9:40AM flight Ft. Lauderdale w/ self disembarkation

[titansfanatic]

I am looking for people's opinions who have done self-disembarkation or been in the 1st group to get off.

 

Back in May, I took a cruise on the Solstice, and disembarkation was smooth. We had green tags, and were in the 3rd or 4th group to be called, I think. No sure how many were ahead of us. To my memory, we were sitting in the airport lounge/terminal, waiting on our flight by 9:20 - 9:30. Customs was smooth and so was the TSA line, which was long, but only took 5 minutes.

 

If I was either in the 1st group, or in the self disembarkation, it seems like it would be easy to be in the airport by 8:40. What do people who have done self disembarkation think?

 

P.S. we have a free flight with SW, but the only time available that day are the 9:40am.

[bighairtexan]

Nope, I don't think you'll make it. And you will have to check luggage at the airport I would assume? Boarding would start at 9:20. I'd say you'd better hope your flight is delayed.

[kate7047]

I think you will be fine. We did self-disembarkation in June and we were off by 7:15 AM. There is always a line of taxis outside the terminal waiting and the airport is 10 minutes away. With SWA at FLL use the outside baggage check (ie the "skycaps"). The line moves really fast and generally is much quicker than the inside line. You do have to be ready to roll as soon as the ship is cleared and they announce self-disembarkation has begun.

[Lsimon]

We've sailed out of FLL many times and on about half of those trips you'd be just fine, on 10 to 20% of those you'd never make it as disembarkation started late for one reason or another, and on the rest it would have been touch and go.

 

So my question is threefold:

1) do you feel lucky?

2) What is your backup plan?

3) Would this cause you to be nervous the last day of your cruise rather than finish in a relaxing manor? And would that be worth it to you?

 

I've faced this sort of decision before with the alternative to wait for a late afternoon or early evening flight. I choose the latter and just rented a car to cart us and our luggage to lunch on the beach and a few other places, pleasantly spending time until we needed to be at the airport.

 

BTW: The reason that the early flights are cheaper and have miles/free tickets available is because they are too early for cruisers and therefore lower in demand than the later flights.

[Gonzo70]

If there are no delays you can likely make it, but you are taking a big risk. It is not all that uncommon for a ship to either arrive late or for customs to be slow to clear the ship for debarkation. You have only enough wiggle room to withstand a very small delay. If you are OK with possibly missing the flight and having to purchase last minute tickets (can be very pricey) then go for it, but if you are able to save your free tickets for another day it may be wise to book a later flight and pay for it. At least the port and airport are very close, so that is one factor in your favor.

[bighairtexan]

We were lucky and didn't have any delays on 10/10 but so many little things are out of my control. Weather. If all the people have gotten all their paper work properly taken care of w/ customs. And there have been instances recently of LONG and SLOW customs lines that were understaffed so took forever. If I absolutely HAD to do this I'd make sure to get computer time and do online check in 24 hours (or less) before the flight so that's taken care of. Traffic shouldn't be bad... but not something I can control, nor can I control the family in front of me in security check in w/ 3 strollers and grandma in a wheelchair who are also late for their flight. No matter what you choose I wish you a great cruise.

[MattInFLL]

Ask SW if you will still get same day standby for another flight if you miss the flight you want. That is an option on many airlines, although might be different for a free ticket.

 

If so, at least if it is one of the 20% of the time debarkation is delayed, you can still get a flight out. But since the pier is so close to the airport, I think you will be OK. But as someone else said you have to be up and at 'em and ready to go as soon as the ship clears.

[Gonzo70]

Ask SW if you will still get same day standby for another flight if you miss the flight you want. That is an option on many airlines, although might be different for a free ticket.

 

 

These days most airlines (unless you are high up in their loyalty program or a highly unusual circumstance caused you to miss the flight for which the airline is sympathetic) assess you both a change fee as well as make you pay the difference in fare between the ticket for the flight you missed and the ticked for the later flight you are trying to take. Southwest is one of the few airlines that does not charge a change fee, but aside from very unusual circumstances one would have to pay the difference in fare in order to fly on the later flight.

[Maryscooking]

Well we did self-disembarkation in Miami this past September. We could have gotten off the ship at 7am if we wanted, but we hung around and had a nice breakfast first. We were off the ship at 8:15, met our pre-arranged transportation, and made it to FLL around 8:45. That said, we just flew through customs, which doesn't always happen. We were also able to walk down the stairs rather than wait for an elevator (which would have added time).

 

I wouldn't want the stress of worrying about that flight. I would get a deal on a hotel via priceline (check out betterbidding.com for tips) and stay in FL for another day and do some sight-seeing. For me it would be the Everglades, because I haven't been before.

[MattInFLL]

Gonzo, I've had the option recently on Delta and I'm definitely not one of their frequent fliers. It never hurts to ask :) But at the end of the day, I still think they will be OK, even though if I were personally doing it, I would be nervous. :) But then sometimes, I think we all just worry too much. :)

[titansfanatic]

I think what I might do is book a fully refundable flight as my backup. It is twice the price of the non-refundable. A regular flight is $150. Free flight saves me $150. Refundable flight costs $300. So basically, I am betting $150 that I can get to the terminal/board the plane in time. Since it seems from other peoples experience, I have a 80% chance of making it, it is a smart bet. But this way, the world doesn't come to an end if I don't make it. ;)

 

Either that, or I rent a car and drive it from FLL to Nashville, and it would only cost me $120 + $80 in gas. Of course, I would have a hellish 13 hour drive ahead of me :(

 

As a side note, the early 9:40 am flight is non stop. All the flights afterwards have 1 stop. So not only do I get home sooner, but the travel time is 2 hours less over other flights, if I get there on time.

