Flights from UK to Miami/ Fort Lauderdale

[anniedave]

Hi,

Can anyone advise me. Starting to look at flights for our cruise Jan 2020. I am struggling to find any direct  flights on a Saturday ( BA only seem to have return not one way and we are going on elsewhere after the cruise) Thank you 

[pinklady65]

Unfortunately one way tickets are really expensive.  Norwegian fly from Gatwick to Fort Lauderdale and offer reasonable one-way fares for direct flights.

[anniedave]

Unfortunately from April they are no longer flying into Fort Lauderdale only Miami , and they are only doing flights every other day so no Saturday flights. We can get a Sunday flight but with the UK weather in January and our cruise sailing on the Monday I would prefer an extra day just in case of delayed flights!

[babs135]

You say you are going on elsewhere after your cruise but how are you getting back to the UK? Assuming you are returning!!!  Is it not possible to get a return ticket which covers your out journey and return, which presumably would be from a different airport?

[JBare]

Multi City flights do count as a return  eg Heathrow to Miami outward and Santiago(Chile) to Heathrow return counts as a return flight and is cheaper than singles. The big question is where in the UK do you want to fly from and where back from and on what dates.

[anniedave]

We are flying back from Mexico early Feb, I hadnt realised that I could count 2 different destinations as return flights - I will look into this, thankyou for the advice 

[Reina del Mar]

We usually try to book KLM from our local airport (Cardiff) via Amsterdam. Fort Lauderdale is usually via Detroit or Atlanta to fit our needs.

 

Hold luggage is tagged to final destination but you and luggage need to go through immigration at Port of Entry Airport.

 

We try to spend about 3 nights in Fort Lauderdale pre cruise. (This is an extra flight but you and luggage arrive in Fort Lauderdale rather than having to transfer from Miami)

 

You can also book a Multi City Fare which allows you to return from a different destination.

[John Bull]

22 hours ago, anniedave said:

We are flying back from Mexico early Feb, I hadnt realised that I could count 2 different destinations as return flights - I will look into this, thankyou for the advice 

 

You need an airline which offers flights to Miami - or an acceptable airport nearby (eg Fort Lauderdale) -  and from an acceptable Mexican airport back to the same UK airport.

If there's no airline that operates both routes it's still possible if one of the airlines has a skypartner airline which does the second route.

 Look for the words "multi-city" or "open-jaw" on the booking forms.

Fares should be midway between the two return fares

 

JB 

[MicCanberra]

Multi city tend to be a little more expensive than a return flight but are usually still cheaper than two one -way flights and sometimes even the one..

[anniedave]

Thanks everyone for your advice, multicity flights seems the best deal

( which I hadnt realised was an option)  and I have 2 or 3 choices of airline so I can see which works best for us based on our dates.

 

[MicCanberra]

Good result.

[anniedave]

On 2/27/2019 at 9:37 AM, babs135 said:

You say you are going on elsewhere after your cruise but how are you getting back to the UK? Assuming you are returning!!!  Is it not possible to get a return ticket which covers your out journey and return, which presumably would be from a different airport?

Yes we are returning! Just having a few days in Mexico after the cruise.Thanks for your help

[anniedave]

1 hour ago, MicCanberra said:

Multi city tend to be a little more expensive than a return flight but are usually still cheaper than two one -way flights and sometimes even the one..

I hadnt realised how expensive one way flights were compared to return journeys! 

[MicCanberra]

1 minute ago, anniedave said:

I hadnt realised how expensive one way flights were compared to return journeys! 

We had it once where the return flight was 1/2 the price of the one way flight. We booked the return and cancelled the return once the first flight was completed.

[anniedave]

On 2/28/2019 at 1:11 PM, Reina del Mar said:

We usually try to book KLM from our local airport (Cardiff) via Amsterdam. Fort Lauderdale is usually via Detroit or Atlanta to fit our needs.

 

Hold luggage is tagged to final destination but you and luggage need to go through immigration at Port of Entry Airport.

 

We try to spend about 3 nights in Fort Lauderdale pre cruise. (This is an extra flight but you and luggage arrive in Fort Lauderdale rather than having to transfer from Miami)

 

You can also book a Multi City Fare which allows you to return from a different destination.

I hadnt realised how many options there were. Precruise originally we were only doing one night in Fort Lauderdale but I was concerned that if we had a flight delay because of the UK weather in January ! it would be stessful. Which was why I was trying to find a Saturday flight so we have 2 nights pre cruise

[anniedave]

On 3/1/2019 at 5:03 AM, John Bull said:

 

You need an airline which offers flights to Miami - or an acceptable airport nearby (eg Fort Lauderdale) -  and from an acceptable Mexican airport back to the same UK airport.

If there's no airline that operates both routes it's still possible if one of the airlines has a skypartner airline which does the second route.

 Look for the words "multi-city" or "open-jaw" on the booking forms.

Fares should be midway between the two return fares

 

JB 

Hi Yes, Ive found a couple of airlines that offer what I need so I just need to decide which is the best deal. Thanks for the help

[Reina del Mar]

 

Just a thought...have a look at Skyscanner...search the flights you are interested in and see what they come up with. If you find something that suits, take the information to your chosen travel agent and see what they can suggest.

 

Check luggage allowances for your choice as some airlines are cutting down their limits. Meals and drinks are usually included on International scheduled flights. Look at parking options at your departure airport.

 

There are SO many options but speak to a travel agent who knows about flights, many only know about package holidays. You are paying so have what you want/ need.

Edited March 2, 2019 by Reina del Mar

[MicCanberra]

Good advice, skyscanner does a lot of the work for you, just use the filters and play around with times and dates etc.

[anniedave]

Thanks for the advice, ive been looking at skyscanner.

As you say different airlines have different baggage allowances which can make a difference , especially as we are away for 3 weeks so a bigger allowance will really help! In terms of airports we are able to get to any of the south east/ london airports fairly easily but depending on flight times some of the overnight hotel/ parking deals are just as cheap as parking alone so im looking at all the options...so much to decide. Ive  already been in touch with my TA to tell them what options im looking at to see what prices they come back with.

Luckily im enjoying planning the holiday so its all just part of the experience 😊

[MicCanberra]

I love the planning phase of travelling, researching options, nailing down a good price that suits. Etc.