3 Options for LAS to SJU - Thoughts?

[bmar808]

Please forgive the lengthy post but I am looking for flight advice/thoughts for our first cruise out of San Juan in May 2020.  There are 13 of us and none of us have ever been to any of the following airports.  Additionally, although we have used JetBlue and Southwest before, it has only been from LAS to SFO, LAX, and PHX—so basically very short flights with no delays, issues, or real concerns.

With all that said, we think we have narrowed it down to the following three options but there are some concerns that were raised.  Savings is always welcomed and in doing the math, cost has come down to option 3 being about $30 more per person (assuming it stays the same and that everyone can buy it at that price) but that also does not include any budget for hotels in the different areas.

 

I am hoping that anyone who is more experienced with the airlines, airports, or traveling to these locations in general could give their thoughts please? 

 

Option 1:

Southwest – LAS to FLL

1 stop in Midland (no plane change), 1 plane change in HOU (45 minutes).

Arrive in FLL at 9:45pm. 

Take a JetBlue flight at 11:45pm to SJU.  Stay overnight in San Juan and head to cruise port in the morning.

 

Option 2:

Southwest – LAS to FLL (Same itinerary as above).

Stay overnight in FLL.

Take a Southwest or JetBlue flight (they both offer flights around the same time and about the same price) the following morning to SJU and head straight to cruise port.

 

Option 3:

Jet Blue – LAS to SJU

1 layover in BOS (2 hours).

Arrive in SJU 3:18 am.

*Over half in the group do not want to get a hotel room for only a few hours so I guess we would have to kill time and then head to the cruise port.

 

Ultimately, I guess I am asking what would you choose?

 

I hope I'm not too confusing, but thank you for any input in advance!

[klfrodo]

None

 

1. I would never take flights across country with 1 or more stops and expect to arrive the same day the cruise departs. If I have to have 1 stop, I'm making sure I get to the port 2 days early. Reason 1 - to make sure I make it. Reason 2 - I need a day to acclimate to the time change.

 

2. Whatever prices you are seeing right now are prices in a "fare Bucket". I seriously doubt that there are 13 tickets in that same fare bucket. If you're seeing prices of $200, there are probably only 5 or 6 tickets at that price. Next fare bucket could be much much higher.  Somebodies going to get their feelings hurt and feel ripped off.

[Twickenham]

3 hours ago, bmar808 said:

Option 1:

Southwest – LAS to FLL

1 stop in Midland (no plane change), 1 plane change in HOU (45 minutes).

Arrive in FLL at 9:45pm. 

Take a JetBlue flight at 11:45pm to SJU.  Stay overnight in San Juan and head to cruise port in the morning.

 

 

 

Those 2 hours between flights in FLL makes this a no-go, as they are 2 separate bookings, thus no protection in case the incoming flight is late.

 

3 hours ago, bmar808 said:

Option 2:

Southwest – LAS to FLL (Same itinerary as above).

Stay overnight in FLL.

Take a Southwest or JetBlue flight (they both offer flights around the same time and about the same price) the following morning to SJU and head straight to cruise port.

 

 

 

This is probably the one of the 3 options that I would choose, if you shift it back by a day - that is, arrive in San Juan the day before the cruise.

 

3 hours ago, bmar808 said:

Option 3:

Jet Blue – LAS to SJU

1 layover in BOS (2 hours).

Arrive in SJU 3:18 am.

*Over half in the group do not want to get a hotel room for only a few hours so I guess we would have to kill time and then head to the cruise port.

 

No. Just... no.

 

Personally, I think trying to book this all for 13 people is insanity. I don't see this ending well...

[waterbug123]

The option I would choose is to let the 13 people all book their own dang airfare according to what suits them.  No way in hell would I try to get 13 people to agree.  That also makes you the point person collecting money etc., and then God forbid if the plans don't go well, everyone is blaming you because you booked it. 

Beyond that, I would never choose for myself an itinerary (#1) that consists of 2 completely separate reservations on two different airlines with only 2 hours in between.  If you have a delay, you are screwed.  Nor would I choose an option that has me arriving at 3:18am and just killing time for 7 or 8 hours.  That's just misery to be so exhausted and have nowhere to go.  Keep in mind that all airport concessions will be closed at that hour.  I guess of the 3 options listed I'd take #2, but I still wouldn't book it for all 13 people.  When we have a family group traveling like this, we just booked tickets for the 2 of us according to what makes sense and works for us, then we email the others and say "FYI, this is what we booked in case anyone wants to book the same flights." 

