Flying into miami for port everglades cruise

I need help trying to find a hotel in ft. Lauderdale that has shuttle service from the miami airport and will also shuttle 2 of us to port everglades. Any help will be wonderful. Tia!!

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

As it is 45 or so minutes from MIA to Ft Lauderdale, there are no hotels that will provide that shuttle. You need to arrange your own, outfits like SuperShuttle (and others...look around the board) are the ones you need.

As commonly discussed here, taxis are plentiful and cheaper than most shuttles for the hotel to port trip. But check sunny.org, which lists all the Ft Lauderdale hotels, and their amenities, like port transport.

Plenty of hotels that will provide port service in the Port Everglades area, but to get to the hotel I don't know of any that would include that. I would either do a one day rental, dropping off at FLL, or take Uber/Lyft from MIA to your hotel. There are also shuttle options as mentioned, but Uber or a rental would be my suggestion. You can get Uber estimates to your specific hotel on sites like uberestimate.com or the actual Uber app.

There are no shuttles. It's 20+ miles. Uber would be the easiest and quickest option but it depends on your party size.

Look at the Sheraton Miami Airport hotel and then pick up a one day car rental (there are no one way fees in Florida).

The reason I suggest the Sheraton is because, not only does it have a shuttle from the airport (most hotels have that service), but it is also right across the street from the MIA car rental center and although it is a busy highway, there are traffic lights controlling a pedestrian crossing right outside the hotel.

All this means that you don't have to go back to the airport next morning and then take the rail shuttle to get to the car rental center.

Also you most definitely do not need to take your bags with you when you go to collect the car. The exit ramp from the car rental center comes down directly opposite the hotel and the junction / crossing into the pick up bay of the hotel is controlled by the same lights which allowed you to cross the road as a pedestrian on your way to the rental center.

We do this regularly and we never take the bags to the rental center. Instead, after checking out, one of us stays in the hotel reception area with the bags, whilst the other goes to get the car, which takes about 20 mins in total.

It's a bit awkward getting into the car rental center as it is designed around access from the rail shuttle, but you can get into the ground floor through the fire exits and then use the elevator to get to floor with the desk. Failing that you might have to walk up the vehicle exit ramp, but as you have no bags, even this is not a real problem.

In terms of car rental companies, I would recommend you use either Alamo (drop of in Ellery Drive - right outside Port Everglades and with a shuttle to the port) or Budget (drop off in SE 15th - by the Renaissance from where they operate a free shuttle).

There are other companies, but these are the two I am most familiar with.

Either way, when you get to Fort Lauderdale, drive into the port any time after 9am and drop off your bags (which you will be able to watch being put into a cage) before you return the car. That way you can minimise the amount of bag carrying you have to do and don't have to load your bags on and off the shuttle.

Just remember to take all your documents with you when you leave the port as you may need them to get back into the port when you return.

EDIT:

Other point against going over from MIA to Fort Lauderdale is that whilst most hotels near to Port Everglades do provide a shuttle service to the port, many charge for the service and if there are two of you taxi is often cheaper, and, even if the shuttle is free, demand is often very high and lines can be lengthy.

Much better IMHO to drift over from MIA on the morning of the cruise. One thing is certain is that from a cost point of view, we have ALWAYS found, after allowing for the cost of getting to Fort Lauderdale from MIA and then the cost of shuttle / taxi to Port Everglades makes staying at MIA and renting a car much cheaper option and with considerably less hassle.

Good advice above.

UberX from MIA to FLL area hotels/PE will be about $35-40 www.sunny.org has lots of FLL area hotel and tourist info.

What time do you land at MIA? :confused: Arriving late I would choose to stay near MIA and head to PE the next day; arriving earlier I would consider heading to FLL and staying there.

Good advice above.

 

What time do you land at MIA? :confused: Arriving late I would choose to stay near MIA and head to PE the next day; arriving earlier I would consider heading to FLL and staying there.

Good point.

My strategy is based on the fact that we invariably land at 16.00 at the very earliest (and probably later) with our body clocks telling us that it is 22.00 or later by the time we get to our hotel, where we arrive with little interest in anything other than surviving for a few hours until it is time to get into a comfortable bed for the night

Not sure whether I would want to hang around at a MIA airport hotel all day if I arrived early in the day and with bags of energy.

Going through the hassle of getting a rental car, dropping it off, then still having to Taxi/Uber from the rental facility seems insane to me. It's a 25 - 30 minute drive.

Just take an Uber from MIA to Fort Lauderdale then shuttle or uber in the morning to Port Everglades. This doesn't have to be complicated, and getting a taxi or uber is incredibly easy at Miami airport - they don't have specified ride share zones or anything, so you just punch in the giant door number that you walk out of into the app and get picked up.

Unless you have a large group and need a shuttle, in which case you need to just inquire with a few shuttle companies. Besides that, Uber is a no-brainer.

If staying near MIA I would suggest hotels in the Blue Lagoon area - Homewood Suites, Hampton Inn, etc -- with a local strip mall near by for last minute shopping plus several dining/fast food options. Use Uber/Lyft the next day and just head straight to the port.