GoPort Fly/Snooze/Cruise Reviews - Port Canaveral vs. Orlando Hotels?

[abccba]

I've tried to search this board but no luck.

 

We are a party of 6 people:  2 kids (ages 4 and 6) and 4 adults (elderly mom and aunt) - cruising out of Port Canaveral in Feb 2020. I've previously only sailed out of Fort Lauderdale previously so still figuring out the best way to arrange transportation/hotel pre-cruise (flying in the night before). Given that my mom and aunt have mobility issues and we have our young kids too, we are trying to find the easiest/least stressful (but also cost efficient) route to take. 

 

1. Reviews of GoPort.com and their "Fly, Snooze, Cruise" packages? Are they reliable/on-time for transportation (I think they are coach buses)? Are their package prices truly better vs. booking hotel and private shuttles separately?

 

2. The packages for Orlando hotels look a bit cheaper than for Cape Canaveral hotels. Assuming they take into account the possibility of traffic etc. on the day of the cruise (the Orlando hotels I'm looking at say pick-ups range between 10:30am and 11:45am). Even with traffic/construction etc. this is sufficient time to make it from Orlando to the port on time?

 

3. I'm used to FLL pre-cruise hotels with nearby stores to pick up water/pop/wine to carry-on board.  Are the hotels in Orlando and Cape Canaveral in walking distance of a grocery store to pick up last minute supplies?

 

Appreciate any help or advice. Thanks!

 

 

[GTO-Girl]

Scroll down on this board to the Transportation from Port Canaveral to Orlando post. (good info for airport to the port too)

 

Steerage Joe who is one of the knowledgeable posters has responded to them with some good links and info....

Edited August 3, 2019 by GTO-Girl

[abccba]

2 minutes ago, GTO-Girl said:

Scroll down on this board to the Transportation from Orlando to Canaveral post.

 

Steerage Joe who is one of the knowledgeable posters has responded to them with some good links and info....

 

Thanks, GTO-Girl - I did see Steerage Joe's post in that thread which briefly mentioned GoPort re: shuttles but it doesn't answer my questions re: fly/snooze/cruise packages and Orlando vs. Port Canaveral hotels.

[abatl]

I'm curious on the GoPort route also.... for it being so cheap it makes me wonder. I would love to hear real reviews from people who have actually used it.

[abatl]

I'm curious on the GoPort route also.... for it being so cheap it makes me wonder. I would love to hear real reviews from people who have actually used it.

[Noxequifans]

Suggest looking at the reviews in TripAdvisor. 

[JohninDC]

Often suggested on this board.  Lots of Hotels near MCO compared to PC/Cocoa Beach, so I suspect they are able to get discounted rates leading to slightly cheaper prices. We prefer to stay in Orlando pre-cruise, especially if our flight arrives later in the day.

[SteerageJoe]

Lets do a quick pricing check shall we? Please check my math yourself and comment please! I am bad with numbers.

 

Sep 8, 2019 - one night for 2pax

 

GoPort - Homewood Suites King Bed for 2 pax, breakfast included - Fly - Snooze - Cruise Package - $471.38

 

Room with Breakfast:

Booking.com - $185.47

Hilton - $206.08 (flexible rate)

 

Let's pick Booking.com.

Now add the one way shared Port transfer from the hotel - $12 (for 2 pax) with Cocoa Beach Shuttle 

Add the one-way shared Airport transfer to the Hotel - $58 (for 2 pax) with Cocoa Beach Shuttle

Add the one-way shared Airport from Port to Airport with GoPort Bus - $29.98

 

Total with Booking.com = $285.45

 

Seems to me it is MUCH cheasper to book direct online ? $186 savings! Disclaimer - your actual savings will surely depend on the hotel, travel dates, number of people.

 

What do you think? Did I make mistakes? Let's discuss.

 

Edited August 10, 2019 by SteerageJoe

[JohninDC]

Joe, I think you found a winner!

[abccba]

On 8/10/2019 at 8:55 AM, SteerageJoe said:

Lets do a quick pricing check shall we? Please check my math yourself and comment please! I am bad with numbers.

 

Sep 8, 2019 - one night for 2pax

 

GoPort - Homewood Suites King Bed for 2 pax, breakfast included - Fly - Snooze - Cruise Package - $471.38

 

Room with Breakfast:

Booking.com - $185.47

Hilton - $206.08 (flexible rate)

 

Let's pick Booking.com.

Now add the one way shared Port transfer from the hotel - $12 (for 2 pax) with Cocoa Beach Shuttle 

Add the one-way shared Airport transfer to the Hotel - $58 (for 2 pax) with Cocoa Beach Shuttle

Add the one-way shared Airport from Port to Airport with GoPort Bus - $29.98

 

Total with Booking.com = $285.45

 

Seems to me it is MUCH cheasper to book direct online ? $186 savings! Disclaimer - your actual savings will surely depend on the hotel, travel dates, number of people.