[FlyerTalker]

Completely concur with Bug.  Unless there is a VERY compelling reason why ALL 13 of you need to be on the same aircraft, let the various couples/groups book their own way and meet at the other end.

[bmar808]

 

Thank you everyone!! I truly appreciate it because I am realizing that we are trying to accommodate everyone but unfortunately cannot.  The problem is that I think there are conflicting goals.  For example, we wanted to book our flights to arrive a day early in SJU, which essentially means departing Vegas two days prior--but some say they cannot take that much time off of work. For others,  cost savings is a factor but they are not taking into account the risks.

 

 

3 hours ago, FlyerTalker said:

Completely concur with Bug.  Unless there is a VERY compelling reason why ALL 13 of you need to be on the same aircraft, let the various couples/groups book their own way and meet at the other end.

 

I should add that this was initially planned with one other family for my son's graduation, with others joining in later.  Those travelling have not been on a cruise nor have travelled to areas outside of the states connected to Nevada and they are almost adamant that they want to travel with our families.  Not compelling, in my opinion, though I absolutely empathize with them.

 

14 hours ago, Twickenham said:

 

Those 2 hours between flights in FLL makes this a no-go, as they are 2 separate bookings, thus no protection in case the incoming flight is late.

 

 

This is probably the one of the 3 options that I would choose, if you shift it back by a day - that is, arrive in San Juan the day before the cruise.

 

 

No. Just... no.

 

Personally, I think trying to book this all for 13 people is insanity. I don't see this ending well...

Good point on Option 1! Option 1 makes me super nervous as well because I researched that Southwest and Jet Blue are in different terminals at FLL.  That's the one that most of the adults like the best because it is the cheapest....but cheapest doesn't necessarily mean the best.  If we miss the cruise, the lowest cost airfare has just skyrocketed to the most expensive!

That one is definitely eliminated!

 

Also, for Option 3, can I ask why "just no"?  Is the flight/itinerary itself horrible or is it due to them not wanting to get a hotel room?  I was personally thinking that would be the best one and then springing for my own hotel room (maybe even an airbnb for everyone without telling them) just because I don't want to be exhausted and fall asleep once I get on the ship.  Similarly, would that be a good option if we flew in the day before (landing on Saturday morning) or would you still prefer Option 2?

 

 

17 hours ago, klfrodo said:

None

 

1. I would never take flights across country with 1 or more stops and expect to arrive the same day the cruise departs. If I have to have 1 stop, I'm making sure I get to the port 2 days early. Reason 1 - to make sure I make it. Reason 2 - I need a day to acclimate to the time change.

 

2. Whatever prices you are seeing right now are prices in a "fare Bucket". I seriously doubt that there are 13 tickets in that same fare bucket. If you're seeing prices of $200, there are probably only 5 or 6 tickets at that price. Next fare bucket could be much much higher.  Somebodies going to get their feelings hurt and feel ripped off.

 

 

With option 1 eliminated, would love to hear your opinion/preference between options 2 & 3 if we moved them up to arriving earlier?  

And I completely forgot about the fare bucket!! 😧  Oops!

But I think that is the key point I am going to use when I argue that each family should purchase their own tickets in accordance to their own schedule and budget.  Thank you a million for reminding me and saving me the pain of potentially hearing about price differences throughout the entire vacation!

 

5 hours ago, waterbug123 said:

The option I would choose is to let the 13 people all book their own dang airfare according to what suits them.  No way in hell would I try to get 13 people to agree.  That also makes you the point person collecting money etc., and then God forbid if the plans don't go well, everyone is blaming you because you booked it. 

Beyond that, I would never choose for myself an itinerary (#1) that consists of 2 completely separate reservations on two different airlines with only 2 hours in between.  If you have a delay, you are screwed.  Nor would I choose an option that has me arriving at 3:18am and just killing time for 7 or 8 hours.  That's just misery to be so exhausted and have nowhere to go.  Keep in mind that all airport concessions will be closed at that hour.  I guess of the 3 options listed I'd take #2, but I still wouldn't book it for all 13 people.  When we have a family group traveling like this, we just booked tickets for the 2 of us according to what makes sense and works for us, then we email the others and say "FYI, this is what we booked in case anyone wants to book the same flights." 

