Arrival in MIA and cruise leaves from Ft. Lauderdal

[prchoudh]

I have been looking through this site for info on getting to Ft. Lauderdale from Miami Airport. Here is my situation and was wondering what you might recommend.

 

I fly into Miami airport at 6:30 pm on Saturday. My cruise leaves Sunday late afternoon from Ft. Lauderdale.

 

I want to book either a Miami airport hotel or a Ft. Lauderdale hotel. I would also like to try and take the tri-city train and taxi combination. Or, I can spend the night at the Miami airport and pay for transfers to and from Miami airport by the cruise but. that is quite expensive.

 

I also saw online that I can get a rental car from Saturday night to Sunday afternoon for $40 from Alamo.

[c-cruise]

I would get a rental car at MIA and drive up to a Ft. Lauderdale hotel for the night. You can either return the rental car to FLL on Saturday night and take a cab to the ship in the morning, or return the rental on Sunday morning and then take a cab or shuttle to the ship from the airport. We find it easier to return the car the night before so we don't have to deal with it in the morning. FLL is usually crazy on weekend mornings and can have long lines for cabs. National/Alamo run a shuttle to the port, but there can be waits for that as well. Easier to just call a cab from your hotel in the morning for the quick ride over to the port.

[JohninDC]

Either option will work.

 

If you choose to stay near MIA and travel the next day there are several nice hotels in the nearby Blue Lagoon area with shopping and dining options within walking distance (Hapmpton Inn, Homewood Suites, etc.)

 

The rental car give you some flex in your schedule and choice of where to stay.

 

The Tri-Rail ride from MIA to the FLL station is not bad, but check the weekend schedule so that you do not wait a long time for the next train. You will need to cab to Port Everglades from the FLL Tri-Rail station for about $15.

[jimneda]

FYI - I called National Car Rental at FLL today and was told that the shuttle going TO the port on Sunday starts at 12noon and runs every 25 minutes

[Disneymomx2]

We flew into Miami before our cruise on the Allure in October.

 

I rented a car at MIA and drove to a hotel in Fort Lauderdale. I was able to do some shopping on the way, stop at Walgreens - and went out for dinner and breakfast.

 

We stayed at the Crowne Plaza and they have a Hertz rental car location on site. After checking out of our room, I was able to grab the shuttle (which runs about every 15 minutes) and was at the port in about 10 minutes. It was super easy!