[kitty9]

You're taking a chance. On my last two Celebrity cruises, we didn't even start disembarking until nearly 8:45. There are just too many variables that could go wrong with disembarking. The reason why that fight you're considering is the only one you can use with miles is because the airlines know that cruise ship passengers can't make them. It's the same reason why those earlier flights are so cheap---they know cruisers can't make those flights. And if you should miss that flight, Southwest is always wayyy overbooked, and your chances of making it home that same day, or even the next day, is very low. If you want to stress, then go for it. But if you don't want to worry, then think about either staying in Fla for an extra day and take that early flight the next morning.

[bryanjaync]

Gee, i was worried about my 11:30 flight !

[AlanAllyn]

Another thought. In May, there were only 5-9000 passengers arriving on Sunday at FLL. In the winter, if that's when you are going, it is 15-20,000. That makes the airport very crowded and slow.

[Conrycol]

I say plenty of time, go for it.

[yogimax]

I say plenty of time, go for it.

 

Will you pay for his change fee when he misses the flight?:rolleyes:

[drb]

I think what I might do is book a fully refundable flight as my backup. It is twice the price of the non-refundable. A regular flight is $150. Free flight saves me $150. Refundable flight costs $300. So basically, I am betting $150 that I can get to the terminal/board the plane in time. Since it seems from other peoples experience, I have a 80% chance of making it, it is a smart bet. But this way, the world doesn't come to an end if I don't make it. ;)

 

Either that, or I rent a car and drive it from FLL to Nashville, and it would only cost me $120 + $80 in gas. Of course, I would have a hellish 13 hour drive ahead of me :(

 

As a side note, the early 9:40 am flight is non stop. All the flights afterwards have 1 stop. So not only do I get home sooner, but the travel time is 2 hours less over other flights, if I get there on time.

 

I was faced with a similar dilema on an upcoming cruise out of San Juan. The 6 am flight was muuuch cheaper and direct, the makeable ones all got us to our "home" airport late in the evening. We live 2 hours from nearest airport and I did not relish driving home after a long day and arriving at midnight. My solution? I booked a room in San Juan on the day we disembark from the cruise and we are flying out the next day at 6 am. The reduction in the flight cost is paying for a night in San Juan at the end of the cruise and eliminates the stress. Win/Win

[Budget Queen]

Ask SW if you will still get same day standby for another flight if you miss the flight you want. That is an option on many airlines, although might be different for a free ticket.

 

If so, at least if it is one of the 20% of the time debarkation is delayed, you can still get a flight out. But since the pier is so close to the airport, I think you will be OK. But as someone else said you have to be up and at 'em and ready to go as soon as the ship clears.

 

I wouldn't count on open seats on later flights. If you fly enough, you know, flights are full more times than not, especially on a cruiseship day out of Florida.

 

I fly nonrev (retired airline emp benefits) all the time, and am VERY effecient at getting myself, first, off ships and quickly to airports. It is "iffy" at best to expect a smooth disembarkment.

[titansfanatic]

drb,

 

I agree with you, if it was a Saturday to Saturday cruise, or if I had lots of time off. But, it is from Dec 5th to Dec 12th, Sun to Sun. So for me to wait to the next day, I would have to take another day off work. I probably could, but I don't think my wife could.

[nbturfman]

We did a 930 flight last year. I had reservations but when the cruise is over you hate to kill half a day until the flight so i booked an early flight. I thought worst case I am calling the airline to move to a later flight. We had breakfast, walked off the ship, cleared customs,took a cab to airport,cleared security and were having a coffee at our gate by 830. I will book an early flight again this year - worth the risk to us. Just be aware you may have to move your flight.

[drb]

drb,

 

I agree with you, if it was a Saturday to Saturday cruise, or if I had lots of time off. But, it is from Dec 5th to Dec 12th, Sun to Sun. So for me to wait to the next day, I would have to take another day off work. I probably could, but I don't think my wife could.

 

Understood. It was just that we always fly in a day early and for some reason it had never occurred to me to tag on a day at the end.:o

[Wanderlost]

We have been on several cruises out of FLL and always disembark with our luggage. The latest we have ever gotten off was 7:30, usually it is right at 7:00. I say go for it. :cool:

[bigbob67]

We did self-debarkation from the Solstice on 10/17/10. We were off the ship approx

7:45 to the airport and 8:00 and STOP. The line at the Southwest counter to check

bags went round and round and round. Mostly because outside checkin was not open.

I would guess it took us 30 minutes to check bags. On to security screening. All those

people in the Southwest line were not at the security screening line plus other airlines.

They were pulling people out of the line who had flights at 9:40. Again, another

30 minutes I'd guess. We were finally at the gate at 9:30. Luckily the flight

wasn't until 11:05.

[titansfanatic]

I thank everyone for their input. This is what makes this board so great.

 

So I have decided I will stick with the 9:40 flight. I know it is a risk, but I haven't read anyone yet say they actually missed their flight if they did self disembarkation (i know on other threads, there are horror stories, power going out, etc). The rewards outweigh the risks. Free flight, get home quicker, and 2 hours less travel time.

 

But I think I will likely book fully refundable tickets for a later flight, and get a refund if I don't need them.

[MattInFLL]

Good for you. We all know the horror stories, and you are prepared for it. Generally you are going to be just fine.