 

No way am I going to be responsible for taking care of everyone's money lol.  I had actually heard of the Southwest Group Travel fares and called them to find out more info.  Once I learned that there was a deposit for every person on one CC and then a separate payment for the total amount due on one CC, nope, nope, nope. Gave me anxiety already and I didn't even do anything. 🤯

But similarly, I would love your preference/thoughts between option 2 or option 3 with a hotel room?

 

Thank you so much for all of your time!!!!!

 

 

 

 

[FlyerTalker]

One more item.

 

It seems as though you are only presenting options using Southwest and jetBlue.  Is there some reason for that other than just your past flights with them?

 

Also, you don't give us any travel dates, so it's impossible to make other suggestions.

[waterbug123]

23 hours ago, bmar808 said:

we wanted to book our flights to arrive a day early in SJU, which essentially means departing Vegas two days prior--but some say they cannot take that much time off of work. For others,  cost savings is a factor but they are not taking into account the risks.

 

 Those travelling have not been on a cruise nor have travelled to areas outside of the states connected to Nevada and they are almost adamant that they want to travel with our families.  Not compelling, in my opinion, though I absolutely empathize with them.

 

Good point on Option 1! Option 1 makes me super nervous as well because I researched that Southwest and Jet Blue are in different terminals at FLL. ....That one is definitely eliminated!

 

Also, for Option 3, can I ask why "just no"?  Is the flight/itinerary itself horrible or is it due to them not wanting to get a hotel room?  I was personally thinking that would be the best one and then springing for my own hotel room (maybe even an airbnb for everyone without telling them) just because I don't want to be exhausted and fall asleep once I get on the ship.  Similarly, would that be a good option if we flew in the day before (landing on Saturday morning) or would you still prefer Option 2?

 

With option 1 eliminated, would love to hear your opinion/preference between options 2 & 3 if we moved them up to arriving earlier?  

And I completely forgot about the fare bucket!! 😧  Oops!

But I think that is the key point I am going to use when I argue that each family should purchase their own tickets in accordance to their own schedule and budget.  Thank you a million for reminding me and saving me the pain of potentially hearing about price differences throughout the entire vacation!

 

 

A few more thoughts:

The first paragraph of yours above perfectly demonstrates why everyone should be in charge of choosing their own air travel plans.  The entire group shouldn't be limited because some can't take an extra day off work or some care only about price, etc.

 

It's admirable that you want to take into consideration the non-flyers desire to travel WITH your family.  Again though, you don't need to get their permission to book what works for you.  Book your travel, then let everyone know "this is what we booked if you want to book the same flights."  They are adults, and they can do as they please at that point.

 

I realize you've already eliminated option 1, but here's another thought if some in your group keep pushing for it because it's cheapest:  First explain to them that you'd be on two completely separate tickets on airlines that do not codeshare or cooperate in any way.  If you miss the 2nd flight because the 1st one was delayed or it took too long to collect your bags after the first one, or too long to get to the bag check for the 2nd one or whatever, you will be out of luck.  Airline #2 will owe you nothing.  Beyond that, at FLL, Southwest operates out of Terminal 1 and Jet Blue operates out of Terminal 3.  These terminals are not connected airside.  You must completely exit T1, walk outside past T2 and on to T3 to enter and check in for Jet Blue.  The walkway is largely covered, but it's a hike and there is no fast/easy plane train between terminals.  I believe there is a shuttle, but the constant vehicular traffic jam at FLL is such that it probably isn't much faster than walking, by the time you locate the shuttle stop, wait for the shuttle, and ride it through the gridlock to T3. 

