Need Advice on Miami Disembarkation

[WayneLaR]

Hi everyone,

 

Need some advice from the helpful O board members.  We have never disembarked in Miami before and are wondering about making a flight connection.  We are on the Marina TA that will arrive in Miami at 6am on Dec 3rd.  Flights to get home to Eastern Canada are limited so my only option to get home the same day is an 11:45am flight out of MIA.  Doable or risky.? How long does it usually take to get to airport once you are off ship?

[mauibabes]

IMHO, RISKY. The Miami Port Security controls the Disembarkation process so do not expect to start the process before 8-9:00. We have been unable to start disembarking until 9:30 in the past. The only way to have any chance to get off first, whatever time that is allowed, is to SCHLEP all your own bags and do not put them out the night before. Also, arrange for this with the Destinations staff when the forms and process are announced days before the end of the cruise.  Cabs are there for you and it  kuldip also make a difference on the day of the week involved and which airport, MIA or FLL you were flying from.VARIABLES and you control virtually none.

Good Luck,

Mauibabes

 

[PhD-iva]

I disembarked in Miami in December 2021 and it was not a pleasant experience. There is one single elevator that goes from the ship level down to the area where baggage is. The line moves extremely slowly. There are stairs that you can carry your extremely heavy luggage down yourself if you are in a hurry. For some reason that I can’t remember now it was important that I skip the slow line so I carried my bags down the stairs. It’s just one flight of stairs but the ceiling height is about three stories so it is a very long flight of stairs. I was in a lot of pain for the next couple of weeks from back pain. 

[LHT28]

Risky

You could make it  but then again 

If you can stay over & go the next day  I would do that 

our flights are usually 12:20  & usually fine  but after a TA they sometimes are delayed in disembarking

 

Airport is about 15 -20 mins away but it is the getting off  the ship that can really mess up a good plan 😉

        

[mauibabes]

We were with Robin, PHDiva, on her 12/21 disembarkation. Not a slick process for sure but we all got it done. I liked LHT28’s suggestion to take all the angst out of the process.  Spend a night by the airport and you will have no problem with your next morning flight. Sometimes they offer a Miami tour with baggage transfer so you could see the city, get dropped at the airport and then catch a shuttle to your hotel of choice and get some rest ahead of your morning flight North. I am all about reducing stress.😇🙏👍

Mauibabes
 

[alcpa1]

Debarkation is almost always longer after a TA. Some Coast Guard inspections are carried out when the ship docks and before passengers and crew can disembark the ship. Couple that with the need to be at MIA 3 hours pre-flight and I recommend that you stay over and fly home the next day and you might find flights from both MIA and FLL.

Have a great cruise.

 

[Flatbush Flyer]

I’d opt for a later flight on disembarkation day since you couldn’t pay me to spend a night in Miami at the end of a cruise.

[jennybenny]

3 hours ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

I’d opt for a later flight on disembarkation day since you couldn’t pay me to spend a night in Miami at the end of a cruise.

😆 

 

I think DH feels that way after any vacation. We never plan anything post vacation, as we are always ready to go home no matter how long or short a cruise is. The times we have planned something after we did not enjoy it as much as we would have pre cruise. 

[ToxM]

Very disorganised disembarkation in Miami for us in January. To be safe especially as you are the tail end of a TA I would get a later flight. 

 

Lesson learned for us, we had a night at The Betsy in South Beach so were in no hurry to get anywhere and followed instructions for our disembarkation time - next time we aren’t moving til they order us off - possibly even come and find us so we don’t have to take part in their terrible queuing policy. 

 

 

[babysteps]

If we don't have a same-day flight we tend to request the latest possible time slot to disembark. Much less stressful! 

[LHT28]

3 hours ago, ToxM said:

Very disorganised disembarkation in Miami for us in January.

 

It always seems to be bad  no matter  when 🙄

PAX just want to get off & get going  on there drive home  or their early flight

No one pays attention to the tag colour  called

 

It has been this way for  years at Miami

 

[Nashna]

If you haven't been to Miami before, I would suggest staying overnight.  Pick an interesting hotel close to an area of interest to you and spend the day as a tourist.  You will most likely be off the ship no later than 11:00 am.   I wouldn't head right off to the airport, as spending an afternoon and evening in an airport hotel is not the best way to end a great vacation. 

[Acrusa]

We docked at Terminal B March 2 from our 20 day cruise on Riviera. 

We disembarked at 8:45 for our 3 pm flight home.

We got our luggage flagged a porter no lines went past immigration porter took us out to taxi area got taxi was at delta's terminal at 9:40.could have made the 12 noon flight 

[shepherd really]

Disembarked Sirena in Miami at 8:30, I carried my own luggage off and was in my car and on the road before 9:00, very easy, your mileage may vary.  

