mrsgthatsme

We will be flying into FLL and cruising out of Port of Miami the next day. We plan to take an Uber/lyft from our hotel to the port, then again when we disembark and need to get from POM to FLL for our flight home. I know that a number of you have done this, could you tell me if it is easy and quick to get a pick up at POM to travel to FLL? I wondered if they usually came quickly and easily for that route or if there was a chance we would be waiting a while at POM for a pick up. Thanks!

We are doing the same thing for our upcoming cruise. Our plan is to spend the night before the cruise at a hotel in Ft. Lauderdale, then uber/lyft to the port in Miami in the morning. 

13 hours ago, MeganGC1983 said:

We didn’t go to Margaritaville, but we have walked past it to Junkanoo. Took about 15 minutes. Very safe. Exit the port area, take a right, go down to Senor Frogs, followed the road around to the left, take follow to the right and on down around and you are there. 

Thanks so much! That is very helpful!

For those who did the day pass to Margaritaville… did you feel perfectly safe walking from the cruise port to Margaritaville? Was it all well travelled, major, safe feeling roads? About how long did the walk take you? Would love to hear your overall impression of Margaritaville for a day pass option in Nassau and whether you enjoyed it as well. We will be traveling with a 12 and 15 year old. Thanks!

Has anyone taken this excursion? If so, is it worthwhile for families with teens, or is it mainly for little ones? 

Which of these do you prefer for a family with a 12 and 15 year old? Could you tell me how far of a walk it is to each of these from the cruise port? Is it a safe feeling walk? Thanks!

Thank you! 🙂

I am following this discussion closely for our upcoming trip! Could you tell me which Hyatt Place is the favorite in FLL that you are discussing? I see that there are three Hyatt Places in Ft. Lauderdale. Thanks!

Just now, davekathy said:

No biggie. Have you decided on a cruise? The edit window is only open for 20 minutes from hitting submit. 

No, still under discussion. :) I was really excited this morning, because I was finding cruises for such great prices, only to realize that in my excitement, I didn't even notice that they were 2021 or even 2022 sailings!!!! The equivalent sailings for this coming fall and winter were much more expensive! That's what I get for letting my excitement get the best of me! Such a bummer! I do appreciate all of the insight offered here though... it will be of benefit for future sailings, regardless of when that may be!

31 minutes ago, davekathy said:

The date the OP posted is incorrect. The sail date for that itinerary is 11 November 2021 RT from Fort Lauderdale. . 

Yes, sorry. I can't find a way to edit my original post to reflect that. 😞

23 minutes ago, davekathy said:

For a short cruise I'd pick this cruise. Are you sure about the  date, ship and itinerary? 

You’re right! I misread it.. it’s 2022! Thanks! There are similar options in 2020 and 2021 I believe.

38 minutes ago, clskinsfan said:

Without knowing what you enjoy it is hard to give advice. Are you a beach person? Foodie? Drinker? If you are a beach person I would do the Bahama/Dominican cruise. If a foodie/Drinker I would do one of the ones that include Key West. We personally would never take a cruise with only one port. But we are not sea day lovers either.

We are not foodies or drinkers. We truly just like relaxing in beautiful weather, beaches, my husband likes snorkeling and getting away! 🙂

19 minutes ago, rose6 said:

Why are you limiting yourselves to 4 or 5 day cruises?  You might want to consider a 7 day cruise on one of the S class ships.  The atmosphere on the longer cruise is different from the shorter cruises.  

We have two kids and a puppy, so that is about the max we feel comfortable asking my parents to babysit and puppy sit for this time around! 🙂

Hello! We are first time Celebrity cruisers considering a cruise for our 15th anniversary next fall. I know there are many people well versed in the ships and itineraries after sailing Celebrity many times. If anyone would be willing to share their opinions on which of the following itineraries they would choose, I would greatly appreciate it. We are in our mid 40s and priorities are nice ports we can enjoy without excursions preferably and a nice ship experience. Thank you! 

1) 5 day Bahamas/Dominican Republic on Infinity Feb 28, 2021

2) 4 day Bahamas/Key West on Infinity Dec 2, 2020

3) 4 day Cayman Islands on Millennium Nov. 11, 2020 ( while I love the idea of going to this port, I am concerned about it being the ONLY port and in hurricane season, thoughts?)

4) 4 day Key West/Bahamas on Infinity Jan 27, 2021

I heard that Infinity was scheduled for the revolution refurb in November of next year. Would it be safe to book a December cruise or is it likely there will still be a great deal of work going on at that point? Thanks!

