Cruise Recs

Step One: Try not to cry because your vacation has come to an end.

Step Two: Get off the ship.

This is not a hotel with the standard 11:00 AM checkout time. You need to plan to be completely out of your stateroom by 8:00 AM on debarkation day, no matter what your debarkation time is. Your stateroom steward and team have to flip the room for the guests that will get on the ship as soon as everyone from your cruise is off the ship. This means you may have to wait with all of your luggage until they call your debarkation group in a common area on the ship.

The debarkation process has changed over the years and will likely continue to change as time marches on. As of the writing of this article, Carnival allows you to select your preferred debarkation time via the Hub App. You’ll need to log into the app and navigate to the schedule for the final day of the cruise. You can do this at any time once you’re on the ship and it’s best to do it early so you get the time you prefer.

You’ll have two options. One for self assist – which means you get off first…BUT…you’ll have to carry all of your luggage off yourself. If you have an earlier flight and travel light, this is the way to go; just know that the elevators aren’t always available so be prepared to carry your luggage down the stairs.

If you’re like us, however, and you travel on the heavier side, you’ll want to choose option two where they’ll handle your luggage the night before and will call for debarkation by group on debarkation day. With this option, you will choose an estimated time you want to get off the ship. The night before debarkation, you will receive numbered luggage tags either in the mail slot outside your cabin door or your cabin steward will leave them in your stateroom. The lower the number on the tag, the earlier your group will be called. You’ll pack up everything you don’t need the next morning (leave out any clothes you want to wear off the ship and any toiletries you may need in the morning), attach a numbered luggage tag on each bag, and set it outside your stateroom door by 11:00 PM the night before debarkation. The ship’s crew will pick up your luggage and stage it below deck for debarkation. When your group number is called (this is the number on your luggage tag), head down to get scanned off the ship. This is a bit of a process and crowded, but there will be plenty of crew members around to direct you. Once off the ship, you’ll be directed to where you can pick up your luggage (sectioned by luggage tag number), then head through customs to begin your journey home.

Step Three: Travel home.

If you drove to the port and parked in terminal parking, everyone in your party should take the shuttle or walk to the car (yes, with all of your luggage). DO NOT have the driver go get the car and come back to the terminal for the passengers and luggage like you might have done when you got on the ship. There will be a flood of people coming to the port to get ON a ship (there may be multiple in port) at the same time and it’s a mad house. It’s much easier if everyone walks or takes the shuttle. The other option is to take a moment to observe the traffic patterns. If it looks like there is a side street across from the port that is easy to access, everyone can head there while the driver gets the car to swing around and pick everyone up.

If you flew to the port destination and booked transport to the airport via the cruise line, they will direct you to the correct bus for travel to the airport.

If you flew to the terminal and booked transport from another party or rideshare app, it may be best to set your pickup location on a side street across from the port so you don’t get stuck in the traffic created by the next set of vacationers getting on a ship for their cruise.