Will this work? Land in San Juan at 4:50pm for a 8:30pm ship departure?

[schmeed]

For some reason, flights to San Juan this fall are not a plentiful (or lower cost) as in years past. We are sailing on FOS on Saturday, October 13th. There is a flight that works for us that lands at 4:50pm.

 

Is that enough time to gather bags and get to the port? What is the latest you can board the ship that sails at 8:30pm?

 

Thanks,

Dave

[39august]

I wouldn't try it. Is there no way you can fly in the day or evening prior? You are paying for day one of your cruise. You might as well take advantage of it and board by around 11 or noon.

[gerif]

You’ll be fine if your flight lands on Friday at that time. You must be checked in by 7:00.

[schmeed]

I wouldn't try it. Is there no way you can fly in the day or evening prior? You are paying for day one of your cruise. You might as well take advantage of it and board by around 11 or noon.

We normally do, but the flights on Friday (day before) either don't work with our schedule or the prices are outrageous.

[gerif]

We normally do, but the flights on Friday (day before) either don't work with our schedule or the prices are outrageous.

Make sure you have insurance.

[MiniChunks]

If everything goes perfectly you can make it. I would never do that, but to each their own.

[cruiseguy1016]

If everything goes as scheduled, landing at 4:50 will not be a problem. If you figure 30 - 45 minutes from the time you land until the time you have your luggage, that puts you at the taxi stand at 5:20 - 5:30. Wait time for a taxi could be zero or it could be 20 minutes depending on how many other planes have just landed. The taxi ride to the ship is 20 - 25 minutes. That should put you at the ship no later than 6:15, plenty of time for a 7:00 PM boarding. I say all that with my tongue in my cheek. If everything goes perfectly, you won't have a problem. If there is a 30 minute delay in a flight somewhere, you might be in trouble. Where are you flying from? Do you have connections?

 

Personally, I would not attempt this. There just is not enough wiggle room in the event there is a flight delay.

[Clarea]

Very little margin for delay, I would try very hard to arrange an alternative

[Grandma Dazzles]

Personally wouldn't risk it - cutting it very close, especially with possibility of flight/luggage delay. Haven't flown into SJ since last year 's hurricane. Not sure if the hurricane has affected airport/local infrastructure, but never found the airport to be the most organized and speediest, even in previous time, as far as baggage, cabs, etc.

[Rogueperson]

If everything goes as scheduled, landing at 4:50 will not be a problem. If you figure 30 - 45 minutes from the time you land until the time you have your luggage, that puts you at the taxi stand at 5:20 - 5:30. Wait time for a taxi could be zero or it could be 20 minutes depending on how many other planes have just landed. The taxi ride to the ship is 20 - 25 minutes. That should put you at the ship no later than 6:15, plenty of time for a 7:00 PM boarding. I say all that with my tongue in my cheek. If everything goes perfectly, you won't have a problem. If there is a 30 minute delay in a flight somewhere, you might be in trouble. Where are you flying from? Do you have connections?

 

Personally, I would not attempt this. There just is not enough wiggle room in the event there is a flight delay.

 

I flew in to Fort Lauderdale the day off once. I landed at 11:30. I did not enter the terminal area until 2:15. This was for a 4:00 departure. From FLL, you can SEE the ship from there.

 

I would pay the outrageousness to get you down there in time than chance missing the ship so you can save a little money. Even with insurance, you're looking at a lot of heartache and depending on insurance, they might say you helped cause this by not booking an earlier flight when you could and denying your claim.

[brookie848]

A couple of options for you.

First, is Southwest a possibility? Their flight schedules for November haven't really opened up yet (they are only open through 11/3). On May 31, they will open up their schedules. If you book a flight the morning they open up their schedule, you can usually get a good deal.

A second option (and this may not be at all economical) is to fly as far as Florida the night before. Then fly into San Juan the morning of your cruise. We did this in November for our cruise, but our reasons were simply because the uncertainty hotel availability. Our flight from FLL to SJU was less than $100/person and we bought the tickets only a few weeks before our flight.

