Duck Down

We recently booked a cruise out of Miami but was having trouble finding an affordable flight out of the area on the Sunday. Our flight in is one way to FLL. I checked Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and Palm Beach and all three were expensive unless it was a late night flight. I was looking at getting a rental and driving to Orlando, but even that was a little high priced. I was playing around and found a 2:15 pm direct flight out of Fort Meyers which was very reasonable even with the cost of the rental and gas. The drive is less than Orlando and we have never driven Alligator Alley. It feels like a bit of an adventure. We have priority debarkation so should be able to be off the ship by 7:30. Has anyone done the drive to Fort Myers to catch a flight before?

We were on the Vista in cabin 9359 right under the walkway just inside the doors from Guy's burgers. We did hear some noise while we were awake. Mostly rumbling from rolling of carts. It was not too loud. We were never woken up while sleeping. We just booked Horizon for December and have another room booked on deck 9. This time it is closer to being under one of the deck bars.

This seems to be true. We are currently on the Vista and boarded Sept 8. The check in desk agent (Miami Terminal) told us that cabins will be ready at 1:30. This is after they saw we are Diamond. When I questioned this, I was told that the Vista is a large ship and that there were too many cabins to get ready and that there was not time to get all the priority cabin ready ahead of time. We boarded and went direct to lunch. Around 12:30, we went to take a look and there were no FTTF/Priority cabin access signs on the closed doorways to the cabins. We went in anyways and found our cabin was done and the SS cards were in the mailbox. As a bonus, our luggage was already there... I went to guest services today to get some change, and one of the digital TV boards behind the desk had rotating messages/announcements. One of those messages started that cabins were going to be ready at 1:30 and FTTF/Priority were welcome to go to the cabin early. Mixed messages.

I hate the open air markets but my wife loves them. Almost all the booths have the same items made in China. The vendors are all pushy (at least the ones in Mexico). Often it is crowded.

Are there any issues using Uber or Lyft for pick up at the FLL airport and pick up at port of Miami after a cruise. Are they allowed to pick up at the airport and cruise port? We have never used them before.

I have not tried Uber Pool. Another option is the Tri-Rail from PBI to MIA. We have used a number of times from MIA to FLL.

Thanks for everyone's help. I think I will buy the Value plan and try to retrieve e-mails early morning while having a coffee. I will be in port on the day I need to upload a report on the VPN, so I will use my cell phone data. It will only cost $10 for the roaming and the data is included.

We will be on the Conquest in a few weeks and are debating purchasing the Value plan $10.25/day instead of the Premium plan $14.88/day. Is there a major difference in internet speed between the two plans? Is it worth the extra $37 for an 8 day cruise? I need a plan to use for a few reports through my company VPN as well as checking e-mails. We are thinking of also buying the Social plan $4/day for my wife to use on Facebook. Does that also work for e-mails or will she have to piggyback off my plan to check e-mails (couple of times a day).

Thanks for the tip. Never thought of that. I got confused for a moment trying to figure out how opening the fridge door would cool down the contents. Then it hit me, keep the fridge door closed and open the wooden cabinet door.... Long day at work today....

Once we get on the ship I always say "I'm Home". We drop off our carry-on bags in the cabin and head up to the buffet for a slow lunch. We try for a port side window so we can watch some of the action out in the port area as well as watching all the cruisers arriving for lunch. After lunch we walk the ship both outside and inside before it gets crowded. Once we are done our walk, we head back to the cabin and usually take a quick nap if our luggage has not arrived. Most cruises we are unpacked and ready to cruise before muster drill. As for getting up early, I can't help you there. The only time we get up early is if we have early plans in port of on embarkation day.

We were on the Breeze in late August and they had the debarkation down to an art form for self assist. We received our Platinum letter requesting we meet in the main showroom. We got there and Platinum was seated on one side of the room, and FTTF in the middle. When it was time to leave the ship, they started with Platinum/Diamond row by row. Only when Platinum/Diamond were finished, they were going to let the FTTF out. It was organized and efficient. We have the Splendor coming up in a couple of weeks. Lets see how that goes.

Often we just get off the ship and take a local taxi to a beach or pick up a local tour from the vendors at the port. I have not been able to research much regarding doing this from the port at La Romana? Has anyone done this, what are the approx. cost, and what did you end up doing?

We have never been on a Bermuda cruise. When the ship is parked at the dock for a couple of days, does the ship close their shops and casino until they are back at sea? Is alcohol ordered from the bar taxed while in port?

I heard that some cruise lines now have satellite internet while at sea and a land based hybrid system when in certain ports. Does the Getaway have this system, and does anyone know what ports have this? To be able to go on a cruise, I need to be connected to the internet for an hour each day. Thanks in advance

After 26 Carnival cruises, we have booked our first NCL cruise on the Getaway for August this year. We are looking forward to trying NCL and what they have to offer. I have gone online and made show reservations for Burn the Floor, and Legally Blonde for the family. Do we have to exchange the reservation for a ticket? Is the reservation for assigned seating or guaranteed admission? If the reservation is just for a seat, how far in advance should we line up to get good seats or are all good seats? We also made a reservation for Illusionarium. Is it the same sort of idea? How are the tables assigned? And finally, for Levity Entertainment, do we make reservations when we board the ship? Thanks