Carnival's Do-it-yourself debarkation...no Tampa

[Jason]

Do-it-yourself debarkation stalls at port

Most Carnival Cruise Lines passengers who don't use porters get to exit early - except when their trip ends in Tampa's port.

By STEVE HUETTEL, Times Staff Writer

TAMPA - Carnival Cruise Lines passengers who carry their own bags typically are allowed to get off the ship and be on their way home ahead of the masses who use porters.

The procedure, called self-assist debarkation, helps ease congestion as 2,000 or more passengers try to clear Customs inspections and rush to their cars, taxis or buses to the airport.

But the system isn't working at Tampa's port, Carnival says, because local U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials are shorthanded and lack overtime money to process early birds the way the agency does at other ports.

Carnival offers the self-assist option on only one of its two Tampa-based ships. Even then, the cruise line limits the number of people who use it because of instances when Customs officers have been pulled away for other duty at the last minute, said Jennifer de la Cruz, a Carnival spokeswoman.

"We don't want to promote self-assist and then renege on it," she said. "The system is not ready in Tampa to handle thousands of people."

The local Customs bureau isn't short of staff or money to support the program, said Norma Morfa, a Customs spokeswoman in Miami. The agency is talking with Carnival and making "some internal adjustments," she said.

"We have every intention and interest in making this work," Morfa said. "We believe it's beneficial for everyone."

Carnival successfully uses the procedure at eight home ports, including Miami, Port Canaveral and Jacksonville, said de la Cruz.

At the end of their cruise, most passengers put luggage outside their cabins, and porters put it into big metal cages that are moved into the cruise terminal.

But it usually takes two hours for government inspectors to clear the ship and check documents of non-U.S. citizens before crew members can call passengers off in groups, said de la Cruz.

People who carry their own bags can get a head start through Customs with the self-assist program.

As many as 50 percent of passengers on cruises of five days or less, and up to 40 percent on longer trips choose the option, de la Cruz said.

"It has a huge impact on passenger flow," she said. "It makes more room in the terminal for (other) guests to find their bags. It helps in the parking lot. People love it. If they're willing to carry their bags, they can get up and go."

Heading into other home ports, Carnival makes frequent announcements encouraging passengers to take advantage of self-assist debarkation. But aboard the Sensation, which makes four- and five-day cruises from Tampa, the only mention is inside informational pamphlets in passenger cabins, de la Cruz said.