First timers help with Fort Lauderdale hotels and shopping please

Hi, as the title says we're first time cruisers :D

Sailing on the Conquest on 21 June from Port Everglades. We fly into Miami on 19 June and want to find a hotel for two nights prior to the cruise. I have a couple of questions that I'm hoping you can help with please :)

I know we'll need a shuttle/transfer from Miami to our Fort Lauderdale hotel. Should we try and find and book in advance or can we pick up a taxi when we arrive? There are 4 of us, is there an approx. charge per person or is it per car?

Is there a hotel in Fort Lauderdale that will provide shuttle to the cruise terminal and that's also located in an area where we can go to restaurants, shopping etc or even near a beach? Just thinking of what we can do with our full day before the cruise.

Or....would we be best to stay the two nights in Miami where I'm guessing there might be more to do and then transfer to the cruise from there?

I know the obvious is to fly into FLL the day before the cruise but we can't get decent flights. The best option for us is to fly to Miami on the dates above - the following day the price goes up by over £600.

Many thanks

Hello,

I would fly into FLL it is usually cheaper. There is a great hotel we always stay at in LauderDale By The Sea.Ocean Sky Resort ; Just up from FLL beach. It is a great hotel, not to expensive and sits right on the beach. They offer lots of water activities Jet Ski, Canoes etc. It is located a short Uber ride away from Wilton Manors. It also has some places to eat and shop along Galt Ocean Drive right outside of it's doors. Nick's Italian kitchen is amazing! There is also a Win Dixie across the street if you want to stock up on Soda or a bottle of wine to bring on the ship! Hope this helps! Take my advise! From the hotel also it is about a 12 dollar uber ride to the port.

There is tons of info on the Florida Departures board here, under North American Homeports. Most commonly asked questions there. EM

We like quality inn on Sterling Rd in Ft Lauderdale. It's in a shopping plaza with restaurants and a Kmart to get soda or wine for the cruise. They have a pool with a bar, free breakfast and free shuttle to the port but we have never used it. You could take an uber or lyft from the airport to wherever you choose. It's prob cheaper than a cab.

Sent from my SM-G928V using Forums mobile app

You will find many stay at the Embassy Suites on 17th st in FLL. Great free breakfast, loads of restaurants in the area and they have a van to take you to Miami for a fee.

Thanks everyone, lots of research for me to do.

Would have preferred to fly into FLL but much more expensive and longer travel time/connection for us, flying from the U.K.

Welcome to the boards! :cool:

For 4 plus bags you have options:

1. Taxis - including min-vans/SUV cabs - will run about $70-75+tip, depending upon where your hotel is located

2. UberXL will run about the same fare - we've had better luck with Uber and Lyft than taxis

3. You could rent a car one way

4. Private transfers are not that much more - check with Larry's Limos

www.sunny.org has lots of FLL area tourist and hotel info

I would not focus on free port shuttles - taxi or UberXL should get you there for $15 or less from hotels near the FLL airport or in the downtown/17th street area.

Good luck with your planning! :)

For the last couple of Caribbean cruises we have flown to Miami instead of Fort Lauderdale as it is a direct flight from Dublin.

We alternate between two options:

1/ we arrange a car with Larry's Limos to transfer us from MIA to our hotel in Fort Lauderdale. The driver meets us at the arrivals area and takes us to the pre booked car. (we always book a car and twice have received an upgrade to SUV and twice upgraded to stretch limo!). We book the return transfer from Port Everglades to MIA and pay for this on the first journey. We use a taxi from the hotel to the port.

For shopping, we stay in Gallery One, in Fort Lauderdale, which is right beside Galleria Mall and several good restaurants. We also use the Sun Trolley from the front of Galleria Mall to the Harbour Shops, for TK (TJ) Maxx and Total Wines.

2/ Second option is to stay in Miami. We take a taxi from the airport to hotel and spend the next day shopping at Dolphin Mall (outlet center). Great value! We stayed at Homewood Suites @ Dolphin Mall which adjoins Hilton Garden Inn and is straight across the road from Dolphin Mall. Next day, Larry's Limos collect us from hotel and take us to Port Everglades.

