sherry7 Posted November 1, 2007 #1 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Let's start this off by saying I'm ticked off...I booked a non-stop flight from Miami to Pittsburgh, which was originally supposed to leave at 12:30 PM. American Airlines (in their infinite wisdom) decided to change the flight time by 8 1/2 hours, and it now doesn't leave until 9 pm. Grrrr! :mad: I was going to call customer service and complain, but unfortunately, every other flight is just about as bad. A few leave earlier, but by the time they lay-over, I'm still getting home almost as late. Oh well, enough with the complaining! :rolleyes: What should we do in Miami from the time we disembark, until we have to go to the airport? I already checked, and for whatever strange reason, RCCL has no Miami excursions. If we figure out something to do in Miami, what do we do with our luggage? Any suggestions are appreciated. Thanks! :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruiseguy1016 Posted November 1, 2007 #2 Share Posted November 1, 2007 RCCL does have excursions in Miami, not many, but some. Below is a link to their page. We have done the Everglades tour a couple times and really enjoyed it. I have heard that the South Beach tour is very good also. http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/destinations/shoreExcursions/subGateWayByPort/search.do;jsessionid=0000nQoG8wcPu84E9xAXovxMAmG:12hdhu93n?LocationCode=MIA&DestinationCode=CARIB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimmers Posted November 1, 2007 #3 Share Posted November 1, 2007 We had the same problem in Aug except our flight was 830 out of Ft. Lauderdale. We didn't feel like doing the everglades and I don't think south beach was offered for Ft. Lauderdale departures. We were going to do south beach on our own but decided it was too much hassle with luggage and all. Some posters said that certain local hotels will keep your luggage for you as a courtesy or that RCI will forward your luggage to the ap for a fee. I can't confirm this. We wound up sitting in the ap from 11-830. If it had been Orlando which has a mall and all that it wouldn't have been too bad. I'm not familiar with Miami AP but Ft Lauderdale was dreadful. I swore that I would never get a flight that late again. Good Luck. Jimmers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
louv2000 Posted November 1, 2007 #4 Share Posted November 1, 2007 There is luggage storage available at the airport for a nominal fee. We had 8 hours to kill last year, so we took the everglades tour with RCL which ended at the airport. We stored our luggage and then took a taxi to the nearby dog racing track and killed a few hours. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisingrightalong Posted November 1, 2007 #5 Share Posted November 1, 2007 I am still checking this out for Miami....but at Port Canaveral and on one of the ships in Miami they now have a service for $20 each person (2 bags a person) once they pick up your luggage you won't see it until you get home. They pick it up the night before....give you your boarding passes.....and the next day do what you want. We learned about this on the September cruise. Anyway the one in January we are hoping they have this because we will do it! and then head out via taxi somewhere for the day and then to the airport after lunch. Good luck! Lou Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cb at sea Posted November 1, 2007 #6 Share Posted November 1, 2007 I would rent a hotel room, so I could have use of the pool, a place to "park" my bags and myself, bathrooms, restaurants.... There is nothing worse than trying to kill time without some sort of a spot to just "be"! American Airlines does this all the time--it should be outlawed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonnaK Posted November 1, 2007 #7 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Delta did the same thing to us, so this is not just an American Airlines issue. My family recommends the post-cruise Everglades tour booked through RCI. It's one of the nicest, most interesting excursions we've ever done. Our luggage was safely stowed in the bus, and we were dropped off at the airport (so we didn't have to arrange for a transfer). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mort13ers Posted November 1, 2007 #8 Share Posted November 1, 2007 It may be too late, but if they change your flight by i think 3 hours, you can get a refund, maybe see if you can take another flight home out of FT Lauderdale.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
molly361 Posted November 1, 2007 #9 Share Posted November 1, 2007 I was just going to say the same thing. I believe in this case you can get a refund and book something else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
