Which hotel to stay at before cruising out of Port Canaveral?

[ken_nyc]

My daughter and her 2 friends are going on a cruise on the Freedom of the Seas July 21st but will get there the day before, which hotel should they stay to stay at before the cruise? They are in their 30's.

[Lionesss]

Our only experience the last 4 cruises out of that port are at the Raddison.

The reason we stay there is the price and we love the pool. McDonalds is across the street, and we take a cab to get to the port when we want to go. They offer a shuttle for a fee (don't know fee, we did not use it).

The resort is starting to show its age. It is clean, bathrooms ok, but, old. Service good.

Would we stay there again, I dunno, tradition, I guess, but willing to try something new.

This year we moved on to Ft. Lauderdale, wish us luck.

Later

[papaflamingo]

Lot's of choices. Radisson is very convenient to port. There is also Marriott, Marriott Courtyard, Hampton Inn, and others. Most provide shuttle to the port service. If they are driving then there is also park and cruise packages from many hotels. Check Tripadvisor for some recommendations. Depends if they want to be on the beach or not.

[aimathy]

We always stay at Cape Canaveral Residence Inn and we love it. It's very clean, spacious and the free breakfast is great. They have an outdoor pool that the kids love (we just used it in January!) and it's very close to the port. You can see the ships from the parking lot. They have a free shuttle, but we usually call a taxi so we don't have to wait and do the crowded/luggage packing process. I highly recommend it!

[Coochuck]

We have stayed at the Residence Inn a few times....very nice and close to the Port. A lot depends on where your coming in from...there are some better values out by Orlando Airport if your renting a car and dropping it off at the Port Canaveral Location.

[teajak]

We always stay at Cape Canaveral Residence Inn and we love it. It's very clean, spacious and the free breakfast is great. They have an outdoor pool that the kids love (we just used it in January!) and it's very close to the port. You can see the ships from the parking lot. They have a free shuttle, but we usually call a taxi so we don't have to wait and do the crowded/luggage packing process. I highly recommend it!

So do we,great pool,nicer than the Raddison,(newer),close to the port,great breakfast.We also use a taxi.:)

[ken_nyc]

Thank you all for your help!!

Good luck Sue!!

[murfturf]

We did Radisson because of CC recommendations, but I agree - it's getting quite old! The bathroom was just not up to par.

 

How would they get to the hotel? Driving (rental or personal car), shuttle or taxi? That makes a difference because those that offer park and ride are preferred by some people. We stay at the Four Points Sheraton because of being members of their points program. They are 5 miles from port, but also offer park and ride and shuttles. They have a great surf shop in the hotel as well as a shark tank that my kids love :) No one really ever suggests this hotel, I think because it's not right across the street - but we love it. It's near a Walgreens and Winn-Dixie too so we stock up on stuff before we cruise.

Edited January 26, 2013 by murfturf

[megr1125]

I liked the Sheraton Four Points..they have a paid shuttle to the pier...and it's walkable to the beach, and shopping/food....i really thought it was very nice...and their in house restaurant was pretty yummy too.

[1westover]

I have done alot of research on this subject. There are 13 of us.

The best I found was the Hampton Inn. On beach and does offer a fly--hotel-shuttle service. Will pick you up at airport, 1 night hotel stay with breakfast, shuttle you to port and shuttle you back to the airport after the cruise. You would need to check rates for your date. All the shuttles were included for 1 person, additional people would pay $45.00 each. Not bad!

[Corby114]

Country Inn and Suites in Cape Canaveral is a nice hotel. It's the closest to Port Canaveral, the employees are nice and its very clean. Hotel is usually full of cruise passengers either pre or post cruise. Park and stay package is also popular. The gravel lot is always full of vehicles of cruisers who park their vehicles there during there respective cruise.

[LPut714]

My daughter and her 2 friends are going on a cruise on the Freedom of the Seas July 21st but will get there the day before, which hotel should they stay to stay at before the cruise? They are in their 30's.

 

We are doing the LaQuinta on Hendry street in Cocoa Beach-it is located right by the pier. Current price I have for AAA members is $93.60 plus tax-includes breakfast. We don't need a shuttle from the hotel as we need to return our rental car to Budget and will use the shuttle they have. When I originally booked the room it was $132-I just kept watching the prices and then cancelled if I found it cheaper.

[DanJ]

Just stayed at Country Inn & Suites last Friday before our Dream cruise. Great hotel. As said, lots of cruisers stay there, so lots of talk to be had at the free breakfast buffet. Will definitely stay here again if we should choose to sail from Port Canaveral again.

 

We also had a rental from MCO that we returned to Budget. A couple things about this process, depending on how quickly you want to get to the ship. We got to Budget around 1030am and the the place was packed, both with people dropping off cars and going to the ships or people picking up cars after the cruise. To return a car, you do not need to stand in the line (as I found out after I stood in line for 15 minutes). Just go over to the counter (to the left as you walk in) and tell them you are returning. We waited for probably 30 minutes after the return to get on a shuttle. They do have 2 or 3 mini school bus types as well as a regular van. I think they could better utilize these when there are multiple ships (there were 3 last Saturday) by only taking one ship per load instead of 5 people to each ship and making multiple stops. There were taxi vans coming into the parking lot and people (especially those way back in the line) were gladly paying to get to the port instead of waiting for the Budget shuttle. We got to the ship at about 1145am.