 

Why not option 3?  The 3:18am arrival is a deal breaker for me.  As mentioned before, if you don't get a hotel room, you'll be stuck in the airport, where no lounges or concessions will be open.  Waiting in those conditions for several hours would be pure misery.  Once concessions begin to open around 5 or 6 am, you still have at least 4 hours to kill before you can realistically head to the cruise terminal, at which point you still won't be able to get into your cabin for a couple more hours to shower.  The ONLY way I'd consider that option is to get a hotel room, but be careful- if you get a room after the rest of your group didn't want to, I can almost promise they will want to come crash in your room.  And an airbnb?  While that's generous of you, what if you have trouble finding it at 4am or the key code doesn't work or whatever?  Will you be able to reach your host at that hour?  Plus I'm not sure what the available transportation options would be at 4am.  I've never arrived at FLL at that hour.  Probably there are some ubers in the area, but your group of 13 would need several; how long might you have to wait?  Easier to book a nearby hotel room that you know you can find, and that you know will have desk staff working 24/7.  Then tell the rest of your group that you have a room for yourselves and politely suggest they get their own because yours won't accommodate extra people.  (Even if they could squeeze in and crash on the floor, the hotel is unlikely to allow that many people to do so!). If they want to crash in the airport, you can all meet up onboard the ship.

 

Hope this helps!

[slidergirl]

Don't know your dates other than May.  But, there are 2 cheap routings on American - within $30 of Jet Blue.

There's also Spirit, but friends don't let friends fly Spirit...

[Flymia]

21 hours ago, slidergirl said:

Don't know your dates other than May.  But, there are 2 cheap routings on American - within $30 of Jet Blue.

There's also Spirit, but friends don't let friends fly Spirit...

 

Other than that their seats don't recline and you don't get free soft drinks there is not a big difference between Spirit and say American. You have to pay a fee for almost everything on either airline. At least JetBlue gives decent on board entertainment, even JetBlue has a fee for seat selection now. 

 

To the OP. The only "ok" option is option 3. But why only Southwest and JetBlue? Why have all the other airlines not made it, are the prices that much worse? 

 

Option 1 is an absolute NO GO. 

 

Option 2 is eh, maybe if the cruise has one of those 10p.m. departures you see out of San Juan sometimes. 

 

Option 3 is still not great, but leaves plenty of room for delays (not cancellations) but the probability of a cancellation out in May is not that high of course it can happen. 

 

But there is certainly a morning departure from LAS to say Miami or Atlanta with an evening flight to SJU that arrives the night before. 

 

[Ashland]

Definitely option #2...no doubt !!!!

[waterbug123]

19 hours ago, Flymia said:

 

Other than that their seats don't recline and you don't get free soft drinks there is not a big difference between Spirit and say American. You have to pay a fee for almost everything on either airline. At least JetBlue gives decent on board entertainment, even JetBlue has a fee for seat selection now.

 

Actually, there are a couple of really big differences.  Spirit does not codeshare, interline or partner with any other airline.  If they have a major mechanical delay for instance, there is NO option to get rebooked on anything other than another Spirit flight...which your entire plane full of people will be trying to do.  Second, they often have a limited number of flights to a given destination on a given day; some routes they only fly a couple of times a week.  Meanwhile, if booked in American, or any legacy airline, you have numerous hubs through which you can be rerouted relatively easily compared to an ultra low cost carrier like Spirit.  Spirit is fine if you aren't relying on getting to your destination for a time-specific event.  If you are, you'll have much more flexibility in the case of irrops if flying a legacy airline.

[bmar808]

Man, you guys are awesome!! 

 

To answer the questions:

Our cruise departs San Juan on May 31, 2020, leaving dock at 6m; returning June 7^th. 

 

My ideal is to arrive to SJU sometime in the morning/afternoon on May 30 and depart either June 8th or 9th.

 

The flights above were primarily chosen by others in our group; mostly because of price and because those airlines are the only ones we have every flown with (aside from Hawaiian Air). 

I do have rewards points available to use for Southwest.  If we did choose the SW flight above, I would be able to get OW tickets for all of my immediate family; but it is not imperative that I use them because they don’t expire and I could potentially use them for our returns or definitely use them for when we visit family in LAX, PHX, and SFO. Overall, not a dealbreaker.

 

I took from the feedback that we should be scratching all of above options and starting over again.

 

So, looking at what we want to do only, I did find 2 Delta flights that appear both cost effective and less stressful.

 

Flight 1:

Depart LAS 5/29 at 11:55 pm – Layover in DTW for 1h55m – Arrive SJU 5/30 at 1:20 pm

 

Flight 2:

Depart LAS 5/29 at 10:30 pm – Layover in DTW for 3h23m – Arrive SJU 5/30 at 1:20 pm

 

Cheapest price for both is $225.20 (Basic) and next tier is $255.20 (Main). 

 

If I understand the website terms correctly, I am thinking that I would purchase the Main pricing because I want to select my seats since I have children.

