NCL Air from CLT to MCO

[travelgip]

I have a cruise from 1/21 to 1/28 out of Port Canaveral.  I chose the NCL air but I'm nervous about flights getting cancelled, delays, etc.  Have the airlines gotten any better about not cancelling flights? Do you think I would get a non-stop?  Should I just go the day before (but then that's an extra expense I really don't want)

First vacation in over 12 years and I don't want to miss it!  Also don't want to spend all my time in an airport for a 1 hr flight or spending tons of $ just to get there.  Lastly, am I better off driving the 8 hours there and back and getting a refund for the air/transfer portion?

Thanks

[CruiserBruce]

I would definitely fly in the day before.

 

Nobody can answer your questions about driving over flying. Generally, I would say things are improved over the summer period, as now airlines are better in alignment with staff availability versus scheduled flights.

 

You are flying in the dead of winter...delays and cancelations are ALWAYS possible, and it doesn't have to be bad weather near you...planes get hung up elsewhere due to weather, and can't get to CLT to pick you up. Fact of life...it happens. 

[klfrodo]

Too late to be asking now. Should have asked questions before booking.

Did you even look at the post above this that explains how Cruise Air works?

[Zach1213]

Have the airlines gotten better? Yes, generally. 

 

Will you get a nonstop? Who knows. There's a chance you will, and a chance you won't. Only way to know for sure is if you had booked your own flights with the airline directly. 

 

Should you go the day before? Absolutely. It's an extra expense, but a worthwhile one to me. Let's say you're spending $4,000 on your vacation (cruise + air + excursions + meals + drinks + activities + souvenirs + whatever else). Adding a $200 hotel and $100 of meals only raises your vacation cost by about 7%, which is a small cost (to me) to give a lot more comfort and padding in your schedule. 

 

[travelgip]

1 hour ago, klfrodo said:

Too late to be asking now. Should have asked questions before booking.

Did you even look at the post above this that explains how Cruise Air works?

Of course I looked above - it doesn't answer my specific questions.  Maybe I just booked it, who are you to say?

It's not too late to ask anything - I was looking for helpful, friendly replies from people with knowledge and/or experience.  Clearly you have neither

[FlyerTalker]

56 minutes ago, travelgip said:

Of course I looked above - it doesn't answer my specific questions.  Maybe I just booked it, who are you to say?

 

Doesn't matter.  Fact is, you booked first and then started to have questions.  And your questions were well answered by Zach.

 

56 minutes ago, travelgip said:

It's not too late to ask anything - I was looking for helpful, friendly replies from people with knowledge and/or experience.  Clearly you have neither

 

Helpful and friendly?  I think that accurate is what one should want.  Which you've gotten.

 

The folks here with knowledge and experience see a ton of posts looking for post-hoc confirmation.  So for your questions, once again:

 

1) You may or may not get a non-stop.

2) You may or may not have operational delays or cancellations.

3) The decision to go a day or two early is a personal decision that only each individual can make, dependent on their own value judgments and situations.

4) Interesting that folks who have no problem just sitting around on a cruise ship have big issues with sitting in an airport.  Books and devices work the same in both locations.

[Bo1953]

5 hours ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

Doesn't matter.  Fact is, you booked first and then started to have questions.  And your questions were well answered by Zach.

 

 

Helpful and friendly?  I think that accurate is what one should want.  Which you've gotten.

 

The folks here with knowledge and experience see a ton of posts looking for post-hoc confirmation.  So for your questions, once again:

 

1) You may or may not get a non-stop.

2) You may or may not have operational delays or cancellations.

3) The decision to go a day or two early is a personal decision that only each individual can make, dependent on their own value judgments and situations.

4) Interesting that folks who have no problem just sitting around on a cruise ship have big issues with sitting in an airport.  Books and devices work the same in both locations.

ft - you will have to admit that the ambiance is very different between the two locations... LOL

 

bon voyage

[FlyerTalker]

54 minutes ago, Bo1953 said:

ft - you will have to admit that the ambiance is very different between the two locations... LOL

 

Definitely.  The drinks are cheaper at the airport and you don't have as many screaming kids.

[BoozinCroozin]

NC here too. Charlotte is an American Airlines hub. Most likely you will get AA. It would be non-stop from Charlotte pretty much. I would fly in the day before if I were you. It gives you the advantage of making the drive down over night in case they cancel flights. It is about an 8-9 hour drive to Port Canaveral.