 

What do you think? Did I make mistakes? Let's discuss.

 

 

Thanks so much - since I posted originally, I've been doing the math on a bunch of hotels, and similarly found that the GoPort pricing wasn't that competitive (but wasn't sure if I was missing something!)

 

I am leaning towards booking directly with the hotel/shuttle services directly (instead of GoPort) but had seen lots of positive reviews on TripAdvisor and Facebook, but less here, so wanted to know if anyone else had any reviews.

 

Thanks again!

[abccba]

On 8/10/2019 at 7:42 AM, JohninDC said:

Often suggested on this board.  Lots of Hotels near MCO compared to PC/Cocoa Beach, so I suspect they are able to get discounted rates leading to slightly cheaper prices. We prefer to stay in Orlando pre-cruise, especially if our flight arrives later in the day.

 

Thanks so much! 

 

Any suggestions on hotels near MCO? There seem to be more options with MCO hotels and they seem a bit less than the PC/Cocoa Beach ones.

 

I'm a Starwood (now Marriott etc.) member so checking out the Sheraton/Marriott/4 points etc. brands, and also looked at the Hyatt Place Orlando Airport (since have had good experiences with the Hyatt Place in Fort Lauderdale). I'm sure any of them would be find but it's always nice to get a recommendation too.... 

 

[slidergirl]

38 minutes ago, abccba said:

 

Thanks so much! 

 

Any suggestions on hotels near MCO? There seem to be more options with MCO hotels and they seem a bit less than the PC/Cocoa Beach ones.

 

I'm a Starwood (now Marriott etc.) member so checking out the Sheraton/Marriott/4 points etc. brands, and also looked at the Hyatt Place Orlando Airport (since have had good experiences with the Hyatt Place in Fort Lauderdale). I'm sure any of them would be find but it's always nice to get a recommendation too.... 

 

I stayed at that Hyatt Place last November (didn't want to drive down to Cocoa Beach at night after a long flight).  It was an OK hotel for my points.  It's definitely a lower-end type of Hyatt (similar to Springhill with Marriott), but better than Super 8/La Quinta.  I'm a picky person - I work for hotels and I'm used to staying at Westin/St. Regis/Hyatt Regency/W/Andaz - so I'm a little harsh maybe.  I left a note at the Front Desk for some little things I found wrong that the hotel might want to fix before the next guest (some gaps in the tub seal, a big stain on the carpet, a piece of molding broken off at the entry door), but most may not have noticed (I do room inspections to a Forbes level where I work).  It is a perfectly fine family-class hotel.  You've stayed at HP before, so you know the product.  This was my first time at a HP. I just walked down the street to a BBQ place for dinner - lots of chains within 3 blocks of the hotel.

 

The hotels near Port Canaveral do not have a store nearby - you'd have to take a Lyft or Uber to get to the nearest store.  

Edited August 12, 2019 by slidergirl

[abccba]

6 minutes ago, slidergirl said:

I stayed at that Hyatt Place last November (didn't want to drive down to Cocoa Beach at night after a long flight).  It was an OK hotel for my points.  It's definitely a lower-end type of Hyatt (similar to Springhill with Marriott), but better than Super 8/La Quinta.  I'm a picky person - I work for hotels and I'm used to staying at Westin/St. Regis/Hyatt Regency/W/Andaz - so I'm a little harsh maybe.  I left a note at the Front Desk for some little things I found wrong that the hotel might want to fix before the next guest (some gaps in the tub seal, a big stain on the carpet, a piece of molding broken off at the entry door), but most may not have noticed (I do room inspections to a Forbes level where I work).  It is a perfectly fine family-class hotel.  You've stayed at HP before, so you know the product.  This was my first time at a HP. I just walked down the street to a BBQ place for dinner - lots of chains within 3 blocks of the hotel.

 

The hotels near Port Canaveral do not have a store nearby - you'd have to take a Lyft or Uber to get to the nearest store.  

Thanks for your reply.

 

Yes, I'm a bit picky with my hotels too so appreciate your advice.

 

Are there any grocery stores within walking distance of the Hyatt Place in Orlando? (to pick up last minute supplies before the cruise)

Edited August 12, 2019 by abccba

[slidergirl]

4 minutes ago, abccba said:

Thanks for your reply.

 

Yes, I'm a bit picky with my hotels too so appreciate your advice.

 

Are there any grocery stores within walking distance of the Hyatt Place in Orlando? (to pick up last minute supplies before the cruise)

To be honest, I wasn't looking.  That area is Hotel Central, with probably every tourist-class hotel brand within a couple of blocks and lots of restaurants.  There is a mall up maybe a half mile away, but I don't know if it has any kind of grocery store.

