Flights from FLL

[fpcruiser]

Hi, I am new to NCL. Is it possible to make a 11:15 flight from FLL from the Getaway? It says it docks in Miami at 8am. Other ships I have sailed on have docked at 5:30 to 6am. Thanks for your help.

[Coastalbreezes]

Yes, absolutely if 1) the ship docks on time and 2) you are off the ship when disembarkation begins. Highly recommend walking your own luggage off but bear in mind that people start lining up to walk off as early as 6:30 and it can get congested. If you happen to be in the Haven, the concierge will take you down a back elevator to avoid the lines.

 

Also worth considering is that many people from other cruise lines will be disembarking also and the check-in and security lines at FLL can be very long.

Tracy

[tallnthensome]

If it docks in Miami at 8 then I would tell you that I personally would say that's too close in my opinion. How are you getting from Miami back to Ft. Lauderdale? Your flight will be boarding at 10:45. Can you make it? Possibly baring any delays on the ship, customs, travel to Lauderdale and the airport. I wouldn't want to spend the last day aboard freaking out about how disembarkation would go the next day and if you'd make your flight. That's just me though .....

Edited November 1, 2018 by tallnthensome

[beerman2]

Can you??? Yes it's possible, the ship will probably dock much earlier than 8:00.

This ? has been debated many times and it's always the same. Some will say no problem go for it, others say take a later flight.

 

What is your comfort zone for stress, do you have a back-up plan? Personally I don't want to rush to get to the airport debarkation day. 

 

You've just come come back from a relaxing vacation and now need to get up very early and join the self-debarkation mob.

 

 

[cliffd64]

It can be done,  but the question is your tolerance for rushing and stress...  Our preference is to have a later flight to avoid as much airport rushing as possible.

[rbschultz]

I took a 10:20am flight from FLL in January after my Escape cruise. AT FLL in security line by 8:45am. As others have said be prepared to wake up VERY early and get in the disembarkation line with all of your luggage (I was downstairs at O'sheehans at 6:15).

[Itchy&Scratchy]

I've decided against a 12:30 pm flight out of FLL. Our ship docks at 8 am as well.

There will be 4 of us, including a kid and grandma.... I don't want bad anxiety about missing a flight. So, we are on a 5 pm flight instead.

 

We were on Caribbean Princess back in 2016, and there were some immigration/customs problems. We didn't get off the ship till after noon, and by the time we got to the airport and went through a long luggage drop off (not check-in) line for 1 hour and security check (1 hour), then had a quick lunch, and it was time to board.

[MizzCard]

Just got off the Getaway. Probably one of the worst debarkation ever! If you're doing self assist, getting off the ship and thru customs, an earlier flight is possible.
Took 75 minutes to get off last week....next time, less luggage and self assist!!

[fpcruiser]

Thanks everyone. I am looking at the options to fly into MIA instead. A little more expensive but worth it.

 

[zqvol]

I have sailed Getaway three times. Typically the Getaway begins disembarkation around 7:30 (even when the schedule says it docks at 8:00). If you are near the front of the line you can be off the ship and at the airport in Ft. Lauderdale by 9:00 a.m. The realities though are that you will be off the ship by 9:00 and at the airport by 10:00. If you are comfortable with that amount of time than you can make it. Just remember that if there are delays you might not be off the ship until 10:00.

[Vyhanek]

Definitely.    Do self disembark and line up as early as possible.   7:30 line up would be fine.    Then take a taxi which will be lined up and waiting.    You will be at FLL sitting at your gate by 9am.   I've done it many times.

[Cindyscruising]

I am guessing you are arriving into Port on a Saturday or Sunday? Due to the high number of ships arriving into both FLL and MIA on weekends;  the TSA lines at FLL  get extremely long on Saturdays and Sundays compared with weekday departures.

The last 4 times I flew out of FLL on a weekend the TSA line snaked all the way into and all through  the rental car building and one of the TSA agents told me it happens each weekend due to the high number of cruise passengers flying out

[zqvol]

4 hours ago, Vyhanek said:

Definitely.    Do self disembark and line up as early as possible.   7:30 line up would be fine.    Then take a taxi which will be lined up and waiting.    You will be at FLL sitting at your gate by 9am.   I've done it many times.

 

Off of Getaway? If OP wants to be off by 7:30 they need to be in line by 6:00 a.m. it is that slow on Getaway, unless they have priority disembarkation.

[NancyW12]

On the internet, the fares from FLL seem so much less expensive than those from MIA, but consider these factors as well:

- higher transit fees to get to the airport

- you might arrive at FLL and check-in whenever, but FLL will not let you thru the TSA line until 3 hours before your flight. If your flight is at 2pm, you don't go through the line until 11. There is no place to sit on the front side of FLL and the only wall plugs to charge your phone are in baggage claim.

