Questions for those of you who fly

We have always driven to all of our cruises and this time I'm trying to

talk to my husband into flying. He DOES NOT want to fly but since

it will just be the 2 of us instead of the whole family I'm trying to get

him to consider it.

We live in north Georgia and will be leaving out of Port Canaveral so we

would be looking at a 9 hour drive. We are doing an 8 day Southern so

we would have to fly down or drive down on Valentine's Day.

Do most of you chance flying in the same day or do you fly in the day

before? We don't usually have very much bad weather but our luck would

be that it would come a blizzard about the time of our flights.

Also, on the way back - how much time should we allow from getting

from Port Canaveral back to the airport in Orlando. I would really

prefer flying in Daytona but the rates are much higher than flying into

Orlando.

We usually do self assist debark - would I be ok with a flight that leaves

Orlando at 10:25 or would that be pushing it?

We can definitely drive and pay to park cheaper but that doesn't

count the time we will be in the car actually driving.

Thoughts and experiences please?

Personally, I'd fly the evening before. One night's lodging is cheap insurance. Stay near the airport and R/T shuttle. And yes, 10:25 is too early. It might be possible in a perfect world but I wouldn't. It's about an hour shuttle ride from the port to the airport. And MCO is notoriously backed up and slow. You'll find plenty of info in the Florida departures section here on the board.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=495

The question is whether 18 hours combined in the car is worth the price of plane, hotel and shuttle tickets and parking at your airport.

We have always driven to all of our cruises and this time I'm trying to

talk to my husband into flying. He DOES NOT want to fly but since

it will just be the 2 of us instead of the whole family I'm trying to get

him to consider it.

 

We live in north Georgia and will be leaving out of Port Canaveral so we

would be looking at a 9 hour drive. We are doing an 8 day Southern so

we would have to fly down or drive down on Valentine's Day.

 

Do most of you chance flying in the same day or do you fly in the day

before? We don't usually have very much bad weather but our luck would

be that it would come a blizzard about the time of our flights.

 

Also, on the way back - how much time should we allow from getting

from Port Canaveral back to the airport in Orlando. I would really

prefer flying in Daytona but the rates are much higher than flying into

Orlando.

 

We usually do self assist debark - would I be ok with a flight that leaves

Orlando at 10:25 or would that be pushing it?

 

We can definitely drive and pay to park cheaper but that doesn't

count the time we will be in the car actually driving.

 

Thoughts and experiences please?

When flying, we always arrive a day early. I considered flying to Orlando for our cruise in December out of Port Canaveral. When researched the all flights and shuttles, coming in early didn't make us feeling rushed to get to the hotel. But the return flight need to be later in the afternoon, too many things can happen. It is nearly a 1 hour drive from the cruise port to the airport. If there is a delay with disembarking the ship and traffic delays you may see problems with earlier flights. I could get home quicker to South Central Louisiana by driving. Even if you drive in a day early to Port Canaveral there are many hotels to pick from. I usually use one that shuttles us to the ship and provides parking at the hotel with the pre-cruise hotel stay.

We have flown from DFW to MIA multiple times on the day of with no issues. However, when we did our Princess cruise, our same day flight from DFW to FLL was cancelled and the next available would not have gotten us there until 2:30pm. So, we switched to the day before. We also opted to fly in the day before on our last cruise out of Canaveral.

The nice thing about flying in the day before is not having to worry about delays that could make you miss the ship. You can have a relaxed dinner once you have arrived in town, grab your bottle of wine to take on board and did I mention relax. Also, you get to wake up when you feel like it, have a leisurely breakfast & go to port when you are ready.

The trip from Canaveral to Orlando is 45-50 minutes, I think. We always self debark as well, so we were off the ship pretty early but I don't recall exactly what time. Our flight was after lunch, maybe 1 or 2pm and we got to the airport too early to check our luggage. I probably would not risk a 10:25 flight, just in case the ship is delayed getting in to port or if you have traffic issues, but that's just me.

And just to add, it's perfectly fine to fly the evening before. No need to take an extra day of vacation. Now could you fly first thing in the morning on the day of the cruise? Sure, many do. But the cushion goes away and the ship isn't waiting for you representing a major difference from a land based vacation where 6 extra hours really doesn't matter.

