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Although the winter months can bring blizzard snowstorms that can close airports, I recall a report that said that there were more weather delays in the summer. Primarily due to thunderstorms, which can and do completely shut down airports. If there is lightning nearby, ramps are shut down and workers have to go inside. Flights can't leave without the army of rampers doing everything from loading bags, fueling tanks and emptying lavs - and none of that can be done during t-storms.

 

Sure, they don't close down DFW for days, but they do throw some major delays into the system.

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Although the winter months can bring blizzard snowstorms that can close airports, I recall a report that said that there were more weather delays in the summer. Primarily due to thunderstorms, which can and do completely shut down airports. If there is lightning nearby, ramps are shut down and workers have to go inside. Flights can't leave without the army of rampers doing everything from loading bags, fueling tanks and emptying lavs - and none of that can be done during t-storms.

 

Sure, they don't close down DFW for days, but they do throw some major delays into the system.

 

Totally agree! Living in Green Bay definitely used to snow and related delays; however, have had more weather delays because of thunderstorms and mechanical/crew delays than I have had snow delays.

 

Major snowstorms and blizzards are usually pretty well forecasted and airlines will often allow no-charge changes if you try to leave earlier to beat the snow.

 

Thunderstorms are not so easy to predict - spent the night in Miami last March on my way home from a cruise. Airport was closed because of thunderstorms. Spent a couple of hours on the plane, waiting for weather to clear and finally deplaned. By then had missed my connecting flight out of Detroit and had to stay overnight in Miami. At least this was on the way home but tiring and frustrating. Always fly in a day early!

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At bit off topic but found it interesting that several people were getting off our Sept 8th Freedom cruise at a couple of the ports to try and get flights home due to the hurricane. I had never seen this happen before.

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About 15 years ago we had a Norwegian cruise out of San Juan in mid January. As we booked through the cruise line, they put us on a flight that was scheduled to arrive at 2 PM. (day of sailing) Something about this made my hair stand on end, and I researched the flight. It ORIGINATED in San Diego, went to Denver, then Chicago, then NYC, then on to San Juan. Nope... nope...NOPE... NOPE. We bailed on that and booked our own (Redeye) the night before. While we WERE delayed on our own flight until 6 am, the flight we were booked on did not show up until 11 pm the day of sailing. Over 40 people caught up with us in St Thomas the NEXT day.

 

That was my wakeup call, NEVER FLY THE DAY OF THE CRUISE..... NEVER

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About 15 years ago we had a Norwegian cruise out of San Juan in mid January. As we booked through the cruise line, they put us on a flight that was scheduled to arrive at 2 PM. (day of sailing) Something about this made my hair stand on end, and I researched the flight. It ORIGINATED in San Diego, went to Denver, then Chicago, then NYC, then on to San Juan. Nope... nope...NOPE... NOPE. We bailed on that and booked our own (Redeye) the night before. While we WERE delayed on our own flight until 6 am, the flight we were booked on did not show up until 11 pm the day of sailing. Over 40 people caught up with us in St Thomas the NEXT day.

 

That was my wakeup call, NEVER FLY THE DAY OF THE CRUISE..... NEVER

And never be OK with the cruiseline choosing your flights ;)

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I would disagree with this - I have been caught up in severe weather delays frequently, usually between April and September, but outside of those months too (for example, right now, severe weather is plowing through PA/NY/CT and towards the PHL, NYC, and BOS areas right in time for their evening bank of flights to Europe...there will be delays).

 

Well perhaps I should have said delays would not be "as" likely. I understand and agree that weather - and in the summer that clearly means thunderstorms, etc. - can cause travel delays throughout the year. I live outside of Philly and travel frequently from there to all parts of the US and into Canada all year round, so I understand the issues. I was only making the point that flight interruptions between the US and PR would not be as much of a concern during the rest of the year as with the winter months.

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At bit off topic but found it interesting that several people were getting off our Sept 8th Freedom cruise at a couple of the ports to try and get flights home due to the hurricane. I had never seen this happen before.

 

That is very interesting. Consider that many who take those "closed loop" cruises would likely not even have a valid Passport. For those folks they would not have the option to fly home unless they could get off the ship in the USVI or San Juan.

 

Hank

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Not something I would do or recommend. We have never sailed out of San Juan but we have friends who did. They were flying out the day before from DTW on Spirit. They got to the airport only to find their flight cancelled due to a pilot strike that morning. They couldn’t get another flight out until the next day on another airline and barely made it in time for their cruise.

 

We have had multiple hours long delays not due to weather but due to mechanical issues...we even had one direct flight from GRR to MCO where we had to make an emergency landing in Tennessee due to a mechanical failure. We were on the ground there for 6 hours. Thankfully we have always been wise enough to fly out at least one day before our cruise.

 

 

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Hi there’s a cruise we’re keen on from San Juan.. departing at 8pm. If We arrive at 1230 on a direct flight, should that be enough time to make it? We are not able to fly out the night before. Thank you.

 

If your flight arrives within 3 hours of scheduled time you will be able to make the sailing.

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Not something I would do or recommend. We have never sailed out of San Juan but we have friends who did. They were flying out the day before from DTW on Spirit. They got to the airport only to find their flight cancelled due to a pilot strike that morning. They couldn’t get another flight out until the next day on another airline and barely made it in time for their cruise.

 

We have had multiple hours long delays not due to weather but due to mechanical issues...we even had one direct flight from GRR to MCO where we had to make an emergency landing in Tennessee due to a mechanical failure. We were on the ground there for 6 hours. Thankfully we have always been wise enough to fly out at least one day before our cruise.

 

 

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I once had a five+ hour wait at Seattle's SETAC airport due to a series of incidents. First, the plane we were scheduled to board had just come out of a maintenance cycle, and was missing a safety sign. FAA rules forbid a plane from taking off without every safety device and sign on board. After a two hour wait, we were moved to another gate where a plane was being emptied of unnecessary fuel to get us to our destination. Apparently the airlines don't like to fly with excess fuel due to the additional weight the fuel which would end up causing the consumption of more fuel just to carry the excess weight. While the un-fueling was taking place, a fitting came loose and fuel poured onto the tarmac. An emergency was called, and we were evacuated to a third gate for safety reasons. We finally boarded a plane that had just arrived at that third gate over an hour later. We finally left over five hours late.

 

Fortunately I was only flying home from a business meeting, but if this had been for a cruise, I would have been in real risk of missing the ship.

 

Moral of the story - anything can happen, no matter how out of the ordinary.

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That is very interesting. Consider that many who take those "closed loop" cruises would likely not even have a valid Passport. For those folks they would not have the option to fly home unless they could get off the ship in the USVI or San Juan.

 

Hank

Apparently passports weren't a problem for those we saw doing this before arriving into Curacao & Aruba....It was interesting to see staff at Guest Services with maps talking to guests and advising them of their early debarkation process.

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Hi there’s a cruise we’re keen on from San Juan.. departing at 8pm. If We arrive at 1230 on a direct flight, should that be enough time to make it? We are not able to fly out the night before. Thank you.

 

As other posters have said, flight delays and cancellations happen. You probably have a 90% to 95% change of arriving in plenty of time for your cruise. If you are comfortable with those odds, go for it. If not, try to fly in the day before.

 

If you are set on this cruise and absolutely cannot fly the day before have a plan B. For example, can you catch up with the cruise at the next port? If so, what will the additional costs be? Is there insurance available to cover this type of occurrence? If so,what is the cost? What would be any additional costs, over and above any insurance recovery, if you are forced to scrap the cruise and stay in Puerto Rico for the duration.

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As other posters have said, flight delays and cancellations happen. You probably have a 90% to 95% change of arriving in plenty of time for your cruise. If you are comfortable with those odds, go for it. If not, try to fly in the day before.

 

If you are set on this cruise and absolutely cannot fly the day before have a plan B. For example, can you catch up with the cruise at the next port? If so, what will the additional costs be? Is there insurance available to cover this type of occurrence? If so,what is the cost? What would be any additional costs, over and above any insurance recovery, if you are forced to scrap the cruise and stay in Puerto Rico for the duration.

 

Because there are so many variables (statistically) when comparing multiple flights over time, the odds of delay on your (or my or any) flight are, more accurately, 50/50.

And that is why a travel buffer and a Plan B (and even C) on, at least, pre-cruise travel times/routes/etc is so important.

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If you must fly in the day of a cruise it is always wise to have a "Plan B" about what to do if you miss the ship. For example, we recently broke our own rule (to always fly in 1 or more days early) to take a cruise out of Copenhagen. But that particular cruise departed late at night and we were scheduled to be in Copenhagen nearly 12 hours before embarkation time. We also knew that it would be easy to catch-up to the ship on the following day (Plan B). Another option is to do a cruise/air option where the cruise line bears some of the burden to get you to your ship on time, or they will take on the responsibility to get you to the next port. And the third option is to have decent insurance that will take care of any additional cost if you miss your cruise. But one must carefully read insurance policies as they usually have restrictions such as the minimum number of hours between scheduled airline arrival times and cruise embarkation time.

 

Hank

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Apparently passports weren't a problem for those we saw doing this before arriving into Curacao & Aruba....It was interesting to see staff at Guest Services with maps talking to guests and advising them of their early debarkation process.

 

They may be able to get off the ship without a passport, but few airlines will let you board an international flight without one.

 

To the point of checking twice. Once when checking in, and once as boarding.

 

Or maybe, those people getting off had passports.

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I fly a lot on airlines. And most times, flights are on time, or only delayed by an hour or so.

 

BUT, when things go bad, they can go REALLY bad.

