Booking shuttle from FLL to POM 5 months out - pick up time?

[pegbert]

November will be our first cruise with NCL, as well as the first time sailing out of Miami. We'll be staying at Pier 66 in FLL the night before, and taking a non-NCL shuttle from our hotel to POM on Saturday morning. We'd like to book the shuttle now, and they are asking us for a pick-up time. I know that NCL will provide an embarkation time with our final travel docs, but since we're still 5 months out, we don't have that info yet.

 

If the ship sails at 4pm, then we need to be on board by 2pm....the shuttle CS says that a 1pm pick up time will get us to POM by 2pm. But I'm wondering if we should make it earlier, to allow for traffic incidents. Then again, we don't want to get there too early and have to stand around for hours before our number is called. We've never been to the POM..... are there any comfortable waiting areas if we arrive too early, or is it the same deal as Port Everglades where the only option is to stand in line out in the heat?

 

I'm leaning towards a noon pick-up, arriving at POM by 1pm. Does that sound like a good compromise? We're not concerned about rushing onto the ship for lunch when food is always available!

 

Thoughts from anyone who has done the Ft Lauderdale - POM transfer?

 

Thank you in advance.

 

Peg

[paulh84]

You may want to check the Florida Departures board for more pointed advice, but you will get opinions all over the place. Some will say leave at 8am, others will say they have had shuttles give a 1pm pickup and will still get you there on time.

 

We're going to do a private car transfer instead. Most of the shuttle providers have set pickup times and speaking for myself, I really want to be on the road well before noon. I think 9:30/10am would be ideal if your company will allow some flexibility in booking.

[pegbert]

Thank you for the advice.... I did look on the Florida Departure board, and will post there as well. We've only sailed with Princess out of FLL thus far, and even with their "suggested" arrival times, it really didn't seem to matter when one arrived - we would just get in the Platinum line and go through the process. Since NCL will specify a time, I wasn't sure if we arrived at, say, 11am, would they turn us away if our docs said 2pm, leaving us with no where to go for three hours?

 

Thanks again!

 

Peg