Whats the latest you would fly in on day of embarkation

[scottw3]

2nd cruise coming up at the end of the month and we are flying on day of embarkation. We arrive at FLL at 11:50am (it was 10:50am but there was a flight schedule change). Must be on ship by 3:30pm. Am I crazy? I did book through choice air so I'd be able to meet the boat in key west if the worst happens but missing 1 night on a 5 night isn't a great start to a cruise. We're on the earliest Delta flight leaving Memphis with a single stop in Atlanta (1 hr and 13 min layover). I was thinking about changing to a one-way Southwest flight out (arrives FLL 10:25am with 1 stop in Tampa) and keeping the Delta return but I've heard that if you miss one leg of your flight they will cancel the rest of it. Is that true?

So for those of you brave enough to fly on the day of departure... what is the latest you are comfortable with arriving at the airport/ship?

[tunaman2011]

2nd cruise coming up at the end of the month and we are flying on day of embarkation. We arrive at FLL at 11:50am (it was 10:50am but there was a flight schedule change). Must be on ship by 3:30pm. Am I crazy? I did book through choice air so I'd be able to meet the boat in key west if the worst happens but missing 1 night on a 5 night isn't a great start to a cruise. We're on the earliest Delta flight leaving Memphis with a single stop in Atlanta (1 hr and 13 min layover). I was thinking about changing to a one-way Southwest flight out (arrives FLL 10:25am with 1 stop in Tampa) and keeping the Delta return but I've heard that if you miss one leg of your flight they will cancel the rest of it. Is that true?

So for those of you brave enough to fly on the day of departure... what is the latest you are comfortable with arriving at the airport/ship?

 

 

Greetings

 

Will there be snow in ATL again? You are probably ok since you can be delayed by about 3 hours and still be there for check-in. If you decide on the Southwest flight, call Delta and cancel the outbound and then you will be able to keep the return. I don't think I'd bother for an hour closer arrival.

 

Good Sailing

Tom

 

PS You may want to check to see where your connecting ATL flight originates. If it comes from a fair weather city then you can breath a little easier.

Edited February 4, 2014 by tunaman2011

[dodger1964]

you might (probably could) switch to the last flight the night before on delta since you had schedule change (for free). (I checked random days and looks like pretty consistent leave around 5pm, get in before midnight.

 

I'm a "fly in the same day as departure" cruiser. Probably 90% of time we do that....never had a problem. That includes San Juan, Miami, FLL, and Barcelona.

 

My personal comfort level is "noon" for a departure like you mention.

 

We are flying in March into MIA for a Reflection departure that is a 11am arrival and a similar boarding time.

 

Good luck!

 

You wouldn't want to just not show up for the Delta flight...you can change the ticket to one-way, but you are right, they might/will(I would figure on WILL) cancel your return flight if you don't fly the outbound segment.

[waterbug123]

I did book through choice air so I'd be able to meet the boat in key west if the worst happens but missing 1 night on a 5 night isn't a great start to a cruise..... I was thinking about changing to a one-way Southwest flight out (arrives FLL 10:25am with 1 stop in Tampa) and keeping the Delta return but I've heard that if you miss one leg of your flight they will cancel the rest of it. Is that true?

 

1. You may or may not be allowed to board in Key West. If you board in Key West and disembark at Port Everglades, it is no longer considered a closed loop cruise, and would thus be in violation of the PVSA, which says you cannot embark in one US port and disembark in another. At the very least, there may be fines to pay. Would the cruise line handle that since you booked through Choice Air? Hard to say for sure; reports of Cruise Air's assistance in cases of irrops have been mixed.

 

If you decide on the Southwest flight, call Delta and cancel the outbound and then you will be able to keep the return.

Normally this would involve paying a $200/passenger change fee, as well as any difference in fare between the original round trip ticket and the new one way ticket (which may or may not be less expensive.) Since there was a schedule change those charges may be waived, provided the amount of the time change meets the minimum required. I believe that minimum is 60 minutes, although I'm not positive and it may be 90. Having said that, I've gotten Delta to waive such fees when the schedule change has been less than 60 minutes, but credit some of that to my frequent flyer status with them. Either way, it's worth a call. What you absolutely do not want to do though, is just not show up for the outbound and expect your return ticket to still be valid. In all likelihood it would be canceled, and you'd be stuck buying an expensive last minute one way fare home.

