Mariner Port Canaveral vs Navigator Port of Miami

[Majesty Fan]

We are moving to FL and were trying to cut down on our cruise costs and air fare. W are still 12 hours from Miami and are considering next year to sail out of Port C and on the mariner. For those of you who have done mariner and either Explorer or Navigator how does it compare.

Lexi

[TBRay]

As long as you arrive at the proper time at Port Canaveral all will be well. I've done both ports and they are very comparable from the inside.

 

The rent a cops want to hold back all traffic (PC) until around 11:30 AM. I don't remember the same issue at Miami as we were parked and inside the terminal at 10:30 AM.

 

Ships are sisters so there really isn't much to compare (other than one might be a year older than the other).

 

I guess the one difference is many travelers to Central Florida add in a Cocoa Beach trip or Disneyworld vacation. But the same can be said for Miami Beach and the Deco Area.

 

Traffic wise I give Miami a thumbs down. But if you can stage yourself at a nearby hotel it makes life a little easier. The extra cost of a room is trivial compared to fighting traffic on cruise day.

 

Port Canaveral has a Bee Line expressway directly from Orlando. 60 min. from the airport.

(As compared to Miami Int. which is four miles from the port.).

 

Hope this helps a little. I'm sure many others will chime in.

[fajitapita]

Personally, I enjoyed sailing out of Miami on the Explorer vs. Port Canaveral on the Mariner. Reminded me more of a "true sailaway"- lots of people pulled over on the side of the roads, honking, waving... sailing past the beautiful Miami beaches and tall hotels/highrises... the feeling just wasn't the same on the Mariner. But of course, sailaway is such an insignificant part of the total cruise... I did, however, like the itinerary better on the Explorer (West. Carib. 2002- Labadee, Jamaica, Grand Cayman, Cozumel) vs. eastern carib on the mariner. Both wonderful ships...

One other thing that I've seen a lot of other posters write: sailing from Port Canaveral sometimes mean slightly "rougher" waters than sailing from Miami... I'd have to agree on that one...

 

***Nancy***

 

Song of Norway 12/79

Tropicale 12/84

Explorer of the Seas 8/3/02

Mariner of the Seas 1/4/04

 

Serenading to Alaska for our 10th anniversary!

Roll call for Serenade 8/1/04 click here

Time until our next cruise

[boingy300]

Gosh as you mentioned the Bon Voyage it brought me to smiles. I remember my first cruise in 1991 on my honeymoon in Miami. I had pictured a "Love Boat" type Bon Voyage- streamers, crowds saying good bye............They had done away w/ streamers (Which I am in agreement) and there was 1 guy on the top of a parking garage, smoking......every now and then he'd wave....I swear RCCL paid him to stand there.LOL! I've left Miami a few times and have never had cars pull over or anyone say good-bye. WHO do you know?! I get my biggest waves good-bye from the other cruise passengers on other boats.I LOVE waving good-bye, best feeling in the world!!!!!

Karen

 

Song of America 1991

Majesty of the Sea 1993

Monarch of the Sea 1996

Sov.of the Sea 1999

Disney Wonder 2001

Explorer 12/13/03

Mariner of the Seas 6/19/05

[EBFURR]

We like cruising past the traffic & condos in Miami also. Just returned from the Mariner out of PC and it was different, but not bad. The embarkation process itself in PC could use a lot of work. We sailed out along with the Fantasy 1st, one of the Mickey Mouse ships 2nd, and us last. Lots of waving between the ships, which was nice. Also, there seemed to be a good number of the local population along the channel that come out to wave the ships goodbye. The kids really enjoyed this and it does seem to make you feel a little "special".

[m&m1]

Cruzjunkie - Being on the same sailing and having a different embarkation opinion, I was just wondering... what improvements would you suggest? We have only sailed out of PC, so I have nothing with which to compare. For this last trip, we were in the port (and once our husbands joined us) were on the ship within minutes. The only part that seemed to take any time was the actual walk down the corridor to get the embarkation photo done. Did you have other setbacks this time around? Are there other ports that offer a radically different approach? I want to sail out of other ports now to compare - what fun! And a good excuse to sail again soon!

 

Cruise addict in the making -scratch that... Officially a Cruise Addict

 

MOS June 6, 2004

Fantasy Nov. 7, 2002

[vacationbound]

We have sailed both the Nav out of Miami, and the Mariner out of PC. I have to agree with Miami for my first choice. Miami was a lot more fun for a pre cruise stay. As for the ships, they are very much the same. We had smooth water on both.