We always fly in 1-2 days prior, even when sailing out of a port only 5 hours drive time away. We live in Buffalo, NY and have to deal with blizzards and cancelled flights all the time when we fly out in winter. Flying around Valentines Day is also around Presidents holiday/winter break for many and airfare goes up significantly.

If I were you, being only 9 hours away, is drive in 1-2 days prior and enjoy yourself.

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Also, a flight post cruise leaving at 10:45 is way too early to make it.

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We always fly in day before, especially during Dec-Feb when snow storms are definitely possible. We have flown in day of, but that was in Sep/Oct when bad weather was not as likely to cancel flights at least here in KC. It's way more stressful to fly in day of, plus you have to get up very early to catch the earliest flights. Then you will be tired the whole first day of the cruise and be a day behind on your vacation. My family has missed early flights by 10 minutes due to just being rushed in the morning and running late. Had to be put on next flights that got us there later in afternoon. Luckily that was not a cruise vacation!

We would never fly the same day, there could be bad weather (thunderstorms and such) where the plane originates from, there could be delays and issues about mechanics on the plane etc. We live in northern Florida so when we cruise out of Port Canaveral which is less than a 2 1/2hour drive time, we still stay a night on Coco Beach.

It's been a while since I sailed from Port Canaveral, so I can't comment on the timing of flights out. But I did want to chime in to recommend flying in the day before you sail. On our last cruise we were flying in January from Wisconsin and connecting in Atlanta to a flight to Fort Lauderdale. It just so happens that as we were pulling away from the gate in Atlanta, the news came in to the flight crew that the shooting was happening at the Fort Lauderdale airport and we returned to the gate. With no knowledge of when the airport would reopen (totally understandable), we tried to book a flight to another airport, however because of an approaching "snowstorm" in Atlanta, they were not able to book any further flights until after noon the next day. That meant we would miss our cruise departure. We made a mad dash to the car rental agency and rented two vans for 9 people and 13 pieces of luggage and had to drive from Atlanta to Fort Lauderdale overnight. If we hadn't had that cushion of time, we would have had to catch our cruise in San Juan two days later.

I also highly recommend travel insurance. We were reimbursed for the van rentals and the airline reimbursed us for the second half of our flight.

All in all we still felt very lucky because we very well could have been at the Fort Lauderdale Airport during the shooting.

My point is, you just have no control over things that could impact your travel, so plan fro extra time.

Also, a flight post cruise leaving at 10:45 is way too early to make it.

 

 

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You should allow 4 to 5 hours after scheduled arrival time . The port is an hour from MCO \ on a good day. Min 2 hours at MCO before departure . Your ship might be late arrival and clearance is delayed.

We always fly in day before, especially during Dec-Feb when snow storms are definitely possible. We have flown in day of, but that was in Sep/Oct when bad weather was not as likely to cancel flights at least here in KC. It's way more stressful to fly in day of, plus you have to get up very early to catch the earliest flights. Then you will be tired the whole first day of the cruise and be a day behind on your vacation. My family has missed early flights by 10 minutes due to just being rushed in the morning and running late. Had to be put on next flights that got us there later in afternoon. Luckily that was not a cruise vacation!

Wow. There would have been h*ll to pay in our house for that. I understand running late as a business traveler because of a late running meeting but missing a family flight is a whole different kettle of fish.

It's been a while since I sailed from Port Canaveral, so I can't comment on the timing of flights out. But I did want to chime in to recommend flying in the day before you sail. On our last cruise we were flying in January from Wisconsin and connecting in Atlanta to a flight to Fort Lauderdale. It just so happens that as we were pulling away from the gate in Atlanta, the news came in to the flight crew that the shooting was happening at the Fort Lauderdale airport and we returned to the gate. With no knowledge of when the airport would reopen (totally understandable), we tried to book a flight to another airport, however because of an approaching "snowstorm" in Atlanta, they were not able to book any further flights until after noon the next day. That meant we would miss our cruise departure. We made a mad dash to the car rental agency and rented two vans for 9 people and 13 pieces of luggage and had to drive from Atlanta to Fort Lauderdale overnight. If we hadn't had that cushion of time, we would have had to catch our cruise in San Juan two days later.

