Embarkation Made Easy: Pre-Cruise Checklist & First Day Onboard Strategies

Ready to board your first cruise? In this episode of All Things Travel, hosts Ryan and Julie guide you through Cruising 102—everything you need to know from booking to embarkation and beyond. Whether you're sailing with Royal Caribbean, Disney Cruise Line, or another major cruise line, this comprehensive guide will help you navigate the entire pre-cruise and onboard experience with confidence.

Pre-Cruise Planning Essentials: Learn the critical timeline for cruise preparation, including when to book pre-cruise hotels, secure shore excursions in destinations like Skagway and Juneau, and confirm dining reservations. Discover why arriving a day early at ports like Port Canaveral is essential and how to manage final payments, travel protection, and online check-in procedures three months before sailing.

Embarkation Day Mastery: Get insider tips on what embarkation really means and how to board your ship smoothly. From printing luggage tags to tipping porters, avoiding crowded buffets, and touring the kids club, you'll learn strategies to start your cruise vacation stress-free. Find out when your stateroom will be ready and what to do while waiting for luggage to arrive.

Onboard Experience Tips: Maximize your cruise vacation by exploring signature dining options beyond the main dining room, experiencing popular activities during off-peak times, and finding the perfect balance between FOMO (fear of missing out) and JOMO (joy of missing out). Learn about formal nights, dress codes, and when to disembark early at private islands for the best beach chairs and quieter pools.

Important Reminders: Verify your passport expiration dates (must be valid six months beyond return), notify your bank about international travel, understand prohibited items lists, and pack cruise-specific essentials like magnetic hooks and lanyards. Don't forget to download your cruise line app for schedules, favorites, and alerts.

Whether you're planning an Alaskan cruise, Caribbean getaway, or European voyage, this episode covers Royal Caribbean, Disney Cruise Line, and general cruising advice. Perfect for first-time cruisers and families looking to optimize their cruise vacation experience.

Tune in next week for Cruising 103, where Ryan and Julie cover disembarkation procedures and final cruise tips!

Transcript

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 0:00

Hello, and welcome to All Things Travel. Last week we talked all about cruising 1 0 1, which was focusing on choosing your dates, choosing your ship, and choosing your itinerary. And today we're gonna continue with cruising 1 0 2. Talking about embarkation, do you even know what that means what to do during the cruise?

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 0:21

Listen in with travel advisors, Ryan and Julie. I'm your travel professor teaching you everything you need to know to have a magical vacation. And she's a Disney loving Maryland mom of three and a specialist in family travel. And together we are the co-owners of Wonder and Beyond Travel, whether we're discussing incredible destinations, top vacation tips, or sharing personal stories, it's always all things travel. All right, Julie. So last week's episode, got us excited to choose a cruise. How's this week gonna help us get even further down the road?

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 0:58

All right, so today we're gonna talk about embarkation, which is a fancy word for boarding your ship and the things you need to think about leading up to embarkation. And then just a couple notes about what to expect on board and what we think you should do on board.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 1:15

Okay, so I've booked my crews. Let's say I am six months out, eight months out. What's next?

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 1:24

The next thing after you book your cruise is to start trying to secure your rooms for your pre or post cruise stay. we always say come in at least a day before,

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 1:34

Yes.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 1:34

wanna add a day after, depending on your destination or flights, You also wanna start thinking about booking your shore excursions and any onboard activities. This can vary based on the cruise line, about when these activities are available to book. So that's something we will guide you through.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 1:52

Yeah.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 1:53

wanna be confirming your dining times. every cruise line has their own. Variation on dining times, but usually there's an early dining, a late dining, and sometimes a my time like show up when you wanna show up dining.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 2:10

Yep.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 2:10

we wanna make sure that's confirmed well in advance.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 2:14

Alright, so I've done all that. I know that I'm going on the train ride in Skagway. I know I'm gonna do whale watching in Juneau. I've got my specialty dining set up. What's kind of the next milestone?

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 2:26

your final payment and purchasing travel protection final payments usually. Three-ish months out. Again, depending on the exact cruises, but that's the typical and a round final payment is when we wanna double, triple check. We've added your travel protection. Next up about a month or two in advance, we wanna confirm any transfers you need from the airport to the port, and then also that additional step of getting to your pre cruise hotel. You're also gonna be getting ready to do your online check-in, which will include uploading pictures of your passports or birth certificates or license pending what boarding documents you're using for your cruise. You also usually give your flight information. pre cruise hotel information may be you're also going to upload a photo of each guest that is not the same as what's on your passport. Driver's license. and then at online check-in, you will also receive your port arrival time, which is exactly what it says. It is the time that you can arrive at the port to board the ship. The last thing I like to think about here is confirming if I want a wifi package or a photo package for the cruise. And those are things you can also usually add on board if you haven't quite decided yet.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 3:43

Yeah, and oftentimes your app or the website with planning your crews will offer different promotions or deals with that kind of stuff. So keeping an eye on that to see what best fits you. Then we're really close. We're just a couple weeks away from the cruise. Julie, what should I be considering here?

