Ft Lauderdale Flight Departure flight times

Never thought I would have to post a question like this, as I always do plenty of research before making a decision.

We are booked on Reflection out of PortEverglades in March. I booked flights with United back in May for our return flight to Chicago (booked American going to FLL). I just got an email from United stating they changed our flight time from 12:15 pm earlier to 10:59 am. I had confidence that there would be a 99% chance we could make a 12:15 pm flight since the airport is 10 mins away, but now the flight is way earlier. We prefer not to get up earlier and rush around to get off the ship. I haven't called United yet to try to change the flight as the next non-stop is not until 4:28 pm, and don't really want to have to wait around another 4-5 hours to return home.

I see American has several non-stops returning all afternoon, and I would like to re-book with them.

Anyone have any experience with this situation? Will United let me cancel and give me a full refund since they made the change?

Thanks for your experiences.

I think it's either 2 or 3 hours change time before they will let you rebook. Had a similar experience and because it was only an hour and a half change they wouldn't let us rebook without penalty. However I think an 11:00 flight is very doable so it might work out for you.

 

 

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From PE to FLL, it is doable unless there is ship or docking delay.

You may also post on the Cruise Air Forum for more opinions on UA refunds.

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=128

Never thought I would have to post a question like this, as I always do plenty of research before making a decision.

We are booked on Reflection out of PortEverglades in March. I booked flights with United back in May for our return flight to Chicago (booked American going to FLL). I just got an email from United stating they changed our flight time from 12:15 pm earlier to 10:59 am. I had confidence that there would be a 99% chance we could make a 12:15 pm flight since the airport is 10 mins away, but now the flight is way earlier. We prefer not to get up earlier and rush around to get off the ship. I haven't called United yet to try to change the flight as the next non-stop is not until 4:28 pm, and don't really want to have to wait around another 4-5 hours to return home.

I see American has several non-stops returning all afternoon, and I would like to re-book with them.

Anyone have any experience with this situation? Will United let me cancel and give me a full refund since they made the change?

Thanks for your experiences.

No refunds but you can make the 1059 easily.

I understand that 11:00 am is possible without ship delays, but I prefer not to rush around and worry about times and lines!

When the airline makes a change, your option is to accept it or you can make a change without penalty. Not a refund.

 

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11:00 AM would be fine but you would want to be in an earlier group getting off the ship and have boarding passes printed out.

 

If you don't like to feel pressure or rush off the ship I would contact the airline and yes if available my experience is they will move you to a later flight.

 

Keith

As others have said, I don't think you will be able to get a refund. However I do want to agree with what others have said regarding your new flight time in that you will not have any problem making that flight.

 

We have done that time with a couple of earlier flights several times without any issue at all - and with gate time to spare. You can easily be off the ship by 8:30 and at FLL by 9:00 by cab, which leaves two hours to check in. No need to try to rebook the flight.

I'm not sure if I would say that hour and fifteen minutes is "way earlier"...and since you have to be out of your room at (not sure current time rule) by 8, you can just get off with the first called group (if you don't or can't self disembark), and be at your gate without having to rush.

Just had the exact same thing happen to us. 12:15 flight on united. They changed the flight time to 10:40. I just figured we would do carry off luggage. Looking at the port everglades schedule for our return in early March, the reflection is the only ship in port that day so I'm hoping customs employees won't be delayed.

Another thing to consider.

While I think you probably would have no trouble making an 11:00 flight, that early time disqualifies you from using the Luggage Valet program. (If you don't know what that is do a search on here. It's THE BEST way to end a cruise!!!)

For that reason alone I would switch to the 4:30 flight.

I know it's a pain to wait around but you could leisurely eat breakfast, then take your carry-ons out by the pool and relax there until they call "last off". That's most likely to be around 10:30. The lines for taxis should be shorter by then so there will be less pressure there also.

Find a nice lounge in the airport and try to relax until your flight.

Another thing to consider.

While I think you probably would have no trouble making an 11:00 flight, that early time disqualifies you from using the Luggage Valet program. (If you don't know what that is do a search on here. It's THE BEST way to end a cruise!!!)

For that reason alone I would switch to the 4:30 flight.

I know it's a pain to wait around but you could leisurely eat breakfast, then take your carry-ons out by the pool and relax there until they call "last off". That's most likely to be around 10:30. The lines for taxis should be shorter by then so there will be less pressure there also.

Find a nice lounge in the airport and try to relax until your flight.

Last off will likely be closer to 9:30. They do it pretty quickly. Just don't be the guy they are paging at the end when they say you must get off. That slows other things down.

