Ft lauderdale 10 am flight

[beachfanatic]

Has anyone successfully made a 10 am flight on a Saturday at fll?

[goldencruiser]

It would be possible, but risky too. If you do the early self debarkation and carry all your luggage off the ship as we have in the past - you could be off by 7 or 7:30am. That would be only if everything went smoothly. We have also had it where we were delayed in getting off the ship because of a customs problem with the crew. I would feel more comfortable myself with a departure of 11am the earliest. This is assuming you are sailing out of Ft. Lauderdale and not Miami.

[Lsimon]

Has anyone successfully made a 10 am flight on a Saturday at fll?

 

I am sure that someone has at some point made a 10AM flight if everything went perfect.

 

But what I'm really curious about is what would be a good backup plan if you miss that flight due to any one of the many things that could cause a delay in getting to the airport.

 

So what would you do if you missed it, and how much could that cost you?

[kitty9]

There probably have been some, but I would guess many times more have not made that early a flight because of the countless delays at the port and on the ship with regards to Customs and Immigration problems. I wouldn't trust it.

[beachfanatic]

Thank you. Trying to get feedback for my husband I think it is too tight. Having a real tough timr finding reasonable airfare for march return flight

[c-legs]

Hi,

saturday ?? in March ?? == Your chances are between very slim and almost nil, IMO.

 

Other than the ''regular '' sources of delays to how disembarkation processus works ''by the book'' ( there are many...), you're in high season, and average traffic at PortEverglades on a saturday is 6 cruise ships....SIX .... and at times 8.....

And I dare not ask if it happens to be, just maybe, one of the school breaks saturdays...:(

 

Cheers

[macruisefan]

Self debarkation, no delays, you can be at the airport by 7:30. I've done flights as early as 9:30 and still had time to spare.

 

Yes, the CAN be delays, but they are the exception, not the rule. Roll the dice and take a chance if you want.

 

As far as what would be a good backup plan if you miss a flight: Well, this is no different than missing a flight any other time you travel. Go to the counter, talk to an agent, see what options are available!

[Lois R]

Hi, I think someone once asked, "Do you feel lucky today"?;)

[YOW]

Agree with others that you should weigh the odds and decide it's worthwhile (time, money, worrying beforehand, etc) to chance it.

 

Since it's a Saturday, would you consider spending the day in the area and returning home Sunday morning? The cost of a hotel and car rental on Priceline could be offset if there's a decent air fare on Sunday... Plus you'd be extending your vacation with a bit of a buffer for those post-cruise blues. ;)

[cruisestitch]

If you book it, and if you don't make it, what is your plan B? The airlines won't be very helpful in getting you a seat on a later flight as the flights will likely be full. You might have to spend the day in the airport trying stand-by after stand-by, and eventually might have to spend the night in FLL and try again the next day. Not the way I want to end a vacation, full of stress and worry. How many more flights go to your destination from FLL? How full are they already? Weigh those factors in, too.

[KeywestK]

To OP: A friend of mine has written this as part of his travel blog. You should read it. Whatever you decide, good luck!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=938978

[backyardponder]

You are on vacation. Do you want to spend the whole cruise worrying if you'll make it or not? If you want to save some money, how about finding a cheap hotel after the cruise and flying out early morning the next?

[Lsimon]

Thank you. Trying to get feedback for my husband I think it is too tight. Having a real tough timr finding reasonable airfare for march return flight

 

Every Saturday in March there are 18,000 to 23,000 people both disembarking and embarking ships at the Ft. Lauderdale port, possibly more as those numbers are based on standard occupancy which is only 2 people per stateroom and the ships are typically sailing above this number in March. Likewise, the Sundays in March are nearly as busy.

 

This is why the afternoon airfare is so expensive this close to the sailing time. The reason it is more expensive then the early morning airfare is that all of those cruisers have been advised by their cruise lines that they shouldn't schedule flights before 11:30 or Noon since common delays could make it impossible to catch an earlier flight.

 

If you miss your flight there is only a slim chance you'd be able to get on a flight that same day. I'd consider the cost and confusion of making such a change at the last minute should you miss your flight and consider either paying the higher rate for the afternoon airfare or booking a hotel of the night (or 2 nights if Sunday morning is just as bad) and relax after your cruise until the flight time comes up.

