when should I book flight

When is the best (cheapest) time to book a flight from Philadelphia to Miami? My cruise leaves Miami on May 6 so I have plenty of time. I'm just not sure to book it now or wait a couple of months for more airlines to show their schedules & fares. I don't see any of the cheaper flights yet. I only see 1 nonstop airline now American Airlines.

Also, I know the taxi's are about $27 to the port from the airport but I am traveling solo. How do I find out or book a shuttle? I don't know anything about Uber so won't use them.

I've never used it but there's this section of CC:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=128

I always seem to get the best deals 45 days out and I always book on Sunday.

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If my date is not a peak season, I usually find good prices around 2 months before and on a Tuesday.

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On a Wednesday. Unless it's a harvest moon, then Monday after 9:00PM. Or the third Tuesday of months starting with a J is always a winner.

The only two airlines that fly non-stop between Philadelphia and Miami are American and US Airways. Both airlines already have schedules out for May. I always book as soon as I'm able.

Thanks for all your responses. I tried to find US Airways & it is now American Airlines. I even went to the airport website & the only airlines that go to Miami are American & Frontier & their schedule is only out for up to 4/20. I guess it will be American. I did find a price of $299 RT but it gets me in MIA at 1:30. My cruise doesn't leave until 7 so I guess I should be OK.

Airlines tend to run specials over Black Friday, Brown whatever it is, and Cyber Monday...

When is the best (cheapest) time to book a flight from Philadelphia to Miami? My cruise leaves Miami on May 6 so I have plenty of time. I'm just not sure to book it now or wait a couple of months for more airlines to show their schedules & fares. I don't see any of the cheaper flights yet. I only see 1 nonstop airline now American Airlines.

 

Also, I know the taxi's are about $27 to the port from the airport but I am traveling solo. How do I find out or book a shuttle? I don't know anything about Uber so won't use them.

We are cruising from Port of Miami in February and flying from Philadelphia. When researching flights we found that it was cheaper to fly from Philadelphia to Fort Lauderdale than it was from Philadelphia to Miami. There were also more airlines flying to Fort Lauderdale, including American, Spirit, Jet Blue, and Southwest. It's worth checking it out.

There are a number of reputable shared shuttle services recommended on these boards (QLS, SAS, Jiffy Jeff, etc.) that can transport you from Fort Lauderdale airport to Port of Miami. FLL airport is approximately 45 minutes- 1 hour from Miami. After checking out Trip Advisor, we chose QLS. It would be $15.00 per person for a solo in a shared shuttle. They also pick up at certain Fort Lauderdale airport hotels if you decide to fly down the day before the cruise instead of the day of the cruise. We didn't want the stress of flying in the day of the cruise and we found Fort Lauderdale hotels to be less expensive than Miami hotels.

http://www.qualitylimoservice.com

Did you check out the Florida Departure board? There are lots of good threads about Fort Lauderdale and Miami flights, hotels, and shuttle services.

Thanks Marys350 for the info on a shared shuttle. Are they pretty prompt? How early did you make your reservation for a shuttle? I was concerned about the cab/shuttle fare from FLL so I went with MIA because I am traveling solo. I'm new at traveling solo so I felt more comfortable going to the nearest airport.

Once the airlines post their schedules, I look for prices on a Tuesday or Wednesday and when I feel they have dropped I will book. It is a gamble, you can book your flight then a month later they drop a little further. Most airlines will post their prices for a flight 330 days out from your dates of travel.

Thanks Marys350 for the info on a shared shuttle. Are they pretty prompt? How early did you make your reservation for a shuttle? I was concerned about the cab/shuttle fare from FLL so I went with MIA because I am traveling solo. I'm new at traveling solo so I felt more comfortable going to the nearest airport.

I travel solo all the time and would not hesitate to use one of the shuttle companies in south Florida.

I prefer to fly into Fort Lauderdale because of Southwest. You can make changes without fees, and bags fly free. So if you booked SW today, and the price goes down, you can get the lower price.

HOWEVER, if you are going to fly into Florida on the day of your cruise, flying into Miami gives you a layer of safety.

An Uber or Lyft from MIA to the Port of Miami will be less than a taxi.

I never book my air until I've made final payment. Even if I have to pay a few dollars more, which hasn't happened, it still beats having non refundable air, in case I cancel the cruise.

I personally would fly in the day before and if you look at flights into Ft Lauderdale, it will give you more choices. I'm surprised you don't have more flights from Philadelphia into Miami.

Carol, for some reason SW hasn't come into Palm Springs so not sure if they don't want to or what the reason is. We get all the other major airlines. Our main choices to points East are United, American, Delta.

Thanks Marys350 for the info on a shared shuttle. Are they pretty prompt? How early did you make your reservation for a shuttle? I was concerned about the cab/shuttle fare from FLL so I went with MIA because I am traveling solo. I'm new at traveling solo so I felt more comfortable going to the nearest airport.

I don't know how prompt the shared shuttles are. We have a party of 8 for our cruise in Feb., 2017, so I booked a private van through QLS instead of using the shared shuttle. I called them on the phone before making my reservation and they were great about answering my questions. I made my reservation at the beginning of November.

