Another example of why you shouldn't book an early flight

[stones902]

Why note just take one extra day off and take the time to enjoy holiday? I heard from some folks living in the US that annual leave is a little stingy over there? Average in the UK is about 5-6 paid weeks per year - is it much worse in the US?

 

 

Vacation (or holiday) leave is much more stingy here than in Europe. As an example, many businesses might grant an employee two weeks (10 days vacation) in a year and only after that employee has put in a year of work. I am fortunate to work for the same employer for over 30 years and I get the maximum of 25 days paid leave. That would definitely be way above average for most US citizens.

 

Of course there are many jobs particularly in the building trade that have no paid time off.

 

 

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[dst87]

Vacation (or holiday) leave is much more stingy here than in Europe. As an example, many businesses might grant an employee two weeks (10 days vacation) in a year and only after that employee has put in a year of work. I am fortunate to work for the same employer for over 30 years and I get the maximum of 25 days paid leave. That would definitely be way above average for most US citizens.

 

Of course there are many jobs particularly in the building trade that have no paid time off.

 

 

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Goodness, I had no idea. In that case I can quite see why people would want to minimise their use of paid vacation leave!

 

It's shocking that there isn't a legal minimum. In the UK almost all workers are entitled to a statutory minimum of 5.6 weeks of annual leave (though this can include bank holidays)

[GUT2407]

I don't understand why so many people ignore the advice, suggestions and requests of the cruise company ,:confused: it just makes me scratch my head.

[donaldsc]

I don't understand why anyone would want to rush back from their holiday like that?

 

Personally I'd always look to spend a night or two post-cruise to finish off nicely. Mind you, I'm in the UK so I'm more likely to be flying to places like Rome, Venice, or Barcelona to join/leave a cruise. I'm not sure how Americans feel about Ft. Lauderdale as a place to explore?

 

Just my opinion but my opinion of Florida in general and Fort Lauderdale in particular is that I would stay home rather than being forced to spend time there. I usually try to find an early afternoon flight out when my final port is Fort Lauderdale. However, I can't imagine spending time exploring the place.

 

Now I will admit that on a recent cruise that ended up at Dover, we spent a whole week (not nearly enough) post cruise in London and this does not count the 3 weeks exploring England pre cruise.

 

DON

Edited November 17, 2014 by donaldsc

[shipshape sam]

We have booked early flights and have stressed out over making them (I have, DW allows me that stress if I want it) Never missed a flight, but now book mid to late afternoon flights. They are, most times, cheaper and we no longer rush to get off, rush to eat breakfast, rush for anything...

[Oskial]

Hmmmm. Makes me wonder now if we should have booked a later flight. We booked a 10:55 a.m. flight back to Buffalo because (a) it was a direct flight and (b) it was a lot cheaper. I also am back to work the next day so it made sense to book the earlier flight. The next flight was about 11:45 a.m but with the stop over and change of planes we wouldn't be back to Buffalo until after 5 p.m. We then have a drive of about 2 hours (with a stop at the border) after that.

[RickT]

We booked a 10:55 a.m. flight back to Buffalo because (a) it was a direct flight and (b) it was a lot cheaper.

 

The fact that the 10:55 flight is a non-stop would be enough for me. The fact it is cheaper is just a bonus.

 

As far as stress, that is simply how you choose to deal with a situation. Unless there is some major problem there should be no stress. You opt for an early departure and you should be off the ship by 8:00 giving you plenty of time to get to the airport. If you stress easily try to get an even earlier time. I've done an 11:00 flight and still had time to relax and enjoy a latte and breakfast before leaving the ship. The last day isn't fun no matter what you do so the trade off in getting an early flight is you are home early.

[royalcruz]

Wouldn't it be much easier to reschedule that appointment than to deal with the stress of having to rush to make it? :confused:

 

No, it was the first time I've disembarked from a cruise and not been home by 9-9:45 AM, and it was the only appt time available that week for a medically neccessary visit.

[DirtyDawg]

1500 miles? 3000 Round trip? Kill me. You need another vacation after that drive.

 

LOL

 

How do you think the writers of all those zombie movies got their inspiration?

 

They drove their kids to Florida!!:eek: KILL ME, PLEASE!!!!!

[Big_G]

Just my opinion but my opinion of Florida in general and Fort Lauderdale in particular is that I would stay home rather than being forced to spend time there. I usually try to find an early afternoon flight out when my final port is Fort Lauderdale. However, I can't imagine spending time exploring the place.

 

Now I will admit that on a recent cruise that ended up at Dover, we spent a whole week (not nearly enough) post cruise in London and this does not count the 3 weeks exploring England pre cruise.

 

DON

 

While not a fan of Miami, we love Fort Lauderdale. We usually fly in two days early and stay at Lago Mar. We'll jump on the water taxi for the (non)tour and spend a day on Las Olas Blvd. Good times.

[shipshape sam]

We tend to like FLL vs MIA as it is so easy to get in and out of airport in FLL and it is real close to port/hotels.

 

We do like to sail out of MIA too with some great 'night before dinners'. We tend to try the Cuban restaurants when in Miami.

[kevinyork]

[quote=phoenix_dream;44746807

 

What really bugs me is people who are driving who clog up the early disembarkation just because they want to hit the road quickly. Unless you have a real need to do that (and I would guess 95% of the time you don't) for heavens sake have some consideration for people who really needed to book those early flights for whatever reason. We are already so jealous of you because you don't need to incur the additional cost and hassle of flying in today's world:D

 

 

I can understand your irritation, however those people have paid for their cruise too so should enjoy the same choice of disembarkation times as anyone else. We disembark early at Southampton as we have a 4 to 5 hour drive home, no deadline or flight to meet just a desire to get home. However disembarkation at Southampton is a simple walk off without the uncertainty of US Immigration delays. Much more leisurely than many US port disembarkations sound.

 

 

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[huskerc]

I'm not sure exactly who's supposed to be stressing? I wouldn't book earlier than about 10-11 AM, which is probably earlier than many people would risk, but I also still wouldn't be stressing based on the OP's description.

 

For our upcoming cruise we disembark at 7am and our flight is at 10:30. This is Port Everglades to FLL. Self-disembarkation gets us off quickly and if you do that the taxi line is short and quick. We've actually got a couple of hours of safety built in.

 

Could something go wrong? Sure. Is it at all likely? No. If it does...so what? We'll take a later flight.