My thoughts on Cruising - Embarkation

I have sailed on 2 cruises.
Cruise #1 - Alaska 7-day July 2008
Cruise #2 - Mediterranean 12-day December 2009

On my first cruise (Alaska), we flew into Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, took a charter bus from the airport to the dock.  We embarked, attended a safety seminar, spent Day 1 at sea, then days 2-5 traveling North stopping along ports along the Alaskan coast. Day 6 was our 2nd day at sea and Day 7 we disembarked and headed to Anchorage, AK.

Here's what really happened...

We flew into Vancouver.  We pre-booked the charter bus (through the cruise line) to take us directly to the boat.  We got on the charter bus and the bus driver announced that the boat was not ready for us to embark and he would drive us around Vancouver (aimlessly for 3 hours) until the boat was ready for us to embark.

As my charter bus drove around Vancouver aimlessly for over 1.5 hours, the bus driver tried his best to become our tour guide pointing out neighborhoods as we drove by.



I had not eaten anything on the plane or prior to getting on the charter bus (as I was told that there would be plenty of food once I got on the boat).  At this point, it had been at least 8 hours since my last meal and I was very, very hungry.  There was absolutely no water and no food on this bus.  I approached the bus driver and asked him to stop so that I could get off.  He stopped the bus and was very courteous toward me; I assured him I would find my way to the embarkation point myself.

I ran to the nearest restaurant (Old Spaghetti Factory), and asked for the "express meal."  Ok, there is no "express meal" at the Old Spaghetti Factory, but they were extremely accommodating to my stomach.  Thank you Old Spaghetti Factory, I'll never forget you.

After my meal, we walked around Vancouver and eventually walked to the port and embarked on our Alaskan cruise.

Lesson learned: The cruise company will encourage you to arrange your embarkation (and disembarkation) with them.  They promise that you will not miss your boat if you book with them, but the flip side is that you have no control how or when you will get there.  In my next cruise (Mediterranean), I did not arrange any transportation with the cruise company.  I flew in a few days ahead of the cruise and enjoyed sightseeing in Barcelona before taking a cab to the embarkation point.