Distance from Port Canaveral to Kennedy Space Center?

And what is the best way to get there; rent a car? We will be on the Majesty in March and are definitely interested in seeing the space center. Just want to know ahead of time the best way to travel from the pier to the center. Thanks!

The space center it about 10 miles from the port. There are several car rental companies just outside the port and renting a car is the best way to go. There will be taxi's at the port but there may not be any at the space center to get back.

The space center it about 10 miles from the port. There are several car rental companies just outside the port and renting a car is the best way to go. There will be taxi's at the port but there may not be any at the space center to get back.

I agree rent a car. I dont recall many taxi's at the gate when we left.

Its a short simple drive..

And what is the best way to get there; rent a car? We will be on the Majesty in March and are definitely interested in seeing the space center. Just want to know ahead of time the best way to travel from the pier to the center. Thanks!

Stuttsy - if you and your bride-to-be would like, you are welcome to catch a ride with us (we have a minivan rented).

If you would prefer the privacy (it IS your honeymoon after all) then I'll head off your possible next question. Since the rental agencies close at 6:00 and we don't have to be back on the ship until 9:00ish, there are drop boxes for the rental car keys and then take a cab back to the ship. We might still head back around 6 depending on the weather, etc... for dinner on the ship.

When we were on the Gem last year and went to the Space Center, we made the mistake of thinking the quick 10 mile ride would be an easy taxi ride...were we ever mistaken. While you can see the Space Center from the ship, the amount of time it takes to get there is significantly more than the 10 minutes you'd expect for the trip. It was a good 40 minutes, and took haggling to get a taxi to take us for only $70. We hadn't thought ahead to rent a car, so we were stuck paying for the cab...car rentals were all sold out by the time we got there.

I would suggest looking into the excursion offered by the cruise line. When you factor in the transportation cost, as well as what else you get, it really is a cost effective tour.

And what is the best way to get there; rent a car? We will be on the Majesty in March and are definitely interested in seeing the space center. Just want to know ahead of time the best way to travel from the pier to the center. Thanks!

Just did this in December while on GEM. It takes over 1/2 hour to make the trip from the pier to KSC.

I researched car services and pre-arranged a pick up by and drop off later in the day with SPACE COAST TRANSPORTATION -- a local car service. They have a website with all the contact info. They were fabulous and hugely responsive by email. Then, as soon as we docked at Port Canaveral and I turned on my cell, there was already a message from them re-confirming our pick-up time and telling me what van to look for and where, etc. It was the same for the trip back to the ship. Great communication -- so important. (As just-in-case back up I had a list with me (suppled on Port Canaveral website) of phone #'s for all local car services -- in case we were left at KSC with no way to get back!!)

Also, for $20 less a PERSON than the cruise line's charge, including KSC admission, Up Close tour and r/t private van transportation, we (a group of 6 adults) just did the KSC trip on our own ("Freestyle"???? :D). You can pre-order KSC ticket online to avoid any possible lines on site, and pre-reserved the specific tour departure time since, on busy days, they supposedly fill up.

Hope this provides the kind of suggestion you expect!! I'll be interested to hear what you decide

Stuttsy - if you and your bride-to-be would like, you are welcome to catch a ride with us (we have a minivan rented).

 

If you would prefer the privacy (it IS your honeymoon after all) then I'll head off your possible next question. Since the rental agencies close at 6:00 and we don't have to be back on the ship until 9:00ish, there are drop boxes for the rental car keys and then take a cab back to the ship. We might still head back around 6 depending on the weather, etc... for dinner on the ship.

Oh wow, that's very generous of you! I'd wager we would love to! We'll definitely touch base as we get closer to the cruise but thanks very very much for that offer. Sounds like a plan. :)

I can recommend the "Up Close" Tour very much, you really get a lot closer to the shuttle launch facility than you do on the regular, free tour. You also get a nice souvenir booklet and there are several points during the tour where you can leave the bus to take pictures.

We are going to be in Port Canaveral on 2/19/09 and are also looking at non-ship transportation to KSC. I called Avis yesterday, and that day happens to be in the middle of race week (Daytona), so car rental is $65 for the day, which is about twice the regular rate (according to them). To have a shuttle from Space Coast Transport (is that right?) is $90 R/T for up to 5 people, then $18 R/T for each person thereafter. But we are only two, so $90 is no bargain :) I just really, REALLY dislike ship tours - being at the mercy of the crowd. Would like to take all the time I like at KSC (or be free to go when I'm done). Any thoughts?

We are going to be in Port Canaveral on 2/19/09 and are also looking at non-ship transportation to KSC. To have a shuttle from Space Coast Transport (is that right?) is $90 R/T for up to 5 people, then $18 R/T for each person thereafter. But we are only two, so $90 is no bargain :) I just really, REALLY dislike ship tours - being at the mercy of the crowd. Would like to take all the time I like at KSC (or be free to go when I'm done). Any thoughts?

