travelin_nat

Sometimes yes, sometimes not so much, at least from what I've seen. I think as in most cases, "it depends."

If you like the price, go for it. If price drops before final payment, you can always get your price lowered. You may have to surrender OBC, so do all the math.

Another vote for seeing a doctor to rule out any other issues such as inner ear infection, etc., especially with that many cruises under your belt.

Do you arrive on a weekend or weekday? Makes a big difference with traffic. I assume the issue of not renting a car is what to do with your luggage? Renting a car will sure eat up a lot of time, especially given Port Miami is already right in the middle of the city.

 

 

 

As for where to go, that all depends on what you really want to see. There are three specific areas that I would focus on as the best choices.

 

 

 

Miami Beach/South Beach: If you want to see the Miami from the movies you go here, walk down Ocean Drive and see the famous Art Deco buildings, but don't eat on Ocean Drive. Go somewhere like Yard Bird, Barceloneta, or even though a local chain, Havana 1957 is pretty good for Cuban food. Take a stroll down Lincoln Road.

 

 

 

Then there is little Havana. Get Cuban food here, walk around a little bit on SW-8th Street.

 

 

 

Then there is the Wynwood area. Lots of choices for places to eat, and its a trendy art area.

 

 

 

You could probably eat in Little Havana and make a drive to either of these places for a quick walk around too.

 

 

 

As for traffic. If you want to be at FLL by 3pm, make sure to leave by 2pm. Traffic mid-day is typically not terrible, its the morning and evening traffic that gets really bad.

Thanks! Yes - we want a car to store our luggage and drive to FLL. DH and I really want to check out South Beach, just like some people just HAVE to see the Alamo when they come here. I changed our rental reservation to Collins Ave so we don't waste time getting to and from MIA. So we'll get off the ship ASAP and get right to the rental agency. Will check out some of the places you recommend and make sure we're on the road by 2. We arrive Monday.

Thanks for the feedback - much appreciated!

Help! We are pulling in to Miami Monday morning and need to be in FLL by about 3pm for a flight at 5. I'm looking for some general direction on what we shouldn't miss, or what we should avoid given time constraints. We'll take a shuttle to MIA to pick up a car. We plan to have lunch with a former classmate somewhere in the Miami area (location is up to us based on where we want to go). Looking on Trip Advisors, there are so many options. A couple people have already cautioned me about traffic. So....given those time "constraints," any advice? Not interested in museums - more interested in general sightseeing and good food (seafood or food we can't get in TX - meaning no chains). Intrigued by South Beach, but is that where traffic is bad??

I also posted this in the Florida departures forum. Just hoping to get more responses here before the thread gets moved.

TIA

You don't have that much time. For a 3:00 flight you need to be at FLL for check-in/TSA NLT 1:30 and 1:00 would be better.

 

Instead of going to MIA to rent a car I would shuttle straight to FLL, check your bags (or pay to store them if they will not check them that early), and then head to Las Olas for shopping & dining -meet your friends there for lunch.

Flight is at 5 - was planning to get to the airport at 3. I really want to see some of Miami before we head to FLL....

Help! We are pulling in to Miami Monday morning and need to be in FLL by about 3pm for a flight. I'm looking for some general direction on what we shouldn't miss, or what we should avoid given time constraints. We'll take a shuttle to MIA to pick up the car. We plan to have lunch with a former classmate somewhere in the Miami area (location is up to us based on where we want to go). Looking on Trip Advisors, there are so many options. A couple people have already cautioned me about traffic. So....given those time "constraints," any advice? Not interested in museums - more interested in general sightseeing and good food (seafood or food we can't get in TX - meaning no chains). Intrigued by South Beach, but is that where traffic is bad??

TIA

We always cruise the first or second weekend of December. We are leaving on Indy on 12/8. We find the prices are really good the first or second week because families usually cruise for Thanksgiving or Christmas/New Years.

Do you book late to try to get the best price?

I have seen post on cc where people do this. I have noticed that if one books 18 to 24 months out that the last minute price rarely drops below that price. I have also priced last minute air fare and as a rule it's higher and could cancel out some/ all of the cruise savings.

