Flying out of FLL, how early is too early?

[christmascarole]

I've been reading various threads and I'm totally confused. We will be cruising on the Caribbean Princess in April. According to the itinerary, we don't arrive in Fort Lauderdale until 7:00am the Saturday that we return. We would love to book a 9:30am flight home, or else our only other choice is to wait until 5pm that afternoon. Some people make it sound like we could make it and others say "no way". I called Princess today and of course they say it's too early of a flight. According to them, docking at 7am will not mean disembarking until 8-8:30am. This would probably be a bit to close for my taste.

 

What have others experienced with a 7am arrival time at dock? Is a 9:30am flight really pushing our luck??

[DShock]

Anything before 11:00 am I would consider too early. We have cruised out of Port Everglades many times and always try to get a noon or later flight time.

[riverboatgambler]

You must be willing to do walk off, but it is possible. Even with a one hour delay too 8am, you could still make it, but and longer than that and you would have to scramble and pay fees to change flights.

 

Good luck with whatever you choose.

[KruzPrincess]

I'm not sure what terminal you are in. Today I went to the FLL airport. I arrived just after 11AM and the TSA line was out to ticketing area. There were only 2 or 3 ships in port today. Sunday was 7, I believe, and lines were a little shorter at the same time. It's hard to predict. One day might be a breeze. Another day you might not go off the ship until 9AM. I wouldn't risk it.

[Pam in CA]

Anything before 11:00 am I would consider too early. We have cruised out of Port Everglades many times and always try to get a noon or later flight time.

I agree. It's possible to make an earlier flight and some will tell you, "No problem." However, there are many variables such as the number of ships in port and number of passengers, whether Customs & Immigration is efficient, what time disembarkation actually starts, whether FLL itself is busy (I've seen it where there was a 20-minute wait for check-in and almost an hour to get through Security), etc. I would never consider a flight before 11:00am. If you choose to book the earlier flight, make sure you have a Plan B.

[highheel girl]

I've been reading various threads and I'm totally confused. We will be cruising on the Caribbean Princess in April. According to the itinerary, we don't arrive in Fort Lauderdale until 7:00am the Saturday that we return. We would love to book a 9:30am flight home, or else our only other choice is to wait until 5pm that afternoon. Some people make it sound like we could make it and others say "no way". I called Princess today and of course they say it's too early of a flight. According to them, docking at 7am will not mean disembarking until 8-8:30am. This would probably be a bit to close for my taste.

 

What have others experienced with a 7am arrival time at dock? Is a 9:30am flight really pushing our luck??

 

We book a regular 9:30 flight out of FLL everytime we cruise.

If you sign up for the first self disembarkation group carrying off your luggage at 7:00.

Grab a cab.

We are at the airport by 7:30.

You beat the crowds, everyone does not disembark early.

We have a backup plan if the ship is delayed or there are issues with disembarkation.

[broberts]

I wouldn't risk it.

 

If Princess has two ships porting that day, (a rare occurrence), definitely no chance of making it. This happened to us once and people were still coming off at 11 am.

[Nebr.cruiser]

Usually you will make this time, if everything goes smoothly and you walk off with your luggage. We've made a 10:30 with ease.

 

But, if one thing of many goes wrong, then this gets sticky. I feel your pain about waiting until 5 PM, but you have to decide if you are willing to take the (fairly slight) chance of missing the plane.

[shastatroy]

There were 7 ships in port the day we came in!! We were in the TSA line through security for almost 2 hours. (American Airlines)

 

Airport personel said it was like that most weekends, I wouldn't book anything before 11:30 am at the earliest.

 

FYI: Coral and Caribbean Princess, Royal Caribbean Oasis, Celebrity, Holland America, Carnival, and Norwegian.

[highheel girl]

Only its not like that at 7:30 in the morning at the airport.

No matter how many ships are in port. ;)

[Yukonbear]

I had a friend if mine arrive last Saturday on the Emerald and there were 7 other ships in port. He walked off with his suitcase, took at taxi to FLL and was through TSA by 8am. So yes it can be done but not my thing. I book the cheapest air and do not want to deal with extra fees the day if my return. I am happy to relax as I leave the boat and wait for a more reasonable time to leave, or better yet wait a day to leave.

