Back to Back cruises - just booked and now need some advise...

[meg8182000]

My mom and I just booked our first back to back cruise on the Dream for next May 2019 (3 night followed by a 4 night). We got the same stateroom for both cruises.

We booked the 4 night while on our last cruise but after doing some math and such ended up booked the 3 night this past w/end. Very excited about having a bit more time on the ship!

Can anyone who has done a back to back recently tell me about your experience? Any advise to offer?

I'm also curious about our luggage from one cruise to the next. The agent we spoke to on Saturday mentioned that we'll have to take our luggage back off the ship following our 3 night cruise and go through the whole process of checking bags back in for our 4 night. I hadn't heard this before.

I appreciate any insights and advise.

Thanks in advance.

 

[jdb in AZ]

My mom and I just booked our first back to back cruise on the Dream for next May 2019 (3 night followed by a 4 night). We got the same stateroom for both cruises.

We booked the 4 night while on our last cruise but after doing some math and such ended up booked the 3 night this past w/end. Very excited about having a bit more time on the ship!

Can anyone who has done a back to back recently tell me about your experience? Any advise to offer?

I'm also curious about our luggage from one cruise to the next. The agent we spoke to on Saturday mentioned that we'll have to take our luggage back off the ship following our 3 night cruise and go through the whole process of checking bags back in for our 4 night. I hadn't heard this before.

I appreciate any insights and advise.

Thanks in advance.

Since you're booked in the same room for both cruises, there's no reason to pack up your luggage between cruises. Some agents are more experienced than others, meaning some newbies don't know what they're talking about.

 

[dcassetta]

My mom and I just booked our first back to back cruise on the Dream for next May 2019 (3 night followed by a 4 night). We got the same stateroom for both cruises.

We booked the 4 night while on our last cruise but after doing some math and such ended up booked the 3 night this past w/end. Very excited about having a bit more time on the ship!

Can anyone who has done a back to back recently tell me about your experience? Any advise to offer?

I'm also curious about our luggage from one cruise to the next. The agent we spoke to on Saturday mentioned that we'll have to take our luggage back off the ship following our 3 night cruise and go through the whole process of checking bags back in for our 4 night. I hadn't heard this before.

I appreciate any insights and advise.

Thanks in advance.

You can leave your luggage.

The night before you may get a form telling you to meet in a certain area with other BTB cruisers and debark together. If not, no worries. When you exit the customs area, just the let CM know you are BTB and they will direct you back upstairs.

Make sure and take documents, necessary medications, and a book/kindle/tablet with you as there may be some downtime before you can reboard.

Check-in will begin after the ship clears the first cruise. You may reboard before any new cruisers even enter the terminal, but it will definitely be before anyone from the new cruise.

We were asked to either return directly to our stateroom and stay there, or enjoy the public areas, but no to go back and forth across the barriers. Some people start a load of laundry before they debark.

You will most likely be invited to enjoy free specialty coffees and snacks in Cove cafe. We especially enjoy this as often some of the ship's officers stop by and chat.

 

[tigerchic89]

your turn around day will be kind of exciting but kind of wasted. you'll get the details on a letter in your room on teh 1st cruise, but you won't have to pack your luggage. You'll still have to get off of the ship with everyone on your 1st cruise. bring your passport, a book, deck of cards, ect. You'll clear customs, but then walk right back up the escalators into the empty terminal. You'll wait about an hour in the concierge lounge, they'll check you in, give you new KTTW cards, and then let you board. You'll get to go back to your room since your room steward doesn't need to turn it around. we did some laundry that day. you also can get coffee in cove cafe.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Also know, if you have any interest in exploring the local area that day, you are free to do that. We did a B2B in Europe with our disembarkation/embarkation day was in Copenhagen. We took that opportunity to take a tour in the local area that day and returned to the ship (and an empty terminal!) about an hour before embarkation ended. Just wanted to throw that out there in case you wanted to explore the PC/Cocoa Beach/Kennedy Space Center area that day.

 

[meg8182000]

Thank you everyone for your responses, it's a relief to hear that we don't have to pack the last night of our first cruise. That seems like part of the fun! Hoping to enjoy a nice relaxing dinner at Palo's that night!

