Port of Miami Car Rental???

[7777777]

What's the best way to return a car rental at the port of Miami?

thanks,

[budcann]

We had a good experience several months ago with Budget. Email me directly for more. info

[CruiseSuse]

I just read that in FLL Port there are rental company shuttles coming frequently. Is this the same in Miami Port? I cannot seem to find answers on the rental companies websites.

And Budcann, may I contact you as well for some info?!

Thanks

[PaulMedik]

What's the best way to return a car rental at the port of Miami?

thanks,

 

 

 

I have the same question. I spoke with Budget Rental today and the closest return location is the Sheraton Hotel two miles from the port. :confused: He didn't mention whether there's a shuttle or not.

[TrentS]

There are definitely rental car shuttles that will take you to and from the Port of Miami, but you'll have to check with each company because the only one I vividly remember seeing is Alamo, but I know there are were others too, I just can't remember which ones.

[screenname2004]

I have the same question. I spoke with Budget Rental today and the closest return location is the Sheraton Hotel two miles from the port. :confused: He didn't mention whether there's a shuttle or not.

 

When we returned our Budget rental to Sheraton in Sep 2003, we have to get a cab to the port. The cab fare was under $10.

 

AFAIK, Hertz has shuttle at the pier. If no shuttle is available, they will reimburse your cab fare to their office. Please double check this before you book. I got this information for our Sep 2003 cruise and things may have changed.

[MELJMO]

AVOID Budget!! Their 800 number indicates that there is a courtesy van to the Sheraton. There was no longer one(we had a December, 2004 cruise). We waited for an hour at the port for the van to no avail albeit the 800 number insisted that there was one coming!! We took a cab to the Sheraton the driver insisted that he was going to take us to the airport because there are "no cars at that Sheraton". That was untrue. The cabie just wanted a few more bucks!! He charged us $15 for a two mile ride!! At any rate, there are numerous free shuttles, but not Budget. I remeber Hertz, Alamo, and Thrifty but there were many others(except Budget!!).I believe all of them take you to the airport(MIA) at no charge. I hope this helps

[John L.]

Last fall we did a pre cruise vacation in Orlando and then drove to Miami for the Voyager. I left the women and luggage at the ship and we headed back toward the airport to return our Alamo van. All the rental returns are about 2-3 miles from the port. There was one small sign on the freeway for returns and listed about 3 companies (not Alamo). I reluctantly turned off and still the signs were lacking. I was about to turn around when I finally saw an Alamo sign. Return was quick and we were immediately on a shuttle bus to the port. Probably took 45 minutes from port to return. What took some time was leaving the passengers off at the port. We were on the last ship in line. Most people had their luggage.

 

John L.

[TrentS]

Also keep in mind that the Sheraton referred to above as having the Budget office will be closing in June. It's being torn down and will be replaced with more high rise condos.

 

The shuttles will take you to the airport as there are no longer any cars kept at the port.

[Adowning]

Bad experience Friday March 4 when we arrived back from RCCL Majesty Feb 28 sailing. We had booked online a great price from Dollar (believe me, we researched this thoroughly) and were assured from both 800 number and local office that a shuttle is to the port every 10 to 15 minutes. We got off the ship (along with about 1,000 others) by 8:45 and stood in the cold rainy weather for almost an hour and NEVER saw a Dollar shuttle anywhere near us. Keep in mind there are two ship companies in front of ours so even if one had come through I'm sure it would have already been full. But not ONE Dollar shuttle, can you believe it in all that time.

 

On the other hand we saw ALAMO three busses (not vans) all at one time and saw several times them pulling through again. We saw Budget once and Thrifty more than once. I also saw Enterprise (they do not have one way rentals though so it wasn't a possibility for our return to West Palm).

 

We ended up paying a private van service $30 to get to the Dollar location (in a bad neighborhood and yes the signage there was difficult to follow if you are unexperienced). Dollar refunded us $17 off the $37 rate we were quoted so that did help ease our frustration a bit.

 

We saw dozens of cabs available and many Blue Shuttle Vans though I can't remember the name it was one I had found on the internet for $15 per person. We had a party of 10 so that was not an option for us, but would be good price for a couple.

 

It means ALOT to have someone sitting there waiting to take you on your way ahead of the crowd, I'd suggest paying a little more in any case to get off that dock asap.

 

I would not recommend Dollar unless you plan on taking a taxi to their location near the airport...that would be about $28 for one cab. Airport is fixed rate of $21 but all the rentals are outside of the airport, I don't think you'd be guaranteed that "airport rate". Good luck!

