'Liberty' leaves Miami for FLL

[jleq]

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/04/16/1581925/miami-losing-cruise-ship-to-port.html

[mjsshipboy]

Replacing Navigator of the Seas on the short cruise circuit.

[yknot13]

When does this take place in 2011?

[molly361]

When does this take place in 2011?

 

The Liberty will be in Fort Lauderdale November 2011

[spammie]

Wow, that stinks. We love the Miami area and cruising from there. Cruising out of Ft. Lauderdale was absolutely terrible and I swore I would never leave from there again. Guess I might have to reconsider.

[tmoore4075]

Wow, that stinks. We love the Miami area and cruising from there. Cruising out of Ft. Lauderdale was absolutely terrible and I swore I would never leave from there again. Guess I might have to reconsider.

What was wrong with Ft Lauderale for you? I've gone out of there twice with no problems at all.

[spammie]

What was wrong with Ft Lauderale for you? I've gone out of there twice with no problems at all.

 

When we arrived at the port there was no one offering any help to tell us where to go. The day we were leaving over 52,000 people left from there, very crowded and congested. Very sterile/unattractive terminal. We had to wait in line for an hour and 15 minutes to get a cab to the airport. Luckily it wasn't raining or we would have been standing and waiting in the rain. Maybe if you leave on a day when Oasis isn't leaving it's a different experience.

[Sunkissed Mommy]

I much prefer Fort Lauderdale/ Port Everglades over the Miami port. Port Everglades is in an area that has decent hotels and is safe at night. I don't think I would enjoy spending the night before a cruise stuck in a hotel room because it isn't safe to go outside!

 

Then again I don't have to worry about hotels because I can drive to either port, and Port Everglades is much less expensive to park (another perk)!

[krisko]

I find Port Everglades to be much preferable over Miami. The Port is extremely close to FLL airport...a 10 minute car away. And parking in Miami is stupid expensive, $20 or so per day. I'm not sure what the latest pricing is at Port Everglades but it can't be that much.

[bajathree]

Anther vote for Fll.... Like going out of Fll much better than MIA

[QTBabyNurse]

Wow, that stinks. We love the Miami area and cruising from there. Cruising out of Ft. Lauderdale was absolutely terrible and I swore I would never leave from there again. Guess I might have to reconsider.

 

I completely agree with you about Fort Lauderdale....I dread going to that port especially because we drive ourselves there. It's a pain to get around the parking lot to the parking garage, there are no directions telling you where to go....a pain to drop off your bags....no decent directions to know where to go once you park to check in....it's a dreadful experience. Not to mention the terminal inside is like sitting in a crammed bus station.....:(

[kkorman]

There is no easier port than FLL. Airport to Port 10 min. We pick FLL over MIA whenever possible.

[spammie]

I guess if we didn't have to wait in line for a taxi for 1 hour and 15 minutes we would have a different opinion.

[Ashland]

I guess if we didn't have to wait in line for a taxi for 1 hour and 15 minutes we would have a different opinion.

Just a hint at what we did when realizing ( Mar 20th sail ) the taxi line was so long..we had used luggage valet so we only had a small carryon with us so we walked toward the entrance of the port past the terminal where we boarded and just flagged down a taxi it took us about 5 min...We loved the convenience and price of FLL and will fly in there again even though the 8 nighter for 2011 LOS will only be sailing out of MIA ..sorry RCI has made the decision no more 8 nighter out of FLL...

[psupa]

I guess if we didn't have to wait in line for a taxi for 1 hour and 15 minutes we would have a different opinion.

 

We used to always cruise out of FLL and it was easy to grab a cab from the airport to the port and vice cersa and we never had a problem. I guess with more ships in port that has changed. It's been a few years since we flew for a cruise. With cruise ships now leaving from Bayonne, NJ or NY, we choose to cruise from there since it is only a 2-hour drive for us and no more putting up with the airlines and extra charges for luggage.

[alexw]

Wow, FLL will have the Independence, Liberty, Allure, and Oasis

 

plus the other cruise liners

 

FLL may become a nightmare if this isnt handled correctly

[SherriZ366]

When we arrived at the port there was no one offering any help to tell us where to go. The day we were leaving over 52,000 people left from there, very crowded and congested. Very sterile/unattractive terminal. We had to wait in line for an hour and 15 minutes to get a cab to the airport. Luckily it wasn't raining or we would have been standing and waiting in the rain. Maybe if you leave on a day when Oasis isn't leaving it's a different experience.

We would much rather sail out of Miami on a Voyager/Freedom class ship than out of Terminal 25 at Port Everglades. It is an old out of date terminal that cannot handle anything bigger than Enchantment -- I call it the stepchild terminal On Independence, we had priority disembarkation and had trouble finding our bags that were scattered in two rooms; then they had no porters and we had to to haul the bags out by ourselves. It was really chaotic compared to Miami when we sailed on Freedom in 2008. Maybe RCI will be using the new Terminal 18 when Oasis and Allure are not using it (non-weekend days) but if one of your legs is on a weekend, you will have to put up with Terminal 25. One of the reasons we booked an 8 day on Liberty for Feb. 2011 is that it is out of Miami.

[caribbeanboy]

Wow, FLL will have the Independence, Liberty, Allure, and Oasis

 

plus the other cruise liners

 

FLL may become a nightmare if this isnt handled correctly

 

Indy left last Sunday for her new homeport (for the time being). Jewel of the Seas will start sailing out of Port Everglades. Leaves Miami only with Majesty OTS.

[alexw]

Indy left last Sunday for her new homeport (for the time being). Jewel of the Seas will start sailing out of Port Everglades. Leaves Miami only with Majesty OTS.

 

I understand that but the Independence usually ports in FLL during the winter. Since Liberty is arriving winter 2011, it seems like a lot of ships will be in port including the independence, oasis, and allure.

[SherriZ366]

Indy left last Sunday for her new homeport (for the time being). Jewel of the Seas will start sailing out of Port Everglades. Leaves Miami only with Majesty OTS.

What itinerary is Jewel doing out of Port Everglades?

[uksimonusa]

I understand that but the Independence usually ports in FLL during the winter. Since Liberty is arriving winter 2011, it seems like a lot of ships will be in port including the independence, oasis, and allure.

 

Independence is to be homeported out of S'ton year round for the next 2 years.

[bajathree]

I completely agree with you about Fort Lauderdale....I dread going to that port especially because we drive ourselves there. It's a pain to get around the parking lot to the parking garage, there are no directions telling you where to go....a pain to drop off your bags....no decent directions to know where to go once you park to check in....it's a dreadful experience. Not to mention the terminal inside is like sitting in a crammed bus station.....:(

 

The new Terminal 18 they built for Oasis/Allure is absolutely fabulous....couldn't be easier...and I drive to the port.

http://www.porteverglades.net/our-community-role/port-development/cruise-terminal-18/

[alexw]

Independence is to be homeported out of S'ton year round for the next 2 years.

 

oh i didnt know that

 

thanks :cool:

[roe2ship]

What itinerary is Jewel doing out of Port Everglades?

Beginning Fall 2011, Jewel will be leaving out of Tampa doing 4/5 night Western Caribbean.....Cozumel and Costa Maya.

[caribbeanboy]

Beginning Fall 2011, Jewel will be leaving out of Tampa doing 4/5 night Western Caribbean.....Cozumel and Costa Maya.

 

I'm talking about fall 2010! out of P.E. 10 and 11 nights Caribbean/Panama Canal itineraries. Actually same itinerary as out of Miami.