OttawaCountess

14 hours ago, SleepingUgly said:

 

It's usually a 10- or 12-person van that charges a RT fee to take you to a certain location.  For instance, we went to Rainbow Beach for $6 per person, RT.  You keep your ticket stub and show that to them to get a seat on the return trip.  There are different companies that run these vans so the ticket colors may differ, to ensure you take the same company's van back to the pier.

 

HTH!
  

Thank you for your prompt reply.  This is very good.

On 11/20/2018 at 3:26 PM, drake2014 said:

Botanical gardens, beach, shopping. Either rent a car or jump in a taxi bus.

What is a "taxi bus"?

Also interested. Going to be there Feb 2019 also

Did you go? If so how was the experience?

:oX

Don't forget to also look into the new Hyatt Centric Brickell. They are getting great reviews and it's a great location.

Starting rate for Feb 28 is $404 USD. way too expensive for this Canadian girl! (Exchange rate currently 1.30!!)

Feb in South FLA will be pricey - book something downtown now that you can cancel without penalty, and then keep shopping.

 

Lots of hotels in the Mary Brickell area, with many local dining and nightlife options nearby; Hampton Inn is the most often suggested. Closer to the port, and also often suggested, are the Holiday Inn POM, Intercontinental, Doubletree, and a variety of Marriott properties.

 

I would avoid staying out near the MIA airport - many of the hotels are isolated and you'll spend lots of your time and savings paying to get downtown and to South Beach.

Thanks for prompt reply. Are hotel on or near beach & Does the hop on bus go to Brickell area?

Looking for recommendations 2 nights post cruise Feb 2019 that is in nice location but not crazy expensive. First time staying in Miami. Looking to see the sights, probably use hop on hop off.

I don't remember how I heard about them, honestly. Knowing how I typically operate, probably just a Google search. You can look her up on TripAdvisor, she also had good feedback here on CC.

 

Her website is https://lizpereirastourstore.shutterfly.com/

 

Also if you have a Facebook roll call, Liz will likely join your group and help people with different excursions even if they aren't hers.

I think it was $140 for the 4 of us?

Thank you very much. I will contact her.

We did the full island tour with Pereria Tours. Liz was fantastic!! I highly recommend them. It was a group of us in an open air van. I want to say it was 13 of us?

Thank you. How did you hear about them? Do you recall how much it was?

On our tour we did everything that was listed. The fortress, Caribelle Batik, Timothy Hill as well as a ton of other things on the island. We loved it!

Who did you use? Was it a group or private?

I am wondering the same thing. For January off the Miracle what time do people usually start getting off? We will be platinum.

I'm wondering if we would make a 12:40 flight. Can we be at the airport for 10:30? Does this port get delayed often?

Hope you're ok?!

Still waiting ...

Looking forward to the rest of your review & pictures. We too are sailing on the Pride repo cruise next month.

Green themed party, etc?

Anyone able to comment on the cabins that stick out on the Pride? We are currently booked in room 6283. I read that someone said it was very windy when sailing since it is the first one that juts out.

Looking for feedback from anyone who has had these rooms.

Thanks

Arielle just came home and she confirmed that she was wearing a skort and is not bothered by the photos. However I will still be more careful in the future.

😛Enjoying the review. Lesson..., don't listen to prudes.,

You have a beautiful family. How lucky you are to spend this time with them.

Your vacation, thanks for sharing....

A fellow Canadian!

Thanks again for the info.

We sail jan 19, so thank you for a wonderful review & great pictures.

Questions: I have read there is a duty free shop at the pier after security and you can buy bottles to bring on. Did you see this?

You said you bought about 10 bottles of booze from different places. Did you bring them back on board or did carnival take them & deliver them on your last day?

I would like to know this as well. We are booked here in Jan. but I also have another booking, just in case. I will be here during San Sebastien festival and traffic is suppose to be crazy.

just back from Barbados swam with the turtles for free on a beautiful natural beach. The turtles are not fed but travel past beach to go to Oistins to eat fish. Saw mothers and babies . The beach is Sandy Beach in Christ Church. There is a beach bar and chairs and umbrellas to rent:D

Did you take a taxi from the pier? If so, How far, how much did you pay?

Casablanca Cafe is great, just 2 blocks south of the hotel. No reservations accepted, so be prepared to put your name down and wait about an hour on weekends. Meanwhile, hang out in the piano bar. After dinner, visit the W hotel about a block north of the Westin...there are 2 fabulous bars: Whiskey Blue and the Lobby Bar.

The Westin is an old Sheraton that was closed down and completely renovated about 2 yrs ago. Most of the reviews are pretty good.

Thanks for the info royalcruz.

We are at the Westin now. It's a very nice hotel. They do have mandatory valet parking at $25 a day. They offer complimentary beach chairs and towels to their guests. The pool looked very nice too. We took your advise and ate at Casablancas tonight. The fetticini with chicken was delicious. Very nice place right on the water view. Thanks for the recommendation.

These grocery stores sell wine and beer but not hard liquor. There are a few liquor stores on 17th St. also, in the same area. There is also Total Wine and Liquor in the Harbor Shops by Publix and it is the nicest store in the area, with good wine prices/specials. I've lived here for 24 years and never heard of route 5, not sure what road that is! Note that on Sunday mornings you cannot purchase any alcohol in stores until noon.

What time are the shops in Harbor Shops open until on Sat. night? We only land at 4:00 and then have to check in at the Sherton.

There are five different Sun Trolley routes. Three are Mon - Fri, and two are weekend. Weekend means Friday thru Monday. You will want the Fort Lauderdale Beach Line, which passes right in front of your hotel. If you want to go down Las Olas Blvd, then you would need to transfer to the Las Olas line by the intersection of Las Olas and A1A. Both of those are weekend routes.

Thanks again for your input. Much appreciated!:D

Thanks for the info Megr1125,

I was looking at the web site for the trolley and it says it runs Monday - Friday. We will be there on a Sat. do you know if it will be available then as well?

Hi Royalcruz,

I booked the Sheraton Fort Lauderdale Beach Hotel through Priceline for Nov. 12 (pre-cruise). Are there stores around there to get liquor, water, etc.?

Also, do you know how much is a cab ride from the pier to the airport when we're off the ship?

Thanks.

Cindy