Princess transfers, LA departure - all LA area airports?

[Joanne G.]

My friend and I booked a Coastal California cruise next March.  We purchased Princess transfers between the airport and the ship.   After booking, we made flight arrangements to John Wayne/Orange County airport.   Then I found myself wondering - from/to which LA area airport(s)  does Princess provide transfers?  I read all the fine print I can find in our documents and searched the Princess site, but all references are just "the airport."

 

I could call Princess, but my recent contacts with them over a canceled cruise and this re-booked one started with over an hour on hold, so I was trying to avoid that.   Also, information in my documents recommends departure flights no earlier that 12:30, but, again, the airport for that recommendation isn't specified.   Our flight home from SNA is at 1:30, a safe time - if that airport is included in Princess' suggested flight times.   I am unfamiliar with the LA area, though I assume traffic could be horrific.

 

Thanks for any information you can provide.   

[skynight]

I can only tell you that when we flew from John Wayne we took a taxi. Very easy. Memory thinks the trip was about 40 to 45 minutes. Cost was maybe $60 for the two of us. You can easily make a 1:30 flight. The taxis and uber/lyft drivers are all lined up in the parking area as you disembark.

Private transport is the way we get to/from the port in San Pedro. 

[Kenosha Cruiser]

Princess only provides transfers from and to LAX. I have flights from Long Beach for a up coming cruise, no Princess transfers from or to this airport. You will have to go with private transportation from John Wayne. Good luck.

 

Cheers - Ken & Darlene

 

 

 

[NavyVeteran]

I just checked an upcoming cruise from LA and, as you said, the Transfers selection only says "TRANSFER AIRPORT TO SHIP" or "TRANSFER SHIP TO AIRPORT" without specifying the airport. However, the description of the "TRANSFER AIRPORT TO SHIP" on my Travel Summary (after I purchased the transfers) has the following information: "Transfers are valid only from LAX Airport".

 

The description of "TRANSFER SHIP TO AIRPORT" did not specify an airport, but it did say "The transfer to the airport is approximately 50 minutes, subject to traffic."

 

Based on this information, it does appear that transfers are available only from and to LAX. However, Princess really needs to clarify their descriptions and explicitly list this information.

 

For comparison, a cruise out of Fort Lauderdale lists two options for transfers: "TRANSFER MIAMI AIRPORT TO SHIP" and "TRANSFER AIRPORT TO SHIP". The "TRANSFER AIRPORT TO SHIP" transfer clearly is for FLL, even though it doesn't explicitly say so. A British Isles cruise lists the transfer option "TRANSFER LHR/LGW AIRPORT TO SHIP", so your purchase the same transfer for either airport and it explicitly mentions the two airports.

 

As usual, Princess is consistently inconsistent.

[riffatsea]

Since the cruiseport is an LA cruise port it is logical to me that the transfer would be from an LA airport which is LAX

John Wayne Airport is not in LA city or county

[muffin]

But some of us from away wouldn’t know that geography!  Just saying it’s an honest question.

[Joanne G.]

1 hour ago, riffatsea said:

Since the cruiseport is an LA cruise port it is logical to me that the transfer would be from an LA airport which is LAX

John Wayne Airport is not in LA city or county

 

Thank you all. I appreciate the information.    It looks like we will drop the transfers and plan on private transportation.    For the record, I have cruised multiple times out of Manhattan on Carnival and NCL, and they sell transfers to the 3 NYC area airports, including Newark, which is a different city, county, and state from the Manhattan cruise port.   So, I think I had a reasonable  question.  😄

 

 

[riffatsea]

The difference is that airlines will call the 3 airports you mentioned as nyc airports even though 1 is inNJ

I have not seen airline sites call John Wayne an LA airport

If the airline site did call it anLA Airport then I can certainly understand your confusion

 

[Rick&Jeannie]

For any transfer that has multiple options for an airport, there is a drop-down selection.  If you're not paying attention you will likely blow right past it.  This is one little gotcha that even the "old" Personalizer online contained...there was always a "default" selection of airport and unless you checked the drop-down (if there *was* one) you would not realize that you may have just made a mistake.  It should have actively pointed out that there were options and allow you to select one.

[Joanne G.]

I don't think there ever was a drop-down with a choice of airports.  So, those who say Princess only offers transfer from/to LAX must be right.   The good news is that I could delete the transfer when logging into my booking online, eliminating the need for a phone call with likely a long time on hold.

