwW89r5RVeQVeYwSXP0ZTgIIvVGyMMY4E

 

[BartmanLA]

A LOT of that article is mere speculation, a lot of the infomation mentioned weren't actually confirmed or released statements from DCL at all, just what was talked about and the Port Director had "talks" with Disney Cruise Line but nothing was actually said about policy going forward, discussions aren't a basis for actual policy at this point. I'm sure they want to get the ships going again simply because that's how the port makes money, making noises that things are getting closer with out actually getting the CDC to lift the No Sail Order and the cruise lines themselves announcing resumption of operations only fans the flames of rumor and speculation with out actually having any proof.

 

[MomOTwins]

Meh, it's pretty common sense to enforce arrival times. The only thing I disagree with is that they will require it for concierge. Disney will never say no to a concierge guest.

 

[jerry557]

They should have been enforcing the arrival times to begin win. The terminal seemed to always be a packed zoo by 11am.

The problem though is how does DCL deal with delays? One cruise I did they didn't start boarding the ship till 1pm. They had tons of people even waiting outside in the parking garage. I also remember one time, people and DCL buses were arriving late due to a major traffic accident on the highway near the port. Things like this are going to screw up their arrival time schedules. One little hiccup and they will have way too many people. In a perfect world, you can give everyone an arrival window to be there 1pm to 2pm. And the process can be orderly and smooth. But it's not a perfect world.

The other problem is disembarkation. It seems they barely were able to get everyone off in time. If that process will be more scattered out to enforce social distancing, it's going to take much longer to get everyone off. Plus I'm sure there will be enhanced sanitation which means cleaning the ship will take longer.

Obviously a more limited capacity will help with all this. But still... this is going to be hard.

 

[T & R]

They should have been enforcing the arrival times to begin win. The terminal seemed to always be a packed zoo by 11am.

Yes exactly. I've never understood this. You have all these people piled in front of the entrance with a group boarding number in the double digits. If they're boarding group 1 and you're group 10, why are you lined up blocking the entrance to get in? These people are clearly there hours to early.

 

[princessmommyx3]

I wonder if DCL has considered dropping off/picking up passengers on consecutive days, rather than the same day? That would allow for much more time embarking & disembarking passengers, as well as more time for deep cleaning. I know it’s not ideal with port fees and staffing the terminal, but it’s better than not sailing IMO.

 

[MomOTwins]

I wonder if DCL has considered dropping off/picking up passengers on consecutive days, rather than the same day? That would allow for much more time embarking & disembarking passengers, as well as more time for deep cleaning. I know it’s not ideal with port fees and staffing the terminal, but it’s better than not sailing IMO.

That was my thought too. At WDW I was told they are leaving hotel room empty 3 days between guests to allow more time for the deep cleans. Same day turnaround does not seem feasible if they are going to sanitize everything between guests the way the do at the hotels. I wonder if the ports might be a little more accommodating on port fees as well, given the lack of business they would have if ships can't sail.

 

[monkeydawn]

That might make group transportation to the port a problem. I know whenever I have taken a group transportation option, be it from another city, a hotel or an airport, Ive only ever had one arrival option and that was always well before my PAT. Its not like there are places outside the port to hang while you wait. Port of Miami actively discourages that. Port of NYC has a small sidewalk off to the side, no seating, heavy traffic nearby (super fun with kids) and you are breathing bus exhaust but there is a small area to wait. No experience with other ports...are they more conducive to waiting around for your pAT?

 

[MomOTwins]

That might make group transportation to the port a problem. I know whenever I have taken a group transportation option, be it from another city, a hotel or an airport, Ive only ever had one arrival option and that was always well before my PAT. Its not like there are places outside the port to hang while you wait. Port of Miami actively discourages that. Port of NYC has a small sidewalk off to the side, no seating, heavy traffic nearby (super fun with kids) and you are breathing bus exhaust but there is a small area to wait. No experience with other ports...are they more conducive to waiting around for your pAT?

I expect for Disney-run group transportation they will require you to reserve a pickup time from the airport (or assign one to you if pickup is at a hotel you booked through Disney) and give you a matching PAT time.

For third-party transportation, I wouldn't be surprised if Disney starts doing what they do for park opening--where they turn away any vehicle that arrives too early and not let them in. They don't want a bunch of people waiting around outside the port entrance not distancing. We also saw this several times at our Disney resort gate when people were forced to turn their cars around if they showed up without a dining reservation and were not a hotel guest. I would guess this means that third-party vans/shuttles will have to drop off at some public location near the terminal that is either walking distance from the terminal, or the company will have to run shuttles throughout the day from a location near the port like they do at the car rental locations.

Another aspect of this is that on a recent group in Europe that used a group transport (I think a big van), the cruise line denied boarding to everyone in that group because one person tested positive with the rapid test. So it could be that third-party group transportation is doomed anyway and people will just have to rent a car, take a taxi/uber/limo, or use Disney bus transportation where they can implement plexiglass and spacing.

