flying in the day of the cruise-

[nancy1031]

i'm concerned about flying in the day of my cruise- it's not til the end of oct-also am going solo- any decent hotels in miami under $200 a nite? or should i just book a really early flight (6am- arrive in miami 9:30am)- 

[Eskylady]

Hi. Personally I wouldn't take the risk of a flight being cancelled or delayed and possibly missing your cruise. There are a lot of basic hotels that are clean and comfortable for under $200. A good night's sleep, (or not if you get excited like me 🙂), and not having to rush cruise day is a really nice start to a vacation.

[ColeThornton]

36 minutes ago, nancy1031 said:

i'm concerned about flying in the day of my cruise- it's not til the end of oct-also am going solo- any decent hotels in miami under $200 a nite? or should i just book a really early flight (6am- arrive in miami 9:30am)- 

 

 

It's never a good idea to fly in the day of your cruise.  Sometimes things happen and that's your only choice but if possible fly in at least one day early.

 

For lots of info on Miami hotels check out the Florida Departures Forum:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/386-florida-departures/

[EngIceDave]

Where do you live? Are delays at your airport common? Tornado, snow, aliens?

How long a flight? A hop or a long haul? 

 

If you're flying from ATL to MIA, in my opinion, yes, no worries.

If you're flying from Greenbergtown, ND.....Nope, no way.

 

If you can get up and get out early am and land in MIA (or any port) by about noon, without weather delay worries, go for it.

 

Early morning flights are delayed far less than late day, why I always fly early morning.

 

For something like this, direct only, no connections.

 

Edited March 14, 2023 by EngIceDave

[mz-s]

If you're going to book a day-of flight (which I've done several times with no issue but there is always a chance something goes wrong obviously!)

 

Book the earliest flight you can, that way even if it's delayed or cancelled and you have to find another flight - you will be able to still get to the ship before departure.

[ColeThornton]

7 minutes ago, EngIceDave said:

For something like this, direct only, no connections.

 

 

You mean "non-stop".    "Direct" has stop(s).  😉  

[ober134]

From experience... Try to go day ahead. October is still Hurricane season. This past November our flights from the northeast were cancelled in advance of our cruise. We actually tried to change flights to 3 days ahead but that was also cancelled. Mother nature happens. This is the third time out of nearly 20 cruises something similar happened due to weather. But we still love fall cruising.

[jsglow]

Day ahead is strongly preferable and modest hotels are available for well under $200.  Do remember that traveling on a cruise is unlike any other travel destination.  It absolutely can and will leave without you.

 

IF you choose to fly morning of (many successfully do), I'd absolutely only consider under the following conditions: 1) non-stop flight with direct as a weak second choice, 2) first flight of the day (hopefully where the plane sat overnight, 3) arriving MIA/FLL with MANY hours to spare, 4) with secondary 'emergency' options. And the further away one lives, the more difficult this becomes.  As someone said, Atlanta is doable. Chicago is barely doable.

 

So how does this work? For me..... MDW to FLL on SWA #3781 departing 5:50a N/S arriving 10:00 on 10/14, for example.  Now understand that to comfortably catch that flight I'd need to leave my house by 3:00 am!  See how the hotel bill becomes preferable?

[MzOhioLady]

I've flown out the same day as the Cruise and so far, I haven't had any problems. I do try to book the first Plane out, which is usually at 5:30 or 6:00am. This way I do have some wiggle room if anything happens. Yes, it's best to do down a day ahead and I've do that too but sometimes depending on things, I may need to fly out the same day as the Cruise. Either way, Enjoy Your Cruise.

[Corby114]

Definitely fly in and stay overnight in a Miami Blue Lagoon area hotel. The Blue Lagoon area is very close to MIA. Then on embarkation day you can most likely make arrangements through the hotel for shuttle service over to the Port Of Miami. If that can't be worked out a cab, Uber or Lyft is the way to go for the short fifteen minute plus ride.