 

Thoughts on whether we should take the earlier flight from LAS with a longer layover in DTW; or is 1h55m enough time?  Secondly, are my thoughts correct regarding Main pricing?  Finally, is Delta a good choice when it comes to timeliness, efficiency, etc.?

 

On 11/24/2019 at 10:45 AM, waterbug123 said:

 

A few more thoughts:

The first paragraph of yours above perfectly demonstrates why everyone should be in charge of choosing their own air travel plans.  The entire group shouldn't be limited because some can't take an extra day off work or some care only about price, etc.

 

It's admirable that you want to take into consideration the non-flyers desire to travel WITH your family.  Again though, you don't need to get their permission to book what works for you.  Book your travel, then let everyone know "this is what we booked if you want to book the same flights."  They are adults, and they can do as they please at that point.

 

I realize you've already eliminated option 1, but here's another thought if some in your group keep pushing for it because it's cheapest:  First explain to them that you'd be on two completely separate tickets on airlines that do not codeshare or cooperate in any way.  If you miss the 2nd flight because the 1st one was delayed or it took too long to collect your bags after the first one, or too long to get to the bag check for the 2nd one or whatever, you will be out of luck.  Airline #2 will owe you nothing.  Beyond that, at FLL, Southwest operates out of Terminal 1 and Jet Blue operates out of Terminal 3.  These terminals are not connected airside.  You must completely exit T1, walk outside past T2 and on to T3 to enter and check in for Jet Blue.  The walkway is largely covered, but it's a hike and there is no fast/easy plane train between terminals.  I believe there is a shuttle, but the constant vehicular traffic jam at FLL is such that it probably isn't much faster than walking, by the time you locate the shuttle stop, wait for the shuttle, and ride it through the gridlock to T3. 

 

Why not option 3?  The 3:18am arrival is a deal breaker for me.  As mentioned before, if you don't get a hotel room, you'll be stuck in the airport, where no lounges or concessions will be open.  Waiting in those conditions for several hours would be pure misery.  Once concessions begin to open around 5 or 6 am, you still have at least 4 hours to kill before you can realistically head to the cruise terminal, at which point you still won't be able to get into your cabin for a couple more hours to shower.  The ONLY way I'd consider that option is to get a hotel room, but be careful- if you get a room after the rest of your group didn't want to, I can almost promise they will want to come crash in your room.  And an airbnb?  While that's generous of you, what if you have trouble finding it at 4am or the key code doesn't work or whatever?  Will you be able to reach your host at that hour?  Plus I'm not sure what the available transportation options would be at 4am.  I've never arrived at FLL at that hour.  Probably there are some ubers in the area, but your group of 13 would need several; how long might you have to wait?  Easier to book a nearby hotel room that you know you can find, and that you know will have desk staff working 24/7.  Then tell the rest of your group that you have a room for yourselves and politely suggest they get their own because yours won't accommodate extra people.  (Even if they could squeeze in and crash on the floor, the hotel is unlikely to allow that many people to do so!). If they want to crash in the airport, you can all meet up onboard the ship.

 

Hope this helps!

 

This is a GREAT help and exactly what I was looking for when I posted! You brought up things I failed to consider, such as the AirBNB issues too. Thank you!

 

On 11/24/2019 at 12:54 PM, slidergirl said:

Don't know your dates other than May.  But, there are 2 cheap routings on American - within $30 of Jet Blue.

There's also Spirit, but friends don't let friends fly Spirit...

 

5 hours ago, waterbug123 said:

 

Actually, there are a couple of really big differences.  Spirit does not codeshare, interline or partner with any other airline.  If they have a major mechanical delay for instance, there is NO option to get rebooked on anything other than another Spirit flight...which your entire plane full of people will be trying to do.  Second, they often have a limited number of flights to a given destination on a given day; some routes they only fly a couple of times a week.  Meanwhile, if booked in American, or any legacy airline, you have numerous hubs through which you can be rerouted relatively easily compared to an ultra low cost carrier like Spirit.  Spirit is fine if you aren't relying on getting to your destination for a time-specific event.  If you are, you'll have much more flexibility in the case of irrops if flying a legacy airline.

 

 Though I didn't even want to try Spirit, we looked at it because we heard it was low-cost.  LAS to SJU is $551 per person...yikes?!!