negc Posted November 1, 2007 #10 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Let's start this off by saying I'm ticked off...I booked a non-stop flight from Miami to Pittsburgh, which was originally supposed to leave at 12:30 PM. American Airlines (in their infinite wisdom) decided to change the flight time by 8 1/2 hours, and it now doesn't leave until 9 pm. Grrrr! :mad: I was going to call customer service and complain, but unfortunately, every other flight is just about as bad. A few leave earlier, but by the time they lay-over, I'm still getting home almost as late. Oh well, enough with the complaining! :rolleyes: What should we do in Miami from the time we disembark, until we have to go to the airport? I already checked, and for whatever strange reason, RCCL has no Miami excursions. If we figure out something to do in Miami, what do we do with our luggage? Any suggestions are appreciated. Thanks! :) I'm surprised that RCI doesn't offer any excursions in Miami on the day that you disembark and also surprised that there are no earlier flights to Pittsburgh that get you home considerably earlier than your current flight. You might check on the internet and see if Gray Line or some other tour company offers an excursion that would help you occupy the time, or see if you can find a hotel that will rent you a day room where you can store your luggage, relax, enjoy their facilities, and wait for your flight in more comfort than you will find at the airport. And, as much as I dislike FLL airport, you should probably investigate flight alternatives from there, to see if you can find a better flight home.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alphakitty Posted November 1, 2007 #11 Share Posted November 1, 2007 When we've had a long wait, we've rented a car for the day. A small car will only cost you around $30-40 for the day. No problems with luggage and we toured Vizcaya and the Biscayne Bay area. It was a very enjoyable day. The rental vans are right at the port to take you to your car, reserve ahead if you decide on this option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
relaxin_mom Posted November 1, 2007 #12 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Well USAir did sort of the same thing to me! I was scheduled on a 2:30 pm flight out of Ft. Lauderdale. In their infinite wisdom they cancelled that flight and put us on a 10:30 AM flight out of Ft Lauderdale! AND all others are sold out! sigh... we may not make our flight cause of this! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CLQ Posted November 1, 2007 #13 Share Posted November 1, 2007 This is Moe. You can meet him at the Everglade Park. We've done the Miami and South Beach tour and enjoyed it. But, for one shot I'd recommend the Everglades. A great time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mittel Posted November 1, 2007 #14 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Same here, my flight back to Canada is at 8:00 pm. My friends ask me to bring back some Victoria's Secret or Bath & Body lotion, is there any shopping mall near the Miami Airport that I can shop for both stores? Many thx. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrp96 Posted November 1, 2007 #15 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Same here, my flight back to Canada is at 8:00 pm. My friends ask me to bring back some Victoria's Secret or Bath & Body lotion, is there any shopping mall near the Miami Airport that I can shop for both stores? Many thx. Just remember if you buy some, it has to go in your checked luggage. You might ask this specific question on the East Coast Departures board. There are a few local posters that may be able to give you directions to a good mall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sherry7 Posted November 2, 2007 Author #16 Share Posted November 2, 2007 Thanks to all of you for the suggestions. I wish RCCL was offering tours, as both my friend and I would like that option. I did search for earlier flights out of Fort Lauderdale, and there are a couple that would work....but I gotta check into the price for transfers from the cruise port to the FLL airport. By the time we pay for that, plus the slightly higher cost for the FLL flight, it might not be a cost effective option. Anyone know of a private tour company that will hold your luggage, PLUS do a tour? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimmers Posted November 2, 2007 #17 Share Posted November 2, 2007 . but I gotta check into the price for transfers from the cruise port to the FLL airport. By the time we pay for that, plus the slightly higher cost for the FLL flight, it might not be a cost effective option. You're probably right. A cab which I believe is the cheapest transportation from the port to FLL, will run you $70-80 with tip. Of course if you share it with 3-4 others its not too bad. Another thing to consider and this may have been why we didn't do the tours is that they were only a couple hours long so you still have a lot of waiting time. Seems like the rental car idea others have suggested would be a better option. You could hit all the tourist spots in Miami or just spend the day in south beach. Jimmers:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CLQ Posted November 2, 2007 #18 Share Posted November 2, 2007 Thanks to all of you for the suggestions. I wish RCCL was offering tours, as both my friend and I would like that option. I did search for earlier flights out of Fort Lauderdale, and there are a couple that would work....but I gotta check into the price for transfers from the cruise port to the FLL airport. By the time we pay for that, plus the slightly higher cost for the FLL flight, it might not be a cost effective option. Anyone know of a private tour company that will hold your luggage, PLUS do a tour? I trust that you've done your homework online and something has changed. We were just there off of Majesty back this July. That's when we did the Everglades after disembarking, and the bus not only held luggage but also delivered people to both Miami and FLL airports afterwards. Who knows? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonnaK Posted November 2, 2007 #19 Share Posted November 2, 2007 Thanks to all of you for the suggestions. I wish RCCL was offering tours, as both my friend and I would like that option. I did search for earlier flights out of Fort Lauderdale, and there are a couple that would work....but I gotta check into the price for transfers from the cruise port to the FLL airport. By the time we pay for that, plus the slightly higher cost for the FLL flight, it might not be a cost effective option. Anyone know of a private tour company that will hold your luggage, PLUS do a tour? Have you looked at this page on the RCI website? It looks like they are doing post cruise tours in Miami. http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/destinations/shoreExcursions/subGateWayByPort/search.do;jsessionid=0000cKeJ6In4-7_h7KINJlT8fda:12hdhubrs?LocationCode=MIA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mysparky Posted November 2, 2007 #20 Share Posted November 2, 2007 We're in a similar boat w/ regards to the late flight out of Miami. We were originally scheduled to leave MIA at 8:15 and fly non-stop to BDL (Hartford), but AA delayed the flight by an hour and now we get home after midnight. A real bummer w/ two kids! I've also been searching for ideas and I found a few ideas on the East coast departures board, but I also went on the tripadvisor website to look for ideas for spending the day in Miami. Seems like renting a car is definitely a good idea and from there, you just have to figure out where to spend your day (will you drive, will you go to Everglades park and then spend some time in Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, or on South Beach?). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare nellydean Posted November 2, 2007 #21 Share Posted November 2, 2007 our flight back to the UK was not until 7.30pm in august, so we booked the rc everglades tour, which was good but not outstanding - we saw a few alligators but not as much wildlife as I expected, although the tour guide joel was very entertaining, and so was the alligator show. as others have said, we were dropped off at the airport (a bit later than anticipated) and stored our suitcases with left luggage before getting a taxi into ocean drive, for a wander around, unfortunately, it was boiling hot and we were quite laden down with carry-ons, so we took a cab to bayside and spent a couple of hours there, which was nice, especially looking across to the port where the liberty was docked. We'd already done it during our stay in miami, but you could aways try the duck tour, which was fun - city and water tour in an amphibian bus, we left from lincoln road (you'd need to check up on times and tickets to make sure you got on, and there may be other pick-up points). before we left the uk we did enquire about getting a day room, but to no available - either there weren't any or they cost a fortune, plus, most don't usually let to have the room until the afternoon anyway, which defeats the object We are hoping to sail Navigator next Spring, but once we disembark at Barcelona we will probably fly on somewhere else for the rest of our trip, because hanging around the airport all day is not fun, especially with a long-haul flight ahead best of luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisingrightalong Posted November 3, 2007 #22 Share Posted November 3, 2007 Crown and Anchor emailed me back that the new luggage valet system is working on some of the ships.....the airlines that work in conjunction with them are: per RCCL The airlines that are currently participating in the program include; American, Continental, Delta, and United. This is $20 a person but you get your boarding passes on the ship and you don't see your luggage until you get home EXCEPT my understanding from someone is in Miami you pick your luggage off of the carousel and take it thru customs then take it to a drop point but your airlines tags are already on it. Then you can grab a cab etc and go somewhere for a while! Lou Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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