[BobbieSu]

Our experience with Alamo in Feb was the opposite of Adowning's. We waited for an hour on the pier while Hertz came by three times, Dollar and Thrifty came by once or twice and nary a sign from Alamo. Some of the crowd waiting finally took an airport shuttle. It was very distressing. Finally an Alamo shuttle showed up but there was no possible way to load everyone waiting. We had had much the same problem getting a shuttle to the seaport, about an hour wait and too many people for the number of shuttles coming. I know the shuttle is free, but I may use a cab next time, there was no wait for a cab.

 

Su

[Adowning]

I guess the main idea is that you cannot expect your shuttle (no matter which co) to show up in 10-15 minutes. I think an hour is ridiculous if they tout a much shorter wait! Next time I won't wait if they're not there right away and ready for us, I'll take a cab. I had suggested before the trip out husbands grab a cab to airport rentals and then come back to get us...that would have been alot less frustrating! Heck, we could have stayed on the ship and hung out and enjoyed a bit more before they made it back!

 

Learning more every trip... :)

[John L.]

On my Hawaiian cruise I used Alamo at each port and had great results except for 1 port where the shuttle never showed up. Finally I jumped on a Budget bus and intended to rent Budget if their rates were comparable. When we got to Budget, you can see all the other rentals in the vicinity. Budget, even with discounts was $10 or so higher than my Alamo reservation so I just walked down and took my Alamo car. Most often the shuttles don't check any documents and will take you to their place. At one Alamo place, when he was taking us back to the ship, he went down the street and picked up a passenger from Avis, who just missed their last shuttle. They seem to help each other out.

 

John L.

[pookie9922]

Okay, I'm a little confused by this whole car rental deal. So maybe someone can help me iron these details out.

The info: We're flying into FLL at 4:30pm on Friday and have decided to rent a car to get to Miami since the shuttle services and cabs seem to be much more expensive. We're staying at the Marriott Biscayne in downtown Miami and they charge $16 a night to park the car overnight. And lastly, we'd like to eat somewhere fun Friday night, possibly Joe's Stone Crab in South Beach (although the reviews I've been getting are making me rethink this too)

Questions:

1) If we drop the car off at the airport on Friday night, will be be able to catch a shuttle to the hotel that night?

2) Is there a shuttle from the hotel to the port or do we have to pay for a cab to get to the port? If we have to take a cab, how much will that cost?

3) If we keep the car until Saturday (so we can go to lunch or not worry about dropping it off after dinner) is there a shuttle from the airport to the ship port? Or do we have to take a cab to the port? Again, cost on the cab?

I know I'm sounding very cheap :eek: but I'll take what ever I can get.

[TrentS]

#1... Not a free rental car shuttle, but you can either take a taxi or use Super Shuttle.

 

#2... I don't remember if the Biscayne Bay Marriott has a shuttle, but I don't think so. Check with them to be sure though. It's a 5 minute cab ride from there to the port anyway, so it wouldn't be very expensive.

 

#3... SOME rental car companies will shuttle you from their MIA locations to the port, check with yours to see if they do or not. If not, a taxi from MIA to the Port of Miami is a flat rate of $21.

[Adowning]

I see a open niche in Miami. They are definitely missing the boat (pun intended) with these cruising passengers needing shuttles to/from port and hotels and airport. I think back a couple weeks to Nassau and the $1 Jitney that took you almost anywhere in the area. Home come Miami can't figure something like this out? It was quick and easy in Nassau, would like to see something that simple in Miami too.

 

We booked flights a day ahead from Detroit to West Palm to get the cheaper Spirit rate, and ended up spending another $300 on hotel, taxiis, limo and dinners. Sure, there are some big advantages to flying in the day ahead from snowy Northern US, but it cost alot extra overall to do so and we'll know to research it further next time. We totally enjoyed our day early experience, but could have cut alot of costs by doing differently. There's NOTHING wrong with trying to find a cheaper way to travel, we just learn more every time we go.

 

Good luck on finding the best deals Pookie! Just remember you can't take it with you BUT you can also save here and there to help pay off your bar bill on board too! lmao

[TrentS]

We booked flights a day ahead from Detroit to West Palm to get the cheaper Spirit rate, and ended up spending another $300 on hotel, taxiis, limo and dinners. Sure, there are some big advantages to flying in the day ahead from snowy Northern US, but it cost alot extra overall to do so and we'll know to research it further next time.

And worth every penny!!! NEVER fly in on the day of your cruise, there are just too many things that can go wrong. Perhaps try Spirit into FLL, that may save you a bit on transportation as it's 45 minutes closer than PBI, but if you're sailing from Miami you may spend whatever you save on the transportation costs getting from FLL to Miami. I'm all for saving some money, BUT there are times when it's well worth spending a little more to make your life EASIER. The cheapest way isn't always the best way!

[2boyzmom]

Hi everyone. We booked a cruise for next Feb. leaving from Miami ( new NCL Jewel) and am having second thoughts. Beleive it or not- here in NY there is only ONE AIRLINE that flys direct to Miami (AA) and they want $381.00 for a ticket!