Edited November 26, 2019 by bmar808

[Zach1213]

16 minutes ago, bmar808 said:

Flight 1:

Depart LAS 5/29 at 11:55 pm – Layover in DTW for 1h55m – Arrive SJU 5/30 at 1:20 pm

 

Flight 2:

Depart LAS 5/29 at 10:30 pm – Layover in DTW for 3h23m – Arrive SJU 5/30 at 1:20 pm

 

Cheapest price for both is $225.20 (Basic) and next tier is $255.20 (Main). 

 

If I understand the website terms correctly, I am thinking that I would purchase the Main pricing because I want to select my seats since I have children.

 

 

 

1h55 is more than enough at DTW. You're on a domestic-to-domestic flight, won't need to worry about anything except getting from one gate to the next. And I would always, always, always spend the extra money to bump up from basic economy tickets, unless it was a short flight and I was traveling alone and really didn't care where I sat...which is pretty much never 🙂

 

[scottbee]

I'm not seeing the issue here

Parameters:  

• Need to be in SJU on (assuming) Saturday
• Can't take more than 1 day off work (just Friday)

Answer;

leave Thursday night on a Redeye to the east coast

 

 

Flight options:

#1

JetBlue dep Thurs 10:05p arr FLL Fri 05:46a
JetBlue dep Fri 08:11a arr SJU 10:47a

 

#2

AA dep Thurs 10:10p arr MIA Fri 06:07a

AA dep Fri 07:20a arr SJU 09:55a

 

and so on....

 

[bmar808]

20 minutes ago, Zach1213 said:

 

1h55 is more than enough at DTW. You're on a domestic-to-domestic flight, won't need to worry about anything except getting from one gate to the next. And I would always, always, always spend the extra money to bump up from basic economy tickets, unless it was a short flight and I was traveling alone and really didn't care where I sat...which is pretty much never 🙂

 

Awesome! Thank you very much!

10 minutes ago, scottbee said:

I'm not seeing the issue here

Parameters:  

• Need to be in SJU on (assuming) Saturday
• Can't take more than 1 day off work (just Friday) 

The original issue was that some in the group cannot/do not want to take off from work on Friday, wanting us to leave LAS on Saturday.  But I am liking your recommendations for my family...will look into them.  Thanks!

Edited November 26, 2019 by bmar808

[FlyerTalker]

The two hours at DTW is more than enough time.  It's an extremely efficient airport, and since both of your flights are mainline, you'll most likely be in the A concourse for both.  Easy connection.  (Look at the DTW website for more info on the McNamara Terminal which is what DL uses).

 

Operationally, DL is running better than both AA and UA in terms of schedule performance and maintenance reliability.  Not by huge amounts, but solid.

 

The only reason why I might choose to take the longer connect is if I was interested in a sit-down meal between flights at DTW.  But if you would only be doing grab and go, say from McDonald's or Starbucks, then the short connect would still work fine.

 

As for Main vs Basic, that's a choice you have to make.  Luckily, the DL website pretty well describes the difference.  One more consideration - Basic boards last, so you may have to gate check any carryons.

[alcpa1]

I'd opt for the Delta option 1 any day with main cabin fare. You can get your seating together with main and above when you book not so with basic economy fares.

While you will hear of Delta's frequent schedule changes that can be both a minus and plus. And, while Delta has cut back on it's flights to SJU it also has mainland flights to SJU from New York and Atlanta. Your flight options are far more expansive than Spirit for example.

Also Southwest has SJU flights from Orlando.

For the novice cruisers in your group I would point out the recommendations for prior arrival into SJU by at least 1 day and if they opt for same day arrival the wisdom of insurance. They probably don't know that with a 6 pm departure they must be on board no later than 4:30 which really means a flight arrival no later than 2. 

If your friends/family balk at the wise recs here they might also balk at my rec for passports especially if they insist on flying in the day of embarkation.

I feel your sense of responsibility but please let each family unit book their own air fare. I've been in your shoes and I would love to save your kind soul from any more angst.

[bmar808]

On 11/28/2019 at 9:42 PM, alcpa1 said:

I'd opt for the Delta option 1 any day with main cabin fare. You can get your seating together with main and above when you book not so with basic economy fares.

