robins11

Yes the fee was higher than I anticipated based on comments previously on this topic. It was a Sunday and by the time I had cleared immigration and picked up my bags it was just after 8.15pm. Immigration was packed so an indication of how many international flights arrived at that particular time. Maybe this is what caused rates to surge at that time? Still, it was a quick and safe ride and glad to reach my hotel in FL after a long flight.

Hi Last month I also arrived at MIA from London on BA. Now this was a Sunday evening and arrived around 7pm. I booked an Uber ride once I had got through immigration and safely picked up my bags. That process took about 45 minutes. Our Uber app indicated 5-10 minutes and almost immediately our driver was in touch. I assumed the pickup location was at the arrivals level middle waiting area as indicated on the MIA website. This was about 2-3 minutes walk. After a short wait our driver got in touch to say he was waiting at departures !! Anyway a quick walk and elevator down a level and we safely got our lift. The journey to our Fort Lauderdale hotel close to the cruise port took about 40 minutes and cost $95 plus tip. Friendly driver and a safe journey.

thank you very much. Very useful insights and information Appreciate it John

This is a cruise seriously considering myself. Have sailed on Star a couple of times before refurbishment, one from LA to Miami then across the Atlantic to Copenhagen in 2014. The other from Hong Kong to Singapore, in 2016, where the ship had serious propulsion issues. More recently in October this year enjoyed a cruise on Star from Southampton to France and Spain. Like yourselves I do prefer the smaller ships and Star has many advantages, especially the walk around promenade and open top deck. This means plenty of outdoors viewing opportunities of course, and from every angle, which is great in kind weather conditions or climate, or if you are happy to wrap up well !! The downside is that the lower decks can get crowded including the atrium and bars as well as the corridors. There are windows on the lower deck bars and eating venues but they become very sought after !! Yes, the lack of a forward lounge with big windows and seating is a shame though no doubt that would be busy as well. The ship though felt good, comfortable, happy crew and with a decent choice of bars, food and entertainment. We cruised the South Atlantic on Norwegian Sun in 2008, including Argentina, Falkland Islands and Chile, and it is the most amazing experience. The scenery and wildlife is incredible. The weather in December was also pretty kind to us. That ship had a lounge forward so if you include the outdoor decks it was ideal. To add Antarctica to your itinerary adds up to a most incredible voyage. Certainly worth doing on whatever ship I feel however researching other ships and lines is a good idea.

Hey no problem at all. The buffet unfortunately did not really provide the level of choice or service that the main dining room, speciality restaurants, etc offered, as regards Gluten free options. Bread was available at the buffet on request but sometimes the wait was up to 10 minutes. Since there was no food labelling my wife asked the chefs if such and such would be suitable. They needed to go away and check in most cases, and again there was a time delay, before a yes or no response. As regards desserts the answer was more often than not, no !! They did have an Indian food night in the buffet one evening and after checking, many of the items offered were suitable for her. Alleluia ! As i mentioned choices are available around the ship in the restaurants but strongly advise to select and order the night before. My wife couldn't get a suitable Gluten free beer onboard so stuck with cider. Most staff were very helpful and were not taking risks. However there is room for improvement regarding choice and labelling especially in the buffet. Thank you for the tip regarding P&O, will do some research. Enjoy your cruise in a few weeks. Also many thanks Analog187 for your posts and hope you are having a great time.

Hi Just on the subject of Gluten free options. We were on Star from Southampton October 16th-26th this year. My wife has a Gluten free diet. We had advised NCL in advance as requested when booking so at least her particular diet needs were recognised in advance. Just from her experience onboard if this helps, there were no allergen markers at all in the buffet with the occasional one marked vegetarian or dairy free. She needed to ask a senior chef each time to highlight what dishes might be available. With the main dining rooms some dishes on the menu were marked Gluten free. However she was advised to speak to a chef/senior server after each meal and choose a selection for the following day. In this way the choices were greater as then some dishes could be specially prepared in advance. Desserts were always very limited which was disappointing. This also applied to some of the speciality restaurants where again the advice was to seek assistance in advance. Interesting in O'Sheehans although again allergen markings were very limited, the staff there were so helpful and could advise on selections for the various menus throughout the day including breakfast. Overall most of the staff were very helpful, and my wife enjoyed a decent selection of options, with the odd delay in service. However the lack of allergen indication in the buffet was poor and across the ship Gluten free dessert options were very limited. Hope that helps John