Miami Sailing

[mickjacket]

We depart from port Miami, but for flight and hotel cost we are considering staying in Fort Lauderdale the night prior. First good idea or bad, second if we do what is the best way to get from Fort Lauderdale to port Miami on cruise day, Lyft or something else?

[wordell1]

It's a good plan. Ft lauderdale is pretty close if the price is right. Lyft will work very well.

[asquared17]

we've done this; accommodations in miami can be pricey.

we booked an uber from FLL to the port of miami. i think it took around 30 mins or so, very easy. while the port of miami is much easier to get in and out of than port everglades (especially for uber drivers, many have told us this), it does back up quickly; be sure to give yourself ample time to get there before it gets too busy, and you should be fine.

[JimnKathy]

Uber or Lyft from a Ft. Lauderdale hotel to Port of Miami worked great for us on our Symphony sailing in 2019. 35 minutes from pickup to drop-off was our experience.

[Safemike1]

37 minutes ago, asquared17 said:

we've done this; accommodations in miami can be pricey.

we booked an uber from FLL to the port of miami. i think it took around 30 mins or so, very easy. while the port of miami is much easier to get in and out of than port everglades (especially for uber drivers, many have told us this), it does back up quickly; be sure to give yourself ample time to get there before it gets too busy, and you should be fine.

I have been thinking of doing the same with the Uber. Do you remember what the cost at the time was?

 

[mickjacket]

Safemike! I did a cost estimate on Lyft website and It was $49 estimate if I remember correctly Thanks for all the help Y'all 

 

[Lovetocruise2002]

We've done this several times. We always do Uber/Lyft. It's about $80 one way when we get LyftXL (when we have the kids) and $40 one way when it's just Hubby and I and we get regular Lyft.

[asquared17]

2 hours ago, Safemike1 said:

I have been thinking of doing the same with the Uber. Do you remember what the cost at the time was?

 

we haven’t done it more recently, but as the others have mentioned, it runs between $45-$80 depending on your luggage and passenger count. it’s very doable though. still cheaper than spending the night in some of the less savory miami hotels and be at one in FLL you trust/feel comfortable with for the same amount of money.

[mickjacket]

On 2/26/2023 at 4:10 PM, asquared17 said:

we haven’t done it more recently, but as the others have mentioned, it runs between $45-$80 depending on your luggage and passenger count. it’s very doable though. still cheaper than spending the night in some of the less savory miami hotels and be at one in FLL you trust/feel comfortable with for the same amount of money.

 

On 2/26/2023 at 3:11 PM, Lovetocruise2002 said:

We've done this several times. We always do Uber/Lyft. It's about $80 one way when we get LyftXL (when we have the kids) and $40 one way when it's just Hubby and I and we get regular Lyft.

Great, thanks. We are looking at MJS travel. We plan on flying back out of Fort Lauderdale also, what would be a safe flight time?

[tonyfsu21]

2 hours ago, mickjacket said:

 

Great, thanks. We are looking at MJS travel. We plan on flying back out of Fort Lauderdale also, what would be a safe flight time?

Noon or later would be good. 

[Ampurp85]

I recently did the whole flying to FLL and cruising out of Miami. The estimated Lyft/Uber prices have to be taken with a grain of salt. I was estimated $35 but my actual cost from FLL to the port of Miami was like $57.  Hopefully staying at a hotel might lessen the cost. My flight back was at noon, I self-disembarked and planned for all types of delays. I did have a weird Lyft experience. I was off the ship before 7:30 but waited almost an hour for my transportation. I got to the airport close to 10am, so in case things don't go your way, noon or after is a safer bet. Then for me it was another $50 cost back to FLL......still cheaper than the cost of flights to Miami.

[BB1]

16 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

I recently did the whole flying to FLL and cruising out of Miami. The estimated Lyft/Uber prices have to be taken with a grain of salt. I was estimated $35 but my actual cost from FLL to the port of Miami was like $57.  Hopefully staying at a hotel might lessen the cost. My flight back was at noon, I self-disembarked and planned for all types of delays. I did have a weird Lyft experience. I was off the ship before 7:30 but waited almost an hour for my transportation. I got to the airport close to 10am, so in case things don't go your way, noon or after is a safer bet. Then for me it was another $50 cost back to FLL......still cheaper than the cost of flights to Miami.

That's interesting.  I've been told not to get any flights out of Miami before noon but even with the drive to FLL you can still get a noon flight coming from Miami? Is it that much quicker to check in and go through security at FLL? I had read that Miami's TSA will be getting some new facial recognition equipment.  It's supposed to speed up security.  I wonder if anyone knows any more.

Thanks 

[tonyfsu21]

1 hour ago, BB1 said:

That's interesting.  I've been told not to get any flights out of Miami before noon but even with the drive to FLL you can still get a noon flight coming from Miami? Is it that much quicker to check in and go through security at FLL? I had read that Miami's TSA will be getting some new facial recognition equipment.  It's supposed to speed up security.  I wonder if anyone knows any more.

Thanks 

I think the determining factor is not necessarily the airport but rather the issue with ship clearing customs in port. The recommendation for both airports noon or later is driven by unforeseen delays with the ship. MIA is a 15-20 minute UBER on the weekend, FLL 25-35 min on a weekend via the express lanes. During the week, throw everything I just said out the window and add 1 hour for contingency. 

[Lovetocruise2002]

On 5/15/2023 at 10:11 AM, mickjacket said:

Great, thanks. We are looking at MJS travel. We plan on flying back out of Fort Lauderdale also, what would be a safe flight time?

Agree with @tonyfsu21. Noon or later is pretty safe for FLL if coming back from MIA.

23 hours ago, BB1 said:

s it that much quicker to check in and go through security at FLL?

MIA has really long lines at TSA and for baggage check. FLL seems to run a bit faster. We usually take a 12:30pm flight from MIA back to DTW and we find that we have plenty of time for that.

[asquared17]

the first time we went through TSA (i have precheck and clear, and my friend has clear), it was a bit of a disaster. the pre-check lane wasn't pre-check at all, and things were chaotic. we even saw a pair of used (dirty) underwear on the floor. no joke.

this past time, two weeks ago, the precheck lane was an actual precheck lane. i didn't have to take off my jacket, shoes or remove my laptop (which i'd had to do previously). i did get through fairly quickly, and my friend was within 5 minutes behind me. however, they were diverting non-precheck people to our line because they were so backed up and things had gotten so delayed, and it was muddying the waters.

to be fair, we were flying out of terminal H for united; so i think some of it may depend on your airline too. but i would not and will not fly in or out of miami anymore. FLL is smaller, but it's a well-oiled machine. we fly through security there and the process is speedy as heck. we don't mind a little bit longer in the car if it means we can stay in a hotel that is safe and affordable for us (which FLL is) and flights to FLL are usually cheaper for us than they are for MIA.

but everyone's experience is a different, so you may find that your MIA experience is perfectly fine

as others have mentioned, just give yourself time because there is a lot of construction going on.

i would not do a flight BEFORE 12, even if i was sailing out of miami. you just never know.