Flying in the morning of...

[flashy09]

If I had a flight that got into FLL at 10:40 am, would that leave me enough time to get on board?  What time does the ship stop boarding?

 

*I understand my flight could be delayed!  Just wondering if it's possible if I am willing to take the risk*

[Colo Cruiser]

4 minutes ago, flashy09 said:

If I had a flight that got into FLL at 10:40 am, would that leave me enough time to get on board?  What time does the ship stop boarding?

 

*I understand my flight could be delayed!  Just wondering if it's possible if I am willing to take the risk*

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

 

You can see the ship from the FLL terminal.

It is about 2 miles away.

A cab/Uber/Lyft etc will take approx 10-15 minutes to get there depending on traffic.

You will have more than enough time. 

You must board at least 90 minutes prior to sailing.

[flashy09]

Thank you!!

[Colo Cruiser]

1 minute ago, flashy09 said:

Thank you!!

You are welcome......

I forgot,  You must board at least 90 minutes prior to sailing.

[flashy09]

When does it sail?

[flashy09]

1 minute ago, Colo Cruiser said:

You are welcome......

I forgot,  You must board at least 90 minutes prior to sailing.

When does it sail?

[Colo Cruiser]

1 minute ago, flashy09 said:

When does it sail?

Usually 4 or 5pm. What ship and when?  Have you checked out the itinerary and sailing time in your booking?

[flashy09]

I haven't booked yet, just trying to figure out the details and look at flights!  Caribbean Princess march 30

 

Edited March 8, 2019 by flashy09

[donswife]

Where are you starting your flight? Weather can still be an issue March 30 and cause flight cancellations or delays. If you go with that plan, I would definitely want trip insurance, or at least book the air through Princess.

[crawford]

11 minutes ago, flashy09 said:

I haven't booked yet, just trying to figure out the details and look at flights!  Caribbean Princess march 30

 

 

If you're not using points, consider EZAir.

[Camelia-]

Yes - definitely EZAir if you must fly in the same day. We had to do so last Fall  and our flight was supposed to land at 11:00 a.m. - except we had an emergency on board and were forced to land elsewhere to let the passenger off..wait to refuel and get clearance and and then proceed to FLL - so instead of 11:00 we arrived at almost 3:00 p.m..I would have been very stressed if I hadn't used EZAir!! You just never know when travelling..it's not always bad weather that causes delays..

[Vic The Parrot]

If you're able to, I suggest flying in at least a day before.  

Like the others have mentioned, it's always weather or mechanical issues that make it risky.

 

Remember, Mr Murphy never takes a holiday. 

 

[turquoisesea]

3 hours ago, donswife said:

Where are you starting your flight? Weather can still be an issue March 30 and cause flight cancellations or delays. If you go with that plan, I would definitely want trip insurance, or at least book the air through Princess.

I totally agree with donswife. You can certainly take the chance, but do you want to start your vacation with anxiety if your flight is delayed by weather or any number of issues that come up?  Actually, it nice to stay the night before and get to the ship early and enjoy exploring the ship.  You can find a reasonably price hotel by the airport and several of them provide transportation to the port. We have been on 24 cruises we almost missed one - we were the last ones to get on the ship.  We never flew on the same day again.  (Our delay was caused by a strike by baggage handles at our home airport.). You just never know!

[LAS!!1414]

Experience has taught me to always fly the day before cruise departure.  

[CATGUY7]

The first cruise we took we flew in the night before (luckily!).  Our luggage did not arrive at the same time.  It was delivered to our hotel late that night.  I don’t think that would be a concern if you had a direct flight or used EZ Air, but I wouldn’t risk flying in the morning of the cruise.  Too much stress for me!  

[Cruise Raider]

You should have plenty of time.  In case of a flight delay, be sure to take the number to the ship so you can give them info on when you are to arrive.  If a number of passengers do the same, they will try to wait ... if they can.  But, I don't see any problems with that flight arrival time.  You can always do a search on their EZ air and they will give you a recommendation of what time your flight would have to arrive... and they are conservative on that. 

For example, for my next cruise, which is out of LA, they recommend I fly into LAX by 1:30 PM for a 4 PM departure.  LA traffic is known to be horrendous and it takes nearly an hour to get from the airport to the port.  So, yes, I think anything before 1:00 PM will be fine in Ft Lauderdale.  The port is really close to the airport.  

[john_galt]

I had a close call several cruises ago. We had an afternoon flight into Miami and there was a single crack of thunder/lightning as we got off the plane. We were told the union cargo handlers have a clause in their contract that says they don't have to work outside for an hour after a lightning strike. The clouds parted and the skies were sunny but nothing happened for an hour. Made the last bus but it put the fear in me. I always fly in the day before now. 

Edited March 8, 2019 by john_galt

[Wichard]

Your arrival will leave you plenty of time.  I recommend the travel Princess insurance since you can not tell what will happen with air travel on the day of the departure.  Last year at this time we were flying to FLL with a stop in Houston.  In Houston the plane arrived at the gate with an hour to go before our departure so I thought we were golden.  Then shortly thereafter they announced the plane had "mechanical issues" but were working on it.  Long story short they found a replacement plane and we landed in FLL around 4:30.  There were about twenty people on the flight using the Princess transfer and when we got to the ship we were one of the last ones onboard.   Since we booked the flight thru Princess they knew our status and delayed the ship departure for us.