[Starry Eyes]

I would not risk that. But if you decide to do it, can you go with carry on luggage only? That would save time in terminal upon landing. And do read your travel insurance carefully to see if they will cover you with that short plane to ship connection. And look to see how you’d get to next port if you do miss the ship.

[schmeed]

A couple of options for you.

First, is Southwest a possibility? Their flight schedules for November haven't really opened up yet (they are only open through 11/3). On May 31, they will open up their schedules. If you book a flight the morning they open up their schedule, you can usually get a good deal.

A second option (and this may not be at all economical) is to fly as far as Florida the night before. Then fly into San Juan the morning of your cruise. We did this in November for our cruise, but our reasons were simply because the uncertainty hotel availability. Our flight from FLL to SJU was less than $100/person and we bought the tickets only a few weeks before our flight.

Cruise is in October. Schedules are open and the options from Indianapolis are terrible. I thought with the hurricane issues, it would be cheap to fly there, but it's actually the opposite as there are limited flights.

[4williams5]

We will be on the same cruise. We have been watching prices for a while and decided to wait to buy. We did not want to go down on Friday because didn't want the daughter to miss school that day. We decided it was not worth it to fly in on same day unless we went through royal airtosea. At least then if issue they can get you to the next port. We will probably just take her out of the school and head down on Friday.

[MiniChunks]

Cruise is in October. Schedules are open and the options from Indianapolis are terrible. I thought with the hurricane issues, it would be cheap to fly there, but it's actually the opposite as there are limited flights.

Is driving to Cincinnati an option if flights are cheaper? I am lucky in that Boston and the NYC airports are only 1.5hrs away from me, but I'd drive a few hrs for a better price

 

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

[brookie848]

Cruise is in October. Schedules are open and the options from Indianapolis are terrible. I thought with the hurricane issues, it would be cheap to fly there, but it's actually the opposite as there are limited flights.

 

Sorry about missing your date -- I zoned there.

 

Good luck with finding something that works for you. We book most of our cruises really early and I hate when the other parts of the trip don't line up.

[logan25]

Don't know what qualifies as "outrageous". A quick search for one-way fares on October 13 turned up $158 on American Airlines which departs at 7:50 a.m., connecting through Philadelphia, landing at 2:20 p.m.

[schmeed]

Don't know what qualifies as "outrageous". A quick search for one-way fares on October 13 turned up $158 on American Airlines which departs at 7:50 a.m., connecting through Philadelphia, landing at 2:20 p.m.

From Indianapolis?

[MiniChunks]

you can fly Friday the 12th and return the 18th on Southwest out of Cincinnati for $328 RT or there's a Delta flight from Columbus for the same price on the same days

[schmeed]

you can fly Friday the 12th and return the 18th on Southwest out of Cincinnati for $328 RT or there's a Delta flight from Columbus for the same price on the same days

LOL. How do I return on the 18th when the ship doesn't come back to port until the 20th?

[MiniChunks]

LOL. How do I return on the 18th when the ship doesn't come back to port until the 20th?

Swim? Lol, I messed up the dates. Same price on the 20th

 

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

[Zach1213]

Cruise is in October. Schedules are open and the options from Indianapolis are terrible. I thought with the hurricane issues, it would be cheap to fly there, but it's actually the opposite as there are limited flights.

It's a combination of changing customer dynamics + supply and demand. As you mention, flights aren't quite as plentiful as before, so prices go up as a result of having fewer seats. However, the dynamics have also changed - there are few tourists, and the people going to PR often (not exclusively, of course) NEED to go there...to deal with family, to do reconstruction work, etc., and this often results in expensive tickets (kind of the reason why some very unpleasant places, such as some "sketchy" African destinations, can be the most expensive...people aren't going unless they need to go, and airlines can charge a premium because of that. Obviously this isn't quite the case with PR because there are still people going for vacations, but the customer dynamics have definitely changed in the last year).

 

I wouldn't touch this 4:50pm arrival with 2000ft pole

[rjrice1]

Several times I cruised the same day.. all flights arriving around 11 ish..