[kingston13]

For cost purposes I always stay at a hotel that is considered an "Airport Hotel". In Miami I stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn, MIA.  They also offered a shuttle to the port for about $10

[staceyglow]

1 hour ago, MzOhioLady said:

I've flown out the same day as the Cruise and so far, I haven't had any problems. 

To me, that's like saying I have never worn a bicycle helmet and, so far, have never had an accident involving head trauma. It doesn't necessarily mean it's a wise thing to do. You have simply been fortunate. 

My BIL booked a cruise leaving out of Miami last year out of Nashville, which is a reasonably short flight. His flight was delayed and although it eventually landed before sail away, he could not make it to the ship on time. 

He didn't have trip insurance. He ended up taking a beach vacation in Florida that probably cost double on top of what he paid for his cruise. 

 

 

 

[lx200gps]

6 hours ago, nancy1031 said:

i'm concerned about flying in the day of my cruise- it's not til the end of oct-also am going solo- any decent hotels in miami under $200 a nite? or should i just book a really early flight (6am- arrive in miami 9:30am)- 

Hi Nancy, and welcome to Cruise Critic.  As most folks have said, it's best to fly in the day before, which is what we ALWAYS do, but if you absolutely have to fly in the day of your cruise, there's one other option to look in to. In addition to JSGLOW's excellent summary above in Post #8, you should also look into your cruise line's airline connection options. They typically offer  airline flight options to get you to your cruise, usually the "day of", but they usually offer one huge benefit, and that's a guarantee that if you miss the cruise departure due to airline issues, THEY assume responsibility for getting you to the ship at the next possible port.  The cruise line airline programs, are usually competitive with booking the airfare yourself, give or take a few $$$s, but also offer some other benefits like delayed payment, easy cancellation etc, making them worth investigating.  Still, it's always best to fly in the day before  ;o)

[JohninDC]

Welcome to the boards!  😎

 

Less expensive hotels often suggested on this board include the La Quinta East and Hampton Inn Blue Lagoon - both are near MIA and should offer an airport shuttle.  Both will offer a shuttle to POM for a fee.  La Quinta is very isolated (plan on delivery Chinese or Pizza) while the Hampton Inn Blue Lagoon has a local strip mall across the street with grocery, drug and liquor stores, plus fast food and dining options.

[oakridger]

14 hours ago, JohninDC said:

Hampton Inn Blue Lagoon

 

I stayed at the Hampton Inn Blue Lagoon last November and it was clean, nice room, had laundry on site and as @JohninDC said, there are several food options across the street.  I took a shuttle to MIA and an Uber from Port Everglades after my cruise.

 

~Nancy

[BoozinCroozin]

There are inexpensive hotels for the night, but they are all going to have a few negatives. If you look at it as simply a place to sleep and shower, they are not that bad. Use Priceline and Hotwire for even better savings. With a budget of $200 for this night, there are tons of options and I think with timing you can get a good hotel for about $100-$110.

 

Looking at a random date (Oct 20-21), Sonesta by MIA was $147 with PL Express Deal. A 2.5* in Doral (just west of MIA) includes breakfast for $105. Nice places to eat and have a drink nearby. Cannot tell which hotel, but they are fine.

[MzOhioLady]

22 hours ago, staceyglow said:

To me, that's like saying I have never worn a bicycle helmet and, so far, have never had an accident involving head trauma. It doesn't necessarily mean it's a wise thing to do. You have simply been fortunate. 

My BIL booked a cruise leaving out of Miami last year out of Nashville, which is a reasonably short flight. His flight was delayed and although it eventually landed before sail away, he could not make it to the ship on time. 

He didn't have trip insurance. He ended up taking a beach vacation in Florida that probably cost double on top of what he paid for his cruise. 

 

 

 

I never said it was a wise thing to do! No where in my comments did I say that it was wise. I simply stated that I haven't had a problem with going to the port on the same day. Not that anyone else may or may not have experienced problems, delays or something beyond their control, Life happens and it Happens to All of Us. If you would have kept reading my response I also stated, It's best to go down to the port a day ahead if you can do that!! Sometimes, you can't always make that work.

 

Yes, I've been Very Fortunate and Highly Blessed! Thank You!

