Orlando to Miami - morning of or night before?

Hi! We are cruising out of Miami on 1/17/16. We are flying in to Orlando on the 14th and spending a few days at Universal Studios and then driving to Miami.

Are we better off staying in Orlando the night before the cruise and then driving down to Miami in the morning or should we drive to Miami the night before and stay in Miami the night before the cruise?

Personally, I would drive the night before because I wouldn't want a decently long drive the morning of my cruise.

But also this will depend on your budget. I am cruising out of Miami the same weekend as you and hotels in Miami are running pretty expensive that weekend. We booked our hotel downtown Miami for around $300 and I know you can probably get a hotel cheaper than that in Orlando. I guess it depends on where you plan to stay when you get to Miami as well. I would keep that in mind.

Personally, I would drive the night before because I wouldn't want a decently long drive the morning of my cruise.

But also this will depend on your budget. I am cruising out of Miami the same weekend as you and hotels in Miami are running pretty expensive that weekend. We booked our hotel downtown Miami for around $300 and I know you can probably get a hotel cheaper than that in Orlando. I guess it depends on where you plan to stay when you get to Miami as well. I would keep that in mind.

I made a reservation just incase at the Best Western Plus by the Miami airport (we have a rental car to return before the cruise and plan to go from the airport to the port). It was $141 for the night and includes breakfast. That's for two adults and three kids. The reviews were good. We wouldn't get in until late and we would leave early.

I can cancel it by Jan. 13th with no penalty. I am worried about a long morning drive, but would like to spend some more time in Orlando, if possible.

It is an easy approx. 4 hour drive from Orlando to Miami - if you can get everyone going early (7:00 :eek:) you could be on the ship enjoying lunch and a DOD shortly after noon. :D

And, once you get on the highway, you never have to stop until you get out of the PortMiami tunnel.

I drive day of from Cape Canaveral routinely. It is 200 miles in round numbers and the traffic is moving 75 PLUS ..... do the math!

Just time it to get to Miami AFTER 9AM else you'll run smack into rush hour traffic (if a week day)

Either way is doable. The 17th is a Sunday so you could hop on the Florida Turnpike and get to the ship in a little over 3 hours. I drove to Miami from Orlando over a period of 4 years while my little sister was at UM and it never took 4 hours unless there was accident on the Turnpike. The port is not far from the area where the University of Miami is. Just map out where you need to drop off the rental. I'd drop your family off first and then take a shuttle to get back to the port.

Either way is doable. The 17th is a Sunday so you could hop on the Florida Turnpike and get to the ship in a little over 3 hours. I drove to Miami from Orlando over a period of 4 years while my little sister was at UM and it never took 4 hours unless there was accident on the Turnpike. The port is not far from the area where the University of Miami is. Just map out where you need to drop off the rental. I'd drop your family off first and then take a shuttle to get back to the port.

I live extremely close to the port and my daughter just moved from downtown Orlando a few months ago, plus I'm at Disney all the time. It is more than 3 hours to go from the Universal Area to the port area and I drive around 80 on the turnpike! From Disney its about 3 hours and 50 minutes and from the Universal/Downtown area around 3 1/2 hours. That's no traffic, doing 80 for the most part and knowing exactly which way I'm going.

Driving to the UM campus takes another 15/20 minutes from here on US 1 because regretfully, there is always traffic here in Miami.

Wish I could do it in 3 hours because the drive is just that much more from here than from Naples to Disney.

I live extremely close to the port and my daughter just moved from downtown Orlando a few months ago, plus I'm at Disney all the time. It is more than 3 hours to go from the Universal Area to the port area and I drive around 80 on the turnpike! From Disney its about 3 hours and 50 minutes and from the Universal/Downtown area around 3 1/2 hours. That's no traffic, doing 80 for the most part and knowing exactly which way I'm going.

Driving to the UM campus takes another 15/20 minutes from here on US 1 because regretfully, there is always traffic here in Miami.

 

Wish I could do it in 3 hours because the drive is just that much more from here than from Naples to Disney.

That's fine. YMMV. I stated clearly "a little over 3 hours" which means, in my mind, anything under 3 1/2 hours barring no stops for gas, bathroom breaks or what have you. Travel time is subjective. But my point was it's not a bad drive from Orlando to Miami. Either the morning of or night before is an option that is doable without a lot of hassle because the Turnpike is a straight shot.

BTW, I don't miss the US 1 traffic! I loved visiting my sister when she was down there but I hated when 1 was backed up.

Hi! We are cruising out of Miami on 1/17/16. We are flying in to Orlando on the 14th and spending a few days at Universal Studios and then driving to Miami.

 

Are we better off staying in Orlando the night before the cruise and then driving down to Miami in the morning or should we drive to Miami the night before and stay in Miami the night before the cruise?

Yes. It is so much better to arrive the day before the cruise. So much could happen on the road that isn't planned.

The car trip is very long and you must leave very early. Because you will be tired and perhaps stressed driving for hours, you will not enjoy your first day on the ship. Stay at least a few miles away at most!

Enjoy your cruise.

Just drove from Orlando back home(Boca Raton) yesterday. There was a accident on the turnpike and we sat in gridlock for hours. I would drive down the night before.

You may want to consider splitting the drive into a few hours the night before and then a few hours the morning of. You could drive down from universal and stay overnight in Port St. Lucie (approx 2 1/2 hrs from MIA), Stuart (2 hrs) or West Palm Beach (1 to 1 1/2 hrs). It would be relatively easy to spend the day in the park, start driving half way, stop for dinner somewhere along the way and then be at your hotel at a reasonable hour. a 2 hour drive goes a lot faster than a 4 hour drive.

Also, once you get to Port Saint Lucie, you will be able to detour from turnpike to I-95 (or vice versa) if there are any serious traffic jams in the morning. North of port saint lucie you don't have that option. I've driven from Fort Lauderdale to Orlando 5 or 6 times a year for many years, and I've only hit a serious back up on the turnpike once, but I was stuck at a deadstop for about 4 hours. It doesn't happen often, but when it does it can be bad.