California Costal Crusie

[John99]

We (retirees) are currently making plans for a California Costal cruise on the Crown (7 days) in October of this year. Looking at a Delta flight that lands at LAX approx. 10:35am Saturday -- the day of the cruise. Sale away Saturday at 4:00pm. After reading the other comments on CC , I starting to rethink my plans. I understand that traffic from LAX to the port usually take well over 1 hour. If there's an accident and/or construction travel time could be 2/3 hours. Missing the cruise comes into play.

 

Will we be able to make the cruise? Are traffic conditions any better on Saturday going to the port? Personally, I think we should be able to make this cruise. Again, what do other CC cruizers think?

 

John

[skynight]

We (retirees) are currently making plans for a California Costal cruise on the Crown (7 days) in October of this year. Looking at a Delta flight that lands at LAX approx. 10:35am Saturday -- the day of the cruise. Sale away Saturday at 4:00pm. After reading the other comments on CC , I starting to rethink my plans. I understand that traffic from LAX to the port usually take well over 1 hour. If there's an accident and/or construction travel time could be 2/3 hours. Missing the cruise comes into play.

 

Will we be able to make the cruise? Are traffic conditions any better on Saturday going to the port? Personally, I think we should be able to make this cruise. Again, what do other CC cruizers think?

 

John

 

We have sailed from San Pedro a number of times. We have always arrived a few days before sailing staying overnight at a hotel in San Pedro. There is less to worry about (flight delays, weather, traffic) if you are there early.

[5fathom]

We have done Coastal California 3 times. We always arrive at least 1 day early and have stayed in San Pedro or Long Beach. Anything can happen on those LA freeways !

[jasbo49]

I'd be more worried about air travel issues than L.A. traffic. Any U.S. city big enough to have a cruise port is big enough to have traffic.

 

We had flight problems in January and would have missed a cruise if we hadn't built in an extra day on the front end. Our flight got canceled because of trouble at another airport, so instead of leaving at 5 a.m., we couldn't leave till 2 p.m. and missed our connections.

 

I would look at the $150 you might spend on a basic motel and a meal or two as affordable travel insurance.

 

Jim

[Colo Cruiser]

I agree, I would be more worried about air delays then traffic in LA. All it takes is a delayed/canceled flight and you miss the ship. :(

If you make LAX on time (10:35) you can make the port by sailing.

[timetravler]

I see you are from the East Coast. The only time I ever fly the same day as the cruise is for short flights where the airlines have many flights in case of a delay. I would fly in the day before and stay at a hotel in Long Beach. You will then not be stressed on the first day of your cruise. It is so worth staying a night near the port. I would change your plans for piece of mind.

[Bear Down]

To answer the OP's question as to whether he can make the ship in time if he lands at 10:35, you should have no worries. The chances of it taking over 3 hours to get to the port from LAX are pretty slim, especially on a Saturday.

Edited June 12, 2015 by Bear Down

[2 to cruise]

Here again, I would be more worried about air delays. It wouldn't take you 3 hours to get to the port but you never know with LA traffic. To be on the safe side fly in a day early, enjoy your day and have peace of mind.

 

If my memory serves me right:rolleyes:, you need to be on the ship by 3:00 p.m.

[John99]

Thanks for the comments. Good advice.

 

Possible option -- arrive a day early -- Friday. Take a shuttle to downtown Long Beach. Would have to research possible downtown hotels for this options. Any suggestions? Clean, safe, reasonable cost, etc..

 

Then I need to research shuttles from LAX to Long Beach. Then next morning catch a cab to the Princess pier. Any suggestions on a shuttle?

 

Again Thanks

[FoghornLeghorn]

You could get a Princess Package, which is the LAX Marriott and take the Princess shuttle to San Pedro the next morning.

OR

You could shuttle (Super Shuttle) to San Pedro upon your arrival and stay at the Double Tree or Crown Plaza San Pedro and be shuttled over to the pier by the hotel. Or, take a taxi to the pier.

Edited June 12, 2015 by FoghornLeghorn

[tootsiescurly]

We live about 20 minutes from the port. Use the 405 Fwy to the 110 to get to San Pedro. First of all, very rarely will you see weekday traffic on the 405 on a Saturday. Second, the port is easily accessible by surface streets. Any taxi, Supershuttle, etc. driver should be able to access the port by surface streets should there be an accident. I would be more concerned about Delta than the LA freeways!!!

[cr8tiv1]

I live 25 minutes southeast of the port. Only once did I run into a traffic accident. That trip took almost 2 hours because we were stuck near the accident scene and could not get off the freeway until the next off ramp. It was a slow crawl and then some fancy creative mapping to get to the port. I say only once, but that's all it takes.

 

My suggestion is to come in the night before and enjoy your embarkation day without stress. Long Beach hotels are not as close as you may think, although the hotels near the port do not offer much to do without a car.

[warpdrvr]

Not sure which cruise you booked, but I just received an email this morning for our Oct 10 sailing saying that the departure time has changed from 4pm to 6pm.

 

Not sure why they would change it so far away from the sail date.

[Working 2 Cruise]

Also, keep in mind that Princess sails out of San Pedro, NOT Long Beach.

[RickEk]

Thanks for the comments. Good advice.