[ATSEAMYLIFE]

Simple: book the Hyatt inside MCO and catch the ship shuttle in the AM.  

 

I'm Hilton brand loyal.  I much prefer booking directly on the hotel www site.  If something goes wrong or you need to change/cancel a RSVP the Hilton www site is the easiest.  It's not worth the few $$ risked when things need to get changed or canceled.  

We did something similar to your plans last year with the six of us about the same ages.  DW and I flew in to FLL five days early (cheaper and because we could), spent two nights FLL, then rented a car and drove up to CoCo Beach.   

Kids came into MCO and I booked them a driver using www.limos.com.  I have used them several times and they are a great site to price shop.  They provided car seats for the kids.  We stayed pre-cruise at the Hilton CoCo Beach Oceanfront and it was outstanding.  Nice rooms, walk out to the beach, and a great restaurant/bar.  I used limos.com to get us to the pier with car seats and the ships shuttle to get us to MCO (no car seats required).   

[SteerageJoe]

6 hours ago, abccba said:

Thanks for your reply.

 

Yes, I'm a bit picky with my hotels too so appreciate your advice.

 

Are there any grocery stores within walking distance of the Hyatt Place in Orlando? (to pick up last minute supplies before the cruise)

 

Nothing within walking distance - although the small minimart across the busy road sell wine and beer and things.

 

[Ashland]

I also considered using fly/cruise/snooze for our extended family of 10 which includes two 3yo & two 6yo. We're not cruising until May 2020 but ended up booking three rooms at the Doubletree Hilton (great member pricing)..They have a comp shuttle to their hotel from MCO and then am considering using Cruise Control (private transportation) for our round trip from hotel to Port Canaveral and then from the port back to MCO. We'll need carseats & booster seats and they provide them.

This priced out better booking directly individually rather than the fly/cruise/snooze package.

Edited August 13, 2019 by Ashland

[SteerageJoe]

7 hours ago, Ashland said:

I also considered using fly/cruise/snooze for our extended family of 10 which includes two 3yo & two 6yo. We're not cruising until May 2020 but ended up booking three rooms at the Doubletree Hilton (great member pricing)..They have a comp shuttle to their hotel from MCO and then am considering using Cruise Control (private transportation) for our round trip from hotel to Port Canaveral and then from the port back to MCO. We'll need carseats & booster seats and they provide them.

This priced out better booking directly individually rather than the fly/cruise/snooze package.

 

The Doubletree! I've been wondering when they will re-open...we went to 3 Wishes restaurant often. Did they say anything about a re-opening date? 

 

The hotel is still closed and I do not see any construction going on either.

 

[Ashland]

5 hours ago, SteerageJoe said:

 

The Doubletree! I've been wondering when they will re-open...we went to 3 Wishes restaurant often. Did they say anything about a re-opening date? 

 

The hotel is still closed and I do not see any construction going on either.

 

A bit confused as we've booked the one on Hazeltine...Doubletree by Hilton Orlando Airport. I understand there is more than one Doubletree so which one are you referring to ?

[SteerageJoe]

31 minutes ago, Ashland said:

A bit confused as we've booked the one on Hazeltine...Doubletree by Hilton Orlando Airport. I understand there is more than one Doubletree so which one are you referring to ?

 

Cocoa Beach!  Did not know you meant Orlando! Good choice!

[Ashland]

2 hours ago, SteerageJoe said:

 

Cocoa Beach!  Did not know you meant Orlando! Good choice!

Whew !!! Thanks I was hoping you weren't talking about the Doubletree I booked. Glad you think it's a good choice. Our flight doesn't land until almost 4:00pm and since we're traveling with four kids we thought it best to just stay in Orlando for the night and use a private shuttle to get us to Cape Canaveral the next day.

[Deseo1578]

For me I did the math, for only 2 people and the STAYBRIDGE SUITES ORLANDO AIRPORT it was cheaper through the package than using booking or directly from the hotel. 

[SteerageJoe]

6 hours ago, Deseo1578 said:

For me I did the math, for only 2 people and the STAYBRIDGE SUITES ORLANDO AIRPORT it was cheaper through the package than using booking or directly from the hotel. 

 

If you can show the breakdown of the pricing it will be very helpful! 

[Deseo1578]

3 hours ago, SteerageJoe said:

 

If you can show the breakdown of the pricing it will be very helpful! 

sure.

 

190 in the goport page and 195 in the booking site. 

 

 

[sspizza]

we have done the fly-snooze-cruise at port Canaveral several times. we are using it again for our cruise November 17. it is great. we stay at hotels that offer free breakfast to save about $100. the pick up is on time. they will stop at other properties before heading to the port. there has never been anything close to a time issue. they are professional . when departing the ship we have always done the self assist and are on the bus to the airport within an hour of docking. rest assured that the program will be well done.