Getting from West Palm Beach to Port of Miami

[bride928]

Considering flying into West Palm Beach. Does anyone know any good shuttle services or car services that can drive my group of 8 to the port? How far of a drive is it also?

[CruisinRoyal]

Considering flying into West Palm Beach. Does anyone know any good shuttle services or car services that can drive my group of 8 to the port? How far of a drive is it also?

 

I would recommend against it, it's about an hours drive and will probably be pretty expensive. Are Miami or Ft. Lauderdale not an option?

[bride928]

No they are an option. The flights are just way cheaper going into West Palm Beach...my husband and I are paying for 4 flights so we are looking for the cheapest option. But thanks for the reply.

[rolloman]

Board the Tri-rail which runs every 20 minutes. For 5 bucks it will take you to the miami airport. From there take a cab to the port.

[CruisinRoyal]

Board the Tri-rail which runs every 20 minutes. For 5 bucks it will take you to the miami airport. From there take a cab to the port.

 

I would go with this option then. A van for 8 people from West Palm to Miami would easily cost $250 each way, if not much more.

[flcruzer03]

Board the Tri-rail which runs every 20 minutes. For 5 bucks it will take you to the miami airport. From there take a cab to the port.

 

 

If you do this be sure you can pack light & everyone handle their own luggage...from what I have read there are steps to navigate..also this is a commuter train so it may be crowded.. check out the Florida Departures board here on cruise critic for more info on the tri-rail system...

[boo214]

Considering flying into West Palm Beach. Does anyone know any good shuttle services or car services that can drive my group of 8 to the port? How far of a drive is it also?

you might want to look into renting a car or minivan. probably cheapest option. its about an hours drive.

[WellShoneMoon]

you might want to look into renting a car or minivan. probably cheapest option. its about an hours drive.

 

I'd second this motion. I used to take the Tri-Rail to work, and it was never on time. If your timing is tight it could be a problem. Not to mention the luggage difficulty.

 

On the other hand, driving from WPB to Port of Miami is no picnic either, depending on the day and the time of day you're going. I-95 can be very crowded and confusing to visitors. Plus you're talking 8 people and all their luggage -- you'd need a pretty big van for that. Price out a rental, but I'm betting it's cheaper and easier all around to fly to MIA.

[bride928]

Thanks everyone for responding. I'm thinking that the cheaper flights aren't worth the hassle. I appreciate your responses.

[rolloman]

If you do this be sure you can pack light & everyone handle their own luggage...from what I have read there are steps to navigate..also this is a commuter train so it may be crowded.. check out the Florida Departures board here on cruise critic for more info on the tri-rail system...

 

The train is never crowded. They have elevators to cross over tracks if need be. Yes, the posted times are usually off, but again, one comes about every 20 to 30 minutes , so worst case, you would wait 20 to 30 minutes. I have taken it several times and seen several people on it after a cruise...the OP wanted the least cost route and this is it by a long shot. Interesting you have found flights cheaper into West Palm. While it is without a doubt the easiest airport and quickest take off and landing wise the flights are usually much more expensive their than FLL or MIA. For the absolute best pricing I find MCO (Orlando) consistently the cheapest by quite a bit.

[bus man]

Be aware that Tri Rail only runs every hour, except during the rush hours, when it's every 30 minutes (PM rush). So depending on what time of day your flight arrives in West Palm Beach, you may have a bit of a wait.

 

I-95 does indeed have quite a bit of traffic on it, but it usually moves pretty well outside of the rush hours -- unless there's an accident, in which case, forget it. The highway is right next to the airport, and from there it's a straight shot down to the city of Miami. (Not familiar with the port, so I can't help you there.)

 

West Palm's airport is a very pleasant one, and it's much less crowded than the other two in South Florida. But as others have said, it's an hour or so north of Miami. Price out the various options, factor in the value of your time, and go accordingly. Good luck.

[DanJ]

The train is never crowded. They have elevators to cross over tracks if need be. Yes, the posted times are usually off, but again, one comes about every 20 to 30 minutes , so worst case, you would wait 20 to 30 minutes. I have taken it several times and seen several people on it after a cruise...the OP wanted the least cost route and this is it by a long shot. Interesting you have found flights cheaper into West Palm. While it is without a doubt the easiest airport and quickest take off and landing wise the flights are usually much more expensive their than FLL or MIA. For the absolute best pricing I find MCO (Orlando) consistently the cheapest by quite a bit.

 

In our case, the flights from Detroit into PBI this coming weekend were pushing $100 pp cheaper than into FLL. And the return flights the following week had really bad scheduling for the cheaper fares because of the large passenger load coming back into Port Everglades on the 15th.

 

Even now, I just priced the flights out and FLL is $130 pp more than PBI, which is in turn $105 more than what I booked at 6 weeks ago. I was going to rent a car in FLL anyway, so all I'm really adding is the cost of gas (and toll if I decide to take the turnpike down to Hollywood). It'll cost me about $120 to get back to PBI by private car service (don't want to take the time to rent and return a car with a 140pm flight), but with 4 of us, it really made sense to go into PBI.

 

I do agree about MCO, as I found when I was deciding on a cruise. But the cheaper airfare was offset by the higher cruise fares I found at Port Canveral.

[island284]

I've taken Tri-Rail from WPB to both Port Everglades and Port of Miami many times with NO difficulty at all. However Tri-Rail RUNS EVERY 2 HOURS on Saturday and Sunday, not every half hour or hour.

 

You would need to take a taxi from WPB airport to the Tri-Rail station (I don't know the cost) . . . purchase your tickets from a vending type machine, lift your luggage up 2 low steps (not as high as Amtrak), then take a taxi from the Miami Airport Tri-Rail station to the Port of Miami (approx. cost $25.00 without tip.) Taxi cabs are waiting at the Miami Airport station (which is the last stop on the route.) The cost per person is less than $5.00 - seniors get a discount! Tri-Rail has metal shelving for luggage . . . with 8 of you the placement of the luggage would be at the front and back of that particular car you were riding in. Be aware you can not purchase food on this commuter train. Also, getting on in WPB (which is the 2nd stop going south) you would have no issues with crowding. And the return trip has you getting on at the first stop so no crowding issues there.

 

Because we don't want to put up with Miami or I-95 traffic and a $20 per day parking fee at the Port of Miami, we choose to take Tri-Rail and have always been completely relaxed when we arrive at the port. Tri-Rail does have a website . . . google it to see more details and schedules.

 

island284

[north29]

How much are you saving by flying into WPB? I have never been able to get better prices flying into smaller airports.