Also the cool part for my mom is that she'll be a gold CC member on the 1st cruise and a platinum CC member on the 2nd cruise.

 

[GPaLarry]

Yes, you will get a letter on your bed the night before your switchover day giving you directions for the next day. Also, you will be treated the same on the second cruise as the first...gift in your stateroom, must attend safety drill, etc. On our tween day we got off the ship in Barcelona and spent (planned to do this in advance) part of the day seeing La Rambla before reboarding (you get VIP treatment and current boarding #). As mentioned above, take all your boarding info with you as you leave the first leg. When you come back on the ship, if you don't leave the dock, it is a good time to take photos of the ship empty, if you are a camera buff. And, as mentioned above, if you have the same stateroom, you leave all your clothes and belongings in place...no need to pack and unpack. Easy peasy!!

 

[Quellman]

Take a little something to do when you get off the boat. Deck of cards, books, etc. You may spend longer than you thought. You can also ask to sit in the concierge waiting area, but they may disallow that for a variety of reasons (too many B2B, special VIP). When you get on board go visit the coffee bar in the adult section. Everything should be free since no other food services will be open during the time until they allow new guests on board.

You can either go to your room, or not. But don't go back and forth as other guests will be staked out in the stair wells waiting to get to their rooms when they first open. So be sure if you go to your room, try and do it before other guests are foaming to get to their rooms. People may think that the rooms are open and start self removing the barricades.

 

[CamColt]

Thank you everyone for your responses, it's a relief to hear that we don't have to pack the last night of our first cruise. That seems like part of the fun! Hoping to enjoy a nice relaxing dinner at Palo's that night!

Also the cool part for my mom is that she'll be a gold CC member on the 1st cruise and a platinum CC member on the 2nd cruise.

Not having to rush around and pack up is one of my favorite parts of B2Bs!

If you are only doing Palo once, I would suggest waiting until the 2nd cruise when your Mom is platinum so it will be complimentary. Or you could do dinner as planned on the first cruise then get a complimentary brunch on the 2nd. We are platinum and doing B2Bs this summer. We have 1 Palo meal booked on each cruise.

As for the turnaround day, I often hear people say it is wasted but I don't feel that way. I look at it as a sea day, and a 2nd chance at embarkation day without having to rush around to unpack. My sea days usually consist of sitting by the pool, so I have no problem getting a chair and can relax there until 4:00 pm.

 

[meg8182000]

Not having to rush around and pack up is one of my favorite parts of B2Bs!

If you are only doing Palo once, I would suggest waiting until the 2nd cruise when your Mom is platinum so it will be complimentary. Or you could do dinner as planned on the first cruise then get a complimentary brunch on the 2nd. We are platinum and doing B2Bs this summer. We have 1 Palo meal booked on each cruise.

As for the turnaround day, I often hear people say it is wasted but I don't feel that way. I look at it as a sea day, and a 2nd chance at embarkation day without having to rush around to unpack. My sea days usually consist of sitting by the pool, so I have no problem getting a chair and can relax there until 4:00 pm.

Thanks for the advice.

After our last cruise, I am now officially Platinum (I'm one cruise ahead of my mom) so I figure dinner on the first cruise and brunch on the sea day on the 2nd cruise (I heard you can use it towards either dinner or brunch). I'm hoping to do Remy's on the 2nd cruise too. We're celebrating a special birthday so these cruises are a special treat for us!

 

[hanscarlet]

Bring a sweater to cover you while waiting in port, the AC is strong.... also if you click the Dream Trip report in my signature, I explain more about what we experienced in our Dream B2B. Have fun!

 

[Anchors Away 2016]

Bring a sweater to cover you while waiting in port, the AC is strong.... also if you click the Dream Trip report in my signature, I explain more about what we experienced in our Dream B2B. Have fun!

OOH! @hanscarlet has a new trip report up. I enjoyed the last one so much. Gotta go. Bye!

 

[hanscarlet]

OOH! @hanscarlet has a new trip report up. I enjoyed the last one so much. Gotta go. Bye!

Oh thank you !!