Port Everglades

Coming from FLL airport. Which terminal for Crown Princess.......and how do you know if you need to check in at the Convention Center? Do you have to take your bags there too?

There is lots of signage pointing you to the berth for each ship....take your bags to the porters outside each terminal. You check it at the terminal where your ship is docked.

The ONLY time you'd check in at the Convention Center would be if there is a significant delay for embarkation (Noro deep cleaning, ship arrived late, etc.) and that very rarely happens. It's highly unusual.

 

Normally, your cab or transport pulls up to the pier and a porter is there to whisk it away. Every time I've boarded in Port Everglades, the entire process has taken less than a minute and I've found I need to be super organized before leaving the car or van.

Pam - what time do you find best for arriving at the pier in FLL? I was thinking of getting there around 12-1230ish to miss the early boarding rush. We will be using a hotel shuttle and so will need to sign up the night before.

Thanks for the quick responses!

Pam - what time do you find best for arriving at the pier in FLL? I was thinking of getting there around 12-1230ish to miss the early boarding rush. We will be using a hotel shuttle and so will need to sign up the night before.

 

Take the earliest hotel shuttle available to you. The earlier you get there, the lower the number, the faster you get on board. Preferred boarding usually begins around 11:45 and moves very quickly, followed by non preferred passengers. You could very likely be on board before 12:30. Then again, where is your hotel? You might even be better off taking a taxi.

Pam - what time do you find best for arriving at the pier in FLL? I was thinking of getting there around 12-1230ish to miss the early boarding rush. We will be using a hotel shuttle and so will need to sign up the night before.

In Nov. we arrived at Port Everglades at 1:15 and no lines whats so ever, Have Fun.:)

Pam - what time do you find best for arriving at the pier in FLL? I was thinking of getting there around 12-1230ish to miss the early boarding rush. We will be using a hotel shuttle and so will need to sign up the night before.

I've seen so many hotel shuttles with such long lines and grumpy people, even after reserving a shuttle, that I would either plan on taking a taxi or a later shuttle. Most hotels include breakfast and I'd plan on a later breakfast when it's not crowded and going to the pier at about 12:30pm. It'll all depend on whether the hotel has later times for the shuttle. Sometimes, once the rush is over, they use them to pick up people from the airport to the hotel.

 

We wound up staying at the Hyatt Place North for a month because my BIL was in the hospital nearby so I observed the shuttle situation every single day. Weekends were the worse, even with three shuttles running. If we wanted to use the shuttle to go to the hospital (a 5-minute drive away), you should have heard the people grumbling and screaming at us. Sometimes, it was so bad we took a taxi to the hospital, rather than put up with it.

 

When we board in San Pedro where we can drive to, we plan to arrive at 12:30pm, walk in, check in and board. It's usually a breeze.

Take the earliest hotel shuttle available to you. The earlier you get there, the lower the number, the faster you get on board. Preferred boarding usually begins around 11:45 and moves very quickly, followed by non preferred passengers. You could very likely be on board before 12:30. Then again, where is your hotel? You might even be better off taking a taxi.

 

I have done that many times (usually leave hotel around 1030am), only to be stuck in long lines and then play the hurry-up and wait game. We want a more leisurely boarding and that is why I was thinking of going a bit later than norm, say around 1230. Let all the early birds get their worm so to speak ...... :D

I have done that many times (usually leave hotel around 1030am), only to be stuck in long lines and then play the hurry-up and wait game. We want a more leisurely boarding and that is why I was thinking of going a bit later than norm, say around 1230. Let all the early birds get their worm so to speak ...... :D

I am always so anxious for my cruise to start that I just can't wait that long. However, I have seriously considered doing what you propose. I say give it a try and see how you like it. I usually reason with myself that I will either be waiting at a hotel or waiting at the cruise terminal and I've always chosen to do my waiting at the terminal....with a good book to while away the time, of course. Either way...have a great cruise. :)

I usually get to Port Everglades around noon and the lines are usually short at that time.

On our 12.24.11 Grand cruise they didn't start boarding until about 12:30, may a bit earlier. So, when we got there about 1 we were right in the middle of a mess. "Mess" might be a strong word. There was just lots of traffic at pier 21, more than any of the other piers and lots of people and luggage. The line did keep moving but was rather long. By no means was it ugly, just teeming masses of excited people.

If you are at a hotel taking their shuttle, when you tell them which ship, they will give you a choice of times, you don't specify "I want to leave at 12:00".

We are arriving by plane at FLL by 10:00, is the best way to the Crown Princess via a taxi?

 

Will they let us board early if we arrive to the ship by 11:30?

We are arriving by plane at FLL by 10:00, is the best way to the Crown Princess via a taxi?

 

Will they let us board early if we arrive to the ship by 11:30?

Yes..take a taxi. Should only be about $15...and you should be able to board between 11:30 and noon, if all is on schedule.

We like to take the earliest shuttle possible from our hotel. Usually this is around 10 o'clock. For the Crown last month, we flew down the day of the cruise. (Which is something I don't like to do and always recommend against.) That was one of the cruises that had delayed boarding due to cleaning to try to eradicate the norovirus on the ship. We were able to check our luggage at the pier as usual and were then directed to walk over to the convention center for check in. We were among the first ones there since our flight got into Fort Lauderdale a little before 10 o'clock.

 

After checking in and getting our cruise cards, we walked up 17th Street and shopped at Total Wine and ate lunch. One of the reasons I like to get to the port early is to be onboard the ship in time for lunch in the dining room. I missed that this cruise, even though we did get to eat in the diner near Total Wine that we usually eat in the night before a cruise.

 

I'm so glad we did not sit and wait in the convention center. The people in there were tired and grumpy. A lot of them let the experience sour their whole cruise. After so many cruises, though, we've learned not to let the little inconveniences worry us.

I'm with the "arrive later and walk on board quickly" group. Earlier at FLL, even with Platinum check in, it is a sea of people with their carry-ons, waiting in lines or moving slowly in line.

 

One of the nice things about Princess' boarding policies is that once you are onboard you can go directly to your cabin. On Carnival and HAL (my only other cruise lines experiences) the cabins are not ready until later, which means everyone is at the buffet or the pools with their carry-ons in tow.