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 4:02

All right. You wanna contact your bank and your credit cards, let them know you're traveling so that you don't get any. push back if you try to charge something where your bank denies it

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 4:11

Especially because most cruises, you're gonna be having some international component that could be an issue.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 4:17

Exactly, I remember one time we were in The Bahamas and I tried to use my Discover card and they did not take Discover so. all countries accept all credit cards and know that in advance. you also wanna check your passport again and again, and make sure it expires more than six months after the date that you've returned, if that is what you plan to use to board the ship. make sure you've secured all the documents you need. Your birth certificate, your license, whatever you're using to get on that ship, make sure you know where it is. I also like to recommend making copies of those items and leaving them at home with someone that you trust. You can also start packing at this point, because sometimes when you're going on a cruise, you're packing things a little differently than what you're doing for a regular hotel or resort stay. You're thinking about things like a magnetic cruise hook or a lanyard, some additional items that are helpful to have on your cruise ship, maybe you need to order some of those and you also need to check that prohibitive or limited items list When I think limited items, I think of how many bottles of wine could you bring on or packages of water, something like that, that you might wanna consider, or a prohibited items list that has. A lot of items you might not think about.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 5:32

Yeah.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 5:32

we get a lot of questions about, the power blocks or the charging blocks. I get a lot of questions about hairdryers and hair accessory items, stuff like that that you need to know you can't bring certain fans on. All that kind of stuff is a good idea to start looking at it now out. Alright, so I've taken your advice as my travel advisor, and I know I need to get to, let's say, port Canaveral the day before to get on my Royal Caribbean cruise. The day before, what's happening on that day? you are getting ready to fly into your destination you are double, triple checking that you have your passport and all your boarding documents. I cannot stress how important this is to double, triple check because Ryan, so often we see among colleagues that they have clients who have forgotten boarding documents, and there's really nothing you can do. You're not getting on the ship.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 6:26

Or they've realized their passport is going to expire, at a time that's not gonna allow them to get out of the country. I mean, this stuff really does happen.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 6:37

Yes, all the time. The next thing is you wanna make sure that you've printed your luggage tags, make sure you have them with you in your documents. you land and get to your hotel, that could be a good time to attach them to your luggage to get ready to board the ship. The next day, the luggage tags, tell the porters where to bring your luggage, what state room you're in, and what floor you're on. I like to print my set sail pass or whatever the cruise line is calling it. They're all a little different. That's the thing they scan at security to allow you to board the ship and go to the ATM to get any tips you might need for porters, bartenders room service, anything like that.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 7:16

Yeah. Remember you are gonna be paying gratuities. as part of your cruise, most likely. But the people that pick up your bags at the cruise port and get them on the ship, aren't tipped by the cruise line. So you want to, be generous with that. and also your drivers to the port and those types of people. Okay. I'm excited. I've woken up that morning at my hotel in Cocoa Beach. I'm ready to get on at Port Canaveral. What's going on on Embarkation Day? First of all, what the heck is Embarkation Day?

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 7:45

Embarkation day means the day that you're boarding your ship, getting on your ship and your ship is sailing away. you're, you know, you're embarking on your cruise.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 7:54

Oh,

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 7:56

Oh,

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 7:57

it.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 7:57

I'm really glad I could enlighten you with that rain. All right, so you are going to arrive to the port at your scheduled time, and sometimes this, if you're taking the cruise line transportation, that time could be different than if you are getting yourself to the port. You wanna give your luggage to the porters except for your carry-ons, and then give them that tip that you brought. I always recommend when you get to the port to check out the crew schedule in the app. Most cruise lines release the schedule in advance. Sometimes it's a week, sometimes it's two days. I just think this is a fun time to start looking at that.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 8:32

Yeah, I remember sitting in my hotel in Seattle, the morning of my Alaskan cruise, and all of a sudden the app had a bunch of different things that weren't there the night before. So, you know, we sat at breakfast and kind of made our to-do list. Now a question here, Julie, do I need to follow the port time schedule? it says I can arrive between 11 and 1130, do I have to do 11, 11 30 or do I have some wiggle room?

