What to do until you can Board the Ship

[Caligirl33]

My family will be flying from the West Coast on a Red Eye and will be arriving in Ft. Lauderdale at 6:00am. (3:00am our time with a 12yo, not fun) Any suggestions of what a family of 3 (with luggage) can do till we can board the ship (and take a nap, LOL)

[jpg1747]

My family will be flying from the West Coast on a Red Eye and will be arriving in Ft. Lauderdale at 6:00am. (3:00am our time with a 12yo, not fun) Any suggestions of what a family of 3 (with luggage) can do till we can board the ship (and take a nap, LOL)

 

Go out to breakfast.

[WinnipegCruiser]

My family will be flying from the West Coast on a Red Eye and will be arriving in Ft. Lauderdale at 6:00am. (3:00am our time with a 12yo, not fun) Any suggestions of what a family of 3 (with luggage) can do till we can board the ship (and take a nap, LOL)

 

I would rent a car,

 

o Nice breakfast (IHOP is my fav)

o Do some shopping, for example a case (36 bottles) of water from Wal-Mart... some new beach clothes (hats, wraps).... stuff you don't want to pack (and be over the weight limit for the flight)...stuff you might be just throwing out before you go back...

 

then return the car (to the closest location to the ship) and by then it will be 1130am... ready to board...

[bigdaddyvoges]

By the time you get your luggage and are situated it will be around 7:00-7:30. Then you can get to a place to eat a decent meal by 8:00. If you take 1-1.5 hours at a RELAXING (you are on vacation) breakfast that will bring you to 9:30. You can start boarding around 11:00, so you can get to the port at 10:00, and that will leave you about an hour to wait. You will be ahead in line, and be on the boat and eating on the lido by noon. There is not much else I would say to do. Hope this helps.

 

Bob

[tef43]

Go out to breakfast.

Eat slow and order seconds, maybe find an all-you-can swallow buffet and graze for a while.

[Pegs222]

Is it possible to get a motel room and get some rest before you board the ship. I would think all of you are going to be really tired but then you are going on a cruise so I am guessing that all of you are going to be very excited and you would not be able to sleep anyway.

 

Have a wonderful cruise.

[bfkkbc]

Is it possible to get a motel room and get some rest before you board the ship. I would think all of you are going to be really tired but then you are going on a cruise so I am guessing that all of you are going to be very excited and you would not be able to sleep anyway.

 

Have a wonderful cruise.

That is exactly what I was thinking!!! I can't go without sleep. I get physcially sick. I would get a cheap hotel room and crash for a while, shower and be on my way.:o

[tallgibb]

We were in that senerio for our cruise last fall out of Miami (we didn't have our kids though.) We flew a red eye leaving our home at noon in Cnd. and getting to Miami at 6am (4am our time!) we opted to just rent a car, thought we could drive around, check out some sites, grab a bit to eat. Even park somewhere and have a nap. but....

It so didn't work out. We were SOOO TIRED and grumpy and then navigating in a city we ddint know. Took us forever to find a IHOP, didn't feel comfortable sleeping in the car, the mornign just draaaaaggggeeed on and on. We got on the ship around 11:45am, and that night I was passed out asleep at 8pm, missed our cc meet and greet and a fun first evening on the ship because we were so tired. It wasn't a fun way to start a trip!

If we ever did it again, we'd definatly get a hotel room for a few hours. Even if you sleep a bit and don't board till 1 or so, gives you some rest.

Dh INSISTED on arriving full day before cruise because of this, but I know that sometimes just isn't possiable.

[98Charlie]

Agree that finding a hotel to rest after your flight is a good way to go. a few hours of sleep will work wonders on your outlook and patience as you board the ship.

 

DH & I have big problems flying from Ohio to to the West Coast. Somehow flying west is harder on us than flying east. Have flown to Europe many times in our lives and jet lag doesn't bother us. Have flown to the west coast many times for cruises and we're really wiped out for the next two days.

 

Go figure?:confused:

 

Dianne

[UpstateCruizer]

I agree with the hotel suggestion too. Check out the East Coast Florida departures board and ask them for a cheap but decent hotel in the area. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=495

 

Don't plan on getting a decent snooze in on the flight to FLL. That can be so hit and miss and usually isn't very restful sleep. I tried to sleep on a short flight back home last Sunday. Unfortunately our flight was filled with college students returning back to campus. Even my ear plugs couldn't drown them out :D

[kwbound]

I agree that getting a hotel for a few hours is a good idea, especially since you are going to have children with you. I would try Priceline...make sure you book it for the night before so there are no early check-in questions. The last time I booked through Priceline for Fort Lauderdale we got a nice hotel with shuttles from the airport and to the cruiseport, and near a nice shopping center...unfortunately I can't remember which hotel chain it was...I want to say we got it for about $65.

 

Good luck and enjoy your cruise.