While you will hear of Delta's frequent schedule changes that can be both a minus and plus. And, while Delta has cut back on it's flights to SJU it also has mainland flights to SJU from New York and Atlanta. Your flight options are far more expansive than Spirit for example.

Also Southwest has SJU flights from Orlando.

For the novice cruisers in your group I would point out the recommendations for prior arrival into SJU by at least 1 day and if they opt for same day arrival the wisdom of insurance. They probably don't know that with a 6 pm departure they must be on board no later than 4:30 which really means a flight arrival no later than 2. 

If your friends/family balk at the wise recs here they might also balk at my rec for passports especially if they insist on flying in the day of embarkation.

I feel your sense of responsibility but please let each family unit book their own air fare. I've been in your shoes and I would love to save your kind soul from any more angst.

I am sending your recs to them in a text right now! They may not listen to me so I'm hoping maybe they'll listen to others but even if they don't, I can say I at least provided the information. 

I'm already hearing about my lack of compromise, which includes not only our flights but even the cruise excursions. 

 

I have decided that we are doing what all the wise people here have suggested and booking what fits for husband & kids.  Thank you a million for your thoughts and input on the various aspects!!

[terry&mike]

18 hours ago, bmar808 said:

I am sending your recs to them in a text right now! They may not listen to me so I'm hoping maybe they'll listen to others but even if they don't, I can say I at least provided the information. 

I'm already hearing about my lack of compromise, which includes not only our flights but even the cruise excursions. 

 

I have decided that we are doing what all the wise people here have suggested and booking what fits for husband & kids.  Thank you a million for your thoughts and input on the various aspects!!

Hello, this is the downside of trying to put something together for a group. I feel your pain, and am sorry for it. I take a group, usually 12-26 people, on a trip somewhere at least once or twice a year. In 2020 it is a 3 week trip across Southeast Asia for 29 in January, and a land and river cruise in Portugal for 18 in October. It started out being a very small group of just our friends, and has grown to include some clients as well.

Long ago, I found the best way to handle it is to book exactly what I want, and once I have myself booked, then I send out an email to the group to see if anyone would like to join us. I let them know our plans as to the booking, the air, possible excursions, etc, and make sure to put a note that they are welcome to join us on anything they like, or go their own way at any point, that it is their vacation, and to enjoy. 

[waterbug123]

On 11/30/2019 at 2:00 PM, bmar808 said:

I'm already hearing about my lack of compromise, which includes not only our flights but even the cruise excursions. 

 

I have decided that we are doing what all the wise people here have suggested and booking what fits for husband & kids.  Thank you a million for your thoughts and input on the various aspects!!

 

Good for you, it's the only way to go in my opinion.  As for those saying you won't compromise, I would gently re-explain to them that there is simply no need to compromise; there is no need for everyone to travel on the exact same flights.  In essence, you ARE compromising because you aren't insisting that some members of the group take flights that are not ideal for them.  Everyone can take the flights that are ideal for their own personal situation.  As for excursions, same thing.  You don't all need to be glued at the hip 24/7.  Everyone should feel free to take whatever excursions they choose. 

 

22 hours ago, terry&mike said:

Long ago, I found the best way to handle it is to book exactly what I want, and once I have myself booked, then I send out an email to the group to see if anyone would like to join us. I let them know our plans as to the booking, the air, possible excursions, etc, and make sure to put a note that they are welcome to join us on anything they like, or go their own way at any point, that it is their vacation, and to enjoy. 

 

That's our method too.  "Hey guys, just FYI, we booked our flights for the trip. Here are the details if anyone wants to book the same ones. If not, just let us know when you arrive so we can meet up once we are all on the ground." 

[txjim09]

On 11/30/2019 at 1:00 PM, bmar808 said:

I am sending your recs to them in a text right now! They may not listen to me so I'm hoping maybe they'll listen to others but even if they don't, I can say I at least provided the information. 

I'm already hearing about my lack of compromise, which includes not only our flights but even the cruise excursions. 

 

 

Just on a side note, cruise excursions are another area where you want to state "I'm doing this, here's where I booked & here are some other options."  The extended family cruises I've been on have used this approach ad have worked out well.  In one port, we had sufficient interest to book an entire whale watching tour but scattered in others.  We did book fixed time dining to avoid any scheduling issues and have a fixed area to meet daily but were otherwise free to pursue our own interests (which often still resulted in large group meetings.)

