NCL Itinerary to Port Canaveral/Orlando - What did you do?

[roe2ship]

I am considering a cruise on the Gem next year which has a stop in Port Canaveral/Orlando and might be interested in going to SeaWorld or Universal Studios. After checking out the shore excursion pricing, I’m not sure if it’s really worth it…..quite expensive for a family. If I decide on booking this cruise it will be during the summer, therefore, those parks are more packed with longer lines. Has anyone gone to any of the Florida theme parks on your own?? Any other suggestions as to what one can do at this port?

 

Thank you for your feedback.

[Hopes4]

I am considering a cruise on the Gem next year which has a stop in Port Canaveral/Orlando and might be interested in going to SeaWorld or Universal Studios. After checking out the shore excursion pricing, I’m not sure if it’s really worth it…..quite expensive for a family. If I decide on booking this cruise it will be during the summer, therefore, those parks are more packed with longer lines. Has anyone gone to any of the Florida theme parks on your own?? Any other suggestions as to what one can do at this port?

 

Thank you for your feedback.

 

I didn't think the cost vs time at the park was worth it, so I never did the parks. I did go to the Kennedy Space Center and enjoyed that very much.

 

Another option is to take the shuttle bus to Cocoa Beach.

[Shelli]

Another option is to take the shuttle bus to Cocoa Beach.

 

 

We did this... and personally, I considered it a waste of time. The beach was nothing to write home about-- our NJ beaches are much nicer!

[Kamloops50]

I didn't think the cost vs time at the park was worth it, so I never did the parks. I did go to the Kennedy Space Center and enjoyed that very much.

 

Another option is to take the shuttle bus to Cocoa Beach.

 

I would go to the Kennedy Space Center . I've been there twice and we

 

both enjoyed it . Planning on going again .

[jaja]

We also did the Kennedy Space Center...really like it...:)

[kylenyc]

We went to Universal Studios Islands of Adventure and yes it was pricey but lots of fun too. If you decide to go, just be aware that there are two Universal Studio parks. Most people go to Islands of Adventure which has Harry Potter and all the theme park rides. We had a very good time and even had time to go through Harry Potters snaking long lines. If it makes you feel any better, most of the $164 :eek: excursion price goes towards the park admission ticket that is regularly a whopping $123 for an adult one-day pass. The remaining goes toward the hour-ish long bus ride. So factor in the bus ride and you have even less time in the park. Knowing this I sprung for another $30/pp for the Express Pass in order to zip by regular lines (The Express Pass doesn't work with Potter).

 

Went to Epcot on different cruise. It was meh... so so but I was obligated to go :p

[sbt518]

When we did this itinerary on the Gem we stayed on the ship. So did a ton of other people so it wasn't as empty as we had hoped. But still a pleasant day by the pool.

[OnTheGoMom921]

We did the Universal Studios Island of Adventure on our own. We purchased the park tix from AAA for about $85 per person and we hired a private limo company. It works out cheaper than the excursion price if you have more than 4 people in your party. You can see the details on my Gem Review in my signature below. But I can tell you that was the best way to get the most time in the park. The Gem docked at noon and by 12:05 we had met the limo driver outside the gate. it's an hour to the park. He waits there and you call his cell phone and he picks you up right at the entrance to CityWalk. We got back to the ship with plenty of time leftover. The best part is you don't have to wait for the bus to fill up to leave. You come and go as you want! Car service was $300 and we got bumped up to the larger car and still paid the lower price.

 

Check out the car and park in my signature below. The company was local to PC and came highly recommended on these boards. Executive VIP.

 

Harry Potter was the only place my daughter wanted to be, as you can tell from the photos in our review!

 

Enjoy your trip!

~Michele:D

[hawaiilvr]

We rented a car from Budget - they picked us up at the ship and went to Sea World and had a great day!

