Advice please - drive or fly to port?

[nattie]

I need more advice then that, but that is the main decision. Background: we live in MD and can drive to Baltimore, Bayonne or NYC for cruise. My issue is that I want to cruise between Thanksgiving and Xmas (prices are a steal and DS is over 6 mo) and am worried about rough seas and cold weather. Obviously this will be DS's first cruise and I am plenty anxious about it without added stress of anticipating 15ft swells :). Also, with FL itinerary we can do a shorter cruise, which might be better for him.

 

So the main decision: Drive to port (pros: can pack all the baby stuff I want and then some; cons: cold weather and possible rough seas for at least 3rd of the cruise) or fly (cons: packing limits, hassle and additional expense of flying; pros: can enjoy the whole cruise, can take a shorter cruise just to make sure DS is a sailor :)).

 

Any input is welcomed and appreciated!

[Essiesmom]

When given the choice, I would always drive. You will arrive more relaxed than schlepping all the stuff through airports...A 6mo will not know anything about rough seas. You might, but...the seas might not be rough. And there are remedies for seasickness. EM

[nattie]

He should be about 8 mo by then, but would make no diff for rough seas :)

Yea, driving sounds good from logistics stand point, but I just HATE the thought of "wasting" at least 2 days to cold weather...

Decisions, decisions

[Keith1010]

I think the drive would be fine. My only recommendation is that you plan to arrive the day before. Even when you drive problems can occur and I think it would be less stressfl to do that. I wouldn't worry about the seas. You can have rough seas on any cruise. Try to book a cabin mid ship.

 

Keith

[richkinkade]

On one of our early cruises, we flew down the day of the cruise. With airport security lines and allowing enough time to check bags, we had to get up very early and spend the day traveling. By the time we boarded, we were already tired and I looked like a deer in the headlights in the boarding photo.

Since then, we have driven to the port the day before when possible, spent a relaxing night at a hotel, taken a cab or shuttle and boarded rested and relaxed.

[6rugrats]

The last cruise we took our kids on out of Ft. Lauderdale was in December and we ran into a huge tropical storm. Plenty of very rough seas and bad weather. There's no guarantee what you will run into, so don't base your decision entirely on that.

 

I'd drive. You don't have to pay for the plane tickets/checking bag fees, etc., or worry about dragging stuff through the airport.

[seashell36]

I agree with the other posters. With a 6-8 month old you have a lot of stuff you must take with you. That would be a lot of extra baggage to check through the airline. If you drive to the port, make plans to arrive the day before the cruise leaves.

[ata1976]

I have debated driving/flying to the cruise too. We have done both in the past.

 

With Driving it is about 7 hours in the carseat for 3 yr old DS, then parking is $100 for the week. We would have a car ready for us when we got off the ship and wouldn't have to either wait for a shuttle or rent a car. And we can take all the luggage we want. :D

 

With flying, the only thing I like is how quick you can get there. From Atlanta to Tampa it is less than 1.5 hours. But with flying we still have to drive to the airport (which for us is the opposite direction than FL), pay to park the car for a week at the airport, worry about luggage weight limits, and arrange for transportation to/from the airport and hotel if we are coming in the night before. If you count the drive to the airport, checking in, getting thru security and waiting for the flight, we could probably be half way to FL by then.

 

So we decided to just drive.

[2Cruise4Ever]

We live in MD, too. And, we've cruised out of NYC 4 times with our kids (youngest was 2 on our first one). We used to take the train. But, the last 2 years, we've driven. We will drive whenever possible now. It's so much more relaxing. And, like the pro you mentioned, we can pack as much as we want.

[A&Jfamily]

I would do whatever feels easisest for you. If it was me, I would fly in, the day before; you should be able to get a direct flight from where you to just about any port in Fl.

 

We just did this, for example, on our trip from Port Canaveral. We flew into Orlando, rented a car and drove to Cocoa Beach. We took an early flight, were at the hotel by 2, and had plenty of time to stop by the drug store (mom forgot her cane, DH forgot his sunglasses) as well as go to the grocery store for some wine to carry on onboard. I find this the most relaxing way to do it, and you can always pick up diapers, wipes etc once you are at your destination. The trip back is a little harder because you have to time it with the airlines. A flight about 1:30 would be perfect. Or perhaps a day or two again on the back side, especially if you are taking a shorter cruise.

 

I will also note that it is more expensive to sail out of the northern ports, so you can fly for not much difference. And yes, you are going to lose a lot of "cruise time" outdoors - it is not going to be warm enough on deck to sit out until you are off the coast of the middle of Fl. Yet another reason to fly.