 

One trip, we boarded and pushed back on time. Sat on board for over 3 hours, then returned to the gate. I ended up taking the same flight the next day. Summer time, lines of thunderstorms pretty much shut down the entire East.

 

Another one, snow in the destination area had flights delayed and canceled. I got out the next morning, others got booked on flights THREE days later.

 

One, I was informed in the afternoon, that my evening flight would be delayed. By 23 hours. Two crew members were injured and they had to fly in new crew. Then an extra 2 hours due to mechanical issues. I missed my connecting flight.

 

Another, left on time, sat for an hour ground hold, missed my connection to Brussels. Got re-routed to Amsterdam then to Brussels. Missed THAT connection. Last flight of the day, had to take the train. But the high speed lines were being worked on, so had to change trains. Then the train broke, had to change to a local train, and then finally back to another train. Overall got in over 12 hours late to Brussels.

 

Luckily, in all of mine, it was not a huge deal, but it could have been.

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Next March we're flying in to New Orleans on a Sunday morning for a cruise that leaves that afternoon. The price for 4 of us was hundreds less than if we left that Saturday night. It's a direct flight with no stops and we have a 4 or 5 hour cushion so I'm hoping it goes okay.

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Next March we're flying in to New Orleans on a Sunday morning for a cruise that leaves that afternoon. The price for 4 of us was hundreds less than if we left that Saturday night. It's a direct flight with no stops and we have a 4 or 5 hour cushion so I'm hoping it goes okay.

I think you'll be fine...I'm sure some on this board will never think you will be.

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They may be able to get off the ship without a passport, but few airlines will let you board an international flight without one.

 

To the point of checking twice. Once when checking in, and once as boarding.

 

Or maybe, those people getting off had passports.

Obviously these people "did" have passports and the ship was helping them as much as they could on their end to disembark . Everyone seemed to know what they were doing and had made flight plans.

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Some of the comments are quite 'scary'. We sail into New York mid-December and will then be flying down to Fort Lauderdale to board the Regal Princess the following day, doing the return flight end of December.

 

Any delays on the return flight are not disastrous, merely inconvenient as we have 4 nights before we sail home; but although I am not really worried about the flight down to Florida a tiny little niggle has appeared in my mind.

 

Please reassure me that we would be very unlucky not to be able to fly.

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We did this six years ago - got married on Saturday and flew out on Sunday. Direct flight from CLT to SJU in mid September. We always have travel insurance but I was still a Nervous Nellie. The only good thing I can say is that our flight was scheduled to, and did land before noon

 

Otherwise, we have never flown out day of

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Some of the comments are quite 'scary'. We sail into New York mid-December and will then be flying down to Fort Lauderdale to board the Regal Princess the following day, doing the return flight end of December.

 

Any delays on the return flight are not disastrous, merely inconvenient as we have 4 nights before we sail home; but although I am not really worried about the flight down to Florida a tiny little niggle has appeared in my mind.

 

Please reassure me that we would be very unlucky not to be able to fly.

 

You should be off your ship by mid-morning, meaning that you should be able to get a flight by mid-afternoon, getting yourself to Fort Lauderdale the day before you sail. You seem to have reasonable wiggle-room: very few ships arrive more than an hour or so late (when not in hurricane season), and planning to fly to embarkation port the day before is what most reasonable people plan.

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Back to the OP. I understand not being able to fly out before the day of embarkation. Note I live in Minne-snow-ta and have taken the risk. The first time to SJA there were no problems. The second time I flew in the day before and was more relaxed because of it.

 

I also feel it depends on the airline. Discount lines often have less planes vs. say a Delta and there are less options to reschedule a flight if the need arises.

 

 

 

I would suggest having a backup plan, just in case there is an issue. At least this way you, will understand your options on how to catch up to the ship.

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Some of the comments are quite 'scary'. We sail into New York mid-December and will then be flying down to Fort Lauderdale to board the Regal Princess the following day, doing the return flight end of December.

 

 

 

Any delays on the return flight are not disastrous, merely inconvenient as we have 4 nights before we sail home; but although I am not really worried about the flight down to Florida a tiny little niggle has appeared in my mind.

 

 

 

Please reassure me that we would be very unlucky not to be able to fly.

 

 

New York in mid-December? Reassurance?

Doable? Sure (unless it's not).

Sorry but, IMO, just the winter weather issues (and their effect on all sorts of transportation) alone, make your plan quite risky.

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We always have travel insurance but I was still a Nervous Nellie.

 

Remember...."travel insurance" is there to protect against financial losses due to travel issues - and even then, is subject to the specific coverages and exclusions of YOUR specific policy.

 

It is NOT a replacement for sound travel planning, and it is NOT a guarantee that you will be able to take your trip as planned. It won't make seats miraculously appear, it won't provide you rerouting, it won't provide for finding you new alternatives. It's merely to take the financial sting from the equation.

 

Caveat Emptor.

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