[spiritualtraveller]

We took the Universal Studios tour last week on Gem. Very chaotic getting off ship and then to buses. Lost alot of precioius time in park. Think we got to Islands of Adventure at 1:30 so not too much time to go on rides. Actually, we got on 4 rides, with of course, Forbidden Journey- Harry Potter, being the longest line and the best ride ever. We were back on the bus at 7:15. Alot of money for the 3 of us, but we all felt it was worth it.

[Loujul]

We took the eco-cruise on the airboat and then was visited by members of a rescue group that had different kinds of swamp animals that we were able to learn a little about and actually got to hold them. We also had the opportunity to sample deep fried alligator. My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed this excursion. Nature's best!

[MikeysMom619]

We did the Disney excursion (Magic Kingdom) on the Gem a couple of years ago for my 30th Birthday. We knew going into it that it was going to be a jam packed day & that we weren't going to spend a leisurely day in the park by any means.

Getting off the ship, to the bus, etc. went fine but did take a bit of time. I spent the hour long bus ride staring at the sky, hoping it would stop raining, which of course it did not.

In the end, we got to spend 6-7 hours in the park. We had a great time, even in the rain.

We are huge Disney people & hadn't had the opportunity to go for quite some time, so for us, it was worth it. If you haven't been to any of the Orlando parks before, I could see being somewhat disappointed because you definitely won't be able to do everything.

We did have a discussion about using s car service or renting a car if we were to do this again. On the bus ride back, we got stuck in traffic from a large car accident & the ship ended up waiting a little bit for us to make it back. If we had been in our own car, that would never have happened & we would have been stuck. So def. something to consider if thinking about getting your own transportation.

 

We are doing this itinerary again, but on RCCL in Feb. This will be our first cruise since having our baby. We are planning on doing Disney again & taking our son for the first time (he will only be 1 so clearly this is more for us than for him). If it rains however, we will probably do Kennedy Space Center...

[Coastalbreezes]

We took an inexpensive ($6 R/T I think) shuttle bus to the nearby Cove Marketplace thinking it was going to be a unique place to shop. Turns out it was more like a small flea market.

 

Although we were disappointed in the marketplace, we did have a great lunch outdoors at Milliken's before heading back to the ship.

 

Tracy

[Susie51]

We went to Disney World and had a great day!

[dexddd]

I am considering a cruise on the Gem next year which has a stop in Port Canaveral/Orlando and might be interested in going to SeaWorld or Universal Studios. After checking out the shore excursion pricing, I’m not sure if it’s really worth it…..quite expensive for a family. If I decide on booking this cruise it will be during the summer, therefore, those parks are more packed with longer lines. Has anyone gone to any of the Florida theme parks on your own?? Any other suggestions as to what one can do at this port?

 

Thank you for your feedback.

 

What times are you in port? If I looked it up correctly, you are in from 6a-4p?

[roe2ship]

We rented a car from Budget - they picked us up at the ship and went to Sea World and had a great day!

I guess they offer shuttle service to and from the rental agency? Are they nearby? Do you know if there are any rental car agencies that you can walk to from the port?

What times are you in port? If I looked it up correctly, you are in from 6a-4p?

Yes those are the new port times....which I feel are much better if one wants to do any of the parks. All my land vacations to Disney/Universal/Seaworld were a little bit more manageable during the morning hours.

[dexddd]

The ones we used in the past are about a 5 minutes shuttle ride to the agency via the agency shuttle - free. I don't think any are walkable as the immediate area is all docks.

 

The only problem with rentals (at least Budget) is they open at 8am - maybe earlier for some of the others - you'd have to check.

 

If you go this route, you may want to drop your group off on the return at the ship and do the return and ride back to ship on shuttle by yourself.

 

The main problem with the NCL visits to PC is that the times are shorter then they used to be in port and either early arrival and early departure (like yours at 6a - 4p) or late like the one we have (noon - 9p) which tends to hinder going to parks or KSC.

