Ten Things to Do Before Disembarkation

The time has come. It’s the saddest part of your cruise - disembarkation. After planning for weeks, then making a lifetime of memories, it’s finally the day to pack up and leave your cruise behind.  

Before you get off the ship, there are many things to remember to make the exit experience easy. Cruise lines try to make the process as smooth as they can for passengers, with processes for removing luggage and getting passengers off in a staggered manner. However, there are several things you can keep in mind to get ready to leave the ship and end your travels on a high note. 

Following are the ten things to remember to make your disembarkation process seamless. 

1. Check Every Inch of the Cabin for Missing Items 

Before leaving the stateroom, check every inch of the space to ensure you don’t leave behind any items. It’s not easy to recover missing items from a cruise ship. You would be surprised what one (or more) quick checks of the room can yield. When you live on a ship on vacation for several days, it’s easy to make yourself at home and stash items in all the nooks and crannies of the cabin. When you pack up and get ready to exit for the last time, thoroughly inspect to ensure you have everything. Enlisting the help of travel companions as a double-check is never a bad idea.

Peek under the bed, the sofa, and other potentially obscured areas. Open up the closet, check all the drawers, up on any top shelves, on the floor, and any other provided storage spaces. Take a look in the bathroom and check in the shower, on the floor, and all of the drawers and cabinets. If your stateroom has a desk, check under the chair, and open all the drawers to see if any rogue items were left behind. Check all the plugs for lost chargers or other electronic items. If your stateroom has a balcony, take a quick peek outside to ensure nothing was left on a chair or fell to the floor. Also, check in the beds and make sure nothing was accidentally tossed on top of the bedding when you were packing. 

We can’t reiterate this enough - check your stateroom before you leave. A quick scan before you go ensures all your items are with you, and there is no panic later!

2. Double Check the Safe

f you used the safe, it’s likely some of your important travel and personal items were kept in it. Ensure you have passports, money, electronics, jewelry, or other personal items that were kept there, and confirm that they have been removed. This is another crucial space to double-check to make sure nothing was overlooked. 

Leaving items in the safe is one of travelers' most common mistakes when exiting a cruise stateroom. Avoid any potential headaches by spending a few seconds doing one last check before you leave. 

3. Keep an Outfit & Shoes to Wear in the Morning 

If you opt to have the cruise line remove your luggage and deliver it to the port at disembarkation, it's important to remember your luggage is collected the night before disembarkation so you will have that evening and the next morning without your suitcase. There will likely be several hours in the morning before you are reunited with your suitcase shoreside. 

We recommend a small personal embarkation bag to carry off the ship yourself. This bag should include morning toiletries, medications, chargers, passports, and important items for disembarkation day. Remember to leave out an extra set of clothes when you pack your bags to avoid panic in the morning. If you forget, you may have to show up to disembark in your PJs. 

4. Check & Pay Any Outstanding Bills

Before you get off the ship, review your onboard charge account to make sure all charges look correct from what you have spent while on the ship. It’s best to check the account periodically during the cruise to avoid last-minute surprises. A final review while still onboard allows you to correct any issues prior to disembarking the ship. Most onboard accounts can be accessed via your stateroom TV, the onboard app or by making a trip to the customer service desk.

If you have any outstanding charges that need to be paid, we recommend making these early like the last day of the cruise. Guest services desks can be very busy on disembarkation day with cruisers settling up their bills. If you can, check in on your statement on the final day of the voyage to avoid long lines.

5. Observe Your Assigned Disembarkation Time

If you are opting for general disembarkation and for the cruise line to assist with your luggage, you will likely have an assigned time to leave the ship. This is generally assigned based on your stateroom location, cruise line loyalty program status, or if you have an excursion or transportation organized by the cruise line (or privately) when you get to the port.  

The assigned disembarkation time is given to stage passengers to help avoid traffic jams of everyone trying to get off the ship at the same time. Additionally, this allows for luggage to be grouped by color or number order shoreside so it’s easier for passengers to collect. If you try to leave before your assigned time it’s likely you could be waiting for your luggage to be available shoreside. If you’ve opted to walk off with your luggage, you may be able to leave earlier than the assigned time that was given to you, as you won’t have to wait in the terminal for your bags. 

Cruise lines have developed their disembarkation processes to make it easier for you. We recommend following all instructions and procedures to make the experience better for you and your fellow travelers. 

6. Check the Breakfast Schedule

On the last morning of your cruise, some eateries will operate at different hours than during your cruise, and in some cases, may not be open at all. It will likely be early when you go through the disembarkation process, so if you want to have a cup of coffee and one last meal before you travel, we recommend checking the morning hours of dining venues the day before. Most cruise lines do not operate room service on the last day of the cruise, so keep this in mind when making breakfast plans.  Be sure to consult the daily planner for a list of available options for disembarkation morning. 

7. Tip & Thank Crew Members 

Most lines allow guests to add gratuities for crew members to their onboard account automatically. However, if you want to give a special crew member or your stateroom attendant anything extra, do it a day or so before your cruise ends, as the last day crew members may be assigned to other areas or very busy getting the ship ready for the next cruise.

If your cruise line offers a comment card or post-cruise survey, complete it and include the names of the crew members. These surveys are very important to the crew; naming them is another great way to show appreciation to the special people who helped make your cruise a great experience. 

8. Don’t Leave Your Keycard in the Cabin

Remember to take your keycard out of the cabin and bring it with you when you leave. You will have to use it one last time to scan out when making your final exit from the ship. This is how the cruise line tracks which passengers are on/off the ship, so you must present this one final time at embarkation. 

Keycards also make for a great post-cruise memento from the voyage and a small fun way of keeping an item to remember your trip! 

9. Fill Out Official Forms 

Depending on the country where your cruise ends, it may be necessary to fill out some forms to present at customs. If you have purchased any items over a certain amount (like art or jewelry) you may need to fill out a declaration form with details on the item and its value. Some countries will also require you to fill out a general disembarkation form with personal information and other self-queries. If you need to present these at customs before exiting the terminal, make sure to have them on hand and easily accessible to show. 

10. Have Travel Items Ready 

Once you are off the ship, you likely still have additional travel to do in order to get to your next destination. Make sure to have your needed items on hand and not lost deep in a suitcase buried with your laundry and souvenirs. Before exiting the cruise terminal, you will go through a customs/immigration process. Make sure to have your passport and aforementioned required forms in an easy spot to access, and ready to present to the officials. 

If you drove to the cruise port and parked your car, make sure you can easily locate your car keys and parking ticket to present at the exit. If you are flying, make sure you have your ID and any airline documents ready to present at the airport. If you are staying in the homeport destination for an extra day or two at a hotel, make sure to have your wallet and ID on hand and are ready for check-in. Just remembering these tiny things can help to make your travel process just a little easier!  

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