So- if we leave from FLL it's cheaper and can leave from a small local airport. The problem is- how do we do all this hustle and bustle with 6 of us ( 2 boys age 4 and 6 by then). I don't mind doing the car rental thing going- but after the cruise- then what? How do we get back to FLL? Ugh- just sounds like a big PIA. We have never left from Miami and am getting turned off with hotel rates, and all the shuttle issues...

[TrentS]

Well, nothing fun is cheap... But if you're going to cruise from FL and you're flying from New York in February you could have nasty weather problems so you would definitely want to fly in at least a day early.

 

If you want to fly into FLL then the cheapest way to safely get to Miami would be to either rent a car, or take a van service. Tri-County Express is about the best there is and you can get a price online without entering any personal info... http://www.floridalimo.com/

 

Going back to FLL from the Port of Miami you can either arrange for a shuttle to pick you up, or take the cruise line's transportation. They have buses that go to both airports.

 

You can get a 3 or 4 star hotel in downtown Miami (all of which will be extremely close to the port) through Priceline. Many on here get places like the 3 star Hyatt downtown for the $50's per night.

 

I know it seems like a lot of work and hassle, but it's really not that bad and once you get on that brand new ship, and see how cold it is back in NY you'll realize it was all worthwhile! :)

[2boyzmom]

yes Trent- you are absolutely right and it will definitely be worth it. Can we do priceline now for February?

[TrentS]

I'm not sure if you can do Priceline that far out or not, but here's a website that has lots of great info about how all that works, info about the hotels, and what they've been going for... http://www.biddingfortravel.com/

[JerseyGirl23]

I have the same question. I spoke with Budget Rental today and the closest return location is the Sheraton Hotel two miles from the port. :confused: He didn't mention whether there's a shuttle or not.

 

We are doing a post-cruise land vacation throughout South Florida and the Florida Keys. We were able to get an excellent rate on a rental through Thrifty with a "port of Miami" pick-up location. I know they aren't located RIGHT IN the port but the confirmation page said to call them upon disembarkment and they will send over a free shuttle. :)

[flyin]

thanks. to me, for 6 persons, whether coming into Miami or Ft Lauderdale,

I need to shuttle from the airport to a hotel, from the hotel to the port,

and get a car from the port for an add-on vacation, then back to an

airport, not much diff between Miami and Ft. Lauderdale except for

a lower cost!

 

renting a car from ft. lauderdale to miami, dropping off the family

and returning the car at the airport seems to be the best option.

 

then catch a cab or shuttle back to port and meet up with everybody.

 

then I can rent a van from thrifty or ??? afterwards and return

it directly to ft. lauderdale. the van price from thrifty was expensive

but no difference in price whether I returned it to Miami or FLL.

 

so that's the plan for now. Anyone know where I can get a coupon

or discount from thrifty?

 

we're going out on Carnival Imagination May 23, so I'm booking

this all this week!

 

Flying into FLL 5/22, ship leaves port at 4PM, planning on getting

to the ship around 12:30-1PM (then return car and cab or shuttle back).

 

Is staying downtown best? or is there a better place to stay relative

to the port (remember I have 6 adults - 2 parents, 1 16 yo, and 3 20-somethings) ?

 

Priceline only does 2 person bookings if I recall, though bringing 4 into

the room has been no trouble in the past.

 

Ah well, AAA disounts may help all this....

[Adowning]

Just be prepared to wait at port for that free shuttle to arrive. We used Dollar and though our experience was bad (we waited an hour in the rain and they never came once in that time, gave up and used a $30 per family private van waiting there), I've also heard others have the same bad wait time at port. There are THOUSANDS of people getting off many ships right there and all of them seem to be waiting for one or two shuttle busses... Just keep this in mind when planning a rental. It would be MUCH faster if you would let your family stay on the ship while you take a taxi to car rental and come BACK with the van, getting all the luggage and people at one quick stop. Less hassle as well. Next time we will try that and save alot of time and complaining kids! Another option is private limo or van scheduled ahead even though it might cost a bit more might be worth the time and frustration savings.

 

AAA might be your best source to schedule something other than a rental van with free shuttle....they are very knowledgeable!

[flyin]

thanks for the advice.

 

I've got an Alamo van rented (with the "free" shuttle :) ), I may take

your advice on the taxi. That's how I'm planning on getting there,

via rented van, drop everyone off, drop off car at airport and taxi

back to port.

 

That said, our ship comes into port at 8 AM.

 

Do you (or anyone) know how long they can comfortably

stay on the ship (Carnival)? I mean, can they stay up on deck,

in a lounge or ???

 

Just curious if the ship has a certain time by when all folks must

be off?

 

Thanks for any tips!

 

-- Rob