12 Disembarkation Day Tips I Wish I Knew Before Cruising

[@LifeWellCruised]

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[@victoriacaruso-mcdonald907]

Since the inside of the safe is dark, we always shine the flashlight of our phone in the safe to ensure that we didn’t leave anything behind, like a dark wallet, for instance. When we opened the safe on the first day of our cruise last year, we found a dark card holder with a person’s driver’s license. We immediately brought it to Guest Services. It was shoved to the back, right side of the safe where it was dark. The idea of putting everything in a plastic bag in the safe is great.

[@LifeWellCruised]

@@victoriacaruso-mcdonald907 wow, great idea for the flashlight & thanks for mentioning

[@Standinthegap4ever]

Maybe keep one of those battery operated motion lights in the safe so it comes on when you open the door

[@ronaldcrabb5163]

Elevators going up can be mostly empty. Take the ride up and then back down. It will usually fill quickly on the way down and while you'll stop on every floor there will no room to take on more people with their luggage.

[@pennyhaldeman5626]

Please keep this our secret. No need for everyone to start doing it.

[@smoothsketch]

Reminder to those with backpacks - don't be oblivious and clueless as to the extension of the backpack behind you. In crowded elevators with disable people, your backpack WILL hit the head or face of those in wheelchairs. SELF AWARENESS PLEASE!

[@LifeWellCruised]

True

[@kcprice1115]

Outlaw backpacks on airplanes!

[@jtomczak8342]

Wear your backpack in front of you in those situations. Flip it to your back when you get off the elevator.

[@angelabrodie2483]

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with politely, reminding someone as they get on the elevator that if they are going to stand in front of you to, please remove their backpack. It should be self-explanatory, people are often in a hurry and may not be thinking about that. While it is self-awareness for anyone dealing with mobility issues, it is simply a matter of respectfully educating someone.

[@alwilliams64964]

Absolutely - just made a comment promoting backpacks and then read this comment. I never wear mine on an elevator or airplane; I carry them like any other hand-held luggage.

[@acefox1]

The most important disembarkation day tip for us is to mentally prepare for the return to normal life so the post-cruise-blues don’t overwhelm you. That’s a real thing and sometimes the struggle is very real.

[@anitaclue9868]

Yep… post cruise depression is real😢

[@EsotericRavenclaw]

I have to have freezer meals prepped for at least a week. When I get back from a cruise for some reason simply cooking a meal is draining.

[@LifeWellCruised]

@@acefox1 that’s a great point

[@sandygenier795]

I literally cried on the bus back to the hotel after getting off the ship on my first cruise 😢

[@acefox1]

@@sandygenier795 We had a similar experience. We booked a budget hotel in Cocoa Beach after our first cruise l, 7 days on the Disney Fantasy. My wife and I walked out to the beach and we were both overwhelmed with an irrational sense of sadness at the prospect of going back to regular life. We’ve had 4 more cruises since then and each time it gets a little less sad but the post-cruise blues are still very real.

[@alwilliams64964]

For self-assist, be aware that two roller bags can be difficult and/or dangerous on the escalator. There are elevators - but that's usually another long line. I bought a nice backpack for my "carry on" so I can manage my larger roller-suitcase and still have a free hand for the escalator hand-rail. (BTW way Ilana, i always give you the thumbs up before I ever watch the video because I've yet to view one that doesn't deserve it!)

[@LifeWellCruised]

You’re right, people underestimate how difficult it can be once off the ship. Thank you btw :)

[@CathiWarren]

Leaving the shoe in the safe is GENIUS!

[@markb8954]

Not sure what cruise line, but no way would one of my shoes fit in the room safe we had on Royal Caribbean.

[@briannickerson6858]

If you still have onboard credit on last day and don’t need or want to buy stuff in the ship’s stores, you should be able to contribute it to the ship’s crew. Front desk can help you do it.

[@leslierurup3570]

@briannickerson6858 , that sounds like a wonderful idea. I'm going to look into that. Thanks 😊

[@eedwards4603]

There is usually a piece of carpeting or other material on the bottom of the room safe. Make sure you check under it. We found a piece of jewelry under ours once and turned it in. It turned out that a previous guest in our cabin had thought she lost it, and had put in a claim at lost and found. Luckily, they had her information so were able to get it to her. I like your ziplock bag idea for the safe.

