Fort Lauderdale Airport (FLL) to Miami Cruise Port Transportation Review

[alg7334]

I just got off the Carnival Sensation 4 night cruise to Cozumel Thurs 5/19 - Mon 5/23. Highly recommend this short fun itinerary! I wanted to provide some quick info on transportation to and from the FLL airport based on my most recent experience.

 

My flight landed in FLL on Thursday at about 10:45 a.m. I did not make any arrangements for transportation in advance because I planned to use Uber. As I was walking over to the ground transportation area to get ready to call for an Uber, I saw a small booth that said "Welcome Carnival Guests". I stopped by to ask about the Carnival Transportation. They told me it was $31 one way and would be leaving in a few minutes. It would be an air conditioned bus with no other stops direct to the cruise port. Great! Even better, they said I could charge it to my onboard account by just providing my confirmation number so I didn't have to use any cash or credit card right there. Sold!

 

All sounded good but a few minutes quickly turned into a 45 minute wait.... The shuttle didn't arrive until 11:30 a.m. My boarding time was 11:30 a.m. and I was meeting friends so I was disappointed I'd miss the boarding photo. It was about a 35 minute drive from the FLL airport to the cruise port. The buses drop off on a little side area and there are luggage handlers right there for you to give your luggage to. As long as you don't mind the transportation being SLOW, it was affordable, safe, convenient and easy. And you didn't need a reservation in advance.

 

For my return trip, I booked a flight that was cutting it close. My flight was leaving FLL at 10:50 a.m. (boarding time 10:20 a.m.) so it was essential that I was one of the first off the boat. I headed downstairs at 7:30 a.m. to get in line and was about the 20th person in line. I was off the boat and threw customers by about 8:11 a.m. I called an Uber when I got outside, it took 3 minutes for him to arrive and a quick easy 34 minutes from the cruise port to FLL. There is an express lane going that way. The total cost of the fare was $33.37. I was threw security and at a table for breakfast by 9 a.m. This is an even better deal if you have more than 1 person with you because it's so affordable.

 

Uber is now allowed in the port - I saw previously they were not. I did ask the driver and he said they are all cleared.

 

Overall I recommend taking Uber instead of Carnival provided transportation, renting a car or a cab. It's quick, easy, affordable, there is always one available and it's safe.

 

Let me know if you have questions.

[pgharea]

I second your thought. We used uber exclusively on our latest cruise with no hick-ups. There were four of us making uber very cost effective.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[goneclear]

If your flight landed at 10.45am in FLL and you were scheduled to meet friends at the port of Miami for boarding photo op at 11.30am it is most likely you still would not have made it in time even if its a Saturday and your transport plans worked out as you planned. 45 Minutes from aircraft in FLL to POM is just pushing your luck a bit IMO.

Thanks for posting your review though as many people ask questions about the use of uber.

[CruiserBruce]

The 45 minute wait for the bus to fill is a perfect example of the potential inconveniences of using ship's transfers. Many people are OK with this, particularly if time is not a factor. If you have a tight schedule...

 

Landing at FLL at 10:45 and expecting to be at the Port of Miami at 11:30 is almost physically impossible, no matter what transfer method you use, short of "beaming up".

Edited May 25, 2016 by CruiserBruce

[JohninDC]

Thanks for the detailed feedback.

[przyk]

At $31 per person Carnival's bus is double what a private shuttle would cost.