Really want to book a Southern Carib...

[ibcnusoon]

I've just always considered it a wash. Low cruise fare, high air fare.

Miami is avg cruise fare, avg air fare.

New York is high cruise fare, no air fair.

 

That's how I look at it too, I'd pay a little more to fly to San Juan over Miami and get a better itinerary! We loved the Valor itinerary. We did that itinerary in 2012. This year we are doing the southern on the Summit, more islands than before!

 

Valor, Celebrity Summit and Royal Caribbean - I'd do a B2B2B and visit all the islands! Domenica, Granada, Barbados, St. Lucia, St. Kitts, St. Maarten, Antigua, etc. LOVE THEM! :)

[ExCCL]

That sounds about right. I booked my airfare for January 2015 last month. From PHL <-> SJU non-stop, it was around $900 total for two persons. That was with US Airways. I actually ended up booking first class for $1,600 total for two persons, which I thought was pretty reasonable considering it is now priced at $1,500 per person for the same flights, and YOLO.

[saphir]

But the airfare...OMG. For those of you who have booked or have gone on a southern caribbean cruise do you have any tips or tricks for the airfare. Or do you just suck it up and pay the high prices. Im looking into a Southern in January but the airfare for 2 people would be well over $1,100. Is that average for flying into San Juan. I've never flown anything but domestic so I really have no idea what to expect.

 

It is always the price that I pay and must, in addition, convert it to Canadian $. :mad:

[jwalk03]

First $550 pp is not that expensive to fly to the islands, but you can always check Southwest whihc flies to San Juan.

 

Sounds pretty expensive for a domestic flight to me. Thats more than I have ever paid for any domestic flight. Though I always shop around for the best prices as well.

 

Now I am considering a trip to Fiji next year, wanna talk about an expensive flight!?!

Edited April 11, 2014 by jwalk03

[BenjiRodney]

But the airfare...OMG. For those of you who have booked or have gone on a southern caribbean cruise do you have any tips or tricks for the airfare. Or do you just suck it up and pay the high prices. Im looking into a Southern in January but the airfare for 2 people would be well over $1,100. Is that average for flying into San Juan. I've never flown anything but domestic so I really have no idea what to expect.

 

$435 is the cheapest we have paid to San Juan, last year it was 550 and we usually try to book 8-9 months ahead of time. We have done the trip 3 times out of San Juan and loved it each time. It is worth it at least once.

[Boozebabe]

But the airfare...OMG. For those of you who have booked or have gone on a southern caribbean cruise do you have any tips or tricks for the airfare. Or do you just suck it up and pay the high prices. Im looking into a Southern in January but the airfare for 2 people would be well over $1,100. Is that average for flying into San Juan. I've never flown anything but domestic so I really have no idea what to expect.

 

Thats a great price from where I fly from. Last time I checked R/T was over $1500. for 2 people from CVG (Cincinnati). The saving grace is that the cruises are cheaper.

[jwalk03]

Thats a great price from where I fly from. Last time I checked R/T was over $1500. for 2 people from CVG (Cincinnati). The saving grace is that the cruises are cheaper.

 

Cincinnati is one of the most expensive airports in the country to fly from because it offers very few choices, and almost no competition to drive prices down. Try flying from Dayton or Columbus for much better fares to many destinations!

[NW Native1]

The Southern route on Breeze, Freedom, etc is NOT the same as the Southern Valor route. In fact they share ZERO of the same ports.

 

As for the original question about airfare, check and see what Southwest's price is. They now fly to San Juan. We took this cruise in September and round trip airfare from Columbus, Ohio to San Juan was less than $300 per person.

 

Also San Juan is a domestic flight, seeing as how its part of the USA. You will not have to clear customs at the airport, and a passport is not required.

 

And if you find a price that works for you, let me say you should with out a doubt take this cruise! There is not a better Caribbean itinerary out there if you want to see the most diverse and beautiful set of ports. Each one is unique, yet just as beautiful as the one before it! It was an awesome cruise! Make sure you allow yourself some time to explore San Juan as well, it really is like a 6th port of call. Simply a wonderful cruise!!

 

I would keep checking airfare - I booked JetBlue from Portland Oregon to San Juan via JFK last September and only paid $450 round-trip.

 

The Valor cruise out of San Juan is one I will be doing again next year, but this time I will be staying in San Juan for a couple of days afterward instead of before the cruise. It is so port intensive that some time to relax at the end of the cruise before returning home is a must for me.

