Cruise SnApShoT * CoM

Travel and cruising has never been easier nor cheaper, at least for individuals or couples. But there are two very important things presently that must be addressed and put on our recommended list of “Must do.”

• Number 1 is the need to get your passport.
• Number 2 is the serious consideration of earlier flight arrival times.

In the past, if you were taking a cruise from the United States or Canada, and you were a U.S. citizen, you were able to board, cruise (leave the country), and return with your original birth certificate and a government issued photo ID. Not so in the not so distant future.

This is a change that has been a while coming and as of this writing, appears to have a June 1st implementation date. Although it continues to be moved forward, most recently from the 1st of this past year. Even so, it is time to get your passport. Passports are a certainty for travel as security and documentation only become more of a concern in today’s world.

Secondly, you need to plan earlier arrival times into your ports of call. There is a number of reasons for this. The cruise lines are now being required by homeland security to have all passengers confirmed, verified and checked in an hour before cruise departure. So this will now necessitate your air arrival times at least 3 hours prior to departure in most ports. A 2 hour arrival time used to be within guidelines. That will be pushing it now.

Coming in the day before has never made more sense, not to mention less stress. Flight delays, cancellations, weather, increased airport security measures, and the occasional hijacking (just kidding) …. makes one’s nerves fried at the chance of missing your cruise.

According to the Department of Transportation’s RITA, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, the month of December 2007 showed 64% of all flights were on time. (meaning roughly 1 in 4 were late!) Not exactly a comforting thought. Those delays were for a multiple of reasons which included Air Carrier delay (9%), Aviation System delays (10%), weather (1.3%), late arrivals (11%). Cancellations accounted for 3.5%. You can see all this information by month as well as it relates to a particular airline’s performance here, RITA.

Lots of good data here. Interestingly, what we tend to worry most about, weather delays, appears to be of lesser significance over the last few years than the late flight arrivals.

With information like this, I have personally made the decision to book my flight into my port this June the night before. And I am applying for my passport this week!