 

I also highly recommend travel insurance. We were reimbursed for the van rentals and the airline reimbursed us for the second half of our flight.

 

All in all we still felt very lucky because we very well could have been at the Fort Lauderdale Airport during the shooting.

 

My point is, you just have no control over things that could impact your travel, so plan fro extra time.

Great story about what can happen. You had the time and you could exercise an option, as unattractive as it was. Those overnight hours can become valuable.

I always study my Plan B and Plan C. So for instance, we were sailing out of San Juan last winter when hotels were still in very short supply and crazy expensive. Boarding at 4p, departure at 10p. Our plan: MDW-MCO Friday night after work. MCO-SJU first flight 6a Saturday morning. And there were 3 or so plausible options if our plane was cancelled. No we didn't get much sleep. But we had options if we needed 'em.

I have flown in the morning of and not had a problem. You aren't that far away so it shouldn't be a problem. Usually we fly in the night before though. But all our flights usually have a plane change before we get there.

We used to fly in early on the day of the cruise until a mechanical delay caused us to board just before the ship left. (Which isn't allowed now....) Never again.

Spend the extra $ for a room and come in the day before.;)

Agreeing with others that flying in the day before is the better option most times but we have done both day of and day before without any issues. You mentioned you would prefer to fly into Daytona. Just be aware Daytona airport is about 30 miles further away from the cruise port.

This time I am adding a day prior to our cruise because the last couple of times we didn't, we ended up losing time by taking a nap on the first night. One of those naps lasted alllllllll night! So I want to take our time going down the day before and getting up the next morning sometime long after our usual 3 am wake up call for a flight!!!!

Agree with flying in the day prior...you never know what might affect air travel! A snowstorm elsewhere can delay YOUR plane, even in sunny Ga!!

You don't need to stay an extra day after the cruise....book something after noon, and you'll be fine.

Why are you flying to Orlando (MCO) when Melbourne (MLB) is much, much closer?

Why are you flying to Orlando (MCO) when Melbourne (MLB) is much, much closer?

Not the OP but I fly into MCO for Port Canaveral because there are a lot more direct flights, and hotels around MCO are usually cheaper than MLB, especially if the cruise is during the winter primetime when Cocoa Beach/Melbourne hotels are extra expensive.

We've done several cruises out of PC and have always flown in the night before. It's nice to just be there, relaxing in the area, and ready to go in the morning. I would also caution on a 10:45 departure flight. We've been in some really long lines at MCO, especially if it's a high travel time/day for WDW families. But for a 9 hour drive, we'd probably still do that. I'm not a fan of flying to begin with, so I'd probably do that, and I'm sure it's cheaper. Or I would think it is...

We are from Oregon so always fly in. (Alaska will be our first cruise without having to fly!) we always go the day before. We’ve had some close calls, late planes, missing luggage, but always corrected with the extra time. Flying out 10:25 would be pushing it out of Orlando.

I always fly in a day or two before. Granted I have to have a layover, which adds travel time. However, I would personally still fly in early with a shorter nonstop flight because delays are always possible. Having that cushion for peace of mind is worth it and you can get a good night's sleep the night before the cruise.

I also book a later flight home. If your ship is delayed coming into port for some reason, you have another cushion. And I can get a decent lunch that isn't airport food. With Port Canaveral, you have to figure in travel time as well of course.

I'm wondering where in GA you are located, because it only takes us 11 hours to drive from Virginia to Port Canaveral. Are you sure you're taking the most efficient route? When flying we choose to fly the day before, but flying can be as much as a hassle as driving. You have to find a ride or pay for airport parking, go through airport security, hope that your flight isn't delayed, eventually arrive in Orlando, meander through the airport in search of your ground transportation, drive 1-2 hours to PC, pay for a hotel, etc etc. All of this can easily take more than 9 hours and you're limited in what you can pack.

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We're cruising out of Port Canaveral in Dec as well. We fly in the day before just to be safe. The only flight out for us going home leaves MCO at 11:50am. We are Platinum and will debark as self assist. I had second thoughts about making this flight but after inquiring on this site, most thought it was safe....What time is your next flight out?