FLL vs MIA - Feb 2015

Good Morning

We are scheduled to Sail Carnival Breeze 2/8/15. Since we are from MN I always like to fly down a day early to give a little wiggle room just in case.

We are looking to fly into FLL so we can fly Southwest, which is the best pricing I have seen on all carriers to either FLL or MIA. The flights we are looking at don't get us in until about 9 pm. We have a rental reserved thinking that will be the best bet for 6 of us to get to Miami and be able to stop and get any last minute things we need for the trip at our leisure.

I just can't decide if it makes more sense to drive to Miami that night or stay in Ft Lauderdale?? I'm not finding great prices on hotels in either place. I was hoping for around $100 a night (give or take) as we get in late I dont need a hotel with every amenity - just a bed and bathroom, clean and safe.

Anyone have suggestions on hotels I may of missed? Or which place is the best to stay one night? I know we can forgo the rental and shuttle/tri rail if that makes more sense. Its been years since we have sailed from Mia so I feel a little out of sorts with what to do.

I would choose to stay near FLL and make your way to Miami the next day. www.sunny.org has lots of FLL area tourist and lodging info.

$100 will not get you much of a room in south FLA during prime tourist season :( - I would consider upping your budget; you will find more discount rooms near FLL than you will in Miami.

If you find a hotel/motel with shopping nearby you can skip the car rental, use the airport shuttle from FLL and book shared shuttle service with SAS, QLS, Go Airport and others for about $13-15+ per person for the 40-45 minute trip to POM. If you rent a car National, Alamo and Thrifty offer free POM shuttles from their MIA airport location; if you rent from others you can drop at a downtown office and cab to POM for about $12+

Im finding lodging not cheap that time of year. I just hate to spend a bunch for a shower and bed. If I was getting in early and had more time to enjoy I'd expect more from a hotel. Though I have no choice but to pay the going rate.

We have a van rented through Budget for about $90 which is about the same as SAS shuttle for 6. I of course am willing to let someone else do the driving if I can find the right deal. Though I enjoy having the car to get around as we always forget something plus need booze and pop for the trip.

I too would just stay in Fort Lauderdale that night.

Remember till yo get luggage and the rental vehicle it's already 10:00 PM.

Prices are high that time of the year because people from up North not only cruise like you are dong but also many stay in Florida for the warmth and the beaches.

Keith

$100 for a room in February ANYWHERE in South Florida is unrealistic. Any hotel charging that cheap will be in a crime ridden area.

The best deals will be Miami airport hotels. You can probably find something on hotwire or priceline for about $130.

I would not book anything under 2 1/2 stars. The Miami airport is surrounded by a rough area.

I don't know why you wouldn't want to up your budget and stay in a nicer area. Restaurants down here serve very late. I know Brother Jimmy's BBQ in Mary Brickell Village serves until 2am. Most restaurants serve until midnight.

I'm assuming you are booking two hotel rooms? If you are only booking one room, you'll have to up your budget to over $200.

Don't think about taking the Tri Rail at night. It goes through some sketchy areas.

Im finding lodging not cheap that time of year. I just hate to spend a bunch for a shower and bed. If I was getting in early and had more time to enjoy I'd expect more from a hotel. Though I have no choice but to pay the going rate.

 

We have a van rented through Budget for about $90 which is about the same as SAS shuttle for 6. I of course am willing to let someone else do the driving if I can find the right deal. Though I enjoy having the car to get around as we always forget something plus need booze and pop for the trip.

The van will cost you $90+gas+ a taxi from Budget to POM; shared shuttles from QLS (usually offers a group discount) for $13 each = $78+tip. It's an easy choice for me. ;)

Arriving that late I would opt for the cheapest acceptable room I could find near FLL - renting the van and driving to Miami will take you at least 90 minutes; how much shopping will you do close to midnight? :confused:

$100 for a room in February ANYWHERE in South Florida is unrealistic. Any hotel charging that cheap will be in a crime ridden area.