[@rifkymasri1065]

I would rather book afternoon flight (3 pm or later) I'drather wait in the airport for my flight rather than running to catch it. And stay on the ship until the majority of people left. No line to get off, no problems with elevators. No one is rushing me.

[@LifeWellCruised]

Good point

[@jossacosta8445]

I did that last October in Miami. There were only like 10 bags waiting for guests 😂

[@rosemarie9956]

Yes good idea, we should have done that when at the port in n Fort Lauderdale. It was madness there trying to get an Uber to airport. We had lots of time for our flight but hoped to get on the earlier one. Nope even tho some seats were available AC would not budge so we waited in the packed area. Staying on ship until we have to go from now on

[@guardiansalive1590]

That's what I did. I found the tour that would take us to the airport afterwards. So, there is no rush or hassle. We sail in about 3 weeks, God spares life.

[@paulbjorlin2807]

This is good advice for those that want to get off the ship quickly. For us we are always one of the last people off the ship. We always spend a night in port after a cruise so we do not have to rush. We get to sit and relax on the ship as long as possible. There are no lines waiting to find our luggage in the terminal and your luggage stands out because the majority of luggage has already been taken away. The lines checking passports are pretty much gone. The only lines you may run into are people waiting for a ride somewhere after leaving the ship. We find it far more relaxing for us.

[@LifeWellCruised]

@@paulbjorlin2807 that’s a nice way to end the cruise

[@raisafrancisco7323]

Hi, Ilana. I have two recommendations. The evening before disembarkation, they take out those color coded disembarkation tags with the different time slots to exit the ship. Go early to pick them up if you want to select a later time. Those later time tags are the first ones that run out. I love having breakfast in the main dinning room and leave the ship the latest possible. Go early or you might get a very early time to leave. Also, I do a last check of the room and look at every corner. Last year in Europe I did that just to realize that I had left an entire packing cube full of my clothes inside the closet. I had to manage to make the content fit in my carry on and personal bag till I got to the airport and I could put everything inside my check bag. Always do that last minute check if you don’t want to lose anything.

[@jacquelineward223]

Another reason to clean out the safe the night before disembarkation... we went to empty the safe at 10 pm the night before and the safe wouldn't take our combination. A call to guest services had a security person at our door in about 20 minutes and the problem was fixed but we took this as a lesson not to leave it to the last day as we would've been without passports etc.

[@ninasimonetti4819]

Our most recent cruise was NCL. Stay on board for as long as you can! We kept our backbacks and one carry on size suitcase with us, and put the rest out the night before. We left the cabin as late as possible, had a leisurely breakfast in the MDR and then went to the observation lounge on deck 15, played cards, read, and relaxed for as long as possible. By then the crowds were gone and we just breezed through disembarkation.

[@scottwoods504]

We attach a tracking Tile to our luggage and it can help locate them in sea of luggage inside the terminal.

[@elainemcdonald1539]

Tan is glowing!!

[@LifeWellCruised]

lol, I got so much sun last week

[@CarboneCat]

Usually, on disembarkation day, we all triple check the cabin to make sure we don’t forget anything.

[@LifeWellCruised]

Good plan

[@steve202li]

Hi Ilana, Big tip for Non-Refundable onboard credit if you're not a shopper is to go to the casino and ask for $$$ on your account. Do this a day or two before disembarking day as the casino will be closed early the last evening of the cruise in many cases. They will only charge you 3% ($3 for every $100). For me that's they only way to go because I'm not a shopper.

[@PattiMiller-l4y]

We always leave our backpacks and luggage in our room and have breakfast in the main dining room. Then we go back to the room, pick up our items and disembark. Our son picks us up at the port. Carl and Patti Miller

[@TheCatInTheHat6505]

I’ve always been scared to do that. What if the cabin won’t open anymore, and I can’t find an employee?

[@betsy6046]

I put a piece of white paper in the bottom of my safe first thing so you can see everything you put in that dark safe.

[@LifeWellCruised]

@@betsy6046 what a smart simple tip

[@reneeb.joseph2348]

Great tip.

