Driving info

For those that have done this, we are planning to drive from Charlotte NC to Miami. We are going to rent a car to drive down and leave at the MIA airport. Whats the best way to get to the ship in Miami from the MIA airport?

Im thinking cab but, how far is it, how long does it take and what is the cost.

Cab, 22-24$, 15-20 min

A lot of the rental car places have a shuttle to the pier. Call your rental car vendor and ask if they do. If it, a cab is not expensive, maybe $25 or so, the last time we did it.

If you rented through AVIS, there is an Avis drop off for cruise ship passengers 5 or 10 minutes from the pier. There is an Avis shuttle that is free. I have dropped people off at the ship then dropped off the car so that we didn't have to handle luggage.

From MIA to the pier my guess would be about $30.

I would not rent a car to drive from the airport to the port!!! A taxi is the fastest way...and $24.

I would not rent a car to drive from the airport to the port!!!

The OP is dropping the car off at the airport and then needs to get to the port.

I was trying to get directions. If anyone has done this, drive to miami from the north, google maps is taking med own a turnpike not I95. Has anyone done this. I thought for sure it would be 95 all the way. Thats confusing.

I was trying to get directions. If anyone has done this, drive to miami from the north, google maps is taking med own a turnpike not I95. Has anyone done this. I thought for sure it would be 95 all the way. Thats confusing.

Did you try MapQuest? You can change your itinerary, if they take you on a road you do not want to travel.

Take a taxi.

It is a set rate of $27.00 per taxi (not person) before tip.

Keith

I was trying to get directions. If anyone has done this, drive to miami from the north, google maps is taking med own a turnpike not I95. Has anyone done this. I thought for sure it would be 95 all the way. Thats confusing.

As you are coming down South on I95, just STAY on I95 all the way to Miami.

Did you try MapQuest? You can change your itinerary, if they take you on a road you do not want to travel.

You can do the same thing with Google maps too.

If you have a I phone and maybe a Samsung Droid, a FREE app that is called "HERE" It is as good or close, from my experience with it, as my Garmin GPS.

It is FREE. To use it, you will have to download the US map.

PS we have used it all over Europe YES, works there too and the best part is that once maps of countries are down loaded, it does not USE DATA.

We have driven to Miami three times from Toronto. From NC just stay on i95 south the whole way. Gps will put you on the turnpike which runs parallel but is a toll road, so possibly less traffic.

I was trying to get directions. If anyone has done this, drive to miami from the north, google maps is taking med own a turnpike not I95. Has anyone done this. I thought for sure it would be 95 all the way. Thats confusing.

You may find this thread useful on the differences between I95 and the Florida Turnpike.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2168763

We drove from Alabama to FLL in March and had the option, most of the way, to use either the turnpike or I95. Part of the way we had to use I95. We found the traffic to be much less hectic on the turnpike and would not consider using I95 unless absolutely necessary. Your preferences may vary.

If you do choose to do the turnpike, I would suggest you investigate getting one of those devices where you tolls are paid without stopping. Since we drive down twice a year, this is useful to us.

Another free app (at least on iPhone) is WAZE. It gives you directions but updates in real time and will detour you if there is lots of traffic, an accident etc. Also tells you when there are hazards on the route--pot holes, cars on shoulders, cops :eek: Saved us about 2.5 hours when we went to Hilton Head last spring break. There was an accident that shut down I95. Waze re-routed us through a whole lot of back roads and back to 95 after the accident. Friends who didn't have it sat for over 2 hours in the back up til they cleared the road. I've used it locally as well as for long trips.

Another free app (at least on iPhone) is WAZE. It gives you directions but updates in real time and will detour you if there is lots of traffic, an accident etc. Also tells you when there are hazards on the route--pot holes, cars on shoulders, cops :eek: Saved us about 2.5 hours when we went to Hilton Head last spring break. There was an accident that shut down I95. Waze re-routed us through a whole lot of back roads and back to 95 after the accident. Friends who didn't have it sat for over 2 hours in the back up til they cleared the road. I've used it locally as well as for long trips.

Does it use DATA or just gps? OK for data in US, but not in Europe

Does it use DATA or just gps? OK for data in US, but not in Europe

I think it uses DATA and gps so not sure it would work in Europe. Does know it works in continental US.

As you are coming down South on I95, just STAY on I95 all the way to Miami.

Agree. OP - I don't know when you are traveling but we just did this trip last week from the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia (about 5 hours north of Charlotte) to Fort Lauderdale.

Traffic wise, the only complications were a 40 minute slow down north of Charlotte near Lake Norman on I-77 (for no apparent reason) and another 15 minute slow down around Columbia, SC (where 3 lanes went down to 1 for no apparent reason). There is construction for about 25 miles on I-26 when you get on it east of Columbia, all around Jacksonville FL (that's been there for the 5 years we've been making this drive and I personally don't think it will ever be finished), and around Daytona Beach south for 50 or 60 miles where they are widening the highway. Those are about the only places you need to go the posted speeds :D, everywhere else traffic was moving at 5 to 10 miles an hour above the speed limit (keep it to 5 miles above in Georgia, they had police cars 'hiding' at every other median emergency cross over). There's no reason to move over to the Turnpike at Fort Pierce unless I-95 was backed up due to an accident.