Miami Hotel pre-cruise

Hello All

For the first time we have booked cruise only and plan to arrange our own flights transatlantic to Miami to pick up our cruise on Eclipse.

My question is two-fold :-

Would anyone be able to point me toward the best position to search for a hotel in Miami - i.e centre, airport, port please and have you any recommendations please?

Would it be better to plan for 2 nights pre cruise to allow for any potential problems with flight delays, connections etc?. The flight we would select is scheduled to arrive Miami at 8.30pm the local time.

I hope you can help and many apologies if this has been asked before many times :o

Many Thanks

Seems like if you are going to fly Transatlantic you might consider 2 nights in Miami to be in the safe side. The cost of an extra night is small compared to the flight and cruise.

Lots of good sites to find rooms. Priceline is nice but I use Hilton.com it the Hilton App often.

Miami is not the cheapest place to stay. If you want to save some money don't stay on the beach. Lots of great places downtown or the airport.

We stayed at the Hampton on South Beach last fall. 1 block from the beach and it was nice.

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I would do two nights also and downtown vs the Beach. Easy access to the cruise port.

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We are on the same cruise as you (Eclipse 4th March '18) unless I am mistaken.

One day prior to the cruise is more than ideal, Miami is ridiculously expensive for tourists. Winter problem are over especially if you fly direct, LHR to MIA is currently about £470/pp for direct return flight. This is a great price considering we paid £560/pp for flight same time this year. Very important that you choose an EU based airline avoiding any American airline, also check that they are not coded shared to a US carrier. The reason is cancellations/delays are not covered to the same extent as an EU carrier flying to/from UK.

Choose a hotel near the airport, ideally one that provides a shuttle to the port in the morning. Taxis can be a rip-off with airport hotel to POM journey costing anything between $35-$60. Many will recomend UBER for the journey but we Brits don't have the experience of this service so we always choose hotel shuttle. Goto booking.com and choose a hotel on a refundable rate then keeping checking for better as the cruise gets nearer.

Go over to the Florida Departures board. There are tons of recommendations there. There you can get info for every budget and interest from many of us who are very familiar with the area.

If you have never been to Miami, I wouldn't stay at any hotel "near the airport". :o Why not start your vacation in an area that is walkable to restaurants and stores?

Unless you do decide to spend just that one night of arrival and are just looking for a place to sleep. In that case, look at the hotels in the Blue Lagoon airport area. Those are nicer chains and in a safe area. Since you are coming so far, I'd plan on two nights downtown and take the opportunity to see the city if you never have been.

But for now, PLEASE go to the specific board for Florida and get accurate and current info from residents and experts in the city/port.

......LHR to MIA is currently about £470/pp for direct return flight.

Quick update - check Skyscanner LHR to MIA direct with BA is now £386/pp for 2nd March returning 18th March. As you are aware no direct flights MAN to MIA.

You will have the whole day when you disembark the ship on the 18th to see Miami - Celebrity offer a good deal - Luggage Storage and HoHo bus tour ($55/pp) as the flight will be either 20.00 or 22.00hrs departure. Thats our plan anyway !

For our last 2 cruises out of Miami, we stayed downtown at the JW Marriott Marquis. Technically a downtown hotel, but both times we were on a high floor with views of the cruise ships in port. I was too excited to sleep and woke up early to watch the ships arrive from our hotel window. This hotel can be pricey, but if you keep an eye on it, there are good rates to be found. About a 10 minute cab ride to the port. Very nice area to walk around with lots of restaurants, some shopping, etc.

Thank you so much all of you - there is quite a lot of solid information here for us. I didn't know about the Florida section on the boards so thank you also for that.

We were going to head from Manchester through Philadelphia to Miami but think we will strongly consider the shuttle to London then a direct to Miami - thank you for the tips mickey89

We are also thinking 2 nights in Miami close to the port may be nice for us and will take away any concerns we may have.

Thank you again to you all :)

Hello All

 

For the first time we have booked cruise only and plan to arrange our own flights transatlantic to Miami to pick up our cruise on Eclipse.