 

Contrast this to the cruise my sister took with her in-laws/extended family where the "person in charge" wanted everyone to be at the correct place at the correct time and woe be the person who dd not meet expectations.  Much drama ensued.

 

The first example is fondly remembered and we're planning additional similar events.  The second example still causes my sister to shake nervously.

[Mr. Click]

On 11/26/2019 at 10:53 AM, bmar808 said:

Man, you guys are awesome!! 

 

To answer the questions:

Our cruise departs San Juan on May 31, 2020, leaving dock at 6m; returning June 7^th. 

 

My ideal is to arrive to SJU sometime in the morning/afternoon on May 30 and depart either June 8th or 9th.

 

The flights above were primarily chosen by others in our group; mostly because of price and because those airlines are the only ones we have every flown with (aside from Hawaiian Air). 

I do have rewards points available to use for Southwest.  If we did choose the SW flight above, I would be able to get OW tickets for all of my immediate family; but it is not imperative that I use them because they don’t expire and I could potentially use them for our returns or definitely use them for when we visit family in LAX, PHX, and SFO. Overall, not a dealbreaker.

 

I took from the feedback that we should be scratching all of above options and starting over again.

 

So, looking at what we want to do only, I did find 2 Delta flights that appear both cost effective and less stressful.

 

Flight 1:

Depart LAS 5/29 at 11:55 pm – Layover in DTW for 1h55m – Arrive SJU 5/30 at 1:20 pm

 

Flight 2:

Depart LAS 5/29 at 10:30 pm – Layover in DTW for 3h23m – Arrive SJU 5/30 at 1:20 pm

 

Cheapest price for both is $225.20 (Basic) and next tier is $255.20 (Main). 

 

If I understand the website terms correctly, I am thinking that I would purchase the Main pricing because I want to select my seats since I have children.

 

Thoughts on whether we should take the earlier flight from LAS with a longer layover in DTW; or is 1h55m enough time?  Secondly, are my thoughts correct regarding Main pricing?  Finally, is Delta a good choice when it comes to timeliness, efficiency, etc.?

 

 

This is a GREAT help and exactly what I was looking for when I posted! You brought up things I failed to consider, such as the AirBNB issues too. Thank you!

 

 

 

 Though I didn't even want to try Spirit, we looked at it because we heard it was low-cost.  LAS to SJU is $551 per person...yikes?!!

I am late seeing this thread but I would walk to SJU or anywhere else before I would fly with Spirit.  I did fly with them once and I did get where I was going pretty much on time but.....there were so so many things that could have gone wrong that would have wrecked my trip I was a nervous wreck the whole week leading up to it.  Their "fare' can look cheap but by the time you add in all of the Extras, including $25 to carry on my camera bag it was far from cheap but it was some place I had to get to and my tame frame for travel was extremely limited.  Like someone else said, friends don't let friends fly Spirit...and we are all friends here.   SanJuan is a great place to visit and since you are all desert dwellers allow some time to see the city and enjoy the beaches.

[FredT]

One more (late) comment.   I understand that those who are not "worldly" travelers may not want to fly to San Juan on their own.  Having said THAT, remind them that Puerto Rico IS part of the USA, EVERYONE around the airport will be fluent in english, and that transportation to either a hotel (If they fly in a day early) or the cruise piers is SIMPLE, either by using the cruise lines transfer bus or taxi.   

 

PS:....  Add me to the long list of those who firmly recomend flying out a day early.   On at least two occasions we have had flights cancel on the way to cruises, and if we had NOT booked a day early we would have missed the cruise. 

 

PPS:   Yeah, I like the Delta options the best.   They get you there early, and even if the FIRST leg gets canceled, they can alway reroute you through a bunch of cities with daily flights to San Juan.   

Edited December 6, 2019 by FredT
adding PPS

[Zach1213]

15 hours ago, FredT said:

One more (late) comment.   I understand that those who are not "worldly" travelers may not want to fly to San Juan on their own.  Having said THAT, remind them that Puerto Rico IS part of the USA 

 

One of my favorite Cruise Critic moments was when I got in an argument with someone a few years back on the San Juan page who kept insisting Puerto Rico was not part of the United States because they didn't speak English. He fully admitted that, legally, it was...but that he didn't like it and refused to acknowledge it as such, like he was the one who dictated what makes a place "American". That was fun.