aggieljh Posted October 21, 2014 #1 Share Posted October 21, 2014 After cruising out of Galveston the past couple of summer, we decided to branch out and cruise from Ft. Lauderdale this summer. I am starting to price flights, and I was wondering for those of you that fly to your cruise location, how early do you try to book a return flight home? We all have faster to the fun for this cruise, so getting off the ship early shouldn't be a problem. Since the ship leaves on a Saturday, we are flying down on Friday before our departure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snc_cam Posted October 21, 2014 #2 Share Posted October 21, 2014 the port to the airport is about a 15 minute drive. And on most cruises, you can be off the ship by 8am with FTTF. But, I wouldn't do a flight much before 1030am. Gives you time to get checked in and through security. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champagne123 Posted October 21, 2014 #3 Share Posted October 21, 2014 This is one of the best and easiest cruise ports....Airport is only a few minutes away. On the Allure, we had 9:45 reservations on Jet Blue. We departed the ship at 6:15. Right next to the dock is an enormous parking lot with shuttles and taxi's waiting to take everyone to the airport. We were there by 6:45. NOW....would I do it again? NEVER. It was too stressful. Anything can go wrong. I think the earliest I would ever book again is 11am. Good Luck in whatever you decided. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WindsorFred Posted October 21, 2014 #4 Share Posted October 21, 2014 We have booked 10:45 return flights twice. No problem so far.FYI security lines can be long at the airport. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Tapi Posted October 21, 2014 #5 Share Posted October 21, 2014 On the Allure, we had 9:45 reservations on Jet Blue. We departed the ship at 6:15. Right next to the dock is an enormous parking lot with shuttles and taxi's waiting to take everyone to the airport. We were there by 6:45. Allure and Oasis have one of the fastest debarkations because of their design as well as their cruise terminal design, faster than ships carrying half the number of passengers. We were off the Allure super early too, and that was with regular debarkation. However I wouldn't use that experience to predict getting off a different ship or cruise line. There have been times in Ft. Lauderdale when I've still been on the ship at 10:00am, and that was with Carnival's priority platinum debarkation. To the OP: I would book a flight within Carnival's prescribed guidelines. That should give you plenty of time to get of the ship without rushing. And most importantly, your insurance will cover you if for some reason you miss your flight home. If you book a flight that's too early and then you run into delays, you will NOT be covered. You'll be on your own to pay for new flights and added expenses. Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KPfromCT Posted October 21, 2014 #6 Share Posted October 21, 2014 We had a 10:50 return flight this year, from FLL. And that was getting off the Breeze in MIA. We were off the ship at 7:30 and at FLL by 8:15. Plenty of time. Just keep in mind, FLL security is SLOOOOOOOOOW....... I would say 10:30-11:00 should be the earliest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taters Posted October 21, 2014 #7 Share Posted October 21, 2014 I never book a flight for earlier than 12 noon, myself. Too many things can go wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champagne123 Posted October 21, 2014 #8 Share Posted October 21, 2014 Allure and Oasis have one of the fastest debarkations because of their design as well as their cruise terminal design, faster than ships carrying half the number of passengers. We were off the Allure super early too, and that was with regular debarkation. However I wouldn't use that experience to predict getting off a different ship or cruise line. There have been times in Ft. Lauderdale when I've still been on the ship at 10:00am, and that was with Carnival's priority platinum debarkation. To the OP: I would book a flight within Carnival's prescribed guidelines. That should give you plenty of time to get of the ship without rushing. And most importantly, your insurance will cover you if for some reason you miss your flight home. If you book a flight that's too early and then you run into delays, you will NOT be covered. You'll be on your own to pay for new flights and added expenses. Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app Agree with you 100%, which is why I said I will NEVER do it again. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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