My question is two-fold :-

 

Would anyone be able to point me toward the best position to search for a hotel in Miami - i.e centre, airport, port please and have you any recommendations please?

 

Would it be better to plan for 2 nights pre cruise to allow for any potential problems with flight delays, connections etc?. The flight we would select is scheduled to arrive Miami at 8.30pm the local time.

 

I hope you can help and many apologies if this has been asked before many times :o

 

Many Thanks

This is our third time flying to Miami for a cruise. We always fly out 2 days before . This way we feel a little more secure in case our luggage doesn't arrive with us. We stay at the Hampton Inn at Brickell Downtown. This is a nice safe area where you can walk around. There are many restaurants nearby and the hotel is very nice. They have a very good free breakfast and you get a complimentary voucher for a drink at night. The Mary Brickell Village is a lovely area to visit. The Metro Mover is also close by but we have never used it. We take a cab from the airport on arrival . The hotel has a shuttle to the port and it's not too far away. As you say you will be arriving in Miami quite late the Sports Bar next to the hotel would give you somewhere to eat without venturing too far on your arrival night.

We're also cruising out of Miami this summer and I booked the Kimpton Epic. I've never stayed at this particular Kimpton, but I do like their hotels. Does anyone have any experience with the Miami Epic?

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We have stayed at the epic and the intercontinental. Both very nice choices.

We're also cruising out of Miami this summer and I booked the Kimpton Epic. I've never stayed at this particular Kimpton, but I do like their hotels. Does anyone have any experience with the Miami Epic?

 

 

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The Epic was right next to JW Marriott Marquis. Looked very nice!

We stay at the hyatt Centric South Beach Miami. Close to beach, shopping and restaurants. The cruise ships leave out of Dodge Island.

We stayed at the Epic last year and loved it so much that we're booked next month for our upcoming Celebrity cruise. We book a Waterview King Premier Room which has a great view. The hotel offers a complimentary cocktail hour from 5-6 pm, if you join their Kimpton Karma Rewards loyalty program, you get free internet and a "$10 raid the bar" minibar perk. It's a block from Whole Foods grocery store and near the "Metro Mover."

We just cruised out of Miami and I searched every hotel possibility! It really depends what you are looking for. (Beach, night life, restaurants or just a place to sleep) If it is your first time in Miami I recommend seeing the famous South Beach strip. We stayed at the Shelborne Miami which is walking distance to Ocean Drive and Lincoln in South Beach. What ultimately made my decision was the live like a local special they are running. You can't beat the price for all that you get- resort hotel right on the beach, pool, music. They have a great 5,6,7 happy hour- apps and drinks are $5 at 5pm, etc.

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We're also cruising out of Miami this summer and I booked the Kimpton Epic. I've never stayed at this particular Kimpton, but I do like their hotels. Does anyone have any experience with the Miami Epic?

 

 

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I love the rooms in the Epic. The lobby area can become a bit crowded and frenzied in the evenings. It is also a condominium so the traffic getting in can be busy. Make sure to try both of the hotels restaurants

DW and I like the Intercontinental - if not at a busy time it's easy to get a room on the water facing side. It's really nice to wake up and see your ship waiting for you. The restaurant at the hotel (Toro Toro) is fantastic and it's a short walk across Bayfront Park to many others.

My wife and I are huge fans of Kimpton Hotels, so have also booked the Epic pre- and post- cruise. Service at Kimptons is universally, good, the restaurants and bars almost always great, and the location looks great. If you do stay there, definitely sign up for Karma rewards. Doing so will guarantee free wifi access and some other treats. And each evening they have a complimentary wine hour.

I think the OP has to make a basic decision regarding a basic question. Do you want to fly to Miami for the sole purpose of getting to your cruise, or do you want to enjoy some of Miami (and its area) prior to your cruise? If its simply a matter of getting to your cruise, and you are content with a 1 night stay...then staying out in the airport area will save you money. But if you want to extend your holiday to also enjoy Miami (you get more out of that expensive airfare) then you should consider staying in an interesting part of Miami. South Beach is certainly to "go to" place and is a trendy section popular with many folks. Brickell is a decent (and pretty safe) area that also has its fans (you can always take a taxi over to South Beach).