[@elaineheim6477]

Clever tip, thanks for sharing.

[@joramacrush3315]

I put everything in a plastic or ziploc

[@meddyven]

Ilana, all good points. Also be sure to check your cabin door, for any decorations you had attached, especially the one's you may use on future cruises.

[@francesgill8621]

I always fly home, and I always prefer to have the cruiseline do the transfer of me to the airport and I include a disembarkation tour if possible. Makes my life much easier

[@dhoward5941]

Instead of having an extra luggage tag you can always take a picture of the tags so you know what they look like. This way you don;t use up all their tags and one less thing to throw away when you get home.

[@LifeWellCruised]

@@dhoward5941 good tip

[@tombuttliere9045]

We enjoy your videos and just subscribed recently. Thanks!

[@LifeWellCruised]

@@tombuttliere9045 thanks so much! I really appreciate your generosity & support ☺️

[@Bob_Mahan]

I delay disembarking until final call. I want my cruise last as long as possible.

[@LifeWellCruised]

If not in a rush definitely makes sense

[@BillyCaughron]

If flying we purchase a package where they check our luggage with the airline. We put it out and don’t see it again till we claim it at the airport where we live. It’s great and includes transfer from ship to the airport.

[@alyssasimon3940]

make sure you take out PJs and clothes for the disembarkation day BEFORE you put your suitcase out the night before if you are not self disembarking.

[@marydebarros9288]

We tip our steward when we arrive and have a list of things we will need, like wine glasses, robes, etc. The rest of the people we want to tip we do it throughout the cruise. We also empty the safe before we go to dinner last night.

[@scottmilo2971]

Unless you have a flight to catch or a tour to enjoy, why race to get off the ship? In this case, I leave my cabin at the last possible moment after packing my carry off bag and checking my safe. Down to breakfast in the MDR and a quick visit back to the cabin to wash up use the facility and gather my carry off bag and personal items. There is never a line to get off the ship at the end of the debarkation time. Totally stress-free.

[@LifeWellCruised]

That mdr breakfast is key

[@Standinthegap4ever]

I haven’t been able to go on a cruise yet… I’m one of those people who has everything packed for any trip at least a week, if not two weeks before I leave🙄, so I’d probably have everything packed the night before disembarking, including whatever I had in the safe. ☺️ You could keep one of those battery operated motion lights in the safe so it comes on any time you open the door. I have some intended to be placed on the wall by each stair tread. They really put out a lot of light for their size! I have a couple different brands. The one by 3M only lights up if it’s dark & senses you moving around but not during the day. These would be good to put in the bathroom too.

[@heathercharg]

Always have an alert on our phone and or sticky note reminding us to check safe and room as we leave. Do the buddy system 1 checks and the other goes behind to check again so if we overlook something.

[@darrellvivianpeters6631]

Great video...i like the idea of the ziploc bag in the safe...we usually do a scan around the safe with our flashlight on our phone and lift the bottom little mat..some safes have a little mat on the bottom things can get tucked under...viv

[@suselim499]

(While it can be expensive) We chose a luggage service and had our bags delivered to the cruise ship for embarkation day (they were waiting in our room when we boarded). We also chose to have a luggage service pick up our bags (the night before) and they were delivered directly to our departing airline and specific flight. Add an extra charge and get them delivered home . Our cruise line had the information on their web site. It was worth every penny no to have to deal with luggage pickup at the airport carousel.😀

[@LifeWellCruised]

@@suselim499 that is a great idea! Was this in the US? If you can share the info that would be great

[@suselim499]

Yes, We got the luggage shipping idea from Holland America (website). The embarkation company was Luggage Forward. We were so surprised when we walked I to our cabin and our bags were there. No waiting😊. The company says they ship all over the world. Bags VIP is the company we used when returning home. Bags delivered to our house!

[@elaineheim6477]

Amazing, thanks for sharing.

[@CassieB59]

We just used “Port Valet” in Seattle to depart. There is some criteria…later in the day flight and airlines that participate. We got our boarding passes and luggage tags and put out our luggage with everyone else. When you get to the airport it’s right to security and it was so much faster. Our luggage went to the Seattle airport and we picked it up at our home airport. And by the way….this is a FREE service in Seattle. I highly recommend it.

