Carnival Guests Offer Insights and Tips for Back-to-Back Cruises
A back-to-back sailing is a bucket list adventure for many cruisers, but how exactly does one manage the minutia of such a double (or triple, or quadruple) cruise?
One eager guest reached out to Carnival Cruise Line’s Brand Ambassador, John Heald, about their upcoming back-to-back cruise with questions about how the luggage arrangements are handled.
“We will be sailing on the Vista in June. We have back to back cruises and we have different staterooms,” the guest explained. “They are only [two] rooms down from one another. Is it necessary to print out luggage tags? What do we do? What happens?”
While the guest does not clarify which Carnival Vista cruises they are on, the ship is homeported year-round from Port Canaveral, offering 6- and 8-night sailings to Southern Caribbean and Eastern Caribbean destinations.
Rather than offer a by-the-book answer, Heald opened up to comments from other cruisers who have themselves managed back-to-back sailings.
“It is really simple and rather than me waffle about it please, anyone that has done a [back-to-back] please share your experiences,” he said.
Many commenters chimed in with a variety of back-to-back experiences. While the process is smoother and simpler for guests staying in the same stateroom for both cruises, even switching rooms isn’t too difficult.
“Easy. No tags required. Tell you steward. He knows what to do,” one commenter explained.
“If it’s only 2 doors down, I don’t even pack. He brought a cart, piled our stuff on and unloaded in new room. He will usually clean your new room as soon as it is vacated. If rooms are on different floors, he will coordinate with the steward up there. I have done it many times.”
Other travelers note that sometimes items on hangers can be left on those hangers and simply transferred to the new room, while some cruisers prefer to pack their bags for moving to a new room.
Of course, with the cabin attendants providing the extra help of switching cabins, this would be an ideal time for an extra gratuity or a very sincere thank you for their excellent service!
How Guests Move Between Back-to-Back Sailings
Guests doing two (or more) consecutive sailings also need to be sure their own paperwork is in order. Printing boarding passes for both cruises is helpful, and experienced back-to-backers recommend visiting Guest Services during the first cruise to confirm that they’re on the list for the next cruise as well.
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On debarkation day for the first sailing, guests still need to vacate their staterooms and will be told where to meet with other back-to-back cruisers for customs and immigration processing. This will usually be in a lounge or restaurant, and guests will be given their new Sail and Sign cards for the next cruise.
A crew member will verify that all B2B cruisers have gathered and will escort them off the ship for quick processing. After a brief stop with customs inspection (no need to bring any bags along!), guests will be escorted back onboard the ship.
On some sailings, depending on the number of cruisers remaining onboard and the individual port facilities, the customs processing might happen onboard and guests never need to leave the ship at all.
To commemorate such a special type of sailing, back-to-back cruisers get a coupon for a free drink as well as a free souvenir photo (restrictions do apply).
Once back on the ship as the very first to board for the next sailing, guests can do what they wish – enjoy a leisurely late breakfast, stroll around the nearly empty ship, or find a great people watching spot to see new cruisers come aboard.
Carnival Guests Offer Insights and Tips for Back-to-Back Cruises