kirby Posted December 29, 2015 Report Share Posted December 29, 2015 Sailing on Allure of Seas in March. We are driving to FLL so will have car and am looking at parking options - should we stay at local hotel and get free parking w/ shuttle over or stay with family about an hr away and park car in lot by the port. I'm open to both options, but I'm leaning towards a port lot as we need to drive home as soon as we dock on Sunday morning to get kids back to school by Monday. Can also do hotel with shuttle, but not sure how easy or accessible that would be. That being said - looking for advice on options: where is good place to park, are certain lots better location than others (not sure which terminal we will be leaving from?), what hotels offer deals on parking w/ shuttle, etc. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocLC Posted December 30, 2015 Report Share Posted December 30, 2015 Nothing beats the convenience of parking at the port especially on disembarkation day. However, if you're going to stay the night before near the port, then it might be cost effective to do a park and cruise package. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirby Posted December 30, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2015 When you said "parking at the port", you are referring to one of the municipal lots at Port Everglades, right? Was just researching further and it does sound like Port Everglades is the way to go. Little pricier than the remote lots, but don't mind for the convenience. Would prefer not having to shuttle to a remote lot. I'm now trying to figure out which garage, if it's Northport or Midport, or does it even really matter? From what I'm reading online, it sounds like it should be listed on our cruise documents which terminal we'd be in and/or it will be very well marked upon entering the parking area. Does that sound correct? Also, I read that you can drop luggage at the terminal and then park. Is that worthwhile or should we all stay together (5 of us with our luggage)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRC Posted December 30, 2015 Report Share Posted December 30, 2015 Have never parked at the ports garages, but have left the car with hotels in FLL. Last Sept. we stayed at the Hyatt Pier 66 and left the car with them. The "Park & Cruise" package included shuttle to the pier, which was a 4 or 5 minute drive including the security gate. On the return, a $11 cab ride got us back to the car. From clearing customs to putting our luggage in our own car was about 15 minutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted December 30, 2015 Report Share Posted December 30, 2015 I was looking at this exact scenario for our group cruise - park 'n stay versus hotel & park at pier. I think park at pier is going to be more economical and faster option. Biggest problem with park 'n stay is many hotels charge a premium for it, still charge to bring you to/from the port and there are limited shuttles back and forth. For a 7 night cruise, parking at pier will run about $100, so if I can get a hotel rate low enough to break even with park 'n stay rate, then I will save time if nothing else parking at pier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRC Posted December 30, 2015 Report Share Posted December 30, 2015 Agreed, the total cost is the bottom line. I'm not a "Hyatt Regency Pier 66" kind of guy, but their park & cruise package was really not bad that time. Only about $40 more than the Holiday Inn Express' package just down the street (both needed a taxi return). A basic hotel on 17th st. plus pier parking was about $60 more. Of course that was then, and FLL hotel prices change weekly! Another consideration is which terminal your ship will be at. Since Indy was alone that day, we got to use termainl 18 (new Oasis/Allure), which has garage and surface parking right there. 21, 22, 24, and 25...the parking is not exactly close. 26, 27, 29 are a little closer to parking. Besides 18, Royal usually uses 24, 25, or 26. Matt 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted December 30, 2015 Report Share Posted December 30, 2015 Agreed, the total cost is the bottom line. We are going through the decision of where to stay but going over Presidents Day weekend is proving to offer some expensive options. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyfsu21 Posted January 22, 2016 Report Share Posted January 22, 2016 I am local to Fort Lauderdale. Stay at the Embassy Suites in Fort Lauderdale (17th street). You can leave your car at the hotel for the duration of your cruise and they offer a very reasonable shuttle service. You are in close proximity to the port so there are other options like Uber or cab. Not to mention you are in walking distance to several good places to eat dinner the pm before. Happy hour great at the embassy. Jerel, michelle and Matt 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michelle Posted January 22, 2016 Report Share Posted January 22, 2016 Agree with tonyfsu21 - I always have stayed at the Embassy Suites - happy hour, huge rooms, breakfast, and about $7 pp to get to the port or you can hire a cab from here.. Easy location for eats the night before and a Total Wine right down the block! what more could a girl want Jerel 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cdixon22 Posted January 22, 2016 Report Share Posted January 22, 2016 Just FYI - I was researching remote parking lots in the Port Everglades area and it appears they all double and triple valet park your car. Too risky for having your car buried and taking longer to retrieve when you return. I think I will feel better parking at the port near our ship. Just saying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted January 23, 2016 Report Share Posted January 23, 2016 Just FYI - I was researching remote parking lots in the Port Everglades area and it appears they all double and triple valet park your car. Too risky for having your car buried and taking longer to retrieve when you return. I think I will feel better parking at the port near our ship. Just saying. I really feel like the convenience factor of parking at the pier outweighs the cost savings elsewhere. DocLC 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocLC Posted January 23, 2016 Report Share Posted January 23, 2016 I really feel like the convenience factor of parking at the pier outweighs the cost savings elsewhere. I agree in most cases. The only exception is Galveston as the private lots are actually more secure and closer to the terminals that the official port lots. PRC 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cdixon22 Posted January 23, 2016 Report Share Posted January 23, 2016 I agree in most cases. The only exception is Galveston as the private lots are actually more secure and closer to the terminals that the official port lots. Port Canaveral has some good off site parking that is very reasonable. We have used Park Port Canaveral before and was very pleased at $8.95 per day. Only a 5 minute ride to ships. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerel Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 I am local to Fort Lauderdale. Stay at the Embassy Suites in Fort Lauderdale (17th street). You can leave your car at the hotel for the duration of your cruise and they offer a very reasonable shuttle service. You are in close proximity to the port so there are other options like Uber or cab. Not to mention you are in walking distance to several good places to eat dinner the pm before. Happy hour great at the embassy.Glad to read that you and Michelle like the Embassy, me and my wife chose it for the group cruise next month. From what we've seen in pics the central park area of hotel looks nice, I'll have to look into their happy hour too. Tks Edit; just looked into happy hour, free drinks between 5-7, that's pretty freaking cool! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyfsu21 Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 For dinner the night before take a walk across 17th street and go to Kelly's Landing or SouthPort Raw Bar. Both have excellent food (casual atmosphere and reasonable prices). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirby Posted April 9, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 9, 2016 We parked at the port last week for our cruise and it could not have worked out better! We knew we wanted to board early so we timed it to get there just after majority of passengers would have disembarked from their cruise so there were PLENTY of parking spaces. I was amazed to see how close it was to the terminal. We arrived around 11am. Pulled car into "circular" drive and dropped our luggage off with a porter. Three people stayed with the luggage to make sure it got where it needed to be while me and another person in my party parked the car. We were back with the others and walking into the terminal to check-in within minutes. Upon disembarkation, we chose to walk off with our luggage and we were at our car within minutes as well. No crowds. No waiting. Yes, it costs a bit more than remote lots but the convenience was so worth it for us! Unfortunately we then had a 12hr drive home which was awful... Welcome back! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corndog Posted February 3, 2018 Report Share Posted February 3, 2018 We are headed out this June on the Allure. Any updates to this post? Just starting the parking research for us and another family cruising with us. Will be driving down from NC with overnight stay in St Augustine’s and depart there to the port. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjac Posted February 3, 2018 Report Share Posted February 3, 2018 On 12/29/2015 at 6:17 PM, kirby said: stay with family about an hr away and park car in lot by the port I recommend you stay with family and drive to the port early the next day. I have used this parking lot many times before and never had any problems/complications. They have a free shuttle to and from the cruise ship (I always leave the driver a tip) and the driver will help you with your luggage. Takes about 10 minutes both ways. The lot is well lit, fenced in and it is staffed 24/7. The cost is $10.50 + tax is you book/pay on line or $13.00 + tax if you pay at the lot. Very close and convenient to the cruise ship. Here's the link: https://www.bookparkngo.com/book.php. Have a great cruise! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyfsu21 Posted February 3, 2018 Report Share Posted February 3, 2018 On 4/9/2016 at 2:52 PM, kirby said: We parked at the port last week for our cruise and it could not have worked out better! We knew we wanted to board early so we timed it to get there just after majority of passengers would have disembarked from their cruise so there were PLENTY of parking spaces. I was amazed to see how close it was to the terminal. We arrived around 11am. Pulled car into "circular" drive and dropped our luggage off with a porter. Three people stayed with the luggage to make sure it got where it needed to be while me and another person in my party parked the car. We were back with the others and walking into the terminal to check-in within minutes. Upon disembarkation, we chose to walk off with our luggage and we were at our car within minutes as well. No crowds. No waiting. Yes, it costs a bit more than remote lots but the convenience was so worth it for us! Unfortunately we then had a 12hr drive home which was awful... Welcome back! This is the best way to go if you don’t mind spending the money. Easy parking and very convenient. No messing around with shuttles exc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katiel53 Posted February 6, 2018 Report Share Posted February 6, 2018 My son and his family drove to FL from Upstate NY and even though they could have parked at the hotel, Hyatt Place 17th St, they decided to park at the port as they had a very long drive home. I rode to the port with them and my son parked the car while we waited about 5 minutes for him in the luggage area. When it came to debarkation, they did self-debarkation having had an early breakfast. They were off the ship by 7:15 and on the road within 10 minutes. They plan to do the same thing when we go again in June. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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