[EBFURR]

Well, for one thing the guards at the gates sometimes turn back people that arrive at the port before 11:30. Our cab driver was very nervous, but they did let us through around 10:45. Second, the cab dropped us off out where the busses were loading/unloading at the luggage area. We kept asking the uniformed guys how to check our luggage and they kept referring us back & forth to each other - no one knew to do (or wanted to). There were other cruisers in our same situation, no one knew what to do or where to go. I finally got someone to check our bags and those of a few other people. When we went to enter the terminal at the large "Terminal Entrance" sign, the door was locked. We walked all the way to the other end of the terminal and found an open door. After doing the document thing, we were herded into a waiting area to stand; no seats. People kept crowding in and it got a little cramped. We were told that boarding would start at 11:30, which it did. We have sailed from Miami on six previous occasions and it always seemed to go smoother from traffic flow, to properly trained personnel, to better signage, to better waiting areas, etc. This is mostly the Port personnel, not RCCL. It must not have been TOO bad; we are going back next year.

[aearly]

I had this same decision to make. I chose Navigator out of Miami. First of all, the airport in Miami is closer to the port than MCO to Port Canaveral. Second, I like the live in Miami (although I have never been to PC). Miami just seems like a more "alive" place.

 

Carnival Holiday 8/95

Carnival Ecstasy 8/31/01

RCCL Voyager 8/18/02

RCCL Explorer 8/23/03

 

Till I board the Navigator of the Seas!

[JennyandBryan]

Where in Florida are you moving that Miami is 12 hours away? Didn't know that was possible...

[skyking]

MAJESTY FAN- I SAY THE MARINER ALL THE WAY! I HAVE BEEN ON BOTH THE EXPLORER AND THE MARINER, ALTHOUGH THE EXPLORER IS A BEAUTIFUL SHIP, THE MARINER TO ME IS MUCH MORE ELEGANT. I WILL ALWAYS HAVE THE MEMORY OF SAILING ON HER MAIDEN VOYAGE, THEN AGAIN A FEW MONTHS LATER. WE ARE BOOKED ON THE AUG 28TH SAILING MAKING THIS OUR THIRD TIME ON HER. LET ME TELL YOU MY OPINION ON THE TAIL OF THE WATER BEING ROUGHER OUT OF PORT CANAVERAL....IT IS A BUNCH OF MALARKY....YES THE BREAK IS A LITTLE DIFFERENT OUT OF THE PORT BUT IT IS NOT ENOUGH TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE, A LOT OF PEOPLE THINK THAT CAUSE THEY SAIL ON A ROUGH DAY THAT IT MUST EITHER BE THE SHIP OR THE PORT...I MEAN COME ON! IF YOU WANT TO SAIL ON A BEAUTIFUL ELEGANT SHIP THEN DO THE MARINER, BUT EITHER ONE YOU CHOOSE JUST HAVE FUN

 

TIM

 

Carnival Tropicale 10-7-00

Sovereign Of The Seas 5-6-01

Carnival Triumph 9-1-01

Explorer Of The Seas 8-31-2002

Carnival Pride 4-12-2003

Mariner Of The Seas 11-16-2003 (Innagural Cruise)

Carnival Fantasy 1-29-2004

Mariner Of The Seas 3-28-2004

 

community.webshots.com/user/skyking518

[jezzdogg]

Skyking

You ar right, if you are comparing the Mariner to the Explorer, the Mariner would win hands down. However, the question was to compare it to the Navigator, which is the same exact ship as the Mariner, by that I mean the food buffet areas,etc. The Navigator was the first of the "Voyager" class ships with the changes. followed by Mariner. What the poster has to do in my opinion, is to look at the itinerary, and she which one she prefers, and that is the ship she should go on.

Century

Soverign

Mercury

Galaxy

Grand Princess

Voyager

Millennium

Sea Princess

Adventure

Summit

Empress

Mariner

Island Princess

Millie Aug 04

Navigator Feb 05

Connie July 05

 

norm

[EBFURR]

I had some criticism in my post about the port & embarkation. Let me say this; the Mariner is a magnificent ship. Our family enjoyed it so much that we booked a repeat cruise within one week of returning. We still think that the port in Miami is better organized and better equipped to handle the large volume of passengers embarking/debarking on a Voyager class ship. That, however, is not enough to keep us from enjoying the cruise nor from using the Port C. facility. It is a much easier drive from our home; the DW will not fly. I have not been on the other Voyager class ships, but am sure they are spectacular as well. You will not go wrong either way.