Earliest flight out of Fll after docking in Fort Lauderdale?

Having never flown or taken a cruise out of Fort Lauderdale I am curious as to the time it takes to get through customs and to the airport. Anyone?:)

The actual ride to the airport is only 10 minutes or so. How long it takes to get through customs can vary greatly. I have self disembarked at Port Everglades, been among the first few pax to get off the ship, and strolled right through customs. But if you are in a later group to disembark and/or there are an insufficient number of customs agents working, for whatever reason, it could take a while.

You will read about people booking flights at 10:30 AM or around that time.

In the end it comes down to how much stress you can tolerate and your risk factor.

I recommend booking flights at around 12:00 Noon or later because in the end there are many variables out of your control from the ship being delayed to delays with customs and immigration.

Be sure to also check with your cruise line to see what they recommend.

Keith

Thanks waterbug123, since the ship arrives in Port at 8 am I am guessing that a flight after 11 is safe? We always self disembark also. Still waiting for Southwest to put out their November flights though......they say June 4.

You will read about people booking flights at 10:30 AM or around that time.

 

In the end it comes down to how much stress you can tolerate and your risk factor.

 

I recommend booking flights at around 12:00 Noon or later because in the end there are many variables out of your control from the ship being delayed to delays with customs and immigration.

 

Be sure to also check with your cruise line to see what they recommend.

 

Keith

Keith you type faster than me! I didn't read your answer before I posted mine. Thanks for giving me a timeline, hopefully SW will have something around 12 pm. We have a 31/2 drive after our flight so don't want to leave too late.

Thanks waterbug123, since the ship arrives in Port at 8 am I am guessing that a flight after 11 is safe? We always self disembark also.

IMHO, yes, a flight any time after 11 should be more than fine, especially since you are self disembarking. It is earlier than the cruise line suggests, but with self disembarkation and the super short cab ride you should be fine. I've been at FLL as early as 8:30 or so, post-cruise, and when you get there that early, the throngs of cruise pax that cause check in and security delays usually haven't gotten there yet. Then again, I have access to priority lines so don't always pay attention to the length of the "regular" lines, but I still think anything after 11 is more than likely ok. One note: if you arrive too early you may have to wait to check bags. FLL usually won't let you check bags more than 3 hours before your flight

Thanks waterbug123, since the ship arrives in Port at 8 am I am guessing that a flight after 11 is safe? We always self disembark also. Still waiting for Southwest to put out their November flights though......they say June 4.

I would check the weeks before as likely the Southwest times will be similar to what is available now. Figure out what is your earliest comfort level flight so you are ready to book first thing on June 4th.

Thanks for letting me know about the 3 hour check bag time, it would probably be a good thing to stand in line as soon as possible for that though. We will be sure to get to the airport as fast as we can to beat the other pax. :)

Thanks monicajay, I hope you are right as the have an 11:35 right now that would be perfect. :)

If you are coming off a transatlantic or repositioning cruise you should think twice about a flight at 11:30 ish. These cruises often have delayed disembarkation. A regular Caribbean cruise should not present a problem.

If you are coming off a transatlantic or repositioning cruise you should think twice about a flight at 11:30 ish. These cruises often have delayed disembarkation. A regular Caribbean cruise should not present a problem.

Yes we are just doing a regular Caribbean cruise this time but good to know if we ever decide to do the others. Thanks:)

It is the best the airport is 10 min. away

It is the best the airport is 10 min. away

I love that it is so close. You are so lucky though to live in Florida......we would be cruising constantly if we didn't have to travel so far. Maybe in our retirement :D

We actually were just in Florida last week and drove through Jacksonville on our way home. One day we will have to make more time to have a proper look.

November is a bit iffy to drive for us so we are flying for this one.

Please keep in mind that while the airport is close the issue is always the same and that is what time the ship arrives to port and how long the clearance process takes and no one can guarantee all of this. My experience on our arrivals to all USA ports including Fort Lauderdale is that when things go right it is a breeze and when things go wrong they can go very wrong.

The 11:35 AM flight sounds good. As I said in the first post some will book a much earlier flight but they are just playing with the odds that overtime say they will be on one of those cruises where something goes wrong.

I would recommend signing up for the early bird check in and printing out your boarding pass ahead of time.

Most importantly enjoy the cruise and safe travels.

Keith

Please keep in mind that while the airport is close the issue is always the same and that is what time the ship arrives to port and how long the clearance process takes and no one can guarantee all of this. My experience on our arrivals to all USA ports including Fort Lauderdale is that when things go right it is a breeze and when things go wrong they can go very wrong.

 

The 11:35 AM flight sounds good. As I said in the first post some will book a much earlier flight but they are just playing with the odds that overtime say they will be on one of those cruises where something goes wrong.

 

I would recommend signing up for the early bird check in and printing out your boarding pass ahead of time.

 

Most importantly enjoy the cruise and safe travels.