[Gonzo70]

You definitely would not be able to board in Key West as it would be illegal because of cabotage laws (PVSA). Also most travel insurance policies would not provide relief for such a narrow window of making the ship. While you will probably make the ship (you have room to absorb about a 2.5-3.0 hour delay), if you miss the ship you will miss the cruise. I personally would not fly in day of a cruise, though many do take this risk. That you have a connection makes your risk even larger since a delay one either of your two flights puts your cruise in jeopardy. It is true that if you miss the front leg of a round trip flight, the back leg is generally cancelled - so you would need to contact the airline if you do purchase a different flight and do not want your return flight cancelled and see if they can work with you. Best option IMHO would be for you to try and talk the airline into giving you a flight the day before your cruise for no extra charge since they changed your arrival time; they are not obligated to do this, but sometimes oblige - so it doesn't hurt to ask. Good luck.

[Gig103]

By choice, the night before. My most recent cruise I ended up on a redeye landing at 9am which worked out just fine. I charged my phone in the FLL airport for an hour, then got in a cab to the port, and was on board by noon.

 

But if I had planned on getting there day-of, the weather that delayed me might have meant I was flying myself to Cartagena! :eek:

[lambcom]

Nobody has mentioned the other risk - you arrive in Miami or Fort Lauderdale or wherever the ship leaves from and your luggage is in Houston or LA or Amsterdam.

 

Now you're in the right town with no ship and no luggage or on the ship with no luggage for the first day or two or in the case of a TA five days or more. A hotel room the night before embarkation is cheap insurance IMHO

 

George +

[Fouremco]

I'd rather do my gambling in the casino. Even if I lose, I get to enjoy a cruise!

[jkgourmet]

The LATEST I would fly in would be the day before debarkation. Period.

[Ma Bell]

The LATEST I would fly in would be the day before debarkation. Period.

 

You would really be late.

[Fouremco]

You would really be late.

:):):)

[MarkusToe]

2:50pm Arrival at SJU

Departure 8:30 pm :rolleyes:

Hope this will work .....

[scottw3]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I had no idea about the laws re: leaving and returning to different US ports. That makes this it much more stressful. If it were up to me I would 100% book a flight that arrives the night before. But... we have a 13 month old and this is the first vacation without him and so the wife is understandibly anxious about leaving him (its hard enough for 5 nights she says). I know, its only 12ish hours longer vacation but in the mind of an nervous mother it might as well be an extra week, :D.

I found out if I went with the southwest flight I would no longer have choice air coverage because they cannot use that airline and I'd have to book it myself. I think I'll stick with the day-of flight and write myself a presciption for some blood pressure meds.

[gdpups]

Just returned from our cruise and just sharing our experience that anything can happen. We had a return flight from Ft. Lauderdale through Dallas this last Sunday. Weather in Dallas was an issue that day so flights were cancelled, but that wasn't our issue. Our flight was finally cancelled after 4 hours due to mechanical issues, there were two. With all the other weather related issues that day American couldn't get us home until the following day, which was yesterday. We had to be transported to Miami for a flight there and arrived in an airport 1 hour away, but they got us close to home.

 

At least this was at the end of our cruise, but like I said anything can happen so we always plan to arrive a day early for a cruise.

[varoo]

Nobody has mentioned the other risk - you arrive in Miami or Fort Lauderdale or wherever the ship leaves from and your luggage is in Houston or LA or Amsterdam.

 

Thanks for the replies everyone. I had no idea about the laws re: leaving and returning to different US ports. That makes this it much more stressful. If it were up to me I would 100% book a flight that arrives the night before. But... we have a 13 month old and this is the first vacation without him and so the wife is understandibly anxious about leaving him (its hard enough for 5 nights she says). I know, its only 12ish hours longer vacation but in the mind of an nervous mother it might as well be an extra week, :D.