[Woobstr112G]

Others may have had no problems, but I personally would never book a flight before 3:00pm. Just don't want to chance anything. We also like direct flights so we take a Princess shuttle to Miami and usually have about two hours to relax in the American airlines lounge.....:):):)

 

Bobe

[johnmik1]

We disembarked Emerald on 1/16,in the 3rd walk off group,and were sitting in the airport at 7:55 for a 10:10 flight.

[crawford]

We disembarked Emerald on 1/16,in the 3rd walk off group,and were sitting in the airport at 7:55 for a 10:10 flight.

 

Walked off the CB on Saturday at 7:40 am. After about a 20 minute wait in customs, we waited at the cab stand for at least another 20 minutes. After checking our bags, we were through xray and at the gate at 9:10 for a 10:10 flight.

[avonthunder]

I am very confused by all of this. We are looking at a departure from Fort Lauderdale airport at 10:58 am we will be coming in on April 6, 2013 on the Caribbean Princess at Port Everglades. With getting off the ship early taking our own bags can we make the flight if we take a cab?

[David7621]

You will need to do express walk off. Usually around 7:30 you can get off the boat and get your own taxi. Approx at 8am you will be at the airport and going thru tickets and tsa be waiting for your plane by 9am. This is if they let you off on time. any longer getting off could cause massive congestion and take much longer to get thru everything.

[Tak8]

Probably is the most honest answer you will get from people. Under normal circumstances you can make it. You just never know when something might go wrong. I have been at the airport by 9 and I have arrived at the airport much later. I wouldn't want that in the back of my mind during the cruise. Everyone has to decide if it's worth it.

I realize this is a different port, but my last cruise was from San Juan. They had a mechanical problem with the gangway, so they couldn't get passengers off the ship. Then the power was out where they had our luggage stored. Porters were using flashlights to find luggage. All that put us behind over an hour.

[highheel girl]

I am very confused by all of this. We are looking at a departure from Fort Lauderdale airport at 10:58 am we will be coming in on April 6, 2013 on the Caribbean Princess at Port Everglades. With getting off the ship early taking our own bags can we make the flight if we take a cab?

 

 

No confusion necessary, take the advice above about self disembarkation and you will be fine.

Of course there is always a chance that you may miss the flight as there is always a chance to miss ANY flight.

We have done this 10 plus times, no issues. ;)

Have a backup plan.

[Darcy8]

Can you do EZ check in FLL?

[highheel girl]

Can you do EZ check in FLL?

 

Yes but not for the reasons mentioned in this thread. (early self disembarkation)

[broberts]

Ultimately the OP has to decide on just how much stress they want to introduce at the end of their vacation. Some people will have no problem hurrying off the ship. Others, like myself prefer a more leisurely process.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

9:30 is to tight ...

[Pam in CA]

Can you do EZ check in FLL?

Yes, but your flight must be scheduled no earlier than 11:30am at FLL or 2:00pm at MIA. Your final destination must be within the US and not all airlines participate.

[edpeeks]

We regularly book a 10:15 flight on Delta. Knock on wood, we have never had a problem. We have both walked off and been with the colored tags.

 

I don't know what we will do in March from the Emerald, but by the time we will have to decide we'll know what to do. (Actually, the decision starts with how much luggage we are carrying, even though after 45+ cruises, we don't vary that much). I think it is more of an decision guide by our attitude more than "can we make it?" since we always have made it.

 

Now we will not be so cavalier in August flying out of Miami. We will have a nice pad (I think our flight is 12:30). But with FLL so close to PE, it, in my opinion, is not a risky proposition.

[tothemall&beyond]

It depends on the time of year you're sailing and the day of the week you disembark.

If it's during a peak holiday period (including Presidents' weekend in Feb. or rolling spring breaks in March/April) and/or on a Saturday/ Sunday, I wouldn't book anything before 11am, unless you walk off at exactly 7:00 am with all your luggage in tow and get one of the first taxis.

The Oasis and Allure go in and out on weekends - they add 5000 people to the port traffic every Sat and Sun. If there are 5 or 6 other ships in port, which is very common on weekends, it will take a while to get out of the port. And FLL airport has particularly picky TSA procedures; lines can get pretty long at certain terminals. In late November this year, we were very lucky at the Delta terminal. It only took about 10 minutes.