[WayneLaR]

Thank you all!  I really appreciate the veterans sharing their experiences and advice.  Very helpful.  My wife found a late afternoon flight out of FLL so that may be the way to go.

 

Thanks again!!

[PaulMCO]

3 hours ago, WayneLaR said:

Thank you all!  I really appreciate the veterans sharing their experiences and advice.  Very helpful.  My wife found a late afternoon flight out of FLL so that may be the way to go.

 

Thanks again!!

You did not say what your previous port is.  If it San Juan you will clear formalities in San Juan.  We did that on our last TA cruise and we were first off the ship and at the airport parking lot by 9am.  If you have to clear in MIA - then 11:45 is too early.

[Flatbush Flyer]

On 3/14/2023 at 11:25 PM, jennybenny said:

😆

 

I think DH feels that way after any vacation. We never plan anything post vacation, as we are always ready to go home no matter how long or short a cruise is. The times we have planned something after we did not enjoy it as much as we would have pre cruise. 

Perhaps you’re talking about RT cruises(?)

We tend to do only OW cruises and pre/post cruise land time is an essential part of the planning. In that way, we get the most out of a single bizclass airfare.
As aforementioned, however, we avoid Miami if at all possible. IMO, “there’s just no there there.”

[jennybenny]

21 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Perhaps you’re talking about RT cruises(?)

We tend to do only OW cruises and pre/post cruise land time is an essential part of the planning. In that way, we get the most out of a single bizclass airfare.
As aforementioned, however, we avoid Miami if at all possible. IMO, “there’s just no there there.”

No, I meant what I said 😀  be it one way or round trip. 

PRE cruise is good, Post cruise NEVER good, for us of course, to each his own. This is why the direction/itinerary matters to us. 
For example, Alaska is amazing but will only cruise if the cruise originates in Alaska, otherwise we won’t go and I would never do a RT, you don’t see enough.

 

We would do a cruise out of miami again, maybe, for Panama Canal and end in SF 

 

[Flatbush Flyer]

11 minutes ago, jennybenny said:

No, I meant what I said 😀  be it one way or round trip. 

PRE cruise is good, Post cruise NEVER good, for us of course, to each his own. This is why the direction/itinerary matters to us. 
For example, Alaska is amazing but will only cruise if the cruise originates in Alaska, otherwise we won’t go and I would never do a RT, you don’t see enough.

 

We would do a cruise out of miami again, maybe, for Panama Canal and end in SF 

 

FWIW: We’re doing SF to NYC - this summer. SF is home base for us and NYC feeds our passion for things like the “Broadway binge.”

Alaska? What would stop you from piecing together the right B2B - let’s say Seattle to Vancouver and Vancouver to L.A. or S.F.?
 

[WayneLaR]

22 hours ago, PaulMCO said:

You did not say what your previous port is.  If it San Juan you will clear formalities in San Juan.  We did that on our last TA cruise and we were first off the ship and at the airport parking lot by 9am.  If you have to clear in MIA - then 11:45 is too early.

Thanks for this, Paul.  That is a great point.

[artlee]

Maybe we just hit it on a bad day, but sometimes the Miami airport can be awful. We happened to hit it when it was the worst experience I can recall at an airport. It was a day when several ships had come in and the lines were unbelievable. It would have made it impossible to do anything quickly that day. Thank goodness we did not have a short window to catch our plane. Could have been a one off. IDK

 

[LHT28]

1 hour ago, artlee said:

Maybe we just hit it on a bad day, but sometimes the Miami airport can be awful. We happened to hit it when it was the worst experience I can recall at an airport. It was a day when several ships had come in and the lines were unbelievable. It would have made it impossible to do anything quickly that day. Thank goodness we did not have a short window to catch our plane. Could have been a one off. IDK

 

Must  have been the same day we were there 😃

  It took an hour to get through security  the line was so slow  good thing we had a later flight  that day

Normally we have  12:20pm  but we were on AA  a bit later

[PhD-iva]

23 hours ago, LHT28 said:

Must  have been the same day we were there 😃

  It took an hour to get through security  the line was so slow  good thing we had a later flight  that day

Normally we have  12:20pm  but we were on AA  a bit later

Agree. The day I flew home from Miami after my November 2021 Rome to Miami transatlantic on Riviera, the Miami airport was horrendous. And I was flying home economy although I did fly over to Rome on business class. Luckily I had four or five hours to get through airport security. So I wasn’t stressed, but it sure was not a good experience .

[Aunt Tina]

Check out the Fort Lauderdale airport schedule, I find prices to Ft. Lauderdale airport is often cheaper, and if you stay over the hotels have free transport to the airport the next day.  There are great things to do in Ft. Lauderdale. There were several shuttle services from Miami to Ft. Lauderdale starting at $15 per person.  

[Lolotte]

Alot of traffic and constyruction in Miami ( February) !!