[@suselim499]

@@CassieB59 Thanks Cassie- I read about them and they sounded great. Sadly we are on the East Coast and they aren't available to us. Good of you to mention them for those on the West Coast.

[@sandybunn7924]

Thanks so much--have been following you for several months as we prepared for our recent cruise. A lot has changed since my first cruise many years ago. Our debarkation was ok and not too traumatic but I have to say the airport experience both on embarkation and debarkation were nightmarish!! Will never do the cruise provided airport transfers in Seattle again. Loved our Alaska cruise though and my hard sell spouse is already talking about cruising again!! :)

[@lcflngn]

Hoping my experience is the same - not with the airline, but with the spouse!

[@brendaploskon323]

My husband and I do a 2 person check system. When we think we are getting ready to leave he steps out of the cabin with our stuff. Then I go in check everything to make sure we got it. When I check something example closets, safe, drawers I keep it open. When I am done he goes in double checks everything and he closes things up. So if he walks in and see a drawer not open he thinks I forgot to check it, he checks that first leaves it open then starts from one end of the cabin double checks everything and closes everything up. It sound like a lot but once you get into the routine it only takes 5-10 mins. A lot of times when he double checks I go with our stuff if I see the cabin steward I ask they we are leaving do you want cabin open or close? I tell hubby then I head to elevators. Most times hubby gets there before elevator if not I go and he will meet me on Lido.

[@LifeWellCruised]

Great system

[@juliehadley8336]

I pack up everything the night before we disembark. I do a twice or thrice over check of everything. Call me paranoid, but it works.

[@whoooami2090]

My last cruise there was a service that would check your bag directly from the ship and get it on your flight home. You didn’t have to see your luggage until you arrived at your destination. Of course you have to put your luggage out the night before, but it was well worth not having to haul luggage around town..

[@ladyjleo]

Which cruiseline was this and how did you schedule this?

[@trbstang]

Good info! We had a luggage tag pulled off one piece of our luggage on disembarkation in Seattle. It was a bit of a panic as we had a kinda early flight, until we found the pile of bags without tags. There were at least a dozen bags without tags so it must be a common thing to happen.

[@MarieKotasek]

We order room service the day getting off. We have a nice breakfast with no crowds.

[@PoisonPenArts]

Great video. We did leave our car keys on the ship once. Even with the assistance of our TA it was hard to get our keys back. They won't even let you back into the terminal once you leave.

[@rcorbin70]

I enjoyed really watching your videos and tips . you do a fantastic job . Thanks

[@denisebaldwin9292]

My method for not forgetting anything in the safe is to never put anything in there in the first place, but that’s just me. :)

[@annejoyner3729]

Be careful with the special assistance and allow lots of time. Some members of our party needed wheelchairs and they had to wait in a certain area for over an hour for assistance. We have since bought a walker that transforms into a transport chair which we can then use ourselves to get them off the ship easily. One of our party uses a small travel scooter also and I will say that the crew and staff always provide special help and assistance for her. Just be aware if you have a early flight you are trying to make-

[@travelingfool9096]

self assist is the way to go

[@Keep-on-ok]

We always just catch a cab to the airport on the last day. Especially in Ft. Lauderdale because you are just so close to the airport. Galveston is a bit different as the distance is considerably farther away. We usually book a driver with a comfortable car for that port.

[@jenstravelblog]

I noticed that when I disembarked from Princess Cruises, the terminal at FLL was very crowded and disorganized. I also did not have a good signal on my phone and it made it impossible for me to order an Uber. I ended up getting out of the terminal to just outside of it to see if I could get a signal, I got one after many tries but it was very weak. The traffic directors, were moving all of us who were trying to get a signal and were telling us, we couldn’t get picked up where we were. I was starting to panic a little, until my Uber called and said he didn’t have signal either and couldn’t locate me, we agreed to meet in the terminal pick up area and I finally got a ride. But for next time I will probably arrange my transportation ahead of time.

[@LifeWellCruised]

Wow, thanks for sharing this

[@list-and-sell]

I always make sure to remove the fabric liner from the safe as a final check to be sure its empty. I lost a single earring one time because it had worked its way under the liner.

