Royal Caribbean - Rhapsody of the Seas

     The embarkation/debarkation process was very smooth at both ends.  The hardest part of the embarkation was dealing with the luggage while keeping track of your paperwork.  But the lines were short and the process was well managed!

    I would highly suggest opting for the express departure from the ship.  It means you have to carry (or roll) all your luggage yourself but it saves you time (and money) avoiding the congestion.  The ramps are not steep and did not present a problem.  We were docked at 7AM.  Express departure was only from 7:15 AM to 7:45 AM.  It was very quick.  We were back in our hotel room by 8AM!  I understand that the exit for Pier 91 gets very congested as the bulk of the passengers are leaving.  You have to be off the ship by 10AM anyway.  One factor I didn't consider is that our cruise ended on a federal holiday (Friday of 4the of July weekend).  Maybe the much lighter Friday morning traffic was the reason for our easy exit. Read more