 

The best deals will be Miami airport hotels. You can probably find something on hotwire or priceline for about $130.

 

I would not book anything under 2 1/2 stars. The Miami airport is surrounded by a rough area.

 

I don't know why you wouldn't want to up your budget and stay in a nicer area. Restaurants down here serve very late. I know Brother Jimmy's BBQ in Mary Brickell Village serves until 2am. Most restaurants serve until midnight.

 

I'm assuming you are booking two hotel rooms? If you are only booking one room, you'll have to up your budget to over $200.

 

Don't think about taking the Tri Rail at night. It goes through some sketchy areas.

There will 8 of us total, for now more on the fence. 6 of us traveling together for sure. Yes we will be getting 2 rooms as we are 2 families.

I found some MIA airport areas for less than $100. $100 is not a hard fast rule I just don't need a plush room for us to sleep and shower in shoot I'd sleep in the van if I could. If we where coming in earlier or staying longer I would of course be looking for more and my budget would go up.

Its been years since we have been to Miami and have stayed in areas near the airport and other I felt where "rougher" never felt overly at risk either. We just check in and go to bed. Though things could have changed over the years.

If we decide to do the tri-rail it would be the next morning I would not hassle with all of that at night.

The van will cost you $90+gas+ a taxi from Budget to POM; shared shuttles from QLS (usually offers a group discount) for $13 each = $78+tip. It's an easy choice for me. ;)

 

Arriving that late I would opt for the cheapest acceptable room I could find near FLL - renting the van and driving to Miami will take you at least 90 minutes; how much shopping will you do close to midnight? :confused:

Taking a shuttle is definitely an option. I have no issue letting someone else do the driving. Having the van just gives us some opportunity to get around at our leisure and not pay for a taxi to run to the grocery/liquor store. Though if we could find something in walking distance problem solved.

If you have any suggestions on hotels I'd love to hear them as I'm not familiar with the area.

There will 8 of us total, for now more on the fence. 6 of us traveling together for sure. Yes we will be getting 2 rooms as we are 2 families.

 

I found some MIA airport areas for less than $100. $100 is not a hard fast rule I just don't need a plush room for us to sleep and shower in shoot I'd sleep in the van if I could. If we where coming in earlier or staying longer I would of course be looking for more and my budget would go up.

 

Its been years since we have been to Miami and have stayed in areas near the airport and other I felt where "rougher" never felt overly at risk either. We just check in and go to bed. Though things could have changed over the years.

 

If we decide to do the tri-rail it would be the next morning I would not hassle with all of that at night.

Don't go with anything less than a 2 1/2 stars. Believe me, the area surrounding MIA is certainly a high crime area. What hotels have you found for less than $100? Avoid Red Roof Inns, Ramadas, Days Inn, Red Carpet, and Rodeways. They are particularly dismal in South Florida.

Because you need two rooms, go to hotwire. There you can book more than two to a room and more than one room at a time. And as stated, don't book anything lower than 2 1/2 .

I agree totally that if you look for the cheapest rooms in the Miami area, you can end up in some scary places. Maybe you don't mind, but taking chances with family....:rolleyes:

Go on hotwire. You'll see 3 choices for 135$ and less near the MIA airport. They have 75% or higher in satisfaction reviews. I'd go for the $135 one. Has free breakfast and parking. A good savings for your larger group.

Geez.. guess unless you have hundreds of dollars to spend on a room for a few hours you should not travel to Fla. :eek:

LOL As a fellow midwesterner, I understand your needing to head there in the dead of winter. We happily pay the premium prices to get outta here:p

The prices are real low in August:D

I think after this I might go back to sailing from NOLA which is my favorite as long as I have some time in NOLA. I know you pay to play but I splurged so much on the Breeze cruise then upgrade to a balcony Im worried about blowing what is left of the budget on a hotel room for the 10 - 12 hours we will use it.