I found out if I went with the southwest flight I would no longer have choice air coverage because they cannot use that airline and I'd have to book it myself. I think I'll stick with the day-of flight and write myself a presciption for some blood pressure meds.

For such a short cruise it is very easy to fly with carry-on bags only and at least eliminate the stress of wondering whether or not your checked luggage will make it.

It also saves time, not needing to hang around waiting at baggage claim after you land.

 

In addition, it can help relieve some of the stress to have backup plans, just in case.

Good luck!

 

[dodger1964]

Don't stress too much. MANY people fly in day of departure (I would bet money that you will have others on your flight going on same cruise as you).

 

Carry on bags are great idea. That is what we will do for march trip for 4 of us. One roller bag and one backpack each.

 

Please update us on outcome.

 

I would also bet money (maybe not as much as above) that you will be on ship with plenty of time to spare and will reply on the cc mobile thread that you are enjoying lunch and a drink.

[jkgourmet]

You would really be late.

 

Whoops! My bad. :) :) :)

[Fouremco]

Don't stress too much. MANY people fly in day of departure (I would bet money that you will have others on your flight going on same cruise as you).

And I'll bet that on many cruises there are people who miss their cruise because they tried same-day arrival.

 

Last March, we took a 21-day cruise with HAL with b2b 10- and 11-day segments. Due to excessive smoking on the balcony next to us, we had asked to be moved for the second leg and were accommodated due to a "no show" leaving a cabin free. Guest Services commented that it was probably another guest flying in at the last minute and not making it. They made it sound like a common occurrence.

 

We stayed an extra night in FLL post-cruise and met a young couple at the hotel whose flight had been delayed because of mechanical problems and they were minutes too late to board. Even if they had been able to make the necessary arrangements to fly on to the first port of call, which was outside the US, they couldn't afford the extra cost.

 

So, it's good to be optimistic, but those who fly in on the day of embarkation are at the mercy of the Gods.

Edited February 4, 2014 by Fouremco

[wallie5446]

Our 1st cruise was in 1987, and we never flew in a day early till 2003. That was because the wifester works for Hyatt and we drove to Houston to see the one there, before sailing out of Galveston. Heck, didnt know there was anyother way. There is always a chance something could happen! You will be fine, of course unless they do loose the luggage.

[Bailey & Sophie]

A couple of years ago the ship waited for a flight from PA. Several people were on the flight that had been delayed due to a blizzard and the Captain chose to wait for them. I think we left about 2 hours late. It was dark for the sail-away, but we made do in the Martini Bar. This year we are leaving 4 days early!!

[AlanAllyn]

There are two advantages to the Southwest plan besides the one hour. First, you are changing planes in Tampa, which will not be snowed or iced in. Second, if the second leg is cancelled, you can rent a car and drive to the port. A third one, if you are going to cancel at the last minute, you can use the Delta as a backup if the Southwest is badly delayed on the first leg.

[patty1955]

I wouldn't fly in the day of the cruise, but we come in from the west coast and there's more chance for problems.

I see that you're flying Delta. You know that they're notorious for changing your flights, right? We don't fly them after our last flight to FLL turned out to have 4 legs and took over 12 hours.

[Macadian]

We tend to get a flight into FL the day before the cruise just for peace of mind. As we tend to travel in the winter months, that gives us a little wiggle room in the event of bad weather delaying our flight south. Fortunately taking a couple of additional days for travelling is not an issue for me. Getting too old to be stressed out with the 'what if's' and rushing around. We give ourselves a night in a hotel after the cruise too before flying out the following day. 'chillin' is good for us....:D

Edited February 5, 2014 by Macadian

[akowilm]

We also live in the SE.....always fly the day of, even in January. We DO book with Choice Air to make sure that we get the ship, but we have always been on time or early.....

[CaribbeanBound]

First flight in the morning is as late as I would go out.

Prefer to fly in the night before if at all practical.

 

I freak out about airport delays and an early flight:

a. has the best chance of taking off on time

b. if its cancelled you have a shot at a later flight.