Our first cruise in 10 years. The kids are excited; we are excited, this is going to be epic.
We arrived in Miami the night before the ship’s scheduled departure from port. I highly recommend always doing this to lessen the stress on you, especially if you are traveling with a group or young kids.
We wanted to enjoy a relaxing evening at the hotel, get a good night’s sleep, wake up to a big breakfast, and then head to the Port of Miami to board. Our scheduled boarding time was noon.
Cruise day has arrived, once everyone woke up and made their way down to the breakfast. At that moment is when we saw the news about the tragic accident that happened while we slept.
Plastered all over the tv’s was news of the boating accident that had closed the ports. Meaning no boat could enter or exist the port. Not just cruise ships, but all ships. When the accident happened, not all cruise ships had made it into port. Many cruise ships were stuck sitting in the ocean waiting for the approval to enter.
As the details of the accident continue to become available, we realize we have no clue what our day will look like. MSC became texting passengers updates. Mostly asking passengers to not come to the port. Encouraging passengers to grab lunch or shop until further notice.
The coast guard opened the port and, with little thought, the cruise lines announced boarding would start at 6 pm. Intending to leave port around 9 pm that night in order to keep to the schedule as much as possible.
The problem no one saw coming was, customs had not cleared the ships that made it to port in the early hours before the wreck. Nor the ships that were stuck in outside the port. When the cruise ships arrive throughout the night, this allows customs time to clear the ship and check paperwork. On this day, all the ships arrived at the same time.
To add to that problem, the ships have not been unloaded nor restocked. Again, when the ship arrives in the middle of the night, the staff can start unloading luggage as soon as the ship docks. Then start restocking all the items what are needed for the next trip.
As much as the cruise lines have unloading and loading down to a science and it is a remarkable sight to see. This process still takes time.
This day was a mix of unfortunate events and poor decision making, resulting in a port full of mad people.
We tried to make the best of the situation once we arrived at port. The line was long, and it was humid. Having thousands of people packed into a tight area, in the heat, with no food or water, and no bathrooms makes for a dangerous situation.
We saw the police on multiple occasions. Several news channels aired the story, but the cruise lines were nowhere to be found.
We played UNO, until we could make play anymore. We worked cross-word puzzles. Some people even napped. We got some drinks out of the vending machines before they were emptied. And as moms, we finished the snacks that we always carry.
We finally made it on board around 1130 pm that night. We were excited and hungry to be on board. We headed straight to the restaurants for food and drinks. So did everyone else.
This trip started off rough, but overall it was a decent trip. I think we need to cruise MSC again to give this cruise line another chance, but I am not in a hurry to try soon.
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