[scuddacup]

We just booked RCI Jewel of the Seas for late September and air fare from O'Hare to SJU on JetBlue was only $318 this past Wednesday! Needless to say we snagged those tickets right away.

 

 

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[WindsorFred]

The Breeze, Freedom, and Liberty do the Southern route from Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, and soon to be, Port Canaveral. Southwest has great fares to FLL and MCO. Check it out. Good Luck!!!!:D

 

 

Agree. We usually book the cruise a year in advance and airfare about 4 months out.

[rednose83]

We flew from Tampa to San Juan non-stop for $165pp on Jet Blue. They are usually reasonable. Try checking them.

[T. Advisor King]

Wow you are all pretty spoiled. We pay approximately 1200 from the U.P. of Michigan just to get to Miami. For us the airfare is almost the same as a 7 day. :/

 

That's what I was thinking. We looked at departing from San Juan. We wanted to go back-to-back and the dates didn't work great. In addition the extra airfare was hard to justify. Ultimately, we booked out of Miami on the Glory and Breeze. But the airfare for 4 was still over $3,300 from up here.

[Boozebabe]

Cincinnati is one of the most expensive airports in the country to fly from because it offers very few choices, and almost no competition to drive prices down. Try flying from Dayton or Columbus for much better fares to many destinations!

 

We are pretty much equally distanced from Indy, Louisville and Columbus with Dayton closer to us. I always try to find the best fare but sometimes scheduling doesn't allow for an extra day to travel & stay in those cities. Pretty soon I'll be retired and we plan on driving to ports. No extra baggage fees that way. EXCEPT if we want to go to San Juan.

[NOSaints1]

We booked United out of Buffalo and it was 1100 for two.

 

 

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[ISLABONITA]

Plan ahead.. get credit cards with sign up bonuses for free airfare.

Husband and I have with almost every airline.

:-)

[richstowe]

Plan ahead.. get credit cards with sign up bonuses for free airfare.

Husband and I have with almost every airline.

:-)

I always consider this but don't go ahead because the taxes and fees are often silly for these "free" flights.

I have a loyalty card that believe it or not wants $680 in various charges for 2 tickets to Ft Lauderdale.

This is only $200 cheaper then the cost of a regular discount ticket for me.

I understand that not all "free" tickets have much high charges but most have high fees.

 

 

The other reason for not signing up is because I'm too lazy. ;)

[ISLABONITA]

In my experience Chase Sapphire Preferred along with United Mileage Explorer got us to Hawaii and back in first class just this past March.

 

Every credit card is different.

 

I used to have capital one and hated how long it took to get points for miles.

 

After switching to airline cc I had free flights in no time.

 

The fees depend on the airline.. Husband and I are flying free from ROC to FLL with Jetblue and $5.00 in taxes in December.

Returning with United on Dec 22nd free with miles and $10 in taxes.

 

USair is quite different as they even charge a $35 award fee but still cheaper than the original cost.. flying from ROC to CUN end of the month paid $70

 

Flew with AirTran just as cheaply as JetBlue from ROC to SFO in September.

 

I have yet to pay 1/4th of the price for any airfare in the last 5 years and we have gone to Hawaii, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico , Grand Cayman.

Edited April 13, 2014 by ISLABONITA

[keishashadow]

I always consider this but don't go ahead because the taxes and fees are often silly for these "free" flights.

I have a loyalty card that believe it or not wants $680 in various charges for 2 tickets to Ft Lauderdale.

This is only $200 cheaper then the cost of a regular discount ticket for me.

I understand that not all "free" tickets have much high charges but most have high fees.

 

 

The other reason for not signing up is because I'm too lazy. ;)

 

just booked from PIT to LAS via SWA points, paid $2.50 each leg pp out the door.

 

speaking of SWA, typical CC offer of 50K points for $2,000 purchase 1st 3 months & you can monitor the points & re-adjust. If paying cash, can cancel/rebook & stash the credits to use within 12 months of original booking date.

 

we don't have direct flights to SJU:rolleyes:. Have stopped off in FLA a few days early in past when I found the two flights cheaper than a connecting out of PIT.

 

Also, the prices for cruises I've checked out of SJU seem to be less expensive than comparable ones out of FLA, often it's a wash as to total OOP expenses.