 

Things to remember, once your ticket is assigned, NCL is out of the picture. The airlines will not make any changes other than paid upgrades. If a flight cancels, you have to go through the airline to get it remedied. You are responsible for any cost increases for moving to another flight if they choose to charge you. The ship will not wait for you to depart. It is your responsibility to get there. 

 

For us, driving to PC is an easier option unless flights are so cheap. This is how I break it down. Leave to get to the airport 2.5 hours before flight, pay for parking for a week (~$50), flight is 2 hours, wait another 30-minutes for checked bags (assuming no issues), get transportation to PC or MCO area hotel and transfer in the morning (~1 hour). All in, I am invested 6 hours dealing with non-stop flights. It saves me a grand total of about 3 hours vs driving. Is that 3-hours worth the hassle of cruising?

[Zach1213]

10 hours ago, Bo1953 said:

ft - you will have to admit that the ambiance is very different between the two locations... LOL

 

bon voyage

 

Hey it depends on the airport. HKG or SIN - I'll sit around all day! Kansas City? Hard no. Maybe when the new terminal opens... 🙂

[FlyerTalker]

1 hour ago, Zach1213 said:

Hey it depends on the airport. HKG or SIN - I'll sit around all day! Kansas City? Hard no. Maybe when the new terminal opens... 🙂

 

Yep - there are some airports when I want to have the longest connection I can find.  HKG and SIN are two - toss in IST, DOH, and even LHR if I have access to the VS Clubhouse.

[waterbug123]

Will you get a nonstop flight?  Maybe.  It all depends on what flights the cruise line can get cheapest from their agreements with airlines, and a nonstop on American may or may not fit that bill. 

 

As to whether you should fly in a day ahead, heed the advice on this forum and do it.  People miss cruises all the time because they were booked to fly in the same day and had delays or cancellations to their flights.  If you're wavering, read on for a little story:

 

This past summer we had a nonstop flight from ATL to VCE for a Med cruise.  We were flying in a day ahead.  The flight had a mechanical issue.  We waited and waited, watching from the window as assorted mechanics looked at the engine.  Eventually we were told they were getting a new plane and headed to the new gate.  Lo and behold, that one had a mechanical issue too.  A minor one, caused by a pax who tried to shove a too-big bag into the overhead and broke it.  Ok, just remove the bin door, you say.  But by the time someone from maintenance looked at it, the cockpit crew had timed out and the flight was canceled.  This was around 11pm give or take, after a delay of many hours.  There were no longer any rebooking options to get anyone on a flight to Venice that night.  We had built in a day of cushion so we were fine.  But when they announced that they had created a new flight that would depart the next day at 5pm, a collective groan went up from the crowd, many of whom apparently had cruises booked that were sailing the very next day, which is akin to flying in the same day for a US-based cruise like you.

The next day as we were seated on the plane, we chatted with a couple of ladies across the aisle who had missed their cruise.  They had booked air on their own so the cruise line was under no obligation to help them, buy had gone ahead and assisted in arranging a private van to take them from Venice to their first port of call.  This was at their own expense, of almost 600euro!  And even if they had booked the air through the cruise line and the cruise line thus picked up the tab for the van, they would still have missed the entire first day of the cruise.   You booked air through the cruiseline, so the cruise line would be on the hook to TRY (that word, try, is important but I'll get to that in a minute) to get rebooked and to the cruise on time.  If that wasn't possible, they'd be on the hook to TRY to get you to the next port and it would be at their expense.  But you'd still miss part of your cruise, and what if the next day was a sea day?  They aren't going to pay to helicopter you to the ship, so you'd miss 2 days.  And you'd be flying to the next port so there's the whole other issue of needing passports.

Ok, back to the word TRY.  If you read the fine print, you'll see that nowhere does the cruise line GUARANTEE to get you to the ship on time OR even to the next port.  It likely says things like "...TRY to do whatever we can..." or "...TRY to do whatever is reasonable..." etc.  If a massive ice storm has hit Charlotte and no flights can depart though, the cruise line can't conjure one up out of thin air so you could well be out luck.  Save yourself the worry and pay the money to fly in a day ahead!