HAL transfer from FLL to MIA

[jamiejjj]

 

Hi all,

 

In the thread linked above it was suggested I post here in this forum.  I will be aboard the Nieuw Statendam in February 2019.  I had a return flight home booked with Sunwing from FLL, and this week they called to notify me that they will now be departing from MIA instead.  Flight departs at noon.  My HAL cruise gets into the Ft Lauderdale port at 7am.

 

I noticed when I login to HAL’s site, I can book “post-cruise transfers” right from HAL.  One I found was called “TRANSFER FT LAUDERDALE SHIP/MIA AIR” and it seems very reasonable at $19pp. My concern with this is, I see no details about where I would find this transfer, what time it would leave the cruise terminal and when it would arrive at MIA... can I safely assume it would be a shuttle running throughout the day?  Has anyone used one of these HAL transfers, and if so were they quick and reliablle?  Can anyone confirm what time they depart FLL and arrive at MIA?

 

I contacted Larry’s as suggested in the other thread, but the cost quoted was $105 USD which is out of my budget.  I know the cheapest option is the tri-rail but I’m worried about the timing for that option.

Edited November 17, 2018 by jamiejjj
wording

[Krazy Kruizers]

Have never had to this.

 

But I can tell you the $19 price sounds like "ship to Ft Lauderdale airport" not Miami.

 

Also they will fill the bus before it leaves for Miami and usually there is an excursion involved which means you are expected to be flying out of Miami after 4 PM (I think) -- I have seen these excursions on previous cruises.

[jamiejjj]

They offer two transfer options, one is called:

 

TRANSFER FT LAUDERDALE SHIP/MIA AIR

 

The other is called:

 

TRANSFER FT LAUDERDALE SHIP/FLL AIRPORT

 

Based on that, it does appear the first option would get me to the MIA airport, but if it is for flights after 4pm then it certainly isn’t an option for me.  In the other thread, there was mention of it possibly leaving at 9:30am which would work just fine I would think.  So I’m a little confused.

[SusieKIslandGirl]

Did you ask the airline if you can change to a different flight? When they have changed our flights, we were able to adjust them without charge.

[jamiejjj]

1 minute ago, SusieKIslandGirl said:

Did you ask the airline if you can change to a different flight? When they have changed our flights, we were able to adjust them without charge.

This particular airline (Sunwing) will no longer offer any flights to or from FLL starting December 1st.  They did give me the option of canceling the flight and booking with another airline, but doing so would mean even more money than the transfer and would be a much worse flight in terms of arrival times back home.

[caribill]

9 hours ago, Krazy Kruizers said:

 

Also they will fill the bus before it leaves for Miami and usually there is an excursion involved which means you are expected to be flying out of Miami after 4 PM (I think) -- I have seen these excursions on previous cruises.

 

Direct transfers from ship to MIA are offered without any tour involved. There will be transfers available that will get the OP to MIA in time for the flight. (Of course transfers with tours are also offered.)

 

The OP should contact the travel agent (or HAL directly if no TA is involved) and ask for the MIA xfer to be added to the booking.

 

On board with input from the OP as to when the flight departs a bus departure time will be assigned.

[VMax1700]

The $19 price is what is posted on HAL site, but as mentioned it is an excellent price. I have checked my March 2019 cruise and it is offering transfers to FLL and MIA.  Both are priced at $19 when I check my booking.

[Hlitner]

2 hours ago, VMax1700 said:

The $19 price is what is posted on HAL site, but as mentioned it is an excellent price. I have checked my March 2019 cruise and it is offering transfers to FLL and MIA.  Both are priced at $19 when I check my booking.

That sounds like an error on the posting (HAL has lots of issues with their web site).  If you can get a transfer from Port Everglades to MIA for $19 you should book it and make sure to print out a copy of the reservation and price :).  