 

[bbel]

They should have been enforcing the arrival times to begin win. The terminal seemed to always be a packed zoo by 11am.

The problem though is how does DCL deal with delays? One cruise I did they didn't start boarding the ship till 1pm. They had tons of people even waiting outside in the parking garage. I also remember one time, people and DCL buses were arriving late due to a major traffic accident on the highway near the port. Things like this are going to screw up their arrival time schedules. One little hiccup and they will have way too many people. In a perfect world, you can give everyone an arrival window to be there 1pm to 2pm. And the process can be orderly and smooth. But it's not a perfect world.

The other problem is disembarkation. It seems they barely were able to get everyone off in time. If that process will be more scattered out to enforce social distancing, it's going to take much longer to get everyone off. Plus I'm sure there will be enhanced sanitation which means cleaning the ship will take longer.

Obviously a more limited capacity will help with all this. But still... this is going to be hard.

I read somewhere that people were able to check in for their Royal Caribbean cruises (for the end of the year, so highly unlikely they are actually going to happen, but...) and the earliest arrival times they could get were 2/3PM, rather than the 10/11am times pre-covid.

Gives more time to get everyone off, clean and allow for delays to get the next lot on.

 

[BartmanLA]

I wonder if DCL has considered dropping off/picking up passengers on consecutive days, rather than the same day? That would allow for much more time embarking & disembarking passengers, as well as more time for deep cleaning. I know it’s not ideal with port fees and staffing the terminal, but it’s better than not sailing IMO.

This makes no sense, ships turn around in port the SAME day they aren't there for multiple days they couldn't afford the port fees for a prolonged stay, plus once they get operational often there are ships in day after day consecutively. Also once a ship arrives in port they have to disembark all the passengers from that cruise before they can board the new passengers. They MIGHT have to adjust sailing times instead of 4 or 5 pm maybe 6 or 7 pm, and vice versa for arrival of ships into port. But there's no way they could take 2 or 3 days to prepare and load a ship for a cruise it would play hell with their itinerary schedules.

 

[princessmommyx3]

This makes no sense, ships turn around in port the SAME day they aren't there for multiple days they couldn't afford the port fees for a prolonged stay, plus once they get operational often there are ships in day after day consecutively. Also once a ship arrives in port they have to disembark all the passengers from that cruise before they can board the new passengers. They MIGHT have to adjust sailing times instead of 4 or 5 pm maybe 6 or 7 pm, and vice versa for arrival of ships into port. But there's no way they could take 2 or 3 days to prepare and load a ship for a cruise it would play hell with their itinerary schedules.

None of your responses to my post make any sense. I'll address each one separately:

This makes no sense, ships turn around in port the SAME day they aren't there for multiple days they couldn't afford the port fees for a prolonged stay, plus once they get operational often there are ships in day after day consecutively.

After having taken 13 cruises, I am aware that ships normally turn around the same day and I never stated otherwise. I am just making a suggestion that ships could alter this pattern as a way of dealing with the unprecedented situation of Covid-19. I also stated that my suggestion wasn't ideal for port fees, but would, in my opinion, be better (and probably still more profitable) than not sailing at all and sitting empty. I also realize that pre-Covid-19, ports were very busy and often had all berths full every day of the week. However, I think it goes without saying that every single cruise ship will not resume cruising at the same time, thus making more room in ports for ships to potentially stay overnight.

Also once a ship arrives in port they have to disembark all the passengers from that cruise before they can board the new passengers.

I never suggested that ships don't have to disembark all passengers before boarding the new ones.

They MIGHT have to adjust sailing times instead of 4 or 5 pm maybe 6 or 7 pm, and vice versa for arrival of ships into port. But there's no way they could take 2 or 3 days to prepare and load a ship for a cruise it would play hell with their itinerary schedules.

At this point, it seems pretty obvious that cruise lines are going to have to adjust their itineraries (either out of choice or necessity) once cruising resumes, at least for a while. There are many ports which are likely not going to allow cruisers for some time. I don't see why it would be implausible for ships to adjust their schedules to include an overnight stay in port (to disembark/embark guests) since they are likely going to be altering them anyway, at least initially.

 

[MomOTwins]

At this point, it seems pretty obvious that cruise lines are going to have to adjust their itineraries (either out of choice or necessity) once cruising resumes, at least for a while. There are many ports which are likely not going to allow cruisers for some time. I don't see why it would be implausible for ships to adjust their schedules to include an overnight stay in port (to disembark/embark guests) since they are likely going to be altering them anyway, at least initially.

This is a good point. The recent addition of Pearl Island port adventures on the DCL website makes me wonder if our Fantasy cruise (if it happens) in March may be repurposed to more of a Bahamas-focused itinerary.