- once you get thru TSA, there are no sit down restaurants or airline lounges airside in FLL. You will be sitting on the floor and eating a hot dog waiting the three hours for your flight.

- someone else on Cruise Critic will then suggest you get a day room from a hotel in FLL or take a cruise excursion to kill time until your flight which will negate any fare difference you might have saved from MIA

 

How about looking again at the fares from MIA?

 

[beerman2]

5 hours ago, NancyW12 said:

On the internet, the fares from FLL seem so much less expensive than those from MIA, but consider these factors as well:

- higher transit fees to get to the airport

- you might arrive at FLL and check-in whenever, but FLL will not let you thru the TSA line until 3 hours before your flight. If your flight is at 2pm, you don't go through the line until 11. There is no place to sit on the front side of FLL and the only wall plugs to charge your phone are in baggage claim.

- once you get thru TSA, there are no sit down restaurants or airline lounges airside in FLL. You will be sitting on the floor and eating a hot dog waiting the three hours for your flight.

- someone else on Cruise Critic will then suggest you get a day room from a hotel in FLL or take a cruise excursion to kill time until your flight which will negate any fare difference you might have saved from MIA

 

How about looking again at the fares from MIA?

 

I've read about the 3 hour rule, however at least two or 3 times that hasn't been the case with us. 

 

Trying to remember but I'm pretty sure there is seating in a food area. Maybe not a restaurant per sey, but in a small food courtyard.

 

I guess it depends on when/where you are flying from, but even with the added transportation expense FLL has always been 💰💰💰 more less expensive for us.

 

 

[Itchy&Scratchy]

8 hours ago, NancyW12 said:

but FLL will not let you thru the TSA line until 3 hours before your flight.

This has NEVER been the case with us, and we've been cruising solely out of FLL since 2009.

 

8 hours ago, NancyW12 said:

once you get thru TSA, there are no sit down restaurants or airline lounges airside in FLL. You will be sitting on the floor and eating a hot dog waiting the three hours for your flight.

 

 

that's also incorrect. And there is plenty of seating, with charging stations all over the place, and even rocking chairs. There are several sit down restaurants and food court areas.

Believe me, we usually spend 10 am to 4 pm inside the terminal waiting for our 5 pm flight. We definitely have lunch at the food court. Their free wifi is great and fast.

[LrgPizza]

1 hour ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

This has NEVER been the case with us, and we've been cruising solely out of FLL since 2009.

Perhaps it varies with how busy the airport is, but I've only flown out of there twice, and both times we had to wait until 3 hours before our flight before we were allowed to go through security., or even line up for security (they had someone right there checking.)

Edited November 2, 2018 by LrgPizza

[zqvol]

On 11/1/2018 at 3:51 PM, Vyhanek said:

Definitely.    Do self disembark and line up as early as possible.   7:30 line up would be fine.    Then take a taxi which will be lined up and waiting.    You will be at FLL sitting at your gate by 9am.   I've done it many times.

 

Getting in line at 7:30 on Getaway will not get you off the ship before 9:00, usually disembarkation on Getaway begins about then.

[zqvol]

15 hours ago, NancyW12 said:

On the internet, the fares from FLL seem so much less expensive than those from MIA, but consider these factors as well:

 

- you might arrive at FLL and check-in whenever, but FLL will not let you thru the TSA line until 3 hours before your flight. If your flight is at 2pm, you don't go through the line until 11. There is no place to sit on the front side of FLL and the only wall plugs to charge your phone are in baggage claim.

 

 

 

FLL and every other airport allows you through security at any time, what you are probably thinking of is an airline policy where some airlines won't accept checked bags more than three hours prior to departure.

[fpcruiser]

The flight I am looking at is on Allegiant and it leaves Fll at 10:20.  Flights on the main carriers(Delta) would cost more for each person than both of us on Allegiant. This is supposed to be an inexpensive trip(free cruise fare through MYvegas) since we just got back from a cruise on RCL 3 weeks ago. The stress would be much less if we could fly into Miami for cheap.

Edited November 3, 2018 by fpcruiser
added more to reply

[NancyW12]

Now that the diehard dogpile seems to have finished, I stand by my statement.

 

The TSA will not let you through security until 3 hours before your flight at FLL on cruise ship days. They do not have the room to handle the crowd level airside so they hold people on the front side of the airport and let thru in waves. On a Wednesday, you can go thru anytime. On a Sunday, they have a TSA agent sitting at the entrance to security who will not let you thru until 3 hours before your flight.