Thanks to all for the feedback. We have never done self disembarkation... what time does it begin? Is there a lot of waiting in line, or can you just walk right off with your bags? I truly would prefer not to wait around with two kids, and it seems like we are always so exhausted and ready to get home after we disembark, so I don't think we will really want to add a day of sightseeing or activity in Florida to bide our time.... If we could self disembark and make the 11:50 without a lot of stress, that would be my first choice. 

I have been reading lots of responses on this board about the best flight times out of FLL when sailing from the Port of Miami. It seems like many people are saying shoot for after noon for departure time. Unfortunately, the schedule for the day we are leaving (a Monday in early May) isn't ideal. There is a flight leaving out of FLL at 11:50, then none until much later in the day (5 pm-ish) unless you want to pay triple the price. Would a 11:50 flight be pushing it to get to FLL from POM? What time would you think we would need to get off the ship to make this? I don't want to feel rushed and nervous on disembarkment day, but also know that sitting around an airport for hours isn't too much fun either. I would welcome your thoughts and recommendations. Thanks!

Thanks for the advice. As I have priced things further, I think cost overall once you figure in transportation and the difference in hotel costs will be very comparable between flying into Miami and flying into FLL, so it may come down to flight times since most people don't seem to think either option is terrible. Thanks for your input!

After receiving some great advice from those on this board, We had pretty much decided to fly in and out of Fort Lauderdale for our cruise out of Miami this spring. However, my parents are concerned about the potential of traffic and huge delays between these two locations. We will likely be traveling from a hotel in plantation to the port of Miami around 11 o’clock on a Thursday morning so hoping the traffic wouldn’t be terrible then, but then we will be traveling from the port of Miami to the Fort Lauderdale airport during rush hour on a Monday morning (probably around 8:30 or 9 AM) How big of a risk is this timewise? What impact does the traffic have on your total travel time between these two locations? What is the earliest you would book a return flight from Fort Lauderdale if you have to travel from the port of Miami to the Fort Lauderdale airport in rush hour traffic?

How big of an inconvenience would you say it is to fly into FLL if you are cruising out of Miami? Flights are looking like they will be less from our home airport to do it that way, but I'm wondering if we would regret doing that or if it would create enough additional headaches that it wouldn't be worth the savings. If you have done this, could you share your experiences? We will fly in the evening before our cruise, and were planning on staying at a hotel in the Brickell area in Miami, but I wasn't sure if it would make more sense to stay in Ft. Lauderdale if we do fly into FLL or if we should make the drive to Miami that night so we wouldn't have as much of a drive in the morning. I have read that some people take private transportation, group transportation, or UBER from Ft. Lauderdale to Miami... do you have a preference? We will have 5 adults, 2 kids, and luggage. :) Thank you!

How big of an inconvenience would you say it is to fly into FLL if you are cruising out of Miami? Flights are looking like they will be less from our home airport to do it that way, but I'm wondering if we would regret doing that or if it would create enough additional headaches that it wouldn't be worth the savings. If you have done this, could you share your experiences? We will fly in the evening before our cruise, and were planning on staying at a hotel in the Brickell area in Miami, but I wasn't sure if it would make more sense to stay in Ft. Lauderdale if we do fly into FLL or if we should make the drive to Miami that night so we wouldn't have as much of a drive in the morning. I have read that some people take private transportation, group transportation, or UBER from Ft. Lauderdale to Miami... do you have a preference? We will have 5 adults, 2 kids, and luggage. :) Thank you!

Thanks for the replies! Sounds like Blue Lagoon is out. I forgot to mention that my

9 year old wants to be a cruise ship designer. :) Do you think the Doubletree view would be a thrill for him? Also, as long as there’s one decent casual restaurant option nearby, we are good with that. We will not have much time for shopping, etc..,  Looks like pricing for Hampton Brickell and Doubletree are similar for that night if that makes any difference...

Hi! My family of 4 including two kids will be traveling with my parents and adult brother to take a cruise out of Miami this April. I have narrowed it down to several hotels I have read good things about and would love your thoughts on which you would choose.

1) Hampton Inn Brickell

2) Doubletree Biscayne Bay (I love the waterfront location of this hotel, but have read some bad reviews, mostly of people who were switched to the "condo" section rather than the hotel. Is this a widespread issue?)

3) Hampton Inn Blue Lagoon

Our top priorities would be a good pool for the kids, a safe neighborhood, and clean, nice rooms. We will likely not arrive until later afternoon/early evening the night before the cruise, so won't be doing a whole lot of sightseeing, etc... Thanks!

Thank you for the helpful information. So am I understanding correctly that there are two options for soda packages... either $8/day per person, which I assume is unlimited and includes tip? or the $50 "gift card" type options where you pay $25 in advance and then swipe it each time you get a soda? 

Thank you for the information! Do you know if I would qualify for the $25 for $50 of soda discount deal if I buy it as a gift?