Linger a little longer
Celebrity unveils program that lets guests stay aboard rather than wait at the airport
One of the most frustrating things about cruising can be what to do on disembarkation day. I always book a flight home for the mid-to-late afternoon after a cruise, which ensures I won’t be rushing to the airport or in danger of missing my flight. It also means potentially spending hours at the airport, or finding a post-cruise excursion to while away the hours.
Celebrity Cruises (cruise. center/celebrity) has unveiled another possibility: on its voyages from Port Everglades (Fort Lauderdale), Fla., and select European embarkation ports, it is allowing passengers to stay onboard on disembarkation day up until that evening’s lifeboat drill — for a fee.
Celebrity’s new Extend Your Stay option is only available to book once onboard and costs US$79 per adult, and US$39 for kids. It allows guests to stay in their cabins until 9 a.m., when they are required to disembark with all their belongings and go through the appropriate customs inspection. Luggage is collected ashore and customs formalities are completed, and passengers are directed by Celebrity staff to place their luggage in a designated holding area.
From that point on, cruisers can return to the ship and have access to all public facilities and the ship’s pool deck. Purchases can be made with credit cards for alcoholic drinks or other for-cost services, and passengers will even have the option to book a late departing shuttle to Fort Lauderdale-hollywood International Airport.
The Extend Your Stay package can only be purchased onboard by visiting the guest relations desk. While it won’t work for everyone, being able to stay aboard the ship while in port and relax instead of wandering around with luggage will likely suit many folks. The only stipulation is that guests must disembark the vessel by the time of the lifeboat drill — usually 60 to 90 minutes before sailing. And yes, they’ll check to make sure you’re off and not bound for the Caribbean again.
This program has been available since 2011 in various forms, but in the past it has only been available to passengers on European departures. This is the first year the program has been offered from a North American port of embarkation. At the moment, it’s only available on sailings out of Fort Lauderdale, but that could change if the program is successful.
Looking for other ways to kill time between disembarkation and your flight home? City tours are typically offered by cruise lines in many disembarkation ports of call, which are convenient particularly for storing luggage as most are operated by motorcoaches with baggage holds. Other possibilities include getting a day room at a nearby hotel or resort until it is time to leave for the airport.
I always caution those I meet to not be too eager to leave for the airport. On every cruise I take, I see people queued up at the gangway at seven in the morning, waiting for the ship to be cleared by local officials. They’re usually trying to race to the airport to catch a flight leaving at 9 or 10 a.m. I’ve been one of those people a few times and let me tell you: it isn’t worth the stress, even if it gets you home earlier. All you need is a traffic slowdown, an accident, or simply a delay in clearing the ship to really throw off your entire day’s plans.
The ability to lounge around and enjoy a Celebrity ship for a few more hours before heading to the airport sounds like money well spent.
Happy cruising.