[rjack22]

Always fly in at least one day ahead!  Don't risk it.  On our recent cruise our flight from Detroit to Ft Lauderdale was 8 hours late departing!!!   Instead of getting in at 1:00 pm it was 9:00 pm!   Multiple reasons.  Had it been the day of the ship would have left without us.

[hannibal54]

In August I flew in the day before but due to issues, I didn't get into FLL until 2 AM. The ship would have sailed if I flew in the day off. I don't take chances.

[nancy1031]

never had a problem before of flying in the same day as the cruise company booked the flights for me out of cleveland  but that was years ago- been checking prices- cheapest was spirit but by the time idid all the add ons (seats, luggage) it ended up being close to $500 - also there weren't any early flights on spirit so it meant flyng in the day before- the only nonstop on cruise day left at 6am- (no problem) but the price was over $700-hoping that prices will come down a bit- sad that the air is almost as much as the cruise-

[lx200gps]

13 minutes ago, nancy1031 said:

never had a problem before of flying in the same day as the cruise company booked the flights for me out of cleveland  but that was years ago- been checking prices- cheapest was spirit but by the time idid all the add ons (seats, luggage) it ended up being close to $500 - also there weren't any early flights on spirit so it meant flyng in the day before- the only nonstop on cruise day left at 6am- (no problem) but the price was over $700-hoping that prices will come down a bit- sad that the air is almost as much as the cruise-

The vast majority of folks who fly in the "day of" will say the same thing and have never had an issue doing it, but it's all a question of statistics and the probability of disaster. You absolutely DO stand a higher chance of having your vacation wrecked by circumstances out of your control if you fly in the day of vs the day before.  Think flights from the snowy Northeast in February. We've been delayed many times flying in the day before and would have missed our sailing had it been the day of. A few times we've even been on delayed flights where folks have been flying in the day of their cruise, and guess what, they MISSED their sailing. You seem happy in accepting the elevated risk and its consequences, all the best and have a great cruise.

[Cienfuegos]

I usually try to fly in a day or two ahead of the cruise, just for peace of mind and the opportunity to explore someplace new

 

October is in the Florida hurricane season (June 1-November 30) umbrella, so that's a concern, too.

 

If your flight is other than non-stop, there's also the weather in the connecting cities.  Here in south Florida, late afternoon thunder storms are not unusual. That shuts everything down for a while

[DaveOKC]

And its not only the airplanes.  On one cruise we were on a Quick shuttle large bus from Seattle to Vancouver, arriving a day prior to sailing.  Along the way we stopped to pick up passengers from another bus that had broken down, and most of those passengers were sailing that day - I do not know for certain, but I doubt that they made it.

 

Edited March 17, 2023 by DaveOKC

[kelbell]

We had first flight out of Boston, layover less than an hour SC or NC (can't remember)

into MCO cruise, we have never gone day of, but seemed that our layover was in Carolina

I didn't give weather a second thought....What I didn't think of was NASA, yup NASA, got

delayed because they where having some kind of lift off to someplace....  We made the ship

but the stress let me tell you not worth it. Never again. It was in February.....not sure what

happened to my brain the day I booked the flights.....

[Mum2Mercury]

I know I'm jumping on the bandwagon, but I'm with the majority in saying fly in the day before. 

 

We still talk about driving to Florida for our first-ever cruise:  We were stopped on the interstate for over three hours.  When we were finally able to move, we found out an 18-wheeler had turned over and burned on the interstate ... so they had to put out the fire, then move it off the road.  We were so, so relieved that we were only heading for a cheap hotel that night.  

 

Sure, that's not something that's likely to happen again, but we consider the night-before stay to be the cheapest possible insurance against missing our ship.  

 

Having said that, we usually get a basic hotel from Priceline ... we're easy to please for a night-before hotel.  We have had good luck several times with Days' Inn in Titusville when we sail out of Orlando.  We had a bad experience with La Quinta (North? -- it was across the street from a Mercedes dealership) and a good experience with Spring Hill Suites in Fort Lauderdale.