 

Possible option -- arrive a day early -- Friday. Take a shuttle to downtown Long Beach. Would have to research possible downtown hotels for this options. Any suggestions? Clean, safe, reasonable cost, etc..

 

Then I need to research shuttles from LAX to Long Beach. Then next morning catch a cab to the Princess pier. Any suggestions on a shuttle?

 

Again Thanks

 

Just so you know... you'll be sailing out of San Pedro, NOT Long Beach.

[sassyredhat]

I agree with the others.

 

We live in San Diego, so most of the time we drive to San Pedro.

That said, we leave about 8:30AM for the 2 hour drive, which can take between 2 hours to 3 1/2 depending on road and traffic conditions.

I think the last time was the longest because there was a car on fire in the fast lane.

 

When we do stay overnight, we stay at the Crown or Doubletree in SP. They will shuttle you to the ship. Those hotels book up fast.

 

Patti

[cruisin froggy]

You might enjoy going the day before and staying on the Queen Mary the night before. She has been converted to a hotel and is located in Long Beach, a short ride to San Pedro. We always stay on her the night before since we are going on a cruise, why not stay on a ship the night before. Its fun comparing the modern cruise ships to the the older Queen with all her history. There is lots to do on board, restaurants, shops tours of the ship and a Russian submarine next to her to tour. The Queen need some TLC but we love staying on her. You can have brunch or lunch the day of your CA coastal cruise, and get a taxi and be at the port of San Pedro in enough time to sail. Just a suggestion. Have fun!

[shredie]

Don't get me started on Delta. Go the day before.

[Working 2 Cruise]

Don't get me started on Delta. Go the day before.

 

I had a choice of flights for my upcoming cruise to Alaska... Due to certain reviews, I made sure to stay away from Delta!!!

[Thrak]

I agree with the others.

 

We live in San Diego, so most of the time we drive to San Pedro.

That said, we leave about 8:30AM for the 2 hour drive, which can take between 2 hours to 3 1/2 depending on road and traffic conditions.

I think the last time was the longest because there was a car on fire in the fast lane.

 

When we do stay overnight, we stay at the Crown or Doubletree in SP. They will shuttle you to the ship. Those hotels book up fast.

 

Patti

 

We stayed at the Crowne Plaza in San Pedro. If you book through Priceline and specify 3 star or better you will only see Doubletree (3 stars) and Crowne Plaza (3.5 stars). By using their "bid" feature I booked back to back weekends at Crowne Plaza for $86 per night one weekend and $88 per night the other weekend. This is much lower than I was quoted directly from Crowne.

 

I'm with the other folks. Fly in a day early. The peace of mind will be well worth the cost.

 

Note: If you stay at the Crowne Plaza you can walk over to tour the USS Iowa and it's also just a short walk to the San Pedro Brewing Company for dinner. :)

Edited June 12, 2015 by Thrak

[Meanee]

A small delay, and you get to watch your ship leaving... from the dock. Don't risk it. Go a day early.

[waltd]

John we just had some friends fly from Los Angeles to the east coast a few days ago. They had an emergency landing due to diabetic shock on board. They were delayed by 3 hours. As others have said as long as the plane lands on time you will make the cruise but I would come in the night before and stay in San Pedro at the two hotels mentioned above. One is almost walking distance to the ship and both have cruise terminal transportation. It might cost a bit more but I like peace of mind.

[Cruisin' Chick]

I used to commute on the 405 for years, and even on weekend days, might see a traffic jam. One accident or construction may affect traffic. But as others have said, flights can be even more problematic. Usually LA doesn't have weather problems in October, but if other areas do, it can affect flight patterns. If there's an earthquake here, flights will not be allowed to land until all the runways, etc., are checked carefully.

 

If we're sailing from other ports like Miami or Seattle, we always plan to get in at least a day ahead. For out of San Pedro, we're an hour's drive away, but we're in our car by 10am for the drive.

 

Your ship will be out of the Port of Los Angeles (World Cruise Center) in San Pedro. Many people will stay at the Doubletree or Crowne Plaza and get shuttled over to the port on the day of their cruise, nice and relaxed. There's also some stores nearby that you can shop for wine, sodas, and other things you may have left behind.

 

Some people have mentioned staying in Long Beach. If you're interested, go to the western destinations board and do a search for posts by BruinSteve who will give the names of recommended hotels (there's some more dicey areas of LB that you won't want to stay at). But you will need to make sure that your driver (shuttle or taxi) takes you to the Port of LA and not the Port of Long Beach (which Carnival uses almost exclusively).

 

I wouldn't stay at a LAX hotel. You can think of the area around it as strip malls (in the literal sense).

 

There's a shuttle service known as Supershuttle which will have blue vans parked right outside the terminal at LAX. It's a shared van so most likely you'll see some of LA on the way to your hotel. You can also prebook private shuttles (ExecuCar, RoadRunner, OnTime, Karmel, etc.).

[BEAV]

American/USAir, Delta and JetBlue service Long Beach airport. I would first check flights and fares into Long Beach before automatically defaulting to LAX.

 

I hope the OP flies in a day prior after all the great info provided on this thread. Does anyone remember the long dramatic thread earlier this year about the guy who missed the ship in San Pedro. And he was only flying in from Sacramento, not across country from Michigan!

[ROCruiser]

Start your vacation early, fly in the day before your cruise!:)