We have done loads of cruises from both Fort Lauderdale and Miami and have always flown into Miami. I looked into flights from UK to Fort Lauderdale, which are now available as direct flights with BA and Norwegian, but they were more expensive than flying either Virgin or BA to Miami. We always use Larrys Limos to take us from the airport to Fort Lauderdale which in my opinion is a much nicer place to stay than Miami. You can find their website online. I usually just do a live chat to get a price and book. They take your credit card details but don't charge until you take the trip. Arriving at Miami airport is stressful. It is usually heaving and there are long immigration queues so it is lovely to have someone meet you rather than trying to get a taxi. There are some lovely hotels along the beach front in Fort Lauderdale. If you search online review sites you can find one to suit your budget. The beach is beautiful and you can walk for miles along the beachfront where you'll also find some good places to eat. A taxi to the port won't cost much so don't worry about finding a hotel with a shuttle. You can also arrange for Larrys to pick you up after the cruise and take you to the airport although we prefer to add a day or two on at the end as well. If you have a lot of time to kill before your flight home you can usually take a post cruise trip organised by Celebrity or book a day room at a hotel near the airport. Have a lovely trip !

Hello,

 

I would fly into FLL it is usually cheaper.=

Since the OP is talking about the cost in terms of pounds, I'm sure they are flying from the UK. FLL is not an international airport the way Miami is so I can't imagine it being cheaper.

To the OP, fly to MIA then shuttle or Uber to Fort Lauderdale.

In June definitely stay on the beach. Look at Bahia Mar, Best Western Oceanside, Marriott Harbor Beach, Lago Mar, Courtyard Marriott FLL Beach, Westin, W Hotel, Ritz-Carlton, Hilton, Conrad, and Sonesta. All walking distance to things to do and lots of dining.

My DH and I have stayed at Tropirock in Ft Lauderdale about a block and a half from the beach. Reasonable and charming with old Florida vibe. You can walk to restaurants, if it’s open there’s a parking lot next door that sets up as an open air restaurant. So cool! Another is Village Cafe, is great for bfast and dinner. We have Ubered from the hotel to Port Canaveral, easy peasy. You can find my revues of the hoteL and restaurants on the site that rhymes with “help” under BethanyB.

Have a great cruise!

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Use a Uber or Lyft to get to your hotel in Fort Lauderdale. I would suggest Hyatt Place (convention center location) just off 17th Street...right next door to the Harbor Shopping center...Publix market, shops & restaurants (our favorite Duffy's).

Great discount rates using:

http://www.valuetrips.com

Thanks everyone for the info, it’s really helped. Will definitely check out Larrys Limos and the hotels you’ve all suggested.

This has all been booked at the last minute so my head is spinning 😀

Our flight home from Miami is at 18:00 so we will have quite a time to wait. I assume there isn’t anywhere to stow cases for the day. I’m guessing we will head to the airport after lunch around 13:30. Will need to decide where to go so that we can give the transfer company a pick up point. Lots to think about 😀

From PE to MIA is about an hour drive -- you will be off the ship by about 9:00-9:30, so you'll be at MIA before lunch. You can pay to store your bags at MIA and then can taxi/Uber to Dolphin Mall or catch the airport flyer bus to South Beach. Return, collect your bags, and check in for your flight.

Another option is to Taxi/Uber to South Beach, pay to store your bags at the Luggage Lounge, and then explore, grab lunch, drinks, people watching, etc. Collect your bags and use either Uber/taxi or the Airport Flyer bus to get to MIA for your flight.

You might also look at a day pass to a resort - use their beach, pool and spa facilities - www.resortpass.com Tip them to hold your bags while you relax all day.

Finally, rent a car, put the bags in the trunk (boot to you), and then go where you want. Drop the car off at MIA and catch your flight home.

