shelbyl1

We are trying to schedule our flight home following our Mexican cruise. We want to leave at early as possible. We have found a 12PM flight, will we have enough time to make it to the airport after leaving the ship? This is my first cruise, so I don't know what time they start allowing people off.

Thanks for your help!

petlover

I would definitely fly out of Long Beach airport if possible...much easier than LAX. You should have no trouble making a noon flight out of Long Beach. Enjoy your first cruise!

simpsonc510

I just pulled out my travel journal for my Mex. Riv. cruise, which was in the spring of 2002. Disembarkation started at 9:00 am. I walked off the Star Princess at 9:55, and made it to my LAX flight gate right at noon. My flight home was at 1:50. Frankly, I would not book a flight any earlier than that.

That said, I need to say that this was the Star's second sailing, and they probably did not have all the bugs out of the disembarkation process. Other ships I've been on, have disembarked earlier than 9:55! But it also depends on the time you arrive back at Long Beach.

Oh, one more thought. It is possible to keep your luggage and not put it out the night before arrival in Long Beach. I saw a lot of people dragging all their bags with them at disembarkation, rather than putting them outside their door the night before. If you travel "light" and have bags on wheels, you can do this also. That will eliminate the need for stopping to pick up your luggage from the piles on shore.

Are you taking a shuttle to LAX from Long Beach? The cruise line should have this service (at a cost).

One more thing, if the cruise line knows that you have a noon flight, they should put you in the first group getting off the ship. You disembark by groups, usually according to the color of your tags. People who have suites are first off, along with people who have the earliest flights. At least, this is the impression I have, after 9 cruises.

Have a great time! The Mex Riv cruise is a very nice one. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

petlover

You didn't mention what ship you're on...that makes a big difference if you're on a ship with 350 passengers vs. a ship with 1,500 passengers as to how long the process takes. Just make sure the staff knows of your flight time and try for Long Beach airport if possible.

P_M

I have just returned May 28 from a cruise docking in the Port of Los Angeles, San Pedro, which is probably the same place you are going. I absolutely do NOT recommend booking a flight at 12pm because there can always be delays in disembarkation that could cause you to miss your plane. It did not happen on this cruise, but I was in that situation before and we weren't allowed off the ship until 11. What I recommend is to book a flight later in the afternoon, then if you get off the ship early, ask if you can go stand-by for the 12pm flight home. The person travelling with us did this at the Long Beach airport. She got a flight 2 hours earlier than scheduled and she was not charged extra by the airline. It's possible you could make it, but better safe than sorry.

One other word of advice--if you have a US passport, BRING IT!! I realize they will accept a birth certificate w/photo ID, but the passport will save you tons of time, especially when disembarking. When we were disembarking, there was a line with at least 300 people in it waiting to disembark. They made an announcement that if everyone in your group has a US passport, you may leave the ship immediately and use a different line. We all had our passports, so we walked past these 300 or so people and finally go to the line for passport holders. There were maybe 20 people ahead of us, and we were through customs in just minutes. Having our passports saved us at least an hour of waiting in line. For those who did not have passports, I see no way that most of them could have made a 12 pm flight.

P_M

I forgot to mention--even by using the speedy line, it was still around 10 am before we got outside the cruise terminal, and we were NOT in the last group to be dismissed. As previously stated, for those who didn't have passports or were dismissed later, they could not possibly have made a 12pm flight.

jillllybeans

PM, what a nightmare for you! I've recently disembarked at Port of Los Angeles (San Pedro) and was off the ship and through the entire process within about 15 minutes (as was everyone else as far as I know). There were virtually no lines. There were passengers that had noon flights with no problem.

What ship and cruiseline were you on? I'm wondering if it was a brand new ship and they didn't have the bugs worked out yet.

shelbyl1

Wow! Thanks for all of the advice!! We will be on a Carnvial Cruise, on a pretty large ship from my understanding. This is my first cruise and we are getting a great deal (that is why we chocie Carnvival). Should we get passports?

Sounds like we should try to get a little later flight.

Thanks for all the great advice!!

P_M

This was the Monarch of the Seas which is not very new. They had told us on board that everyone s/b off by 9:30, but when it didn't happen, they were blaming it on US customs, which could be true, as the line for customs was so long. I realize it often goes more smoothly than this, but you never know, so that's why I hope shelby will book the later flight, then go standby if she gets out early.

Shelby, as for passports, this is just a personal opinion: Passports are not required for a cruise, but they do speed up the process and they are good for 10 years. Also if you ever lose your driver's license, the passport can serve as identification only until you get your license replaced. And what if something comes up suddenly where you have to leave the country, such as a family member travelling who gets sick and needs your help? Having a passport will allow you to get up and go to where they are without much hassle. So if you think you will be travelling out of the country again in the next 10 years, then why not get one? BUT, how much time do you have before your cruise? I'm not sure exactly how long it will take to get a passport, but I do know this is a busy time of year so it could take a month or two. If you don't have that much time, then don't worry about it, and maybe get one before your next cruise. However, if you have enough time, and you plan to do more travelling between now and 2014, then I would recommend it. But that's just me...

shelbyl1

Thanks so much! I will be getting my passport ASAP!

You are so helpful...

P_M

So happy to be of service!! Have a great cruise, and I hope everything goes smoothly.