One time the flight was canceled.. (crap till the next day.. ...)

end up taking a taxi from MCO to palm bay.. (stupid counter guy told me it was only 1.5 hrs away.. nope 3 hrs away with 15 minute to catch the flight)

Long story short.. made the flight and the ship with heart palpation all the way.

Wrote long letter to the airline.. with info proving it was not weather (weather.com thank you) and it was engine trouble..

they did reimburse me for the taxi $500.00... (thank goodness I had the cash put away ...my ocd.. son calls in cdo)

and they reimburse 5 of us credit for the flight too.

Now we are going to try it again in Dec for same day with flight arriving at 11 for a 8pm sail away.

[shellsipes]

If you fly on the 13th the itinerary below will get you to San Juan at 2:20 PM. The layover in Philadelphia is only 48 minutes so that could be an issue if your flight out of IND is delayed. Round trip fare is $412.

 

Indianapolis (IND) to San Juan (SJU) — Sat, Oct 13

Indianapolis (IND) to Philadelphia (PHL) — Sat, Oct 13

American 4737 Dep: 7:50 am Arr: 9:42 am

Layover in PHL 0h 48m

Philadelphia (PHL) to San Juan (SJU) — Sat, Oct 13

American 1992 Dep: 10:30 am Arr: 2:20 pm

 

San Juan (SJU) to Indianapolis (IND) — Sat, Oct 20

 

San Juan (SJU) to Charlotte (CLT) — Sat, Oct 20

American 1852 Dep: 2:40 pm Arr: 6:25 pm

Layover in CLT 3h 50m

Charlotte (CLT) to Indianapolis (IND) — Sat, Oct 20

American 4603 Dep: 10:15 pm Arr: 11:53 pm

 

If you fly on the 12th this itinerary is $508 round trip. If you are OK departing IND at 5:30 AM there's an option for $465. It's also on AA.

 

Indianapolis (IND) to San Juan (SJU) — Fri, Oct 12

Indianapolis (IND) to Miami (MIA) — Fri, Oct 12

American 3483 Dep: 12:59 pm Arr: 3:52 pm

Layover in MIA 1h 33m

Miami (MIA) to San Juan (SJU) — Fri, Oct 12

American 1570 Dep: 5:25 pm Arr: 8:00 pm

 

San Juan (SJU) to Indianapolis (IND) — Sat, Oct 20

San Juan (SJU) to Philadelphia (PHL) — Sat, Oct 20

American 1992 Dep: 3:20 pm Arr: 7:15 pm

Layover in PHL 1h 20m

Philadelphia (PHL) to Indianapolis (IND) — Sat, Oct 20

American 4520 Dep: 8:35 pm Arr: 10:40 pm

[ARandomTraveler]

I’ve been watching prices to San Juan for a couple years now on Southwest Airlines. They work differently than most airlines in that the cheapest flights can be bought when you book the furthest in advance. The longer you wait, the more expensive they will be.

 

If you’re looking at flying Southwest in October and haven’t bought your tickets yet, you’re probably paying $300 more per person than if you’d bought them a couple months ago when they became available.

 

That being said, flights to Puerto Rico are definitely more expensive this year than they have been in the prior 3 years. The cheapest flights I’ve found (from Denver) in the past year, going on thurs/fri and coming back on Saturday are $316. But that was an outlier, as the most common price combination was $277 each way ($554), every week of every month.

 

If you find something around this price on Southwest, I’d say you got a fair price. I saw the prices drop slightly below this ($248 each way, $496 total per person) and jumped on it. The price has only gone up from there, and the lowest price for when I sail is now $698. I’ve stopped checking other months and weeks, but I imagine the pattern is the same as it’s been.

 

Airfare to San Juan is generally what keeps people from sailing from there, but hopefully my price comparisons will help you know if the prices you’re seeing are truly outrageous or if they are fairly standard, and maybe that will help you bite the bullet on a Friday flight (or not). If airfare is scaring you away, you will likely be even more deterred by the price of hotels. There’s a 26% tax added on to whatever rate you see listed, and if you have waited this long to book a hotel, you’re already paying a premium price. I had to book mine a year in advance for a “good” price, but 6 months out that price had already almost doubled.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums