Is one day early enough?

[roysue]

In many years of cruising, we've always gone in 1 day early and felt that was adequate.  We are cruising out of Ft. Lauderdale in September.  I have tickets  on Delta.  Doe you think 1 day early is adequate,  considering the current difficulty with flight cancelations?

[Ashland]

I wouldn't hesitate to keep what you have. Just keep a check on your flights and add alerts to your reservation.

[rkacruiser]

Personally, no, I would arrive in Fort Lauderdale at least two days early, enjoy some pre-cruise experiences/dining in the area, and, very frankly OP, since you live in Michigan, I wouldn't fly.  I would drive.  

[Ashland]

5 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

Personally, no, I would arrive in Fort Lauderdale at least two days early, enjoy some pre-cruise experiences/dining in the area, and, very frankly OP, since you live in Michigan, I wouldn't fly.  I would drive.  

Gas prices and wear & tear on their car...a 21 hour drive...may have to include a hotel...vs....flying...hmmm.

[roysue]

Thank you to every for your thoughts 

[Mary229]

One thing is the Covid testing.  Last time I was going to fly in 2 days ahead but due to Covid testing I chose to take my tests at my local pharmacy and arrive there only one day early 

[SFCAcruiser]

23 hours ago, roysue said:

In many years of cruising, we've always gone in 1 day early and felt that was adequate.  We are cruising out of Ft. Lauderdale in September.  I have tickets  on Delta.  Doe you think 1 day early is adequate,  considering the current difficulty with flight cancelations?

 

I can empathize with your concerns. Like you, I always arrived one day early, and longer for European cruises. But the current news reports about the status of the airlines has given me the same concerns you have - one day may not be enough. I do not have a cruise booked yet, but when I do, I think I will try for arriving at least two days in advance. It all comes down to personal preference and risk tolerance. 

[roysue]

Thanks everyone.   It always good to get more input!

[kelkel2]

I think 1 day is fine. It gives you enough time to have a back up plan. We don’t cruise until January, but I told my husband if we had to, we could always use driving as a backup plan. Is it ideal? No. But if something happened and our flights were majorly delayed I wouldn’t hesitate. 

[Suzanne123]

I think that if you have multiple non-stop options from your (hopefully major) airport, you should be fine.
I only run into problems when the airlines reschedule my flights with 30 and 40 minute connections in Chicago, Charlotte, or Atlanta.

[Z'Loth]

Now, the advice, per this Cruise Critic article Flying to Your Cruise: How to Travel This Summer Amid the Chaos, is to fly in two days in advance instead of one. 

[Retirement2016]

On 6/22/2022 at 2:33 PM, roysue said:

In many years of cruising, we've always gone in 1 day early and felt that was adequate.  We are cruising out of Ft. Lauderdale in September.  I have tickets  on Delta.  Doe you think 1 day early is adequate,  considering the current difficulty with flight cancelations?

 

No, I would not take the chance.

 

We recently missed our cruise out of Southampton due to TWO airline delay/cancellations.  We were to leave LAX on 6/22, flight delayed due to mechanical problem, then cancellation due to no crew.  Rebooked on another airline, spent the night in a hotel.  Next day (22 hours later) our flight coming from LHR diverted to Canada for medical emergency.  Second flight delayed 28 hours, leaving LAX 9 pm.  Now it's 6/24 and our ship is due to leave on 6/25.  Needless to say, there was no way we could make it on board.   What are the chances of missing two flights in a row?

 

This cruise was planned for two years, delayed graduation present for my son.

 

At least you are traveling in the U.S.  I would still give yourself two days.  Lot easier on your nerves.

[styme123]

On 6/27/2022 at 9:36 AM, Retirement2016 said:

 

No, I would not take the chance.

 

We recently missed our cruise out of Southampton due to TWO airline delay/cancellations.  We were to leave LAX on 6/22, flight delayed due to mechanical problem, then cancellation due to no crew.  Rebooked on another airline, spent the night in a hotel.  Next day (22 hours later) our flight coming from LHR diverted to Canada for medical emergency.  Second flight delayed 28 hours, leaving LAX 9 pm.  Now it's 6/24 and our ship is due to leave on 6/25.  Needless to say, there was no way we could make it on board.   What are the chances of missing two flights in a row?

 

This cruise was planned for two years, delayed graduation present for my son.

 

At least you are traveling in the U.S.  I would still give yourself two days.  Lot easier on your nerves.

We're leaving out of Southampton as well in Aug. concerned for flights now was well.

[Retirement2016]

27 minutes ago, styme123 said:

We're leaving out of Southampton as well in Aug. concerned for flights now was well.

 

At first we thought of taking the 3:30 pm flight out of LAX, but Princess requires a Covid test before boarding the ship.  We wanted to take the test here in the US before boarding the flight (just in case of positive result),.  We also needed 2 hrs drive time, plus 3 hrs to check in at LAX (2 live in San Diego, 1 live in Camarillo) so we made reservation on the later 6:35 pm flight.  

 

I would make sure there are later flights available if your flight is cancelled.  We did have the option of flying LAX-FLL-PHL-LHR, total flight time 26 hours in Economy when we were booked in business class.  My children said "no".

 

Good luck on your flight.

 

 

 

 

 

[sandancer]

10 hours ago, styme123 said:

We're leaving out of Southampton as well in Aug. concerned for flights now was well.

Other way round for us. We are flying to Miami in August for a cruise from Fort Lauderdale. Now BA threatening strikes. We planned a 5 night stay before the cruise and I’m very glad now we did that. 

[Zach1213]

On 6/23/2022 at 4:32 PM, SFCAcruiser said:

 

I can empathize with your concerns. Like you, I always arrived one day early, and longer for European cruises. But the current news reports about the status of the airlines has given me the same concerns you have - one day may not be enough. I do not have a cruise booked yet, but when I do, I think I will try for arriving at least two days in advance. It all comes down to personal preference and risk tolerance. 