 

[monkeydawn]

I expect for Disney-run group transportation they will require you to reserve a pickup time from the airport (or assign one to you if pickup is at a hotel you booked through Disney) and give you a matching PAT time.

For third-party transportation, I wouldn't be surprised if Disney starts doing what they do for park opening--where they turn away any vehicle that arrives too early and not let them in. They don't want a bunch of people waiting around outside the port entrance not distancing. We also saw this several times at our Disney resort gate when people were forced to turn their cars around if they showed up without a dining reservation and were not a hotel guest. I would guess this means that third-party vans/shuttles will have to drop off at some public location near the terminal that is either walking distance from the terminal, or the company will have to run shuttles throughout the day from a location near the port like they do at the car rental locations.

Another aspect of this is that on a recent group in Europe that used a group transport (I think a big van), the cruise line denied boarding to everyone in that group because one person tested positive with the rapid test. So it could be that third-party group transportation is doomed anyway and people will just have to rent a car, take a taxi/uber/limo, or use Disney bus transportation where they can implement plexiglass and spacing.

This would basically kill free park and sail with pre stay. That stinks. (Not that I think you are necessarily wrong.)

 

[JM23457]

I could see them slowly resuming cruising with 3 or 4 night cruises only, and with a 3 night break between each cruise per ship to reduce surface contamination concerns. I do think DCL will restart very slowly & conservatively, not just diving back into their prior itineraries immediately. There are going to be fewer sailings, fewer destinations, fewer guests per sailing, a lot of restrictions onboard, no fireworks or deck shows, etc. Just like at WDW upon reopening, the offerings will at first seem like a shadow of what they once were.

 

[otten]

I could see them slowly resuming cruising with 3 or 4 night cruises only, and with a 3 night break between each cruise per ship to reduce surface contamination concerns. I do think DCL will restart very slowly & conservatively, not just diving back into their prior itineraries immediately. There are going to be fewer sailings, fewer destinations, fewer guests per sailing, a lot of restrictions onboard, no fireworks or deck shows, etc. Just like at WDW upon reopening, the offerings will at first seem like a shadow of what they once were.

And the question is if there are no deck parties, no shows, no character meets, masks mandatory will enough people still want to pay the Disney premium for the experience?

 

[FightingIrishman]

I wonder if DCL has considered dropping off/picking up passengers on consecutive days, rather than the same day? That would allow for much more time embarking & disembarking passengers, as well as more time for deep cleaning. I know it’s not ideal with port fees and staffing the terminal, but it’s better than not sailing IMO.

Royal Caribbean has an interesting weekly Mediterranean cruise next summer. You have the option of embarking on a 7 day cruise on the weekend in Barcelona or embarking on a 7 day cruise midweek from Rome on the same ship. That would mean half of the ship boards and leaves on two separate days during the week.

Of course, that would commingle two different sets of passengers partially overlapping each other during the week on the ship, which would not be ideal for cruising during a pandemic.

 

[JM23457]

And the question is if there are no deck parties, no shows, no character meets, masks mandatory will enough people still want to pay the Disney premium for the experience?

For us it would depend on what Castaway Cay would be like, how accessible the Aqua Duck & hot tub were, and if they still had room service. I can do without deck parties, personally.

 

[Shelley Chiarats]

I wonder if DCL has considered dropping off/picking up passengers on consecutive days, rather than the same day? That would allow for much more time embarking & disembarking passengers, as well as more time for deep cleaning. I know it’s not ideal with port fees and staffing the terminal, but it’s better than not sailing IMO.

I was just thinking the same thing. I know from one standpoint it is not ideal but it would solve alot of the crowding getting on / getting off issues. If you have say 8-10hrs to get everyone off they could even make appts to exit and offer lunch to spread out the folks trying to leave.

And then the next day repeat the process but you could start with getting on appts early (not sure 8a or 10a) and then spread them out until 2p - 3p and enforce check in appts.

 

[iannovich]

Another aspect of this is that on a recent group in Europe that used a group transport (I think a big van), the cruise line denied boarding to everyone in that group because one person tested positive with the rapid test. So it could be that third-party group transportation is doomed anyway and people will just have to rent a car, take a taxi/uber/limo, or use Disney bus transportation where they can implement plexiglass and spacing.

Definitely concerned about this as well... enough to be thinking of alternate trasportation to the terminals for a while, at least until a few sailings go off and we can be sure how they'll react to that kind of situation. But I think I had read that the passengers that were denied boarding at the port had traveled in that van all the way to Italy from France, so I don't think MSC was over-reacting there. I can't figure out where I saw it now, but I think it said they were coming from Burgundy to the port in Genoa, which should take about 7 hours. That's a good deal of exposure. An hour from MCO to PC might be a different story.