Sunday, October 9, 2022

Vacation, Vaccination, Vista-Nation- Debarkation

 Back in God's Country
Debarkation- Galveston
Saturday, July 9, 2022 


Morning
We woke up as the alarm went off (I hate alarms on vacations but sometimes they are needed) at 6:30AM. We got up and took showers and got ready for the day and were headed to breakfast by 7AM. Reminder- Still check in on the HUB app... AND you have to be on Carnival Wi-Fi to do so, even if back in range of other Wi-Fi or cell service. 

The service in the MDR was exceptionally fast this day BUT that is to be expected as it was turn around day and the Carnival workers have to work so very hard to get 4,500 guest OFF and then welcome 4,500+ guest back on board within just a few hours. 

Avocado Toast for me... Carnival REALLY knows how to do this well!


Pancakes for Chris! Only my dad can make them better than these! 

After breakfast we went back to our stateroom to finalize our small suitcase of our necessity items and relax in the cabin as most of the passengers were starting to get off. The Carnival Vista cleared customs around 7:45AM and started the debarkation process shortly after that. 

Debarkation Information 
Passengers can choose to carry their own luggage off the ship, or they can send their luggage the last night of the cruise and have a more relaxed morning getting off the ship. If you choose to do the "regular/ relaxed debarkation" you have to go to the Lido deck on the last day at NOON and get the ZONE TAGS- Zone 1-30, and that is how you will get off the ship on debarkation day. We snagged zone 16 at 12:45pm on the last day at sea. Get there earlier if you want a better zone number.  

The Carnival Vista uses MUSTER STATIONS for the Debarkation process instead of the traditional DECKS. This means that if you choose to do "Self-Debarkation" and take off ALL of your own luggage, you will be called by your muster station. We realized several years ago that the "self-debark" option is not as fast anymore as so many people are using this as a means to get off the ship. (It's like that secret from Disney World, you want to share it but then EVERYONE will do it. That is "self-debark" nowadays. Approximately 75% of the passengers use this option). This means that 3K+ people are walking around the ship with EVERYTHING they brought on board and often times MUCH MORE. It is a HOT mess. 

Kyndall Fire called "self Debark" zones for literally 2 hours before any other regular debarkation zones were called. We stayed in our cabin and called the kids around 8:30 but shortly after that, our stateroom steward asked us to leave the room and find somewhere else to hang out until we could get off the ship. We took all of our luggage (UP THE STAIRS since you cannot use the elevators) and then waited in the casino. It took about another hour before ANY of the regular ZONES were called. This did not bother us at all since we live just 80 miles from the terminal and were not in a real rush to get home. But keep this in mind if you are traveling far or have a flight to catch. 

It's time to leave this gorgeous balcony! Bummer... 

Our zone 16 finally got called right at 10AM and we began to move off the ship. However, there were still people from the "self debarkation" that were merging with US as we exited the ship. We were in the Galveston terminal on dry ground by 10:05AM. 


I LOVE this sign... But hate it at the same time, because it means our cruise is OVER. 

The customs process is a BREEZE now... LITERALLY. The US government has really stepped up their game and has tablets that do facial recognition for US entrance. That means no papers to fill out and literally just walk up to the tablet and SMILE... Then you're done! TIP- This is only a valid option if all guests in your party have PASSPORTS. If anyone is traveling with a birth certificate, they will need to complete the paperwork and meet with an agent. We didn't realize it at the time of boarding and check in but they created our facial recognition right then and there. It is REALLY COOL and easily one of the best changes since COVID. 

Those waiting in line with Birth Certificates to speak to an agent... 


Vs the line for the NEW facial recognition line. 
TIP- GET AND USE A PASSPORT! 

After we went through customs we walked straight to our luggage waiting for us in the terminal categorized by our zone number. As we suspected, there was not a lot of luggage... meaning most people did in fact do the "self debarkation". 

The walk to our car was HOT and humid, but that is to be expected! We were back in our car and loading up to go home by 10:30AM. But not too soon... We turned on the car and my dash said to air up a tire. I swear it is always something with this Buick. It is definitely keeping me on my toes these days! We were back at home and picking up our dog, Oxford by 12:15PM. 

This was SUCH A GREAT cruise and it feels so very good to be back! We have a 40th Birthday Cruise planned in September on the Carnival Breeze and we cannot wait! 

Thank you for following along and supporting us!

God is Good... ALL THE TIME!  

Click on a link to see our past cruising adventures:
Enchantment of the Seas- February 2020


 


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