We cruise out of Rome on 13 October 09 aboard the Grand Princess. The cruise is scheduled to leave at 6pm. Does anyone know how early one can embark? This is our first cruise

Embarkation for a sailing between 4:00 and 6:00 p.m. usually starts at 1:00 p.m. but I'm usually aboard between 11:00 and 11:30 a.m.

Hi Robyn, welcome to Cruise-Chat. The embarkation times should have been in your cruise package literature. It should also be on your itinerary. F-mattox is correct, they state you can begin boarding around 1. If they have debarked all their previous passengers, and have the ship ready, they will let you embark a little earlier. Hope you have a marvelous cruise!

Hey Robyn,

We took the Crown Princess out of Rome (Civitavvechia)on May 13, 2009 and we boarded the ship at 11:45 am. As long as there are no norovirus issues, PRincess will allow you to board early. The staterooms were also ready. Wow, what a bonus. We did not get our luggage though until 8 pm so we carried out bathing suits in our carry on. Oct 8, I do not believe that will be an issue for you unless you wish to use the hot tubs. Lunch is served in the buffet as soon as you walk on. Have a great trip. We did and were so impressed with Princess we are already booked on the Crown for a holiday cruise. Cheers.

Thank you pink845. We are on the Crown in late November. This is our first cruise and we are SOOOO excited.

Hi tkzv, welcome to Cruise-Chat. Congratulations on your up-coming cruise! Just remember, cruising is addictive I hope you enjoy Princess as much as we do, they're our favorite line, so far. If you'll use the bb code, your cruise ticker will work. Best wishes!