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 8:58

you can come later.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 9:00

Okay.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 9:01

You can't come earlier

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 9:02

I would say you could probably come a little earlier. I don't think they're as stringent as they used to be. Depending on the cruise line.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 9:08

your time is, because when you think about that 10 to 10:30 AM boarding time, that's usually concierge

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 9:14

Yeah.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 9:14

I think that portion, they're a little more strict with because those people have paid for that

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 9:19

Yes. I agree with that. I'm just saying let's say my port time is noon, can I get in at 1130? The answer is most of the time, yes. Just knowing they may have you wait depending on how busy it is.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 9:32

That's a good point. as you're at the port, you're gonna follow the directions, which means following all the other people through security, onto boarding. All through that process, you're gonna have your boarding documents in your hands. Once you get on board, we recommend going to a less crowded dining venue, and per the ship or cruise line, we will advise you what that. Dining venue may be, it could be a quick service on the Disney cruise line ships. It could be the Solarium Bistro on Royal Caribbean, but a lot of guests will go straight to the buffet and we are going to tell you to go against the crowd.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 10:06

Agreed.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 10:07

I also like if I have my kids with me to go tour the kids club. I also like to familiarize myself with the various dining locations on board where they might be and other important locations that will matter to you for your specific experience. Maybe it's the adult only areas you wanna check out, see what's there. You wanna check out the different pools, you wanna check out the sports deck, whatever you're interested in. Go ahead and check it out and familiarize yourself with that ship. if you wanna go to the pool but you didn't board in your bathing suits, now's the time to go change and check out the pool deck. People are boarding throughout the day, Everyone is always eating first, so the

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 10:45

Yes.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 10:46

not be super crowded when you first. Board rooms are typically ready between one and 3:00 PM so once they note, they allow everyone to go to their rooms. You're gonna look around for your luggage. They're typically right outside your door, and if not, they're in the hallway and then you're gonna start getting ready for dinner.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 11:03

And don't freak out. If your luggage is not there, it will arrive, but. Just because the room's open does not mean, that your luggage is ready. And oftentimes if you have a, drink package or something like that, you'll need to get your Cpass card or your room key to activate that. So you do need to pop up to your room. the first day. They're a little more lenient about that, but that is something I've had to do on other ships.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 11:31

Yes, agreed.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 11:33

So we're through embarkation. Our luggage has arrived. we've been hanging out in the ship. We did a dip in the pool. you know, that first night is really first dinner and maybe a show, maybe some drinks. then we're ready for the rest of our cruise. We've gotten through that first day, so I want to hear all about your advice for that, Julie. But first, where in the world is all things travel. and it doesn't seem like it has anything to do with a cruise.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 12:00

This is a really fun one. I'm gonna talk a little about Scotland What's super fun about this is these clients wanna travel in March of 2026, so we're trying to make it happen this year. It might get pushed to next year, but we'll see. fun things that we are thinking about for this trip are going to Edinburg Castle, visiting the Royal Mile, which is, they're basically in the same area. The wife's must do is seeing the highland cows and specifically touching the

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 12:33

What, what is it like high, like highland cows?

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 12:38

so

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 12:38

I feel like at Christmas time, the Christmas decorations exploded with highland cows. I didn't know this was a thing.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 12:45

they're so cute. Ryan, you are clearly not in the loop.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 12:49

Okay.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 12:50

Some other things they wanna go see is cla Karens and the,

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 12:53

I.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 12:53

Colored in is like that, famous battlefield over there. The Isle of sky and the

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 12:58

For all you Outlander fans,

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 13:00

Yes, exactly. they're going on a Loch Nest cruise.'cause you know, why not go see that monster Then they're gonna end their trip staying at a castle in Edinburgh. I really love including something like that at the end. it gives you just one more thing to look forward to, to end your trip after you've done all this really fun stuff.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 13:20

I love that. I've been to the British Isles, but I haven't been to Scotland, and this really excites me. Well, we love where our clients are headed. We love celebrating that with them. It inspires curiosity when it comes to travel, and we can't wait to hear about their trip either in the planning stage or when they return. And if you work with Julie or myself, who knows, maybe your trip will be featured next. Alright, so I've gotten through that first night. I'm enjoying myself on my cruises, Julie. what can I expect during the cruise moving forward?