 

Again, thank you all for taking the time to respond.  Now I know!   

[skynight]

On 10/6/2021 at 6:03 PM, Joanne G. said:

 

Thank you all. I appreciate the information.    It looks like we will drop the transfers and plan on private transportation.    For the record, I have cruised multiple times out of Manhattan on Carnival and NCL, and they sell transfers to the 3 NYC area airports, including Newark, which is a different city, county, and state from the Manhattan cruise port.   So, I think I had a reasonable  question.  😄

 

 

Yes, very reasonable. I would think the difference is that many flights to/from NYC are serviced from all 3 airports and many passengers use one of the 3.  When Princess sailed the Canada itinerary from Brooklyn in the fall they did provide transfers to all 3 airports.

It probably is not cost effective to provide transfers to John Wayne as there are not many flights from there. However, Princess should indicate up front that transfers are available to LAX only. 

[AF-1]

I am currently on Grand Princess and we arrive San Pedro which is LA cruise terminal. Princess Paperwork onboard states LAX transfer.  I am flying out of Long Beach whic is a 25 minute taxi to airport. The cost to the ship was around $34

[rj59]

There simply isn't enough passenger traffic from LGB or SNA to make transfers viable, and it would create a lot of delay and stress waiting to fill a bus, as well as on disembarkation morning. I've actually taken a public bus from San Pedro to downtown Long Beach, and another bus from Long Beach to LGB. 

[Joanne G.]

On 10/6/2021 at 7:54 AM, skynight said:

I can only tell you that when we flew from John Wayne we took a taxi. Very easy. Memory thinks the trip was about 40 to 45 minutes. Cost was maybe $60 for the two of us. You can easily make a 1:30 flight. The taxis and uber/lyft drivers are all lined up in the parking area as you disembark.

Private transport is the way we get to/from the port in San Pedro. 

 

A special thank you,  skynight, for the above reassurance that our 1:30 flight is do-able.   I do know from experience that cruise line transfers can mean sitting on a bus for some time waiting for it to fill, and a taxi can be convenient and reasonably priced.   We are fine with taking a taxi.  

 

And I agree with your statement that Princess should be more upfront in booking process that for the coastal California cruises, "airport" means LAX.   I finalized the booking over the phone with a customer service rep, and while she was very helpful with some other issues, she apparently didn't feel the need to clarify the airport when I requested the transfers.

 

[AF-1]

SNA airport is a little further from cruise port than LGB.  I say maybe 40 taxi ride

[SNJCruisers]

Any idea of the cost of an Uber XL/Lyft XL from San Pedro to a hotel near LAX?

[2 cruises a year]

On 10/6/2021 at 1:38 PM, riffatsea said:

Since the cruiseport is an LA cruise port it is logical to me that the transfer would be from an LA airport which is LAX

John Wayne Airport is not in LA city or 

Delete.

My comment had already been addressed, I guess I'll never learn to read all comments before responding. 

Edited October 12, 2021 by 2 cruises a year

[skynight]

4 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

Any idea of the cost of an Uber XL/Lyft XL from San Pedro to a hotel near LAX?

Somewhere in the $50 to $70 range. Depends if the hotel is north or south of the airport. Last time we were there we took a group shuttle from the port in San Pedro to the Embassy Suites just north of the airport. Kind of remember the rate was around $45 for the two of us. Believe Prime Time still operates. 

[cruzin4us]

On my last cruise out of San Pedro there were a slew of people that flew into Long Beach, and they barely made the cruise.   Their plane was delayed and they didn't have the ship offered transfer because Princess only provided out of LAX.  They said it was much cheaper for them to fly into Long Beach but their plane was delayed.  Just a suggestion:   Fly into Long Beach the day before and stay overnight at the Crown Royal which is located very close to the pier (not walking distance but still quite close).  Pre covid they offered a shuttle service but that's not happening right now so we are going to take an Uber or taxi to the port on Saturday.   

[Steelers36]

On 10/6/2021 at 11:27 AM, NavyVeteran said:

As usual, Princess is consistently inconsistent.

That is at least one thing we can count on with Princess.

[SNJCruisers]

11 hours ago, skynight said:

 Believe Prime Time still operates. 

Their online reviews are abysmal. 

[rj59]

I prefer to stay in Long Beach the day before a cruise. There’s more to do, including biking or walking the beach, with more lodging and dining options. If I’m on a 4-night cruise I often stay in Long Beach an extra day too.