 

We had a cruise in February a few years ago when CBP came to a near halt. We had expected to be off by 9 and through immigration and border control, and it took until after 11. Luckily, we had a 7pm flight, but all around me people were missing flights. We just didn't get our rental car when expected.

 

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Can't say for United but Delta did that to us multiple times an the minute we noticed the changes ( over a month before flights) they had no problem switching us to later flights at no extra cost. Didn't get any refund as the new flight actually was more than what we paid. Best to call as soon as possible before others on the original flight snatch up seats on the earliest next flights.

Like others have said, you might make it but I totally understand your reasoning for not wanting to rush. We docked in Port Everglades earlier this year and there was a problem with the docking at the end of the cruise. We had to move to another terminal .... all that took time. We had an 11:15 flight. We just made our flight in nick of time ... not one minute to spare. Luckily, we were in first class and we also had TSA pre-check. Otherwise, we wouldn't have made our flight. Our flight time was originally scheduled for noon and United had changed ours as well. I would have been more comfortable with at least 30 minutes more to spare at the airport.

Also, when they changed our flight time, it precluded us from using the Luggage Valet ... which is so much easier than dragging our luggage around at disembarkation, into the cab, through the lines to check at the airport, etc. Nonetheless, we made our flight and had a lovely flight back home ... but there was a bit of stress involved due to the delayed disembarkation.

Thanks for everyone's comments. I checked for the next United "non-stop" flight and it is not until late afternoon. No way we are taking a one stop flight as most of them were 7-9 hour excursions. I will call United tomorrow and see if there are any other options. Thanks.

Mr,Bill

What did you find out from United?

Well, I called Untied yesterday afternoon. Talked to someone and told them what had happened and asked for options. I was given the answer of booking the later flight (4:34?pm). I told them that would not work and that I wanted to cancel because they changed the flight and asked for a full refund. The lady put me on hold for about 5 mins. She came back and said she would process the refund. I immediately was shocked and repeated it and asked questions to make sure she was really saying that. I asked about if they were charging me a fee -- she said no, and that we are also refunding the extra costs for premium seats. She said the credit would be on my CC ending in (4 numbers) and that I should see it in 24-48 hours. I repeated everything she said and asked for a transaction number so that I can track the refund. She said I could log onto my United account and see the flight was canceled, and I would get an email to confirm with in 24-48 hours. Well, I haven't seen it yet, but I did book a American flight for 1:15 pm which was only slightly higher than United. I will be watching for that email very carefully the next 16 hours. I am a little nervous!

I don't want to have to call back and explain everything and find out the flight was canceled without refund.

So far, I feel I was lucky, but time will tell!

Well, I called Untied yesterday afternoon. Talked to someone and told them what had happened and asked for options. I was given the answer of booking the later flight (4:34?pm). I told them that would not work and that I wanted to cancel because they changed the flight and asked for a full refund. The lady put me on hold for about 5 mins. She came back and said she would process the refund. I immediately was shocked and repeated it and asked questions to make sure she was really saying that. I asked about if they were charging me a fee -- she said no, and that we are also refunding the extra costs for premium seats. She said the credit would be on my CC ending in (4 numbers) and that I should see it in 24-48 hours. I repeated everything she said and asked for a transaction number so that I can track the refund. She said I could log onto my United account and see the flight was canceled, and I would get an email to confirm with in 24-48 hours. Well, I haven't seen it yet, but I did book a American flight for 1:15 pm which was only slightly higher than United. I will be watching for that email very carefully the next 16 hours. I am a little nervous!

I don't want to have to call back and explain everything and find out the flight was canceled without refund.

So far, I feel I was lucky, but time will tell!

 

See Virginia - there is a Santa Claus!!

 

DON

Yes Don, there really is a Santa Claus. I have today confirmed United did actually submit a credit for all flight charges to my Credit Card. Also, I got an email from American the other day stating they changed the flight for my trip down to FLL airport. I thought --- oh boy here we go again. But this time I was better prepared. They changed the flight to 4 hours earlier! How whacky is that? I checked other American flights, called and talked to a very helpful lady. She blamed the changes on computers, and could not even begin to explain the changes. Anyway...it worked out that I could get First Class tickets for $104 cheaper, and it was actually at about the same time as my original flight! Go figure!?

Merry Christmas to all and to all..... a good flight.

When the airline makes a change, your option is to accept it or you can make a change without penalty. Not a refund.

 

Not so fast. If the change is significant enough (each airline may have its own gule as to what constitutes a significant change) they absolutely WILL issue a refund. Even if the change does not meet the airline's rule, it is still worth calling and asking. If you are polite and explain why it doesn't work, you'll often find the rule may be bent. :)