Pay up for faster boarding perks

//Pay up for faster boarding perks
THIS IS AN EXTENDED VERSION OF CAPTAIN GREYBEARD’S COLUMN FROM TODAY’S PRINT EDITION OF THE DAILY MIRROR

If you’ve waited months for your holiday, every little delay from the moment suitcases are packed to the minute you can relax in the sun can become irritating. Especially if you’ve booked a cruise in order to avoid the unpleasantness of airport check-ins and security delays.
Hold-ups can still occur in the cruise terminal and even on board ship; cabins are often not available until after lunch, which can mean trailing through the buffet restaurant with hand luggage in tow.
Many cruise lines offer priority boarding and early access to suites to members of their loyalty clubs – those who have gathered a few sea-miles under their belts.
Now one is making the same perks available to all – at a price. Step forward Carnival Cruises; for a fee of $49.95 per cabin their innovation, dubbed Faster to the Fun, allows passengers to book early boarding and cabin access and guarantees express delivery of luggage, not to mention first choice of dinner seating and priority tenders for shore excursions. Also available is priority access to the guest services desk and a choice of early or late disembarkation at the end of a cruise.
Diamond members (200 cruise days or more) and Platinum guests (75-plus days) in the line’s Very Important Fun Person Club receive the same benefits at no extra charge.
The system is being tried out on two ships, Imagination and Liberty, and will be rolled out across the rest of the 24-strong fleet if it proves successful.

By | 2012-08-11T12:45:52+00:00 11 August 2012|Cruise News|0 Comments

About the Author:

John Honeywell is a travel writer specialising in cruise ships and cruise travel. Winner of CLIA UK's Contribution to Cruise award 2017.

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