 

The problem is, it's just so inconsistent. The last two weeks I have had wildly different experiences on the same airline (my usual airline, American) - two weeks ago, I had a hell of a time with delays going MCI-DFW-LAX-PHX-MCI. Last week, I went MCI-DCA-RDU-CLT-MCI and everything was early. 

[Mary229]

1 hour ago, Zach1213 said:

 

The problem is, it's just so inconsistent. The last two weeks I have had wildly different experiences on the same airline (my usual airline, American) - two weeks ago, I had a hell of a time with delays going MCI-DFW-LAX-PHX-MCI. Last week, I went MCI-DCA-RDU-CLT-MCI and everything was early. 

Wow, that is a nightmare schedule.  I pay up for nonstop, it is worth it. 

[Zach1213]

35 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

Wow, that is a nightmare schedule.  I pay up for nonstop, it is worth it. 

 

I'm used to it. I live in Kansas City (not the biggest air market) but travel pretty much constantly. There are no nonstops MCI-RDU at this time, so no option but to change planes. For MCI-LAX, there are nonstops on Delta, Spirit, and Southwest...but I am an American frequent flier, have little desire to fly Spirit, am hit-or-miss on Southwest, and Delta has been having even more issues than American lately (though, sadly, not in my exact LAX instance). For me it's not really about cost since work is paying for it, it's about either convenience or loyalty perks. 

Edited June 29, 2022 by Zach1213

[Z'Loth]

19 hours ago, Zach1213 said:

The problem is, it's just so inconsistent. The last two weeks I have had wildly different experiences on the same airline (my usual airline, American) - two weeks ago, I had a hell of a time with delays going MCI-DFW-LAX-PHX-MCI. Last week, I went MCI-DCA-RDU-CLT-MCI and everything was early. 

 

At least Kansas City International (MCI) is slightly better than Sacramento International (SMF) in terms of number of destinations, but only slightly. One of the reasons why I accepted (and embraced) relocation from Sacramento to DFW was the better flights from DFW International (DFW) and Dallas Love Field (DAL). 

 

 

[Zach1213]

6 hours ago, Z'Loth said:

 

At least Kansas City International (MCI) is slightly better than Sacramento International (SMF) in terms of number of destinations, but only slightly. One of the reasons why I accepted (and embraced) relocation from Sacramento to DFW was the better flights from DFW International (DFW) and Dallas Love Field (DAL). 

 

 

Yes, but at least within 1.5-2 hours you also have SFO, OAK, and even SJC depending on traffic. Sure, it may not be quite as convenient as SMF, but if you told me I only had to drive 1.5 hours for nonstops to Europe, Asia, Australia/South Pacific, etc. I would probably at least consider over a connection from SMF. Hell, I already drive 30-40 minutes for little ol' MCI from my house in the suburbs. 

Edited June 30, 2022 by Zach1213

[Z'Loth]

3 hours ago, Zach1213 said:

Yes, but at least within 1.5-2 hours you also have SFO, OAK, and even SJC depending on traffic. Sure, it may not be quite as convenient as SMF, but if you told me I only had to drive 1.5 hours for nonstops to Europe, Asia, Australia/South Pacific, etc. I would probably at least consider over a connection from SMF. Hell, I already drive 30-40 minutes for little ol' MCI from my house in the suburbs. 

 

Reno Tahoe International (RNO) is also a two-hour drive away from SMF, although "International" means a single destination in Mexico (Guadalajara). What surprises me is that, despite living in Northern California for 41 years, I haven't been in SFO since the early 1980s, and definitely not to OAK, SJC, or RNO. 

 

[Empehi]

Air travel is such a mess .... a cancellation with a flight going in the day before is no guarantee you can be re-booked to get to your cruise the next day .... so something to consider:

 

If you can fly non-stop the first flight of the day on the day of the cruise ... I would consider this.

You MUST book the flight with the cruise line so if something does happen, they will get you to your cruise .. life is a gamble and given today's flight problems ... this would make as much sense as anything. Oh ... only travel with carry-on luggage.

 

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[alidor]

Please do not buy the "promise" that the cruise line will get you to the cruise.   If there are weather problems, mechanical problems, etc., there is NO WAY the cruise line can get you on a flight that is already full.   No airline is going to bump people off to accommodate people from a previous flight or may have missed their flight due to traffic or something similar.   They MAY be able to get you to the next port but don't count on them to get you to the departing port - it may not happen.   Nice promise but not workable. 

[FlyerTalker]

33 minutes ago, Empehi said:

You MUST book the flight with the cruise line so if something does happen, they will get you to your cruise .. life is a gamble and given today's flight problems ... this would make as much sense as anything.

 

So let me see if I have this straight.

 

A) Your flight is cancelled/delayed such that you are going to miss your cruise.

 

B) Your airline doesn't have the seats available to get you to your cruise

 

C) Somehow the cruiseline will magically get you seats so that you get to your cruise

 

Yeah, right....

 

 

[Mary229]

29 minutes ago, alidor said:

Please do not buy the "promise" that the cruise line will get you to the cruise.   If there are weather problems, mechanical problems, etc., there is NO WAY the cruise line can get you on a flight that is already full.   No airline is going to bump people off to accommodate people from a previous flight or may have missed their flight due to traffic or something similar.   They MAY be able to get you to the next port but don't count on them to get you to the departing port - it may not happen.   Nice promise but not workable. 

I agree.  The traditional reason to use cruise line airfare is the discount they may have.   Many of us recommended cruise air since Covid as the possibility of cruise cancellations was ever present and if the cruise was cancelled then the air would automatically be cancelled and money returned.