Stay in Miami or Fort Lauderdale?

[Lehigh98]

Hi All!

Myself, my wife, and our two boys (13 and 11) will be cruising out of the port of Miami 4/6 and returning 4/10.  We have SW points so will be flying Philly to Fort Lauderdale.  We will land in FLL the day before the cruise on 4/5 at 1:05PM.  We will be flying out of FLL the day after the cruise 4/11 (which also happens to be both my and my older son's birthday) at 2:35PM.

 

I need to book hotels for the night we arrive and the night before we leave.  Looking for something nicer to be part of the vacation rather than just a cheapo roadside stop.  Would you recommend staying in the Fort Lauderdale area or the Miami area?  Or maybe one night in each to check them both out?  Any good experiences or specific recommendations for a family for a place by the beach?  I don't know much about either area.  Any suggestions for the best approach for logistics of getting to / on the ship?  I have around 50k points with Hilton and another 50k with AA that I'll try to use for those nights.  (Not to mention Avis points to get around)

 

Thanks in advance for any thoughts or advice!

[PhoenixCruiser]

We would take an Uber to Miami and stay at the Hampton Inn and Suites in Brickell the day you land. That way you can sleep in and go directly to the ship when you have to check out.

Probably do the reverse when disembarking.

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[JohninDC]

Welcome to the boards! 😎

 

You arrive early enough to have the option to stay in either place before the cruise, and can certainly stay in either post cruise.  Shared shuttles form FLL and surrounding hotels to POM charge about $15 per person each way (check SAS, QLS, MJS and Go Airport Shuttle) or you can use UberXL for about $70 and enjoy door to door service.

 

www.sunny.org has lots of hotels and tourist info for the FLL area.  Several Hilton brand options in downtown Miami - the suggestion above is popular with cruisers, as is the Embassy Suites in the downtown/17th street area of Fort Lauderdale. 

 

You might look at the hop on/off bus tours to see Miami and Miami Beach, and in the FLL area the water taxi is a fun option.

[Ilovesailaway]

I have done both and now I prefer to stay in Fort Lauderdale. I always fly into Fort Lauderdale because I use South West as well. The past few times I have booked my hotel in Miami I have run into delays and its just generally more stressful. I like to get to my hotel when I land and let my relaxing vacation start asap. I book ground transportation for about  to pick me up at my Fort Lauderdale hotel and take me to POM. 

 

[Ellaleah]

I could use some Miami hotel suggestion fir Xmas as Hampton inn Brickell is booked.  I would like to stay $200 a night.  Thank you fir your ideas.

[JohninDC]

2 hours ago, Ellaleah said:

I could use some Miami hotel suggestion fir Xmas as Hampton inn Brickell is booked.  I would like to stay $200 a night.  Thank you fir your ideas.

In downtown Miami the other hotels that are most often suggested include the Holiday Inn, Intercontinental, Hyatt, Doubletree and next door Marriott.  There are many more to consider and you can also find great hotels and local dining in the Coconut Grove area -- farther away from POM and not quite so many tourists.

[Flymia]

I think your idea of one night each place makes sense, unless you really want to see one part over the other more. It makes more sense with your travel schedule. 

 

For Miami, anything in Downtown or Brickell is a good start. Hampton Inn Brickell is the most popular hotel recommended on the boards. 

[acpalmer]

On 2/25/2020 at 9:06 AM, Ellaleah said:

I could use some Miami hotel suggestion fir Xmas as Hampton inn Brickell is booked.  I would like to stay $200 a night.  Thank you fir your ideas.

 

Hampton Inn Brickell is not booked for Christmas,  it just appears that way because they haven't opened December dates for booking yet.  I keep checking every few days, but still not open.  November has been open for quite a while, but not December yet.  Not that you can't stay somewhere else, but Hampton Inn is still a possibility for you.

[BlueHerons]

On 2/25/2020 at 11:06 AM, Ellaleah said:

I could use some Miami hotel suggestion fir Xmas as Hampton inn Brickell is booked.  I would like to stay $200 a night.  Thank you fir your ideas.

Over Christmas the Hampton Inn Brickell is currently taking reservations.  I'm guessing this far out there is a minimum night stay and one night will not cut it.  The Hilton Honors rate for the Hampton Inn Brickell is $207 a night.

On 2/24/2020 at 11:53 PM, Lehigh98 said:

Hi All!

Myself, my wife, and our two boys (13 and 11) will be cruising out of the port of Miami 4/6 and returning 4/10.  We have SW points so will be flying Philly to Fort Lauderdale.  We will land in FLL the day before the cruise on 4/5 at 1:05PM.  We will be flying out of FLL the day after the cruise 4/11 (which also happens to be both my and my older son's birthday) at 2:35PM.

 

I need to book hotels for the night we arrive and the night before we leave.  Looking for something nicer to be part of the vacation rather than just a cheapo roadside stop.  Would you recommend staying in the Fort Lauderdale area or the Miami area?  Or maybe one night in each to check them both out?  Any good experiences or specific recommendations for a family for a place by the beach?  I don't know much about either area.  Any suggestions for the best approach for logistics of getting to / on the ship?  I have around 50k points with Hilton and another 50k with AA that I'll try to use for those nights.  (Not to mention Avis points to get around)

 

Thanks in advance for any thoughts or advice!

I would stay in Fort Lauderdale at the Riverside Hotel your last night and stay downtown Brickell your first night.

[BlueHerons]

6 hours ago, acpalmer said:

 

Hampton Inn Brickell is not booked for Christmas,  it just appears that way because they haven't opened December dates for booking yet.  I keep checking every few days, but still not open.  November has been open for quite a while, but not December yet.  Not that you can't stay somewhere else, but Hampton Inn is still a possibility for you.

Yes, they are taking reservations.  I just made one for Christmas.  I doubt they are letting people book one night stays.

[acpalmer]

19 hours ago, BlueHerons said:

Yes, they are taking reservations.  I just made one for Christmas.  I doubt they are letting people book one night stays.

Interesting.  I was looking for three nights, not over Christmas (for a different trip than the cruise we have coming up) and it won't let me do that.  Also won't let me book one night.  However, if I try to book two nights, there are opening every single day.  When I called a few days ago she said, "We can't book three nights in December yet." Which I took to mean they weren't booking December yet at all, but apparently they are just not booking in three night segments.  So odd.  I had already booked somewhere else and it's looking like we'll just stick with that if Hampton Inn is going to make it this hard.  I wanted to price compare before deciding for sure.  The prices we have at the other hotel (closer to FLL) are considerably lower than the prices Hampton is showing me per night for a two night stay, so if that's the case and booking three nights is going to be a hassle, then I'll just stick with what I have.  

Edited February 28, 2020 by acpalmer

[George C]

we really liked the doubletree downtown really close to port in Miami, bunch of restaurants in lobby and can see the ships from many of the rooms large balconies , Hilton family