would you take a 10:40 am flight out of fll or 7:15 pm, if there was no other choice

[beachchairs2]

this is aircanada...booked long ago so we got a good price....to cancel and rebook would cost us way more and may not be direct...

 

so that is why I said, my choices are 10:40 or 7:15...I am watching to see if they add another flight as I am sure others are in the same predicament....

[warmwinds]

It makes you wonder why ALL airlines do not offer a mid-day flight, at least on Saturday and Sunday, out of the Florida airports. How can they not know they have a captive audience with all the cruisers?

[4cats4me]

for me, it would depend on how many ships are disembarking that morning. If yours is the only ship, then if you do express walk-off you'd probably have a pretty good shot at it. We were the only ship, Equinox, last April, and due to sequestration and only two customs officials working we had anticipated long, long lines, so we did the express walk-off option. We were amongst the first wave to get off the ship and were lucky. We had no problem catching a cab and were at the airport by 7:55 a.m. This was on a Monday morning though, not a Sat or Sun, when lots of ships are disembarking.

[Terpnut]

We have cruised out of Port Everglades and have flown home out of FLL almost every April for the past 12 years, always a busy Saturday or Sunday, and we typically book an early return flight. Although debarkation last year off Silhouette was definitely slower than usual, we've never had a real issue with making a flight out of FLL that departs at 10 am or thereabouts. Once we even made a late morning flight home out of MIA--even with an accident on I-95, we still had no problem!

 

I definitely don't like wasting any of my time on that last day sitting around trying to kill time at the airport! But we are definitely less risk-averse about missing flights and to me, it's more stressful to waste hours and hours of my life at the airport! :p

Edited November 12, 2013 by Terpnut

[Terpnut]

It makes you wonder why ALL airlines do not offer a mid-day flight, at least on Saturday and Sunday, out of the Florida airports. How can they not know they have a captive audience with all the cruisers?

Airlines have to create schedules that work TWO ways and not just ONE way out of Florida! They can't conveniently place aircraft so that they all depart at the optimal time solely for cruise ship passengers in early afternoon! West coast airline passengers would have to depart at 4 am to arrive in Florida in early afternoon! Who's going to buy that ticket? Assuming a reasonable departure time, many west coast flights to Florida thus arrive in the late afternoon and early evening, and take off again 30-60 minutes later. Hence some of the late afternoon/early evening Florida departures. Many of the morning Florida departures are likely short-haul flights arriving from points closer on the east coast or in the south.

 

And similarly, the early flights departing Florida can't just all sit around waiting for cruise passengers! There are business folks and other travelers trying to leave early enough to get to their meetings or vacation destinations all across the U.S. on time. That's why the 8 am flights out of FLL exist but aren't feasible for cruise passengers.

Edited November 12, 2013 by Terpnut

[Marelaine]

My husband and I are new cruisers, one cruise on the Solstice, one cruise on the Equinox, both out of Port Everglades. The first time we had a noon flight out of FLL, the second we had a 10:40 flight. We made both flights with an hour to spare in the waiting area. We skipped breakfast on the ships. Not many food choices at FLL, but we found some breakfast sandwiches that were OK. Debarkation the second time was delayed about an hour. Once they started moving the passengers off the ship and through the terminal, things moved very quickly. My advice would be to make sure you can handle your luggage and carry on items easily, with passport and custom documents in hand, because the terminal ****s are relentless in rushing everyone. Self debark is probably not the best choice for anyone with mobility issues. Once you exit the terminal, grab one of the many cabs or small shuttles that will be waiting outside. Don't get on any of the large buses because they don't move until they're full.

 

Our travel agent assured us that we wouldn't have a problem and she was correct. After reading this board, though, I was in an absolute panic about missing our flight.

Edited November 12, 2013 by Marelaine
spelling

[Marelaine]

I have taken an early flight many times. We make sure boarding passes are printed, do self disembark and line up for it much earlier than they suggest, grab a taxi to the airport and as we only travel with carry-on luggage are able to go straight to the security lines which are short at this hour because most people are still having breakfast on the ship.

 

It is important to note though that we do not let it stress us and would deal with whatever had to be done if we missed the flight.

 

I certainly wouldn't take a 7pm flight as that would involve hanging around all day. I'd book and early one the next day and stay the night.

 

I agree with you. Waiting around the airport for hours would stress me out more than the self debark and mad rush through the terminal.

[foxjim1]

Can't wait to get home molly

[kelmac]

stay overnight --have a nice stress free day & make the earlier flight following day..

 

hanging around is a drag...hard to really make the day work out well although some do things with car rentals, luggage etc.

 

i'd be way too nervous to make the earlier flight same day-- maybe it works most of the time, but you can never know...one immig issue having nothing to do with you and that's the end of the plan!

 

we made great time off Oasis but we had Valet luggage express, and they just let us get off whenever we were ready....very lucky but it was better to hang around for a late afternoon flight than be stressed out all day... & luggage valet not always offered esp. for early flights..even they know it is tough !

 

I'm with you hcat,

 

We almost always spend the evening in FLL after a cruise. Less stress; better flights early the next morning; better flying weather; and a chance to extend out our vacation.

 

Every day of your vacation should be stress free and fun!

Kel:)

[beachchairs2]

I could not convince DH to go for the early flight...he agreed that if the poll says take the early he would go along...

