Private Charter: Yacht Specifics
EMBARKATION
Standard embarkation time is between 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM (see below for US ports).
As the amenities of passenger terminals vary greatly and some are not comfortable places to wait, we recommend that you do not have guests arrive at the yacht’s berth before 2:00 PM.
When making your airline flight arrangements, be sure to allow at least three hours between your scheduled flight arrival and the sailing time. Please allow 3-4 hours before your departure flight as well.
Make sure you are at the correct pier before dismissing your transportation.
To check-in onboard requires guest’s passport, Voyage Ticket Contract and a credit card for our electronic embarkation procedures.
Any visa requirement for the ports/ countries visited during the voyage is the responsibility of each guest, not SeaDream.
Part of the check-in is to have your photo taken for the personalized boarding pass / key card. The guest’s data and photo will be shown on the key card, as well as the yacht info and voyage info. We can speed up the check-in process if you make sure that we receive all your guests' headshots latest 2 weeks prior to your sailing date. We will then prepare the key cards for your guests in advance and have them ready for you upon embarkation.
Crew will be available pier side to assist guests up the gangway. They will assist to carry the guest’s hand luggage up the gangway to where the Captain and the Hotel Manager are waiting to greet them, and then inform the guest that he/she will place their hand luggage in their stateroom.
Having been greeted by the Captain and the Hotel Manager, the guest will enter the port side entrance of the Main Salon. Inside the Main Salon the guest will receive a flute of champagne at the entrance.
The guests are shown to the Embarkation Party in the Main Salon, offering champagne, canapés and live music.
Open-faced sandwiches and canapés will also be available from the buffet. Please click here for the Embarkation Buffet on European voyages and here for Caribbean voyages.
When guests wish to go to their stateroom, they are escorted by their stewardess who will explain its features. Stewardesses will be lined up in the Lobby ready to escort the guests.
Our piano player will play live music in the Main Salon during embarkation.
Updated: April 2023
EMBARKATION IN ALL US PORTS
Latest embarkation time is 2 hours before departure in order to process guests' data through US Coast Guard Notice of Departure. This data is submitted in a frame between 90 to 60 minutes before scheduled departure time. No embarkation or any updates are legally allowed after Notice of Departure is submitted.
In case of occasional late arrival, guests will have to embark in following port or vessel departure time will be adjusted accordingly in order to submit new Notice of Departure with the rules listed above.
MULTIPLE EMBARKATIONS
In some situations, charters have elected to divide the charter period to allow for multiple embarkations (creating two or more mini voyages). This shall create additional costs relative to breaking the 7-day cruise into separate cruises. These costs may vary from port to port but include such items as:
Customs and immigration on the changeover date
Baggage handling for the second group
Passenger tax for embarking/disembarking
Shipboard overtime for baggage handling, etc
Embarkation champagne in staterooms plus boarding buffet
Stateroom amenities
Monogrammed Pajamas
Consumption of food - complimentary bar and wine is always higher on shorter cruises. The trend is that these costs start very high and decline towards the end of the cruise.
Documentation
Considering the aforementioned costs, Contractor shall be charged an additional $125 per guest, non-commissionable, for each additional embarkation/disembarkation during the charter period.