 

Hank

[VMax1700]

35 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

That sounds like an error on the posting (HAL has lots of issues with their web site).  If you can get a transfer from Port Everglades to MIA for $19 you should book it and make sure to print out a copy of the reservation and price :).  

 

Hank

 

i would love to book it, but we are doing a B2B with a trans Atlantic, however HAL website is currently not showing that cruise!

 

[1ANGELCAT]

48 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

That sounds like an error on the posting (HAL has lots of issues with their web site).  If you can get a transfer from Port Everglades to MIA for $19 you should book it and make sure to print out a copy of the reservation and price :).  

 

Hank

No error, that is the price . I’ve used the transfer several times

[Hlitner]

11 minutes ago, 1ANGELCAT said:

No error, that is the price . I’ve used the transfer several times

Then its a terrific deal.  But hard to understand why a transfer to nearby FLL is the same price as to MIA...which is over 30 miles.  We just came off a Princess cruise where they also charged the same ridiculous $19 per person transfer price to FLL (we took a taxi for less then $15 for the entire taxi).  I do not completely recall the price of the transfer to MIA but thought it was something like $29 per person.  Uber would charge about $35-$40 (for an entire car) for that same transfer.

 

Hank

[Hlitner]

28 minutes ago, VMax1700 said:

 

i would love to book it, but we are doing a B2B with a trans Atlantic, however HAL website is currently not showing that cruise!

 

We would prefer your B2B  :).

 

Hank

[POA1]

The $19 transfer is what I see for our late December trip on the Zuiderdam. It's $19 for either FLL or MIA.  I realize that MIA is about 25 miles further, but bus/shuttle transportation - which is what you'd be getting with a HAL transfer - is a close to the same price. (It's about $5 more pp if you booked a 9 passenger shuttle bus.  It's even less if you booked a larger bus.)

 

Just make sure to call HAL tomorrow and make sure the schedule will work for your flight.

[sevenseasnomad]

HA transfers work well.  We've used them a number of times when we had early or extremely late flights.  For the later flights, we had an all-day tour involved with lunch, which isn't your situation.  Never fear, they will get you to MIA on time for your flight.  As a word of advice, please try to select expedited disembarkation where you're responsible for your own luggage.  Of course, I don't know what your situation is.  Some passengers cannot manage this, even when they pack lightly, because of physical limitations.  You don't need to be stuck in a custom's line, however, if you can manage to be one of the first passengers off the ship.  

 

You will have a ticket for your transport, and you should probably check with the Front Desk as to where the bus should be parked.  You generally can't miss it, or someone outside will direct you to the correct area.  Have a wonderful cruise, and don't sweat your transportation to the airport.  As the jingle goes, "You're in good hands,"  oh, wait, wrong company, but you get the idea.  LOL.

[jamiejjj]

Thanks so much for the replies, everyone.  I’ve gone ahead and ordered the transfers from HAL, and once onboard I will double check with the front desk about where and when to catch it.  I will also do the early disembarkation, carrying our bags won’t be an issue.

 

 

I intend to post an update here after our cruise to let everyone know how it worked out.

[49erteacher]

Caution for this transfer and a noon flight.  Last March we disembarked in FLL and had the HAL transfer to MIA no tour.  We sat at the port for 50 minutes for the bus to fill, when we got to MIA there were buses from three other ships unloading at the same time.  It took us 2 hours to get inside the terminal waiting in the long lines outside and still had to go through TSA security.  The buses don't drop you off at the main terminal entrance it is a special area just for the buses.  I would check how many other ships will be in port (FLL & MIA) if more than 2 I would change my flight to mid-afternoon.  If you take a cab or Uber from the port it might be quicker and you could make your noon flight if off early.  The cab or Uber for more than 1 person may be less cost than 2 -3 people on the HAL transfer.

[jamiejjj]

Thanks for the warning; a last minute Uber is my go-to backup plan if the HAL transfer doesn’t work out... hopefully they would refund me in that case.  We will see!