Here is a link to some reviews on Tripadvisor of different transportation companies in Fort Lauderdale (QLS, SAS, Jiffy Jeff, etc.) that you might find helpful in making your decision whether you want to fly to FLL and use a shared shuttle service:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g34227-Activities-c59-Fort_Lauderdale_Broward_County_Florida.html

I booked Southwest from Nashville to FLL in January. My flight ended up going down $50, and they have given me the credit towards future flight. Keep checking for possible lower price!

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The only two airlines that fly non-stop between Philadelphia and Miami are American and US Airways. Both airlines already have schedules out for May. I always book as soon as I'm able.

Just so you know, AA and US are the same airline now.

Just looked on matrix and found some prices for you on just the PHL-MIA/FLL for May 5:

$90 - $107 on JetBlue, nonstop

$102 - $109 on Delta, 1 stop

$121 - $136 on AA, nonstop & 1 stop

Not sure how much cheaper you want...

On a Wednesday. Unless it's a harvest moon, then Monday after 9:00PM. Or the third Tuesday of months starting with a J is always a winner.

That sounds about right! :D

When is the best (cheapest) time to book a flight from Philadelphia to Miami? My cruise leaves Miami on May 6 so I have plenty of time. I'm just not sure to book it now or wait a couple of months for more airlines to show their schedules & fares. I don't see any of the cheaper flights yet. I only see 1 nonstop airline now American Airlines.

 

Also, I know the taxi's are about $27 to the port from the airport but I am traveling solo. How do I find out or book a shuttle? I don't know anything about Uber so won't use them.

There is no "best time." Fare availability changes constantly due to the laws of supply and demand. If you see a price you can live with, book it. You can wait and hope prices go down, but they could just as likely go up instead.

Also, most major airlines make fares available about 11 months out, which means for May flights, what you see now is what you get. You're unlikely to see any additional airlines suddenly have new flights pop up for that time frame.

As for Uber, why not research it a bit, rather than writing it off because you don't know anything about it? We use Uber all the time and find it reliable and affordable.

The only two airlines that fly non-stop between Philadelphia and Miami are American and US Airways. Both airlines already have schedules out for May. I always book as soon as I'm able.

American and US Airways merged a while back. There is no more US Airways.

Please consider flying in a day before your cruise starts.

Hate to miss the boat because of a flight delay.

Peg

I've booked my flight to arrive 1:30 on embarkation day. The ship is scheduled to leave at 7 pm. I am a huge planner & this to me is a really quick trip. I usually book a cruise at least a year ahead. I know I'm really cutting it close but I don't want to spend an extra night alone in a strange hotel. When I get more comfortable with the experience of traveling alone, I might consider it. Right now, it's just too far out of my comfort zone.

But I do want to thank everyone for their responses. I really do appreciate it. I'm sometimes afraid to try new things so you really do help me ease into new things.

I've booked my flight to arrive 1:30 on embarkation day. The ship is scheduled to leave at 7 pm. I am a huge planner & this to me is a really quick trip. I usually book a cruise at least a year ahead. I know I'm really cutting it close but I don't want to spend an extra night alone in a strange hotel. When I get more comfortable with the experience of traveling alone, I might consider it. Right now, it's just too far out of my comfort zone.

There are plenty of safer flights on the day of your departure: non-stops that arrive at 8.46 am, 10.25 am and 11.46 am. What was wrong with those? None of them would involve spending a night in a hotel. If it's comfort zone that you're worried about, all of them would be more comfortable plans that do not cut it nearly so close.

Southwest has one stop flights to FLL currently from $154. both 5th and 6th. Shuttle(shared), to Miami Port outside baggage area $15-$25. Book whatever airline now as they sell out. SW pricing goes up as flights nearer. SW offers the most flights per day.

I've booked my flight to arrive 1:30 on embarkation day. The ship is scheduled to leave at 7 pm. I am a huge planner & this to me is a really quick trip. I usually book a cruise at least a year ahead. I know I'm really cutting it close but I don't want to spend an extra night alone in a strange hotel. When I get more comfortable with the experience of traveling alone, I might consider it. Right now, it's just too far out of my comfort zone.

 

But I do want to thank everyone for their responses. I really do appreciate it. I'm sometimes afraid to try new things so you really do help me ease into new things.

If the ship is scheduled to leave at 7, odds are the last call for boarding is well before that. Hopefully you don't have any delays on the flight. I'm sure it's been done many times, but I would never schedule a flight arriving that late the day of boarding:eek:

We are at 11 months out (I don't think there are flights for our return trip).

We are flying from Cincinnati and sailing from Port Canaveral. We will probably allow a two day cushion; flying down in Thursday for a Saturday cruise. Seems like flying into Melbourne may be cheaper by a few bucks, but that is probably offset by transportation and lodging costs if we fly into Orlando. We will probably shuttle into the port on Saturday.

My husband thinks we should wait until after the holidays to book airfare. I'm hoping for about $250-275 RT. Right now, it's about $150 one way into Melbourne and $165 one way into Orlando.

Are we being reasonable? Honestly, we haven't booked airfare in over ten years.

Also, we are nervous flying the budget airlines (Allegiant, Frontier). I just wish Southwest flew into Cincinnati, however my husband doesn't want to drive t a distant airport.