Hank

Thank you to all who have answered my add-on question about the Epic. I'm already a Kimpton reward member and I agree-the perks are nice. [emoji3]

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We stayed at the Epic last year and loved it so much that we're booked next month for our upcoming Celebrity cruise. We book a Waterview King Premier Room which has a great view. The hotel offers a complimentary cocktail hour from 5-6 pm, if you join their Kimpton Karma Rewards loyalty program, you get free internet and a "$10 raid the bar" minibar perk. It's a block from Whole Foods grocery store and near the "Metro Mover."

We spent the night here after our cruise on Reflection. We were able to do early check in, and enjoyed walking around the area. We actually had lunch at that Whole Foods. :) It was a very nice day, and they have tables outside.

I also noticed a 24-hour CVS right in the area that had liquor.

Again thank you so much for your information.

We have established that its not just a quick room for the night so we would like to spend a couple of days having a look at the area near the waterfront, walking to nice restaurants, shops and seeing the ships etc.

Question - are any of the hotels mentioned on South Beach?

Is the Kimpton Epic and Intercontinental on the Bay area?

Thank you again

Goto www.booking.com -all the hotels can be seen on their map of Miami. Epic is in brickell whilst Intercontinental is a short distance away in Bayside. Check out Fortune Hotel and Suites which has easy access to the free metromover to access Bayside waterfront and is more reasonable cost.

Just be aware that a 2night stay without meals at Epic or Intercontinental will cost more than your flight ( £550 / £600 for 2 night -room only) then be prepared to pay over £150/day for your meals, you can half this cost by using the many fast food restaurants. Miami is very expensive especially with the devalued pound.

Hello All

 

For the first time we have booked cruise only and plan to arrange our own flights transatlantic to Miami to pick up our cruise on Eclipse.

My question is two-fold :-

 

Would anyone be able to point me toward the best position to search for a hotel in Miami - i.e centre, airport, port please and have you any recommendations please?

 

Would it be better to plan for 2 nights pre cruise to allow for any potential problems with flight delays, connections etc?. The flight we would select is scheduled to arrive Miami at 8.30pm the local time.

 

I hope you can help and many apologies if this has been asked before many times :o

 

Many Thanks

Hi Gail

It really depends on where you are flying from in the uk.

I have done this many times and like to stay in Coral Gables in Miami.

It really depends on what you want and your budget. We are on the sailing before you and hotels at this time can be very expensive , depending on what to you is expensive,

In 2018 because we didn't care that much for the virgin connection from Atlanta to Miami (from Manchester) we have decided to fly into Orlando. We will hire a car and drive the 3 hours to Miami on the Sunday to us less hassle

Hi Gail

It really depends on where you are flying from in the uk.

I have done this many times and like to stay in Coral Gables in Miami.

It really depends on what you want and your budget. We are on the sailing before you and hotels at this time can be very expensive , depending on what to you is expensive,

In 2018 because we didn't care that much for the virgin connection from Atlanta to Miami (from Manchester) we have decided to fly into Orlando. We will hire a car and drive the 3 hours to Miami on the Sunday to us less hassle

There was a thread within the past year on the theme of people missing initial embarkation, and included a post from a family that had travelled to Orlando, spent a few days at Disney World, then headed off to Port Everglades on Sunday. With major road construction and an accident holding up traffic, they arrived just in time to watch their ship sail away.

You might want to consider driving to Miami directly after your arrival on Saturday, then enjoy a relaxing Sunday morning in Miami before heading to the port. If you still choose to go with a Sunday drive, do allow a great deal more than 3 hours. Google Maps estimates 3 h 39 min, and that doesn't take into account any time lost due to construction, accidents, a flat tire or any other unforeseen delay.