 

Your times are probably doable for KSC as KSC opens at 9am IIRC. In that case you could get a rental, drive the roughly 15 minutes to KSC, go through security, and take the buses to the outer areas. We've done KSC a few times and the last time they had the Shuttle Experience which was pretty cool and little wait when we got there soon after park opened. There is also the IMAX with two choices and the exhibits.

 

You could do this and leave with time to get back to ship although you will have to make a choice what to see and do.

[hawaiilvr]

I guess they offer shuttle service to and from the rental agency? Are they nearby? Do you know if there are any rental car agencies that you can walk to from the port?

 

They had a shuttle that picked us up. We made our car rental reservation online and then called them to request a pick up. Now, that was in 2008 and our ship didn't dock until noon, leaving at 8:00 PM. When we took the car back, the rental agent met us there, even though the office was closed. There were several of us dropping cars off around 7:00 PM and he gave us all a ride back to the ship. He got a nice tip for coming back after hours. Give them a call and see what they have available or what they are willing to do for you.

 

There isn't anything close enough to walk to.

[Doughboy139]

When we were at the Port Carnaveral/Orlando port we took a tour, provided by NCL, to the Kennedy Space Center and it was one of the best tours we have taken. It is truly amazing and so much to see and learn. If you have a chance to do this tour - do it !!! You won't be disappointed.

[BaseballMomof4]

If you are a AAA member you can buy your tickets at a discount to any of the theme parks at a discount.

 

No, Cocoa Beach is not one of the better Florida beaches.

 

Space Center is really interesting.

[perkydebrajean]

We stayed on the ship. Slept in late, had breakfast in our room, got a spa treatment, took a nap, ate dinner at Teppanyaki, then went to the show on the ship. Nice relaxing day.

[cruisin07family]

If we do this route again, we will likely stay on the ship. First time we visited Kennedy Space Ctr and while many seem to enjoy it, I thought it was a snooze fest and my boys are vehemently opposed to doing anything even a little bit educational while on vacation. The second time we took the shuttle to Cocoa beach and played in the water for a bit then found this awesome segway rental place. Unfortunately, the owner closed shop and moved back to MA so that is no longer an option. My boys still list the segway tour as one of their best excursions ever, second only to jetskiing. Since you're on this route, you might want to look into segway tours in Nassau though kids may have to be 12 to ride/drive a segway.

[RYMOMA]

If we do this route again, we will likely stay on the ship. First time we visited Kennedy Space Ctr and while many seem to enjoy it, I thought it was a snooze fest and my boys are vehemently opposed to doing anything even a little bit educational while on vacation. The second time we took the shuttle to Cocoa beach and played in the water for a bit then found this awesome segway rental place. Unfortunately, the owner closed shop and moved back to MA so that is no longer an option. My boys still list the segway tour as one of their best excursions ever, second only to jetskiing. Since you're on this route, you might want to look into segway tours in Nassau though kids may have to be 12 to ride/drive a segway.

 

in nassau, we did the segway tour and beach experience...they are on trip advisor... you had to be 9 to ride and my turning 9 yo that day loved it!!!!

so did my hubs....going about 12 mph on those things through winding paths was FUN

[camz]

We did the airboat excursion through NCL and it was a lot of fun. Actually, I wasn't entirely keen on the idea when we first booked it and went along with it anyway. We really enjoyed the whole excursion and we saw lots of gators right up and personal! We would definately book that excusion again. We would have tried the Kennedy Space Center . However, when we were ported it was during the winter and they had limited hours. That being said, we were afraid we would not have enough time to see everything.

[dexddd]

We did the airboat excursion through NCL and it was a lot of fun. Actually, I wasn't entirely keen on the idea when we first booked it and went along with it anyway. We really enjoyed the whole excursion and we saw lots of gators right up and personal! We would definately book that excusion again. We would have tried the Kennedy Space Center . However, when we were ported it was during the winter and they had limited hours. That being said, we were afraid we would not have enough time to see everything.

 

Of the total excursion time, how much was in the airboat?