Do you care about which port you cruise out of?

[Warm Breezes]

I saw a couple people now say the Miami was the worst port to sail out of and our experience last November was the exact opposite. It was the best port experience we ever had. We flew into FLL and stayed pre/post cruise in FLL using SAS to transfer to/from POM. They picked us up at our hotel 11:00, delivered us to the port by 11:30. We literally had no lines to wait in. We checked in got our cards and were on-board in 15 minutes. Disembarkment was just as easy and SAS was right there the minute we called and we were back to our hotel in FLL in 30 minutes.

 

We have also sailed out of FLL, Port Canaveral, and Tampa and with no major issues. There was a wait in FLL and Port Canaveral but not much and in Tampa we were with my step-dad who was in a wheel chair and they got us right through. But the smoothest by far was our last cruise out of Miami. We don't pick a cruise based on the port since we need to fly or drive 12-24 hours to get to any of them anyways. We do pick it based on the itinerary and price for the time period we have available to cruise.

[hankandteri]

Tampa is a wonderful port to cruise from. Crossing under the bridge shortly after sailaway is a nifty experience.

 

Tampa is also a very hassle-free port for parking and embarkation. Easy breezy.

[jorapp]

All of Florida is a dump - the only reason that I would ever go to Florida is to leave it. You are not staying in whatever town you select to cruise out of so what difference does it make?

 

DON

 

I have to disagree with you Don. All of Florida is not a dump. I lived there for 20 years, graduated High School there, and plan to retire there. Florida is a wonderful state...as are all the states of our great nation. I respectfully submit you have no idea what you are talking about, and invite you to hush.

 

To answer the original question...

We abandoned our flights and drove to Galveston in Feb. after a huge screw up with our delays/connections. The car ride was 22 hours, with us taking shifts driving/napping. It actually worked out great because our return flights were cancelled due to fog and three cruise ships' pax were trying to fly from Houston while we were driving home. :cool:

 

We have decided in the future that all cruises (until we retire to FLORIDA :D) will have to be out of ports which can be reached by direct flights from O'hare or Midway; and the port must be in the airport city...no long shuttle rides.

 

We feel this will help us be less stressed about the flights and start our cruises off on a more relaxed note.

 

Of course, once we retire (to FLORIDA :D), flights will not be an issue, and we will have more time to allow for travel plans.