Lots more planning options to keep your head spinning! Have a great cruise! ;)

My DH and I have stayed at Tropirock in Ft Lauderdale about a block and a half from the beach. Reasonable and charming with old Florida vibe. You can walk to restaurants, if it’s open there’s a parking lot next door that sets up as an open air restaurant. So cool! Another is Village Cafe, is great for bfast and dinner. We have Ubered from the hotel to Port Canaveral, easy peasy. You can find my revues of the hoteL and restaurants on the site that rhymes with “help” under BethanyB.

Have a great cruise!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Why would anyone Uber from Fort Lauderdale to Port Canaveral? A car rental would be a fraction of the price.

When I read that I assumed it was a typo and the meant PE in stead of PC.

Why would anyone Uber from Fort Lauderdale to Port Canaveral? A car rental would be a fraction of the price.

Oops! I meant Port Everglades. I’m cruising from Port Canaveral in less than three weeks so there you go[emoji23]

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Usually take direct flight from Dublin to Orlando but this Christmas taking Miami flight. Arriving into MIA 8.30pm night before short cruise out of PE. Considering taking limo from MIA to hotel in Fort L. Great to hear recommendation for Larry's Limos as I'm not familiar with Miami airport set-up. After cruise will take rental car from port for a few days (Sawgrass etc) and drop back to MIA when leaving. We're not staying in Miami at all but prefer Fort L. I'm a bit concerned about the unmanned toll situation between Fort L and Miami. Usually travel Orlando/Fort Lauderdale areas and pay as we go.

The car rental company can set you up to pay the tolls electronically - it's easy and not that expensive.

Have a great cruise! :cool:

We're just back from our cruise and I thought I'd update this with what we did in case it helps anyone.

We booked Larry's Limo's to pick us up from Miami Airport and transfer to our hotel, Gallery One in Fort Lauderdale. They were fantastic. I was impressed with the quick response to emails and on the drivers recommendation we changed our return journey time so we wouldn't be wasting time at the airport. We paid around $130 each way and for 4 of us it was worth it. I'd found prices to transfer back to the airport with the Carnival bus and it worked out roughly the same. We booked either an SUV or Limo and were delighted to get a brand new limo! My son's eyes nearly popped out of his head! We asked for the same driver for our return journey and were delighted to see the same limo.

We stayed at Gallery One, Fort Lauderdale. From the UK I have a reward account with my bank (RBS) and this has a travel section. We booked the hotel through them and paid just over £100 per night. We stayed 2 nights before our cruise and were happy to see we'd been upgraded to a 2 bedroom suite. Large king size bed in one room with ensuite and second bedroom had two large queen beds with ensuite. There was a living room with balcony and small kitchen/dining table. I always wake up early so it was lovely to be able to make some tea and sit on the balcony without disturbing everyone else. We ate the in the hotel restaurant both nights and used the Water Taxi to explore Fort Lauderdale. The mall was literally next door to the hotel too. Really liked it here and staff were so nice. I'd emailed prior to our visit and asked if we could store our luggage here after our cruise. The hotel manager was lovely and said it was no problem and that we could use the pool and hotel as a base for the day. So on leaving the ship we got a taxi to the hotel, approx $20, and stored our luggage. We had intended to use the pool, maybe water taxi again but we were so exhausted we just ended up having lunch and relaxed in the lobby until our taxi picked us up for the airport journey. So nice of them to do this for us.

Thank you to everyone for their recommendations, it really helped us in sorting out what to do.

I might sort out my photos and do a small trip report at some point as we really had an amazing time :)

Great advice thanks. We’re in same boat - so to speak- !! . First time Dublin - Mia. Usually FLL. Will take your advice. Thinking Larry’s limos to Fort L after flight gets in - approx 8pm I think. We like pier 66 for our per cruise hotel. We love to visit Sawgrass but have a few days post cruise with a rental car so will probably do that then. Can I ask , have you hired a car, and if so, did you book from Ireland or through US site?

Sounds like a lovely time you’ve got planned.

No, we didn’t hire a car so I can’t help with that, sorry.