What to do with group of 9 in Miami before boarding

[IT_Guy71]

Hi,

 

My family is travelling to Miami in January of 2019 for a 4 day cruise on RC Mariner of the Seas.  We fly in the morning of the cruise and land about 5am but the cruise won't board until about 11:30am.  Any ideas on things to do during the down time or should we just suck it up and wait near the departure port?  There are 5 kids ranging from 16 to 9 so toughing it out will be... fun.

 

Thanks for any tips!!

[navybankerteacher]

If you land at five and take it easy, you will probably have your bags and be ready to leave the airport by close to six.  There probably won’t be much to do there, so you might want to taxi over to South Beach (not far from the cruise terminal) and have a leisurely breakfast at one of the 24 hour restaurants there, which would probably take until about 8:00 to 8:30 - then just hang out checking out the area and take taxis to their terminal about 9:30 - you can probably drop your bags off by then,  and just hope you can board soon.

 

if it were me and my wife, I think I’d have booked a room at a hotel and rush from the plane to grab a few hours sleep before heading to the cruise terminal around noon.  I think you are going to spend your first day trying to recover.

[spookwife]

that's not a whole lot of time when you think about it. just go find a breakfast buffet or brunch somewhere.  they will  most likely start letting people in to  drop off their bags at the port by 9 or 930.  

 

of course this assumes you actually land on time.....

[navybankerteacher]

Come to think about it, a January red eye from Minnesota is not an absolutely sure thing to arrive on time. (I hope it’s a non-stop and not a plane change in Chicago).

[angie7911922]

I'd get a good breakfast, and maybe go for a walk on the beach. The time will go faster than you think. And you are right - rarely is a flight from Minnesota on time in January - but, good news. They have been on time before (if rarely). I've been on one 🙂

[davekathy]

Nine people with luggage.  Fly in the day before and stay at a hotel. Way more relaxing for a few different reasons. 

[navybankerteacher]

10 minutes ago, davekathy said:

Nine people with luggage.  Fly in the day before and stay at a hotel. Way more relaxing for a few different reasons. 

 

Sounds like OP has already booked flight; so, while your advice is valid, it is a bit late. 

[davekathy]

22 minutes ago, navybankerteacher said:

 

Sounds like OP has already booked flight; so, while your advice is valid, it is a bit late. 

... 

Edited December 11, 2018 by davekathy

[cb at sea]

That's gonna be tough....not too many places (other than breakfast restaurants  will be open before 10am or so.....so shopping is probably out.  

 

I guess you could rent a van (so that you could get everyone in one vehicle) and drive about, and sightsee for a while...stopping for breakfast along the way.  Most rental places have return places near the port, but make sure of that before you rent!

[IT_Guy71]

Thanks all for your input- some really good ideas!  It is a direct flight from MSP so no layover/connection.  I would have much rather gotten there a day early but this trip is already costing thousands without adding a couple hotel rooms on top of food expenses for the extra day.  We're just hoping there's no weather/mechanical delay or we're pretty much screwed.

 

To build on that- does anyone have any good suggestions on trip insurance?  I've never purchased it but I'm feeling nervous now.

Edited December 12, 2018 by IT_Guy71

[Grandma Dazzles]

Try looking at insuremytrip.com. Lots of insurance information.

 

Incidentally, I wouldn’t think of taking a cruise without insurance - not for airline delays but for medical insurance.  Unless your private plan covers you out of the country and most do not, you might want to look at insurance. Medical emergencies can cost thousands of dollars. 

[IT_Guy71]

Mrs. Dazzles,

 

Thank you for the tip and advice- good point on the health insurance think I'll check it out!  Funny I did a google search for trip insurance aggregator and insuremytrip.com is the site I got sent to before I even saw your post. 

Edited December 12, 2018 by IT_Guy71

[navybankerteacher]

Specifics:  you are going to need breakfast,  and you will have to kill some time - you are on a budget, but you are also on vacation, so you need to bite the bullet and think how much you might be willing to spend.

 

a) Dawdle around at the aireport to kill some time, then take a taxi to IHOP on Flagler for a budget breakfast - probably $5 to $7 per - say $45 to $60 - then kill time until they throw you out -then taxi to terminal. —-  plus cab fares.

 

b) Head straight to News Cafe, on Ocean Drive South Beach - fun 24 hour diner for good breakfast, great people watching probably $12 to $17 per - say $125 to $150 - then hang out by the beach, then taxi to terminal

 

. Taxi fares likely to be about the same either way, but breakfast about $100 more -   but decent way to kill the time.

[MicCanberra]

Everglade tour?

[ldubs]

Get bags.  Go to IHOP.  Eat lots of pancakes.  Go to the cruise terminal.  Spread out.   Take a nap.   

 

 

[IT_Guy71]

Ok I think we have the arrival portion covered.  The day we fly back home we don't fly out until 9pm so once we get off the boat we have a whole day.  We're probably gonna rent a minivan but I'm not sure if they will pick us all up at POM and let us drop off at MIA Intl.  Anyone know if they will do this?

[clskinsfan]

55 minutes ago, IT_Guy71 said:

Ok I think we have the arrival portion covered.  The day we fly back home we don't fly out until 9pm so once we get off the boat we have a whole day.  We're probably gonna rent a minivan but I'm not sure if they will pick us all up at POM and let us drop off at MIA Intl.  Anyone know if they will do this?

 

We just take an Uber after we disembark to whatever we are gonna do for the day. We have rented cars and reserved hotel rooms after cruises in Miami many times. We prefer to book a hotel if we have a late flight. We can go to the hotel and use their pool then take showers before going over to the airport. Most of the hotels will have a closet or storage area for you to keep your bags until they let you check in.