[@LMFuqua]

My son lost his cruise id on the last night thankfully he asked the captain when we were getting ready to get in line and she made sure we had it before we hit the scanner. Celebrity was so good to us even when my teen lost his card 4 times.

[@clittle1807]

We drive to the cruise port from Atlanta so we take our time on the last day.. usually wait for a later disembark time then the luggage is easier to find.

[@crazy4dariver]

Leaving is the worst.😊

[@LifeWellCruised]

Struggle is real 😅

[@BobJohnson-h3k]

This did NOT happen on a cruise but at an all inclusive resort. We emptied the safe out, packed away the valuables, then went to breakfast. The offending employee watched for people going to breakfast and checked through luggage taking valuables that no one noticed until after they got home to unpack. Of course, the resort denied this, but when several people in our group had the same experience it was pretty undeniable. We later learned they arrested the thief but since that time, if it comes out of the safe, it goes on my body until we are on our way. Just a head's up.

[@kathryncashner3294]

On many cruise lines, there are two separate wheelchair assists. The ship's crew will take you down the gangplank and off the ship. THen you will transfer to the terminal assist crew. Depending on the system, this can involves a good deal of waiting! You may also be taken to a different exit, such as a crew exit and be allowed only one member of your party with you--be prepared to split up if there are more than 2 of you. Some cruise lines and ports have HA assist down to a fine art. Others I could write books about. Just be prepared for anything!

Final meal of the trip in Pinnacle Grill for breakfast on HAL. Great way to end the cruise. We leave end of Aug 2024 for our next Alaska trip. Can’t wait so I can get a break from cooking at home! 😂. Thanks for sharing.

[@christinawilliams6989]

We both check everything. Sometimes one person may miss something and the other person will catch it.

[@lynnleipold2617]

Thanks!

[@jimmy6tall]

Dark Blue is your color.😊

[@wyawn]

I live in Atlanta. One of my favorite cruise ports is Miami. The Miami airport is very close to the cruise port. I can get a 7am flight out of Atlanta and be standing on the deck of the cruise ship by 10am. And, if I carry my own luggage, I can be off the ship by about 8:15am and make it to the airport for a 9:45am flight.

[@angelam5258]

I want to add something I noticed regarding the elevators during the last evening/morning of the cruise on the Vision of the Seas... they actually closed off a section of the elevators to passengers so that crew could use them to transport all the luggage off the ship.

[@kathleenabell5933]

I highly recommend using the Cruise Planner! Love mine!

[@leslierurup3570]

@kathleenabell5933 , so do I!!! I print out the pertinent pages, highlight "30 days until", etc., in different colors, and push-pin them onto a big corkboard, leaned on the couch. I call it my vision board. 😊 Sis, girlfriend and hubby teasingly call it my murder board😂 But, it worked great!❤

[@hiviolet007]

I always do self assist. It is so much easier and faster than waiting around for my group to be called. I don’t even care that I have to wait longer for an elevator. Also, I don’t like stressing out about what not to pack before they take the bag and then getting the stuff back into the bag when picked up.

[@gwenivercall]

Mein Schiff (Tui) gives you the option to do early check-in and late check-out (against payment of course, lol) and I signed us up for that, to make the cruise last a little longer. Unlike last year, where our flight was really late on the last day (and then was delayed, which meant we spent about 5 hours at the airport), we're going to stay in the city overnight and then leave on the next morning. Last year's flight meant an overnight layover in Zurich (NEVER AGAIN) and by the time we arrived home we'd been up for over 24 hours and it took us 3 days to recover. To quote Danny Glover in Lethal Weapon, I'm too old for this beep. Another thing Mein Schiff offers is what they call a 'day cabin' - on the last day you can book a cabin and stay till the afternoon rather than wander around the ship after you vacate your own cabin. It depends on how full the ship is, of course. I'm kind of tempted, tbh, but it's pricey.

[@leslierurup3570]

@gwenivercall ---"I'm too old for this bleep 😂😂" We're right there with ya!!!❤❤

[@angie-whateverfloatsyourboat]

we always do self-assist and get FTTF so we can get off the ship early because we always drive to the port and have a long trip to drive back home.