 

Every booking can be different

Yeah - this is usually the case with past cruises we have taken, but not with this one. I do take total cost into account - meaning airfare. I'm just wondering if a different strategy makes sense for short trips on smaller ships after Thanksgiving but well before Christmas. Our ship/sailing is not the only one I've seen with plummeting prices for this time frame.

I've done this before, but in a different way. I've booked an OV stateroom so that at least we had a guaranteed space on the cruise. Then when prices went down, we moved up to a JS. It's also happened that prices didn't go down, so we took the cruise in the OV. We were fine with that.

I booked an OV on this cruise. I jumped the gun and paid for an upgrade to Balcony too soon, then converted to JS for "free." Lesson learned in patience. I just have to remind myself I paid what I was willing to spend and chalk it up to experience.

Incredible price, only $313 for a "W"! You don't often see suite prices near $100pp / per day. They must be having some of trouble with early December.

Yeah - that was my point. What I don't know is if that is typical for early December, or it's an anomaly. Have seen similar prices on similar sailings. So my thinking was, book the air early to get the best price, then wait to book the cruise to get that best price. You'd have to be ok with it backfiring on you, which I'm sure could happen - meaning prices go up, not down.

If we didn't prefer to sail in a JS, I'd do the same. I've seen many price drops on a particular December cruise, but not in suite categories.

Bob - you should check out the pricing for our cruise. It seems quite bizarre to me. JS is only $30 more than inside. OV and Balcony are both less than interior. This will be our first time in a JS, so I'm excited about that, although I paid more than the current price (I know, I know....you shouldn't keep looking).

We're taking a short cruise on Enchantment this weekend. I've been keeping an eye on pricing for our cruise and similar ones and the prices seem to keep going in one direction - down. I'm guessing these are harder to sell. I'm very tempted to do this very differently next time we want a similar cruise. I've thought about picking a cruise, buying airline tickets that can be changed with no penalty, and waiting for the last minute to buy the cruise tickets, taking advantage of the fire sale. Bad idea? Anyone else do this?

Enchantment of the Seas!

 

Yay!! We leave Friday! Woooohooooo!

I have to ask - how did you find the mattresses? We're bringing our air mattresses just in case. I'd rather have it and not need it than vice versa...

Thanks for all the great pics! We'll be on her in a week - so ready to get to go!

I always bring my own shampoo, conditioner and soap.

My husband and I are plus size - we are able to use the showers just fine. As mentioned, shaving the legs is a challenge. You can always turn off the water and open the door to get more room while you are shaving. Space is definitely not ideal, but not so bad we ever thought about not showering.

I requested a topper for our Dec. Oasis cruise and received an email from RCCL a few days later stating they would forward request to ship. I printed a copy to take with me in the event it is not provided as promised.

 

I had hip replacement surgery and spine surgery last year so really do need a topper.

If it's that important to you, I would seriously consider purchasing one of the air mattresses people have been purchasing. Leave it in the original packaging in case you don't need it, in which case you can return it when you get home. Better than potentially being miserable throughout your cruise.

Thanks,

 

we have an AFT cabin booked just wondered if there was un upgrade if it was worth it

We've never had one. Some people are so insistent they are the best, so we wanted to see for ourselves.

Received two upgrades, both within a week of the cruise. No notification, just noticed our stateroom had changed on the website.

I'm surprised this is how they did it. We have an aft balcony next summer - I would not want to be moved without being contacted first. :eek:

I know you can change your preference on the website, but I assume that change would apply to all cruises....

Then just add Royal Caribbean to your post :D:D "When I am getting ready for a RC cruise......."

Too late to change it now. :) Hoping it's fun while it lasts. Then again, doesn't really matter to me if they move it - may get more responses.

Are the deals different for BF vs CM, or are they the same?

I have a list of songs I love to listen to as I get close to a cruise - gets me in the cruising mood (as if I needed any help! :D) Anyone else?

Here's mine: (All Zac Brown Band)

Where the Boat Leaves From (http://*******/2gqB2vd)

Knee Deep (http://*******/2g3BjTg)

Toes (http://*******/2fD3nfJ)

Island Song (http://*******/2gnxGrX)

Castaway (http://*******/2fMexwn)

What's on your list?

Do it right...:rolleyes:

I knew you'd share!!