Canadians, Use the porters when returning to Miami

[DaddyFTO]

After waiting this past Saturday for our color to be called, then waiting in an extemely long line to pick up our luggage we were faced with another huge line for US imigration. A porter asked if we were Canadian and we said yes. He grabbed our bags and took us past a huge line to a much shorter line for non US residents.. Saved us a lot of time. We had a 1.40pm flight from Miami which we would have missed however the flight was bumped to 3.15 Next time we will keep our lugggage and do it ourselves

Cheers

Daddy FTO

[DaddyFTO]

Sorry? Meaning use Self Disembarkation from the ship then use the porter in the luggae area
to bypass the huge line

Daddy

[LHT28]

Did you not go through immigration on the ship?

We were on another cruiseline ...non US residents were called to the lounge to go through immigration
Then when you get off just grab your luggage & go.

[LHT28]

Originally posted by DaddyFTO:
A porter asked if we were Canadian and we said yes. He grabbed our bags and took us past a huge line to a much shorter line for non US residents..
Daddy FTO

Did they not have signs for non us residents?

[DaddyFTO]

You would be in line for a long time before you rounded the corner in the building and seen the non US Resident Line with very few people in it.
I seem to recall a few years back when we cruised Holland America that you went to the lounge on the ship and did the immigration thing there? Not this time or not with Carnival in Miami?

Daddy

[LHT28]

Originally posted by DaddyFTO:
I seem to recall a few years back when we cruised Holland America that you went to the lounge on the ship and did the immigration thing there? Not this time or not with Carnival in Miami?

Daddy

In Feb we docked in Miami and cleared immigration on the ship ...this was Oceania.
I guess next time you will have to send a scout up ahead to see if there is another line!!

[f-mattox]

Getting off Island Princess in Los Angeles last week, all passengers (resident and non-resident) went through immigration check in the Bajou Restaurant and lounge. They had three tables of immigration officers and it went very fast--the easiest part of the debarkation process.

[PC GUY]

Another way to bypass the lines is use the wheel chair assist. my mother can't stand in lines for long so we waited on Promenade Deck until the 9:30 wheel chair assist time. Right on schedule several waiters appeared with wheel chairs - we were able to bypass all the lines and were delivered right to the bus.

[TrvlPro]

PC, not sure I'd have brought that up in open forum. I have people ask to book handicap cabins and when we get to the part where I ask about the disability I often get "I don't have one, we just like the larger cabin and bathroom".

Thanks goodness Princess is leading the way in finally requiring information on a person's disability prior to releasing those cabins. Unless they are the last few remaining cabins available. It's hard enough to find enough of these cabins for those with needs on some sailing. If any of you out there are offenders of this practice, shame on you.

Now the impatient people people with full mobility will be asking for wheelchair assistance at the pier so they can be first at the airport.

Happy sailing, Neil

[Sonny V]

Originally posted by TrvlPro:
PC, not sure I'd have brought that up in open forum. I have people ask to book handicap cabins and when we get to the part where I ask about the disability I often get "I don't have one, we just like the larger cabin and bathroom".

Thanks goodness Princess is leading the way in finally requiring information on a person's disability prior to releasing those cabins. Unless they are the last few remaining cabins available. It's hard enough to find enough of these cabins for those with needs on some sailing. If any of you out there are offenders of this practice, shame on you.

Now the impatient people people with full mobility will be asking for wheelchair assistance at the pier so they can be first at the airport.

Happy sailing, Neil

A handicap person not being able to cruise because someone is enjoying a larger bathroom... How pathetic is that? On our last cruise my wife asked for a wheel chair because she can't stand for long periods of time because of back surgery a year ago. She has documents stating her condition but no one even looked at it. You would think they would at least ask for proof if it's not apparent. Neil, I agree with you 100%. I hope RCCL starts requiring information as well as Princess. Something as simple as putting a sticker on a person's seapass would solve any problems.

Sonny