[@spokenme08]

We have a priority disembarkation for our cruiseline. We wait at a location on the floor where we leave so it's fairly chill. The last few times it has taken 20 minutes from leaving to back in our car including waiting fir the bus to fill up.

[@bethdavis6863]

Many lines will not allow people to wait in that area.

[@Vsladybug]

Need these tips for our early flight. Thank you for all your videos

[@LifeWellCruised]

So true, definitely good when you need to be off & get to the airport

[@lornakay5976]

Shoes in the safe? Now I have to disinfect the safe before I throw my passport in it! I probably should have been doing that already. 😊

[@kmcbride2988]

I’ve tried both ways and I now prefer not to carry around my luggage on disembarkation day. It allows us to move around the ship a lot easier esp to take the stairs. The elevator crowds and wait time with luggage is stressful. Our luggage was easily identified and retrievable among the mass of luggage.

[@DavidNurbin]

I usually make sure to make my flight late on the day I am cruising (I live in Ft Lauderdale, so when I cruise into Miami or Fort Lauderdale I just take an Uber), so that I can have a leisurely morning.

[@camilledextraze7104]

Hi Ilana! The worst thing about disembarkation day is to transfer my toiletry kit from my carry-on to my regular suitcase that I just recuperated at the port building. Bad knees prevent me from getting g down to the floor.

[@billkallas1762]

It was a snap to find my luggage on my June Alaska, because I booked an excursion of Seattle. Not that many people plan a final day excursion, so there weren't that many suitcases in that area.

[@etgdesignstudio]

I do the shoe thing! When I'm packing and deciding what I'm wearing on disembarkation day, I put one of the shoes I will be wearing in the safe.

[@toniauciello8333]

I put sticky notes around not to forget stuff

[@GlennBrockett]

On our last two cruises we self disembarked and it was so much faster than having them porter our bags to the warehouse (and easier to keep track of the bags.) We travelled rather light, one large bag and one carry on each on a 21 day cruise. My first cruise, I made the error of packing our passports in the portered luggage. You will normally get the luggage before customs, but don't take that risk. If having your luggage portered to the terminal, Wear the clothing you will be disembarking in when you put your bags out. Take the mat out of the bottom of the safe when checking it and check under the lip. I have found earrings there from previous occupants.

[@1JohnnyCruiser]

Pre-order your Uber or Lyft to the airport. Make your reservation on the app ahead of time like a day ahead.

[@eeo1973]

I tried to do that with Lyft at SeaTac and it said SeaTac doesn’t allow advanced reservations. Boo. 😒

[@1JohnnyCruiser]

It's not that far from pier 91 to the Seattle Center heck call yellow cab. The monorail takes you downtown and the Pike market is there. You can walk down to the waterfront and Uber cab back to the ship.

[@TimWolcott-n9h]

We used those really brightly colored luggage straps so we could find our bags more easily.

[@LifeWellCruised]

Great idea

[@thosebabyeyes316]

This is the best video!! I wish I had seen it two weeks ago, BEFORE I ended up in a huge debacle on the last morning, realizing one of my kids lost his sea pass card…

[@elizabethrobles6570]

Post Notes on the cabin mirror for double check the safe , bathroom and closet. And it has worked for us . And a reminder in the cellphones. 🚢

[@LifeWellCruised]

This is a fantastic tip

[@NicholasPyers]

Many cruise lines have a service where you can pay extra, or have a loyalty perk, that allows you to board earlier on EMBARKATION DAY... and they also offer early Disembarkation... I want the opposite!!! I'd pay quite a significant amount to be able to stay on board for a little longer. I understand the need to clear my cabin early so the cabin attendant can reset it for the next passenger. My suggestion is we could go to a particular Dining Room or Lounge. There a special breakfast could be served -- either a buffet or table service. A limited range of alcoholic drinks could be made available eg Bloody Mary and Mimosa We could then depart the ship around 10 or 11am Carry-on luggage only would be in the "lounge"... you would have to put your main luggage out the night before. I'm very much aware that Customs and other port formalities may prevent this ever happening, but I can dream

[@buffalogirl1961]

I would love to see your cruise planner as a digital PDF that I can use in GoodNotes. I have a travel planner I use in it as I take my iPad with me when I travel.