Another Minnesotan here following this thread.

I just booked a b2b on the Glory out of Miami for end of Feb. and was tickled to death with the price I got during the Halloween sale yesterday. BUT...just like you I am finding out that one night in a hotel room the night before is going to cost as much as one person's cruise fare for the entire week!! I won't even start on what airfare is right now!!

I think we will probably fly to FLL since we get better rates on Southwest (and love the free luggage policy!!) and today I started looking for hotels around the airport. I started with the Ft. Lauderdale hotels where SAS shuttle will pick up (which we could take to the Port of Miami) and have been checking prices online.

Out of a very long list of hotels, the only place that was under $100 was Motel 6 but they don't have a free airport shuttle or breakfast. By the time you add the cost for those, I would rather pay more and get a better place.

Avoid Red Roof Inns, Ramadas, Days Inn, Red Carpet, and Rodeways. They are particularly dismal in South Florida.

I have no advice or answers for you, just wanted to sympathize a bit. Last year we planned a cruise in February but ended up moving it to early December and even stayed in FLL two nights prior. I was able to get the Embassy Suites then for $111/night. As much as I will enjoy getting out of Minnesota in February I think I will reconsider before booking during high season again.

Good luck on your search!!

Thanks... I feel your pain as well!

You do NOT want to be in a bad area in Miami!!!!

Listen to the experienced people here......they know what they are talking about!!

This NOT the midwest!!!!!

What is a bad area? What is bad? Will we be raped and murdered in our sleep? Or hassled? Or car stolen? I do live in the Midwest and I am MN nice but I have also slept, drove, walked in some shady places. I even almost tripped over a bum one trip to NOLA when where cut through unlit streets to get to where we needed to go. Im not naive I'm aware of my surroundings.

But I'm totally listening to everyone's advice as I have not been there for years

What is a bad area? What is bad? Will we be raped and murdered in our sleep? Or hassled? Or car stolen? I do live in the Midwest and I am MN nice but I have also slept, drove, walked in some shady places. I even almost tripped over a bum one trip to NOLA when where cut through unlit streets to get to where we needed to go. Im not naive I'm aware of my surroundings.

 

But I'm totally listening to everyone's advice as I have not been there for years

Let me put it this way....we have a friend who just got back from a cruise out of Miami....he didn't bother to do any research and chose a hotel based on the "good" price.

When they checked in ....mid afternoon.... they were told by the people working there to NOT leave the hotel until they were ready to checkout because it was not safe. They asked about going to dinner and they were told to do so at their own risk.

So you can be the judge if you want to put yourself and your family in such an area based on price.

Please be safe and I do truly hope you have a great cruise!!!

I disagree with the advice to pass on the Red Carpet Inn in Ft Lauderdale. It was clean and reasonably priced when we stayed there both times.

It is also on SAS list of hotels they will pick up from if you use them for the shuttle to POM.

Red Carpet in Ft.L is running $150 for the date needed. OP is looking for something for $100. Tough in Feb. :o

I still think OP should use Hot wire and get a discounted rate.

What is a bad area? What is bad? Will we be raped and murdered in our sleep? Or hassled? Or car stolen? I do live in the Midwest and I am MN nice but I have also slept, drove, walked in some shady places. I even almost tripped over a bum one trip to NOLA when where cut through unlit streets to get to where we needed to go. Im not naive I'm aware of my surroundings.

 

But I'm totally listening to everyone's advice as I have not been there for years

Yes, it is really that bad in some areas. Some zip codes have some of the highest crime rates in the country. There are a lot of illegal aliens here who cannot get jobs and will kill you for your wallet. Don't be naïve about the crime here.

South Florida is so expensive because it is beach weather in February and wealthy Europeans and South Americans flock here during winter. Europeans because the dollar is weak against the Euro and South Americans because Miami is the capitol of Latin America.

Over half of our tourism is not from the US.