[LMADAMS91]

Our first cruise, we flew in the day of departure.  Our flight out was delayed a couple of hours (we had booked through the cruise line.)  We arrived at the airport to find no reps to help us get to the port (had booked transfers through the cruise line) and had to call to get transfers.  When we checked in at the cruise port, it was virtually deserted.  We arrived on board right before the muster drill with 3 hungry kids; we had to go directly to the muster drill.  Finally got them (and us) some food after muster.

 

Needless to say, we always fly in at least a day in advance.  Too much stress.  

 

[DrivesLikeMario]

Yes, you'll be fine with timing as long as your flight leaves the originating airport in a timely manner.  Although it's not good to fly in the day of a cruise, we've had to do it many times.  We always make sure we arrive before 9:45am and have a couple back-up plans in case our final flight into the originating city gets cancelled or delayed.  I'm ready with phone numbers so I can call and book the other flights if necessary and am prepared to get the lead out to the next gate if need be. 

[NavyVeteran]

8 hours ago, flashy09 said:

If I had a flight that got into FLL at 10:40 am, would that leave me enough time to get on board?  What time does the ship stop boarding?

 

*I understand my flight could be delayed!  Just wondering if it's possible if I am willing to take the risk*

 

8 hours ago, flashy09 said:

I haven't booked yet, just trying to figure out the details and look at flights!  Caribbean Princess march 30

 

 

Although I usually fly a day early, I have flown into Fort Lauderdale the day of the cruise several times with no problems. But you need to be prepared for a problem.

 

The following information is on the Princess website for this cruise:

• The Western Caribbean cruise on the Caribbean Princess is scheduled to depart Fort Lauderdale at 4:00 pm on Saturday, March 30, 2019.
• If you book EZAir, they will book flights arriving in Fort Lauderdale as late as 2:00 pm. (You can search for - but not book - flights using EZAir even if you haven't booked the cruise.)

Note that the Fort Lauderdale airport is very close to the cruise terminal.

 

You should have no problem with a 10:40 am arrival - even if your flight is a couple of hours late. Some considerations: Is it non-stop or do you have a connection you could miss? If that flight is cancelled, does your airline have a later flight from your airport to Fort Lauderdale that would arrive before 2:00 pm.

 

Arriving the day of embarkation, I would recommend booking your flights through Princess EZAir (even if they were slightly more expensive). If you miss the ship, Princess will fly you to Grand Cayman to board your ship after missing the embarkation day and the first sea day.

 

Travel insurance would also be useful - just in case. You would not need it for the cost of the flights if you booked Princess EZAir, but you would need it to pay for your hotel and meals - and to receive a pro rata refund for the portion of the cruise you missed.

 

At most ports, I would recommend Princess transfers from the airport to the ship if arriving day of departure. Then if you ran into traffic, Princess would know where you were and might hold the ship. If you are in a taxi or Uber, they would have no idea where you were or when you would get there. I would definitely recommend the Princess transfer in this case if you were flying in to Los Angeles. However, the Fort Lauderdale airport is very close to the port, and you are not likely to run into delays. The cost of a taxi is about the same as the cost of the Princess transfer for one person, but it's a lot less for two or more people.

[4cats4me]

Depends where you’re flying from and if you have other flight options available.  For example, If we have to fly from Northern CA to Southern CA to catch a ship (only a one hour flight) we would fly on the same day, as there are several flights, almost every hour in case one flight were to be delayed.  If we have a flight of longer than two hours, we would not fly on the same day, as we did that once and had not one but two delays at two separate airports.    We had to turn around and go back to the airport half way through the flight, and then wait until another aircraft was available.  Then we couldn’t land the plane on time once we got to airport two due to a malfunctioning instrument panel, finally landing 45 mins late at THAT airport.  

We had cruise air that time, and then waited in a long immigration line in Vancouver, and made it to the cruise port with 1.5 hours to spare, so after that near miss we’ve almost  always flown in the night before.  

Edited March 9, 2019 by 4cats4me

[caribill]

3 hours ago, 4cats4me said:

Depends where you’re flying from and if you have other flight options available.  For example, If we have to fly from Northern CA to Southern CA to catch a ship (only a one hour flight) we would fly on the same day, as there are several flights, almost every hour in case one flight were to be delayed.

 

Of course, there have to be available seats on the alternate flight(s) if you cannot take your original flight(s). That is not always possible.

[MauiLvrs]

On 3/8/2019 at 5:08 PM, Wichard said:

Your arrival will leave you plenty of time.  I recommend the travel Princess insurance since you can not tell what will happen with air travel on the day of the departure....

 Maybe plenty of time ..... Maybe NOT

Princess travel insurance will not get you to the ship unless you book the air through Princess

Edited March 11, 2019 by MauiLvrs

[kywildcatfanone]

We are flying in the morning of in 3 weeks.  I haven't done that since our first cruise, but flight schedules dictated it for us.  We'll see.  I'm a bit nervous over it, but we should get to FLL around 11:30am.