[FlLadybug]

My family will be flying from the West Coast on a Red Eye and will be arriving in Ft. Lauderdale at 6:00am. (3:00am our time with a 12yo, not fun) Any suggestions of what a family of 3 (with luggage) can do till we can board the ship (and take a nap, LOL)

 

I would go eat a light lunch as I have always been able to get on the ship by 12pm and you can sit on the Lido deck by the pool until the hamburger/hotdog buffet opens. If you post what boat you are going on, I bet someone on here could give a more realistic time of when lunch is served and how early they will let you on.

[ahoys]

I would rent a car,

 

o Nice breakfast (IHOP is my fav)

o Do some shopping, for example a case (36 bottles) of water from Wal-Mart... some new beach clothes (hats, wraps).... stuff you don't want to pack (and be over the weight limit for the flight)...stuff you might be just throwing out before you go back...

 

then return the car (to the closest location to the ship) and by then it will be 1130am... ready to board...

 

This is exactly what I would do. I know you'll be exhausted, but by the time you get to a hotel, you won't have much time to nap and you'll probably be too wound up to sleep at that point anyway. I'd get to the port early, get a seat (which are not plentiful in Ft. Lauderdale) and relax until boarding. Then I'd get on board, have a quick snack until the cabin is ready, then take a nice nap until muster.

[Bill Friendly]

Airport Bar...

[unklez]

Airport Bar...

 

Yea go get drunk but don't pass-out and miss your ship :)

[jhaasz]

I agree with the other posters - traveling for a living, if I arrived at 6:00 am, I would be exhausted (and I can sleep on a plane). Find a cheap hotel room, reserve it the night before but give them your check-in time. Check in and take a nap until around 11:00 am. You will be much better rested for boarding the ship.

[JRGAPI]

Next time, do as we do, fly in a day early. You should be able to find

a hotel close to the pier and rested up to enjoy your cruise. A lot of

hotels have a free shuttle to take you to the pier and even pick you up

at the airport when you land. This is just a thought.

 

JR

[PaulMedik]

This is exactly what I would do. I know you'll be exhausted, but by the time you get to a hotel, you won't have much time to nap and you'll probably be too wound up to sleep at that point anyway. I'd get to the port early, get a seat (which are not plentiful in Ft. Lauderdale) and relax until boarding. Then I'd get on board, have a quick snack until the cabin is ready, then take a nice nap until muster.

 

 

Yeah!. What Ahoys said they said! :cool: Sleeping or napping until Muster is the way to go.

[poobears]

I would grab breakfast somewhere and pick up anything you might need, then go to port. There is no way I could sleep at a hotel that close to port time. I would be paranoid about sleeping through an alarm or something going wrong. I'd be totally stressed.

 

Instead I would get on the ship ASAP and nap there, you can even stretch out in loungers on the lido and nap if your room isn't ready. Then at least you know the ship isn't leaving without you.

[UpstateCruizer]

Airport Bar...

 

While this may seem like a good idea or even the idea where you go grab a bite to eat in the airport..... keep in mind your luggage will be going round and round on the carosel, and eventually be moved to the unclaimed luggage area. Not a good idea in any airport as it leaves the temptation for some less than honest person to simply walk away with your luggage.

 

Fort Lauderdale is a very cruiser friendly area with lots of hotels, resturants and stores very close to port. My favorite cruise port so far!!

[momofzeke]

Oh, man, I feel for you! I live on the West Coast too, and last year we did a red-eye into FLL before our Valor cruise. We flew in the day before, though. We were so wiped out.....got to our hotel in Miami but our room wasn't ready. We had breakfast at the hotel and then sat in the lobby for a couple hours waiting for the room. Crashed in the room for several hours, trying to nap, but were so wound up and excited and exhausted, it wasn't a restful nap. We were fine by the next day, but that first day was a total bust.

 

I swore I would never do a red-eye again, but I just got back from Jamaica a couple weeks ago, and we did another red-eye. It sucked just as much. Took us 24 hours from when we left home to get to our resort. We were able to get into our room right away, and we just slept all afternoon and evening.

 

I think it would be well worth spending the money on a hotel room.....there are inexpensive ones near the airport......so that as soon as you get your luggage you can go there and at least have a place to rest for a few hours.

 

Good luck! :)

[canner2u]

I would do as others have suggested. Find a nice place to eat, be it an IHOP or buffet. Then head to the port. Get on the ship nice and early and find a lounge chair or possibly get in my stateroom if it was ready and take a nap. As for the 12 y/o, I bet they would not have a hard time staying awake until bed time later that night.

As for renting a room, the cost would be a big factor for me, also, having worked at a couple of hotels, even with a CC guaranteed room, if you are not there by 2am, they may rent out your room, or charge you for it whether you actually show up or not. What happens if your flight is delayed and you arrive at 10am as opposed to the 6am scheduled flight time? If that happens, you have paid for a room you will not use. Also, I would be to excited to sleep that close to boarding.