[Lionesss]

Thank you all for your help!!

Good luck Sue!!

 

:)

 

thanks

[VillaHappy]

Is Radisson the all pink hotel? We stayed there last year before our Disney cruise. We loved the room service; it was very reasonably priced. The hotel is showing signs of age, but for one night, it was not bad.

 

When we sailed on the Freedom in 2010, we stayed at the Sheraton in Cocoa Beach. When we went to return our rental from Orlando to Avis, I was surprised that there was not a free shuttle to the cruise pier. It was almost as if they weren't prepared for anyone to ask for a ride to the pier. Hopefully things have changed since Feb 2010...

[kenholt]

My daughter and her 2 friends are going on a cruise on the Freedom of the Seas July 21st but will get there the day before, which hotel should they stay to stay at before the cruise? They are in their 30's.

 

Raddison!! that isthe best choice.

[Lionesss]

They had a ton of shuttles.

They use there parking lot as another money maker for them, they sell parking spots there for travelers and then shuttle them to the port.

Yes it is the Pink resort.

Across the street from Mc Donalds.

We paid $99 dollars for a Saturday night.

It did not include any meals.

The first time we stayed there it was a free shuttle to port, but that was in 2006...........times have changed.

Later

[aria48]

There's a map here shows you which hotels offer shuttles both to the port & to Orlando & how much as well as which offer long term parking & for how much.

[wrigley80]

If you want a wonderful hotel in Cocoa Beach then stay at the Comfort Inn on Atlantic Ave. We stayed there for 2 nights last month when we were in town for our cruise. It was an awesome hotel.....very good hot breakfast, warm pool, beautiful courtyard, clean rooms and it was very quiet. They have a shuttle to the cruise port.

 

I wouldn't think twice about staying here again

[suezyq50]

We use the Country Inn and Suites or the Residence Inn. Both have the same features as shuttle, breakfast buffet, etc.

[Parrotheadtoo]

 

There are two nice hotels right on Cocoa Beach.

 

Best Western Ocean Beach Hotel and Suites or

Days Inn Cocoa Beach Port Canaveral.

 

These two hotels are next to each other. There are both on the list that someone provided in the link earlier.

 

The hotels are next door to the Cocoa Beach pier which I think two thirty year olds would really enjoy. The pier has several bar/eateries with live music.

 

If the girls are flying into Orlando Airport, be aware that the hotel and the port are about 51 miles east of there.

 

The Freedom of the Seas is our favorite ship as well as the port itself.

 

Good luck, and let the posters here know what you finally decided on.

 

Dorothy

[ken_nyc]

Thank you all for your advise!! We stayed at the Radisson for our first 3 cruises and loved it! My daughter and her friends want to stay there when they go down for their cruise mostly because of price.

 

They will be probably using Executive VIP Limousine, I spoke to Michael and the price was good and he was very informative about different questions that I had.

[Cruzinbabe06]

Hi all, we normally sail out of Miami for our cruises because hubby loves the atmosphere. He's 51 and he says Miami makes him feel young.:eek:

 

The music, vibe and feel of the city puts him in vacation mode.

 

The day before our cruise we fly in and go straight to his favorite cigar place, near the airport in Miami, check into our hotel and have dinner in the evening with some seafood and latin music playing in an outdoor setting near the water.

 

He's pretty bummed out about sailing out of Port Canaveral. Poor guy!:rolleyes:

 

Is there any place in Cocoa Beach to buy Cigars, have a nice seafood dinner and sit near the water like we do in Miami?

 

Thanks in advance

Edited March 1, 2013 by Cruzinbabe06

[majarosh]

Hi everyone....We have stayed at the Radisson on Melbourne Beach..OK its 17 miles to PC HOWEVER...THIS IS THE PLACE..all suite hotel..staff is just wonderful//smack on the beach...say hi to Brian at the front desk...Heading out on our second cruise..we're driving over from Tampa...Enchantment PC maiden voyage on April 25...looking forward to it. WE WILL NOT stay at the Raddi at PC as we have had issues with their staff and the age of the bldgs... we booked Country Inn and suites...they have a cruise and park package..we have a TON of Radisson points, unfortunatly the cruise and drive not available on points..SO..we made reservations with our points and we will be calling 24 hours before we we get in to PC to arrange for a shuttle (the hotels suggestion)... I am sad that we no longer have shuttles lifting off...but happy we wont have to contend with an extra 3 hours of traffic around the Cape.....ANYONE ELSE OUT THERE GOING TO SAILING WITH US ??

[Eng23]

I'm another one that votes for the Residence Inn. I've stayed there twice and had great stays both times. And yes, if I cruise out of Port Canaveral again that is where I will stay. :)