Since we were a group of 6, it paid to use Space Coast. I sure do see that for 2 it doesn't make too much financial sense.

There's a list of local transportation options on the website for Port Canaveral which is where I found Space Coast in the first place. You might want to take a look at that list and call some toll free numbers or look at websites to see what your options may be, if any. Good luck --- and let us know what you find out!

Try Thrify rental. We got a car on 2/12 for $35 after discovering that Enterprise was $65. We feel the same way about being "trapped" for a seven hour tour. Good luck!

We are going to be in Port Canaveral on 2/19/09 and are also looking at non-ship transportation to KSC. I called Avis yesterday, and that day happens to be in the middle of race week (Daytona), so car rental is $65 for the day, which is about twice the regular rate (according to them). To have a shuttle from Space Coast Transport (is that right?) is $90 R/T for up to 5 people, then $18 R/T for each person thereafter. But we are only two, so $90 is no bargain :) I just really, REALLY dislike ship tours - being at the mercy of the crowd. Would like to take all the time I like at KSC (or be free to go when I'm done). Any thoughts?

Okay, thanks for the good ideas - I'm going to start checking on them and get back with you on what I find.

Coincidentally, yesterday I contacted our US Senator's office about getting tickets for Kennedy Space Center, and this was the reply:

" I am sorry but we do not have any tickets for this. I called Kennedy Space Center and they said the only way to get tickets was through their website. Thanks and let us know if we can be of help in the future."

Oh well, you never know if you don't ask!

Okay, thanks for the good ideas - I'm going to start checking on them and get back with you on what I find.

 

Coincidentally, yesterday I contacted our US Senator's office about getting tickets for Kennedy Space Center, and this was the reply:

 

" I am sorry but we do not have any tickets for this. I called Kennedy Space Center and they said the only way to get tickets was through their website. Thanks and let us know if we can be of help in the future."

 

Oh well, you never know if you don't ask!

Interesting. I emailed our Congressman and have received a reply back from his office asking for the date required and our personal info so they can get our passes to us (limited to 4 though - we asked for 6). We haven't seen the passes yet, but the reply was a forwarded email from NASA (IIRC) so I would strongly bet that you CAN get them.

And what is the best way to get there; rent a car? We will be on the Majesty in March and are definitely interested in seeing the space center. Just want to know ahead of time the best way to travel from the pier to the center. Thanks!

Do the ship's tour, the full day one it is great. Ringside seats!

I promised an update, so here goes...

I did contact Thrifty Rental, and they gave me a rate of approx. $35, and they do have a drop-box so you can keep the car after they close at 4:45, and just take a taxi back to the ship.

But my husband would rather just take the ship's tour and not mess with renting a car and driving in traffic that's probably quite a bit heavier than we're used to! So we went ahead and booked the Nasa Up Close tour. I hope that it far exceeds my expectations! (I am NOT a fan of ship tours most of the time)

Thanks for all the advice!

Stuttsy - if you and your bride-to-be would like, you are welcome to catch a ride with us (we have a minivan rented).

 

If you would prefer the privacy (it IS your honeymoon after all) then I'll head off your possible next question. Since the rental agencies close at 6:00 and we don't have to be back on the ship until 9:00ish, there are drop boxes for the rental car keys and then take a cab back to the ship. We might still head back around 6 depending on the weather, etc... for dinner on the ship.

thefortunes, is this offer still good? we would love to!

Stuttsy, I see you're leaving in a couple of days - are you getting excited? (duh!)

We ended up doing the ship's tour "Nasa Up-Close", and it really was worth the money. I usually hate doing bus or group tours, but we went ahead with this one, and I'm glad we did. We got to go a lot closer to the launch pads than the other tours, and there are some great photo ops for you. And Discovery was on one of the launch pads, so we got to see it up close & personal. And you do have time in the afternoon on your own, so you're not "stuck" with the group all day.

The drive over is not really a simple one, especially if you're not familiar with the area, or with pretty heavy traffic (remember, we're from Kansas), so my husband was very glad not to have to drive after all!

Anyhow, all this to say that if you haven't made plans yet, go ahead and take the Nasa Up Close tour. You'll really enjoy it.

Interesting. I emailed our Congressman and have received a reply back from his office asking for the date required and our personal info so they can get our passes to us (limited to 4 though - we asked for 6). We haven't seen the passes yet, but the reply was a forwarded email from NASA (IIRC) so I would strongly bet that you CAN get them.

When I worked on the Hill, we occasionally filled KSC ticket requests. Of course, that was more than 3 years ago, so times may have changed. But it's like the White House or Hill tours...you write to your Congressman or Senator.