 

Keith

Thanks again Keith, and I agree that anything before 11:30 is pushing my luck. Do you mind telling me how to sign up for the early bird check in? We flew last year to Puerto Rico for a Southern cruise but I don't remember having to do this........doesn't mean I didn't do it but the memory isn't what it used to be.;)

Thanks again Keith, and I agree that anything before 11:30 is pushing my luck. Do you mind telling me how to sign up for the early bird check in? We flew last year to Puerto Rico for a Southern cruise but I don't remember having to do this........doesn't mean I didn't do it but the memory isn't what it used to be.;)

You are very welcome.

If you click on this link it will take you to the Southwest Web Site with an explanation on how early bird check-in.

http://www.southwest.com/html/generated/help/faqs/earlybird_checkin_faq.html

Keith

Keith you are such a great help.:)

I didn't know anything about this early bird check in since we last flew with American, Delta, and Frontier. My dh and sons flew with Southwest a few years ago to a ball game in Saint Louis but I know they wouldn't have done early bird.

It sounds like a great way to get the seats you want, and I always want a window. ( I never have to get up during flights and I love to see where we are flying)

I love that people like you are so helpful on this board, it really makes it worth reading. Have a wonderful day!

Thanks again Keith, and I agree that anything before 11:30 is pushing my luck. Do you mind telling me how to sign up for the early bird check in? We flew last year to Puerto Rico for a Southern cruise but I don't remember having to do this........doesn't mean I didn't do it but the memory isn't what it used to be.;)

You can also get someone else to do it for you 24 hours in advance and save the $10 each if you have a very reliable friend.

We actually travel with carry-on only so can skip the baggage lines at the airport. We do walk off and have caught 10h30 flights. BUT we are not stressed about it.

You can also get someone else to do it for you 24 hours in advance and save the $10 each if you have a very reliable friend.

 

We actually travel with carry-on only so can skip the baggage lines at the airport. We do walk off and have caught 10h30 flights. BUT we are not stressed about it.

Do you mean the 24 hours before while we are on the ship? I was wondering how we could check in while we were in the middle of cruising unless we use the ship computers or take our laptop. Is that possible? I do however have 4 very reliable children that could do this for us and since we are not taking them with us on our 30th wedding anniversary trip.;) I still like that the early bird gets you priority boarding and a seat you hopefully want. I could get them to do the early bird too.

Since I am a definite overpacker I know I won't get away with just carry on luggage. Plus I know we will have things that will only be able to be packed in checked luggage especially on the way home.

Thanks for your help, I always appreciate when people answer my questions.:)

Do you mean the 24 hours before while we are on the ship? I was wondering how we could check in while we were in the middle of cruising unless we use the ship computers or take our laptop. Is that possible? I do however have 4 very reliable children that could do this for us and since we are not taking them with us on our 30th wedding anniversary trip.;) I still like that the early bird gets you priority boarding and a seat you hopefully want. I could get them to do the early bird too.

 

Since I am a definite overpacker I know I won't get away with just carry on luggage. Plus I know we will have things that will only be able to be packed in checked luggage especially on the way home.

 

Thanks for your help, I always appreciate when people answer my questions.:)

The early bird does get you a better seat plus you do not have to worry about doing it yourself. While you could use the ships internet at a fee to take care of this 24 hours in advance you always run the risk that the internet will be down. At the same time while a family member could do this for you, you still have the benefit of a better seat.

I have arrived on a cruise ship to USA ports often and I have seen the disembarkation process go very well but I have seen it go very poorly. When it goes poorly I can't tell you how many people with those early flights start saying "why didn't I go with a later flight"?

You just never know what might happen. At the same time, I never want to spend time on the cruise worrying about these things. I would rather end it with little to no stress and on a high note.

Keith

Keith, again thank you so much for all your help.

I just got off the phone to Southwest and had them explain the early bird to me since I was a little confused as to how it worked. I thought on the flight back I was going to have to do the 36 hour check in but have found out that when I purchase my ticket and buy the early bird then, it covers me both ways. This seems to be the easiest solution to me, with no worries about checking in while on the cruise.

You are a star for telling me about this, I can't wait for my flights to open up on Monday.

Have a wonderful day!:)

PS If they have a flight in the early afternoon I am going to book that.

Carol

Carol, you are very welcome.

Good luck with all of this.

Keith

Having never flown or taken a cruise out of Fort Lauderdale I am curious as to the time it takes to get through customs and to the airport. Anyone?:)

Wife just came back from cruise 12/16/17 on Harmony of Seas and had a booked flight to Charlotte, NC for a departure of 10:00 AM, we took the "express service" off Harmony, meaning we rolled our own bags off the ship. We were at the Fort Laurendale airport at 7:15AM, airport is 10 minutes from the port.

Wife just came back from cruise 12/16/17 on Harmony of Seas and had a booked flight to Charlotte, NC for a departure of 10:00 AM, we took the "express service" off Harmony, meaning we rolled our own bags off the ship. We were at the Fort Laurendale airport at 7:15AM, airport is 10 minutes from the port.

As commonly discussed on the Florida Departures board, the "Monsters of the Seas" (Allure, Harmony, Oasis, etc) get in earlier, and start letting people off sooner, due to their size. The example above would NOT be good for any other ship.

CruiserBruce has it right as usual. The large RCI ships are a different story when it comes to all of this and that is because they are so large that they have to get passengers off early to get ready for the next cruise.

Keith

CruiseBruce has it right.