Carnival Cruise Line shares warning for certain ports

In most cases, cruise ships stop at their various ports of call for a few hours during the day before sailing onward. For example, a recent cruise I took on Carnival’s Mardi Gras stopped in Aruba from 1 p.m. to 11 p.m. on one of the dates, and in Curacao from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. the next day.

However, it isn’t unheard of for cruises to make overnight stops, especially when it comes to out-of-the-way places or popular tourist resort areas.

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When it comes to overnight stops, there are two general categories that govern the rules passengers need to follow when it comes to getting off and back on the ship. First, some overnight stops involve pulling up to a dock, and in these cases, you can essentially treat the ship as if you were staying at a hotel. If you want to come and go throughout the evening, you’re typically free to do so.

On the other hand, some overnight stops are tender ports, which means that the ship will drop anchor and smaller boats will ferry you to and from shore. And this is where it gets tricky.

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Why do some overnight ports have back-on-board times?

One of Carnival Cruise Line’s more popular overnight ports is Cabo San Lucas, a common destination for cruises departing from West Coast ports. However, one guest recently noticed their itinerary said they needed to be back on board by 6 p.m.

The guest’s question to Carnival brand ambassador John Heald said “I am going on my first cruise that docks at a port overnight (Cabo San Lucas) so I wanted to make sure I understood the rules. According to my itinerary, the back on board time for the first night is 18:00, do I really have to be back on board by then?”

The short answer is “no.” If you’re at a scheduled overnight stop, there’s no requirement that you need to re-board the ship on the first night. But there’s more to it.

For starters, the reason there is a back-on-board time is that Cabo San Lucas is a tender port, and the water shuttles don’t run all night long. As Heald replied “Remember you’re tendering, which means you’re using the water shuttle to get to the ship. So that’s the last time you need to be back on board according to the shuttle schedule.”

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Guests can stay ashore overnight

Heald went on to explain that guests can stay in Cabo San Lucas overnight. But if they do, they’ll be taking a risk.

One important thing to know is that water shuttles cannot operate in rough seas. So, if you tender ashore when you arrive in Cabo San Lucas, and conditions deteriorate overnight, there’s a chance you won’t be able to get back to the ship on the second day. In this case, you’d have to fly home at your own expense.

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If you want to, there’s nothing stopping you from say, booking a night at a resort in Cabo and staying the night. But it’s a smart idea to let the ship know that you won’t be back. As Heald said, “Now, you can stay in a hotel overnight if you wish to and all you need to do if you intend to do that is to let Guest Services know 24 hours before you (are) arriving to Cabo San Lucas.”

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The bottom line is that you don’t have to get back on the ship if it’s staying at a destination overnight, even if the water shuttles stop running at a certain point (which isn’t the case in every overnight port). But it’s usually not the best idea, unless you’re prepared to make other travel arrangements if you end up missing the ship.

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