[@LMMorrris2020]

Plan travel so not in a rush to get off the ship = way less stress We take our luggage with us … if elevators are busy my hubby sends me down with the bags & he walks down to save space on the elevators

[@jamess5154]

My biggest tip is to make your travel plans so you are not in a rush. No matter what luggage tags we have we never get off the ship until the last group. They almost have to kick us off the ship. Everything is much less stressful and the rental car and airport and hotel shuttles are not packed to the max with a long line..

[@tootsla1252]

None of the above! Quick hop from San Pedro to Playa del Rey!

[@LifeWellCruised]

👏

[@ginnyanderson4892]

My sister and I clean out our room, then go have a relaxing breakfast.

[@darthlaurel]

You are right! The ship really does feel different on the last day! Even though I was on a cruise that was continuing on another term days, it still felt so odd.

[@n0ibn]

We drive so I’m generally not in a hurry.. I’m also disabled, so we leave our luggage out the night before. It’s just easier.

[@angelabrodie2483]

“Safe Precautions” (pun intended): There are certain items that I store locked in my carry-on, as opposed to in the safe. That includes my passport, car keys and some sentimental pieces of jewelry that I would not want to risk leaving behind. In addition to the TSA approved lock, I also bring a very small lock that has been keyed differently to prevent anyone who may have access to a TSA key from being able to open my bag while I am out of my room. This completely removes the possibility I would ever leave anything behind right from the very beginning of the cruise.

[@LifeWellCruised]

@@angelabrodie2483 that’s an interesting & good idea

[@lynnfranklin5098]

Be careful some cruises like Vancouver to Seattle. The casino closes really early because so close to shore

[@LifeWellCruised]

@@lynnfranklin5098 thanks so much for mentioning this! I’ve heard of people being disappointed!

[@robertb7864]

No. 1 item to pack is YOUR PATIENCE. People can get rude and angry, trying to get off the ship. We book a late flight, so we don't have to hurry.

[@stevebartley628]

Closing in on 1/3 million. Great !

[@sylviejones9833]

we've found on our last 2 cruises with RCL that the charges for each day (gratuities, drinks, etc) have shown up on our credit card every day

[@MarionShakespeare]

I check my accounts daily. I have discovered bills that where not mine. Much easier correcting this as it happens, rather than days or weeks later.

[@beautifulflorida]

Thank you very much for the tips! New subscriber here.

[@anniedew2592]

We pack the night before, we take everything out of the safe the night before and use a flashlight to make sure. We carry our wallet and passports in our pockets. We leave our bags in the room for a quick buffet breakfast and then pick up our bags and self disembark. This way we don’t miss our room attendant and give him some cash.

[@brianfoster4434]

It is always hard to see inside the safe. I bring a flashlight so that I can see inside and definitely know that I have everything.

[@bevshaw5871]

We empty the safe the nite before and leave thebdoor open to😊know its empty

[@artssygrl]

I don't mind taking it slow on the last day. We've had that coffee thing happen and now I bring cans of cold coffee and save it for the last morning.

Cruisers are a breed of their own

[@sct4040]

My friend always runs off early in the morning, while I always eat breakfast first then walk off without any problems.

[@lanewolfe7644]

Last cruise we tried the mdr and sat for 20 minutes with no waiter showing up. So we headed to the buffet

[@dorsiaftw]

I just don’t use the safe and use my luggage. All luggage ideally is lined with a zipper so I hide my stuff there. Either way, I have my stuff if I forget on disembarkation day. 😂

[@PapiliAdventure]

Can I just say last year on Horizon I felt so overwhelmed and pushed around it was a nightmare getting off like so horrible and hearing anyone over the speaker was not happening this time I am trying to hang back a tad.

[@ThePgenualdi]

My last cruise, I Disembarked, went to my car in the parking lot and realized I left my keys in the safe. After a few moments of panic, I had to go to a Royal Caribbean Employee off the ship, explain my situation, and after about a half hour, they brought me my keys. Hopefully, I learned a lesson for my next cruise.