 

as all of you can see, more say take the late flight than early...so my ploy to use the poll failed...but there are a few more days before the poll ends....

[CRUZBUDS]

We have an 11:20 out of FFL and were a bit concerned. I feel better with so many thinking 10:40 is doable.

 

We can handle our own bags if needed, is it safe to assume there are no stairs to negotiate at Port Everglades?

[jerseygirl3]

Is it possible for you to get a hotel that evening and take the 10:40 the next a.m.?

[beachchairs2]

oh of course it is possible...but really dont want to have to delay getting home after a 14 day cruise...we are already staying pre cruise....

 

just wish DH would see it my way and risk the 10:40

[Starry Eyes]

oh of course it is possible...but really dont want to have to delay getting home after a 14 day cruise...we are already staying pre cruise....

 

just wish DH would see it my way and risk the 10:40

 

I can understand that sentiment. When it comes to flying, my DH is a far bigger worrywart than me. So, to keep his stress level down, we book flights with bigger buffers than needed, nonstop if possible (or longer layovers if nonstops are not available), and arrive at the airport way, way before the flight (often we arrive before airlines allow check-ins for our flights). But I love him, so I indulge his pre-flight paranoia (as I expect him to indulge my all-too-numerous quirks).

 

Which airline? Is it one that will allow you to easily book a later flight, then go stand-by for the early one?

[beachchairs2]

yes mine is the same...it is with aircanada.....today I saw that the earlier flight now has limited seats...so unless I grab it soon, the choice will not longer be available....

[nbturfman]

You can the morning flight with no problem. I look for a 930 flight ideally as we are always off the ship in plenty of time. Yes there is chance disaster strikes and you need to move a flight but it's a small chane . I have not had a flight leaving past 10am in 5 years and have never had any problem at all.

[Fouremco]

oh of course it is possible...but really dont want to have to delay getting home after a 14 day cruise...we are already staying pre cruise....

 

just wish DH would see it my way and risk the 10:40

 

But if you do finally persuade him, are you prepared for the "I told you so!" should things not work out? :D

[beachchairs2]

my life will be a living hell....lol.....

[Terpnut]

oh of course it is possible...but really dont want to have to delay getting home after a 14 day cruise...we are already staying pre cruise....

 

just wish DH would see it my way and risk the 10:40

Here's the way I see it. You plan to self debark at 7 am. Even if the ship is late clearing (say 60 minutes late) and then assuming a massive 90 minute delay with CIS, you are still off the ship by no later than 9:30 am. It's less than 10 minutes to the airport, but let's assume it takes 10 minutes to find a cab (this has never taken us more than a minute or two), and let's say there is an accident at the port entrance causing an additional 10 minute delay (this has never happened to me). You still arrive at the airport before 10 am. So in my worst-case scenario, you easily make what everyone is calling your "early flight". As I've mentioned before, we've debarked out of Port Everglades and have easily made an 11 am flight out of Miami previously! I realize that CIS is much slower these days so I probably wouldn't fly out of MIA earlier than noon these days! But in any event, I just don't see a 10:40 am flight home as being particularly "risky". You have probably a 10% chance of missing your morning flight versus a 2% chance of missing your evening flight (because it could be cancelled or delayed for weather, mechanical problems, etc.). Given those odds, it seems a waste of time to spend the day at the airport or elsewhere to improve your chances of getting home by less than 10%. Just my 2 cents. :) Edited November 14, 2013 by Terpnut

[beachchairs2]

I agree with you completely...have copied and pasted your post and sent it to dh at work....

[wallie5446]

As we said earlier, FLL is the only airport where we would have no problem doing a 10:40. Ya'll are experienced at this, so it should be no-prob-lem-ooooo:)

[SusieV]

We had exactly those options for our January Silhouette trip and chose to gamble on the morning flight.

[phoenix_dream]

You can the morning flight with no problem. I look for a 930 flight ideally as we are always off the ship in plenty of time. Yes there is chance disaster strikes and you need to move a flight but it's a small chane . I have not had a flight leaving past 10am in 5 years and have never had any problem at all.

 

And yet of the dozen or so times I have sailed out of FLL on one we did not even start disembarkation until after 9:30. Good luck making a flight that leaves before you are even off the ship. It can happen. It does happen. One day it will happen to you as well. It's just a matter of time. Your business to take the risk but eventually your luck will run out.

[Terpnut]

And yet of the dozen or so times I have sailed out of FLL on one we did not even start disembarkation until after 9:30. Good luck making a flight that leaves before you are even off the ship. It can happen. It does happen. One day it will happen to you as well. It's just a matter of time. Your business to take the risk but eventually your luck will run out.

Even assuming one sailing in a dozen debarks too late to make a 10:40 am flight, I think it is still better to miss that one flight and deal with the hassle, than to waste the extra 9-10 hours at the airport for each of the other 11 or more trips. There is luck and risk involved with everything in life, but taking the late morning flight over an evening flight is a no-brainer "risk" to me. The way I look at it, in the dozen times I've sailed out of Port Everglades and flown out of either FLL or MIA with an early flight, even if I miss the next flight, I will already be well over a hundred hours of my life ahead! :) Edited November 15, 2013 by Terpnut

[Scrapnana]

Some people deal with stress differently than others. The possible glitches that could keep me from the early flight would be more stress than I would want.