 

Best advice: don't over pack for kids. There is a washing machine and dryer on just about every floor so laundry is easy. Bottles, food, pacifier and a few toys to keep baby happy should do the trick.

[cantw8togo]

If you decide to drive and take all that you want, keep in mind that unless you have a booked a large stateroom, many cabins can be very cozy and tight. Just something to keep in mind.

 

N.

[sandytoes03]

I wouldn't take a cruise out of Baltimore or NYC in the winter, but that's just me. I would only take those cruises in the warm weather. If you do, the first few days of your cruise will be spent inside. Not what I want on a cruise. I can see the appeal of driving rather than flying--just not during the winter.

[sas80]

I need more advice then that, but that is the main decision. Background: we live in MD and can drive to Baltimore, Bayonne or NYC for cruise. My issue is that I want to cruise between Thanksgiving and Xmas (prices are a steal and DS is over 6 mo) and am worried about rough seas and cold weather. Obviously this will be DS's first cruise and I am plenty anxious about it without added stress of anticipating 15ft swells :). Also, with FL itinerary we can do a shorter cruise, which might be better for him.

 

So the main decision: Drive to port (pros: can pack all the baby stuff I want and then some; cons: cold weather and possible rough seas for at least 3rd of the cruise) or fly (cons: packing limits, hassle and additional expense of flying; pros: can enjoy the whole cruise, can take a shorter cruise just to make sure DS is a sailor :)).

 

Any input is welcomed and appreciated!

 

We have two kids, 8 months and 3 years. We just got back from the Freedom yesterday. We flew from Texas to Orlando. It was about 4 hours each way.

 

We have decided that we are going to only cruise out of Galveston for the next few years and avoid flying to cruise.

 

We really understand that the kids dont like to be cooped up into one seat. It can also make the beginning and ending of your vacation unnecessarily stressful as you have to lug heavy bags around while trying to corral kids and they don't like to be cooped up on the way there and are tired and cranky and don't like to be cooped up on the way back.

 

For the next few years, we drive, only.

[sas80]

I would do whatever feels easisest for you. If it was me, I would fly in, the day before; you should be able to get a direct flight from where you to just about any port in Fl.

 

We just did this, for example, on our trip from Port Canaveral. We flew into Orlando, rented a car and drove to Cocoa Beach. We took an early flight, were at the hotel by 2, and had plenty of time to stop by the drug store (mom forgot her cane, DH forgot his sunglasses) as well as go to the grocery store for some wine to carry on onboard. I find this the most relaxing way to do it, and you can always pick up diapers, wipes etc once you are at your destination. The trip back is a little harder because you have to time it with the airlines. A flight about 1:30 would be perfect. Or perhaps a day or two again on the back side, especially if you are taking a shorter cruise.

 

I will also note that it is more expensive to sail out of the northern ports, so you can fly for not much difference. And yes, you are going to lose a lot of "cruise time" outdoors - it is not going to be warm enough on deck to sit out until you are off the coast of the middle of Fl. Yet another reason to fly.

 

Best advice: don't over pack for kids. There is a washing machine and dryer on just about every floor so laundry is easy. Bottles, food, pacifier and a few toys to keep baby happy should do the trick.

 

Different opinion...

 

If you fly in the day before then you get to lug luggage around even more (from airport onto shuttle, off of shuttle to hotel, up to hotel room, down from hotel room next day, onto shuttle, off at ship) Even if you rent a car you still have to lug your luggage.

 

Trying to juggle kids and luggage sucks. I would rather just "get there" than go out of my way to stay in a hotel overnight.

 

That's just me

[crusinmama06]

I have the same driving options as you - Balitmore, Bayonne or NYC. We used to fly to Florida and cruise out of there. But we just did one out of NYC and now I am spoiled. I can't tell you how nice it was to drive to port, hop on the ship, then hop off at the end and drive home.

 

So next up for us, Bayonne. :D

[cantw8togo]

Our closest cruise port is an 8 hour drive away so driving isn't a reasonable option for us, however we love to fly and half the fun is the adventure of getting there. Then again, maybe we are a bit spoiled flying West Jet and Air Canada.

 

We have also managed to pare down our necessities to two carry on bags each, unless it is a trip that requires formal wear and then we check a suitcase. Now that our kids a bit older, 5 and 9, they pull their own luggage for the most part. We plan on doing laundry at least once so that we only need half as many clothes. It has been a steep learning curve to figure out that we really didn't need to take so many things, especially since I tend to overpack. :D

 

N.