How the checklist for cruising has changed!
Once it was a relatively simple procedure. Book a flight to and from the city where the cruise ship was moored, pack your bags, show up an hour before the flight left and bon voyage!
To say that today’s cruiser faces a more challenging “to and from” process is probably an understatement. As everyone who has been in the skies these last eight-plus years knows, showing up an hour before a flight can mean missing it. Then there is the ever-increasing “baggage” that comes with security checks that either do or do not prohibit taking certain items in carry-on luggage, a list that is not only inconsistent but ever-changing.
Even the checked baggage part is no longer so simple. You’re either lucky to find that rare airline not charging for checked bags, or you’re paying a wide variety of fees for first bag, second bag, etc. Nobody would dare check a third bag without first winning a lottery, yet when you arrive at the cruise ship three bags may be perfectly acceptable, which can be important if your cruise is two weeks or more.
Some cruise passengers are taking to the roads and driving to the embarkation point, if possible, but that comes with a price, too, because there is no free parking for two weeks!
There is no answer to the dilemma, of course. Like so much of life, it’s just learning to live with change.
That’s it, we’re done.