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 13:54

Okay, so as you go through your cruise. I like to go through that app and favorite things that I am interested in. What that does is then it adds it to your calendar, which it's not like you're signing up or reserving a spot, but it reminds you, and sometimes the app will also send you an alert like, Hey, remember trivia, you want to go to that today, and it's starting in 10 minutes. So I like to do that so that way I can kind of keep an idea on the things I wanna do.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 14:21

Now that being said, I do the same thing. sometimes there's, multiple things at 3:00 PM and then I decide then, but I do want to say if there are things you have to sign up for, if there are tickets for a show, if there is a special class that you want to take or something like that, make sure you sign up for that as early as possible. That's not always something you can sign up the day of.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 14:43

Agreed. This is more just favoring like, this trivia looks really fun, I'd also recommend that you explore different dining options on your cruise. consider upgrading to a signature dining. Remember that you don't have to do the main dining room or the main restaurants every single night. Same with breakfast. Explore different options for dinner and breakfast, try the buffet at dinner, things like that. Try room service. Get that full experience with all the various dining options. I am also gonna say to experience those popular activities at off times. So if you're having a port day or you're out early in the morning, that is the time to go and try the water slides or, the rock climbing walls, things like that, that get a little crowded later in the day. Find a day that you're not gonna be super busy in the morning and plan to do that And don't feel like you need to do everything. Select the things that you wanna do. Just because everyone else is going to the Aqua show doesn't mean that's something that you're gonna like, or you're gonna be interested in. my husband and I talked about this a lot on our last cruise there's fomo, the fear of missing out, right? But there's also jomo, which is the joy of missing out. And that is like, everyone's doing this, I feel like I should do it. but I kind of just wanna go chill somewhere. And the joy that you're feeling from doing the thing that you actually want to do,

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 16:04

I

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 16:04

right?

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 16:04

absolutely love that.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 16:06

Yeah. Yeah. I definitely think a cruise is a great time to try new activities throughout your time there. But I also like to build in downtime, or I get overdone and I am the prime example of the fomo, and he is the prime example of the jomo.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 16:23

knowing both of you, I see that. Yeah. I, I like this idea of, a cruise is a good time to try things, you know, go to the different activities. Maybe if you've never done a trivia, or your kids haven't done it before, and maybe it's an all ages trivia. go to a tasting class or, try something different because why not? You're on a cruise. You've paid for all of this. This is available to you. now's the time to do it.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 16:49

I love that. Yeah, I think that's super important and I think that's one of the best things about cruising. I will recommend, this is a question I get all the time. What do we wear? Even if there is a formal night or a white night or a toga night, does not mean you need to do those things. They will probably take place on your cruise, but don't feel like you need to bring a fancy, formal gown, to eat dinner.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 17:10

I think some people take it too far. A buffet is okay to be wearing flip flops and shorts and a t-shirt, the main dining room for me, and definitely signature dining is not the time to do that.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 17:25

Yeah, agreed. I agree for sure. Um, I. other thing I really wanna consider during your cruise is if you're having a port day to make sure that you're disembarking early, especially at the private islands, the earlier you can get off that ship, the better experience you're gonna have. You're gonna be able to find a spot on the beach that's quieter. You're gonna get the chairs you want, the pool location you want, And then making sure you know that if you need to bring any towels off the ship, you do that. I always like to pack a bag, to store all that in. It's just best if you're getting off early in the day. If you're at another port stop, like, Aruba or the Dominican Republic and you have an excursion booked, obviously that will vary what time you're getting off the ship. Anything else you can think of, Ryan, that you wanna tell our listeners are gonna be doing during the cruise?

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 18:15

I think what I really like was your, balance of the joy of missing out and the fear of missing out, because I think a cruise is one of those vacations where you can go, go, go and be exhausted, or it's one of those vacations where you can. Be too chill and not pay attention to what's going on, and then afterwards go, well, I didn't know about that. so I think really trying to find that balance. also like on our last episode, that's why you don't do the shortest possible cruises because you're not gonna have time to kind of get into that rhythm.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 18:47

Yes. exactly.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 18:49

on our third episode of this series, we're gonna wrap things up and talk about Disembarkation and what that is like. there's some specific things to keep in mind there. And we're gonna wrap up our conversation with some general tips when it comes to cruising. So check that out next week. The world is full of wonder and your next adventure is waiting. At Wonder and Beyond Travel, we work with you to create a one of a kind journey, taking the stress off your plate so you can focus on the joy of exploring and the memories that will stay with you forever. If you're ready to start planning or you just wanna dream a little bigger, head on over to Wonder and beyond travel.com. We would love to help you get started. We look forward to talking to you next week on All Things Travel, when we wrap up our crews by getting off the ship And we'll also share some of our favorite tips.

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 19:49

Hello and welcome to All Things Travel. Oh my gosh. Pause. I did not write an introduction.

ryan_2_01-19-2026_145111 19:54

The improv edition

j_2_01-19-2026_145111 19:56

So close.