 

There are very few seats on the front side of the airport so those who are able bodied will end up sitting on the floor somewhere or look like jerks for sitting while someone who needs assistance stands. And being both the cruise ship departure airport and a main airport in South Florida, there will always be a great number of folks who are elderly or need assistance.

 

Hope your phone is charged. The only plugs I could find on the front side of the airport were at baggage claim- sitting on the floor.

 

FLL is the only major airport in the USA I have been to that does not have an airline lounge affiliated with Priority Pass and I don't believe they have a Sky Club or an Admiral's Club (I could be wrong on that). With no Priority Pass lounge access, anyone flying Southwest, Frontier, Allegiant, etc has no lounge access (aka no place to sit and wait for 3 hours). There is no waiter served, sit-down restaurant airside. There is a small food court with approx. 100 seats that will stay occupied for the 3 hours one will wait for their flight (aka eating a hot dog sitting on the floor). In the gate area, there is seating, but not nearly enough to accommodate the number of people waiting for the number of flights departing.

 

The shuttle from the ship to FLL is more than the shuttle to MIA. The hotels are less in FLL. It's a toss up. Taking a post cruise excursion or renting a day room spends a significant portion of the fare saved by flying to FLL instead of MIA.

 

For me, the experience was not worth the hassle and I won't repeat that choice. You may find sitting on the floor for 6 hours to be worth $50. I did not and won't do again. To each his own. But no, I was not wrong or in error in my original post.

[BNBR]

5 hours ago, NancyW12 said:

There is no waiter served, sit-down restaurant airside.

 

Well this is just completely untrue.  FLL has several waiter served, sit-down airside restaurants.

 

I do agree, however, that FLL is a generally terrible airport to hang out at for hours and hours.  But I have done it and we hang out at one of the restaurants, with a server, and enjoy drinks.

Edited November 3, 2018 by BNBR

[Itchy&Scratchy]

On 11/3/2018 at 2:48 AM, NancyW12 said:

The TSA will not let you through security until 3 hours before your flight at FLL on cruise ship days. They do not have the room to handle the crowd level airside so they hold people on the front side of the airport and let thru in waves. On a Wednesday, you can go thru anytime. On a Sunday, they have a TSA agent sitting at the entrance to security who will not let you thru until 3 hours before your flight.

 

once again - not true, because we actually do sail on Saturdays and Sundays, and come back on Saturdays and Sundays. 

 

[Itchy&Scratchy]

 

Here are the images of a charging desk with chairs all around it and at the bottom of every TV pole there are several plug-ins.

We don't mind hanging out for hours at FLL airport. Wifi is fast and free, and the charging is available.

[beerman2]

On 11/3/2018 at 2:48 AM, NancyW12 said:

Now that the diehard dogpile seems to have finished, I stand by my statement.

 

The TSA will not let you through security until 3 hours before your flight at FLL on cruise ship days. They do not have the room to handle the crowd level airside so they hold people on the front side of the airport and let thru in waves. On a Wednesday, you can go thru anytime. On a Sunday, they have a TSA agent sitting at the entrance to security who will not let you thru until 3 hours before your flight.

 

There are very few seats on the front side of the airport so those who are able bodied will end up sitting on the floor somewhere or look like jerks for sitting while someone who needs assistance stands. And being both the cruise ship departure airport and a main airport in South Florida, there will always be a great number of folks who are elderly or need assistance.

 

Hope your phone is charged. The only plugs I could find on the front side of the airport were at baggage claim- sitting on the floor.

 

FLL is the only major airport in the USA I have been to that does not have an airline lounge affiliated with Priority Pass and I don't believe they have a Sky Club or an Admiral's Club (I could be wrong on that). With no Priority Pass lounge access, anyone flying Southwest, Frontier, Allegiant, etc has no lounge access (aka no place to sit and wait for 3 hours). There is no waiter served, sit-down restaurant airside. There is a small food court with approx. 100 seats that will stay occupied for the 3 hours one will wait for their flight (aka eating a hot dog sitting on the floor). In the gate area, there is seating, but not nearly enough to accommodate the number of people waiting for the number of flights departing.

 

The shuttle from the ship to FLL is more than the shuttle to MIA. The hotels are less in FLL. It's a toss up. Taking a post cruise excursion or renting a day room spends a significant portion of the fare saved by flying to FLL instead of MIA.

 

For me, the experience was not worth the hassle and I won't repeat that choice. You may find sitting on the floor for 6 hours to be worth $50. I did not and won't do again. To each his own. But no, I was not wrong or in error in my original post.

"Diehard Dogpile" that's a good one. Just because many others have a different opinion/experience doesn't make "their" remarks wrong.

 

They just don't happen to agree with yours and have not found some of your statements to be true. Did it happen to you- Yes I guess, to others -NO.