 

Also, depending on where you live there may be less expensive flights out of Miami later in the day. But if you're considering Miami keep in mind you need at least an additional hour or so to travel there and the cab fare is about $60 or $70 higher than the cab fare to Ft. Lauderdale.

[pjnj40]

Hello beachfanatic

 

I understand you are trying to keep your airfare low. I know at 10 am is the last cheapest fare for morning. The afternoon cheapest fare is not likely till 4 pm. I wander about this as well till i do my research. I realize that the airfare is up because most of the airline know when ship in port, so it time to jack the price up. Why? So you can get home soon quickly. Also they are saying to you by the CEO mind " if you can afford that cruise, you can afford this high prices to get home." When you are still looking for cheap airfare prices that sound fair, do this step and you can really see the difference. On your return trips home click on the days when ship is not in port like Wednesday. You will see the fare is low to retune home anytime of the day. When you click on the day of leaving FLL, all airfare is up usually between 10am and 4pm. That there rush hour to them.

 

Also you need to keep in mind you need room for delay in any situation that may come up. I had 4 pm flight back home on Sunday. On the day of disembarkation everything got mess up. The number call was running behind schedule. The shuttle service that we prepaid for almost abandon the pick up and drop off for passengers to get to the airport. Lucky in an hour or two later we finally got pick up and drop off at the airport by 1 pm. Then of course there was line at the ticket counter with people who had their luggage overweight. Then the screening line. By the time all this done, We sat for an hour and half waiting for the plane to come to the gate. I thought to myself that morning, everything will be fine, but it turn out to be little hectic and we made it back home without any stress.

[Fixit2010]

keep in mind that some airports like MIAMI can take 2 hours, yes, it took me 2 hours to get through immigration alone.

[leonardofan]

Agree with others that you should weigh the odds and decide it's worthwhile (time, money, worrying beforehand, etc) to chance it.

 

Since it's a Saturday, would you consider spending the day in the area and returning home Sunday morning? The cost of a hotel and car rental on Priceline could be offset if there's a decent air fare on Sunday... Plus you'd be extending your vacation with a bit of a buffer for those post-cruise blues. ;)

 

I agree--you could easily save enough on the air fare to pay for a night's hotel and avoid giving yourself ulcers into the bargain.

[kristikae]

I always book a 10 or 11 am flight and have only had trouble one time. It really was no big deal though - I just called the airline from the ship and let them know I was going to miss my flight. They got me out on the next one with no problem. One thing to check out is how many flights there are going to your area each day. If you are in a small market and there are very limited flights I might not risk it.

[phoenix_dream]

Would never want to try for a flight this early, but as for March - no way in heck. Cruises and airports are packed with Spring Breakers. If you miss your flight, not only might it cost you big bucks to find another, but the other you find may be a a couple days later due to capacity! Wouldn't that be an awful way to end a vacation?

 

Problem is - if you stay overnight, you are not likely to find a cheaper fare for Sunday either. We have a Sunday to Sunday cruise in March and are staying over until Monday due to airfare cost, but in fact when we booked that flight it was almost full (and this was probably at least a month ago). IMHO, bite the bullet and take the cheapest airfare you can get from at least 11:00 am or later. Unfortunately, you waited a little too long to book for this time of year. It is just not worth the risk to do otherwise. There is a reason the earlier flight is cheaper:D

[kitty9]

Thank you. Trying to get feedback for my husband I think it is too tight. Having a real tough time finding reasonable airfare for march return flight

 

Do you know the reason for that? It's because the airlines know that cruise passengers cannot make those early flights, therefore they are the cheapest. And I've found that there seems to be more delays now than ever before. It's due to a number of reasons, mostly because of the huge increase of non-North American passengers that take longer to process through Immigration.

[bighairtexan]

I agree w /Kitty and most others. I've had more delays lately, more traffic and every flight out of FLL or MIA (to DFW since that's where I go) has been overbooked w/ a full waiting list. And this is even for 3PM to 5PM flights, so I bet the early afternoon flights are even worse. I know we've never had luck trying to move to an earlier flight once I got to the airport. Add to that, American Airlines has eliminated several flights our of FLL and MIA over the past couple of years, you're going to have a real problem rebooking if you encounter any delays. With American Airlines going through bankruptcy and cutting staff and flights, that's just going to put an additional passenger load on other airlines.