Flying same day...any bad experiences?

[cruznjan]

In the past I've flown to ports day of with no problem. But with it getting harder to make connections if you're delayed, I wouldn't chance it.

[Roz]

With most planes flying full, the chances of finding another flight are almost nil.

 

Roz

[Cruisin' Chick]

The only time we don't get to our embarkation city a day ahead is when we're leaving from San Pedro...and we're an hour's drive from there. And even then, we plan to get in the car by 10am.

 

I agree with the others who have listed the reasons to go the day before. And even if your city and your destination city both have okay weather, flights can be affected by other flights elsewhere.

 

We don't get a chance to go on vacation every year (and even had a five-year period between two cruises because of work issues and my MIL's terminal illness), so we're not going to risk missing any days of our cruises because of taking such a risk. Not worth it to us. If you research enough, you should be able to find a hotel close enough.

[pris993]

On my last cruise my flights going and coming were delayed by about four hours each, meaning I missed my connecting flights both ways. On the flight to Fort Lauderdale, I finally made the third connecting flight on which they rebooked me (after missing all the previous ones) but one of my suitcases did not. My suitcase arrived at 1:30 am. If I had been cruising the same day, I would have sailed without the case.

 

On my flight home I missed the last connecting flight and had to spend the night in a hotel and fly home the next day.

 

For me the stress of flying in the day of the cruise would just be too high.

 

Your situation, bring up another point, if at all possible, book direct flights... even if it costs more it is worth it. If you can't get a direct flight try if at all possible to stay with the same carrier all the way... do believe direct flights and same carriers (no code share flights) reduces the chance of lost and delayed luggage.

[jillfeng85]

I am in a similar shoe. We are flying to Puerto Rico from NYC in Dec. After reading so many horrible stories about missing their cruises, I am ready to give up my original idea of flying red eye and arriving at 4am in PR for a cruise departing at 6pm. I will book another cruise leaving the next day, though it is not my preferred cruise ship and itinerary. I am so afraid of the unforeseeable snow storm. But sometimes I feel really silly to give up my preferred cruise just because of this!

[ger_77]

Well I've already said I decided to fly in the day before and appreciate all the input here. .

 

A wise decision. Even though the weather may be great in both your departure and arrival cities, other factors can come into play. The last time we used a cruise line's air, we had a bad experience as the flights were booked for the day of the ship's departure. We left on a bright fall day for Venice, but our flight was delayed due to a medical issue with a passenger; as a result we missed our connection. We were put on a later flight and arrived in Venice to be greeted by 1 lonely cruise line rep who hustled us into a taxi. He said our luggage would follow us in the next one, just to hurry to the ship because it was waiting for us. We were practically run through the check-in process, and told to run to the gangway because they were going to pull it up. Immediately after our shoes hit the carpet, the gangway came up behind us. Our luggage didn't find us until 3 days later in Istanbul. All in good weather. LOL

 

I'm pretty sure you won't regret your decision to go a day early; there's nothing like starting your cruise in a relaxed mode.

 

Smooth Sailing! :) :) :)

[wwcruisers]

Well I've already said I decided to fly in the day before and appreciate all the input here. And while I may not be an experienced Platinum (or higher) cruiser, it's not my first rodeo. I appreciate your reply as well as all the others. Have a great evening :).

 

Sounds like you made a good choice. And, as I've found -- you should never say never. :p Since we're usually flying cross-country to cruise, we know how much can go wrong between leaving your house and boarding the ship. :eek: But, we'll actually be flying in "same day rules" for our Pacific Coastal, next month. That cruise starts with an overnight in San Francisco, so the ship will actually function as our pre-cruise hotel. :cool:

Edited August 14, 2015 by wwcruisers

[cruisead]

We didn't experience a problem but we were on a cruise when a huge snowstorm hit the Northeast and most airports were closed. We sailed at the scheduled time, but learned that more than 500 passengers didn't make it to the ship. Some managed to get there on the third day, at the first port of call, but most just stayed home.

[LocoLoco1]

I bitterly complained to Holland-America that they booked us on 'too tight' a scheduled flight. Sure enough...our Plane was diverted to Houston. We made the Cruise with seconds to spare. "Run!!" they said. Some of our luggage missed it. Others cruised with no luggage, all the way to Spain. Locomotiveman

[Calgon1]

Flying in December, right?

 

Since most flight delays are caused by weather, is there any possibility that the weather in December is (on average) worse that other times?

 

Think you've just answered your question.

 

Then again, maybe the airlines can get you to one of your ports of call in time to catch up with the ship.

 

[bakersdozen12]

If you go on Carnival's Facebook page right now, and read the comments posted to their page, you'll see at least a few comments from people who missed their cruises today due to the power outages which causes cancelled flights. Such a good example of why you should never fly in the same day.

[my3guys]

My parents went on a cruise this past spring with three other couples. They usually fly in the day before, but flew in very early on the morning of the cruise and fortunately made it with several hours to spare. However, one of the couples who were supposed to cruise with them OVERSLEPT and missed their flight! They didn't even bother to find a way to meet the ship (I think they were embarrassed).

 

If they had flown in the day before and overslept, they would have all been on that ship together. So sad because this would have been that couples' first cruise.

[JVilleGal]

Well on the East Coast today I'm betting that many "same day flyers" missed their ships!

 

What happened to stop most flights in the East today is a great example of why you want to fly in a day early (or more)

[CrabbyPatti]

We have cruised several times out of Seattle and Vancouver. Seattle is only 4 hour drive but we usually go over a day before. We were sure glad the one year we had gone a day early! Our car decided it "didn't want to go":mad:, so we limped into the motel parking lot.

 

Fortunately a dealership was just a 1/2 block away (how was that for luck!) because we were there a day early we were able to get the car to the dealership and make arrangements for repairs. So we then walked back to motel had a nice dinner, in the am we just took a cab to the ship. After the cruise we took a cab back to the dealership and picked up our car.

 

Since then, we have always gone a day ahead no matter if its drive or fly! We just make that day our first day of vacation and find a place to have a nice dinner and talk about what we will do or not do for the next week while we are cruising!

[paluni]

A few years ago, flying San Francisco to Helsinki, Finland. Flight delayed, missed connection in New York. Airline put me up in hotel overnight, arrived in Helsinki a day late.

July 2015: flying out of Rome. On tarmac, fuel pump problem discovered. Airline put me up in hotel overnight near Rome airport, arrived home a day late.

Fortunately neither flight involved catching a cruise.

[poolreader]

Several years ago I was flying to Vancouver from Ontario, CA, the day of the cruise. The flight was supposed to leave around 6 a.m., with an one hour stop in San Francisco. Well the flight attendants for the plane leaving the gate before us were in a hotel that had a power outage the night before. They never got their wake up call, so their flight attendants did not show up until well after our flight was supposed to leave.

 

By the time that flight got off and our plane disembarked the passengers it was almost two hours late. We missed the connection in SFO, but were able to get on another plane there, although we now landed at 3 p.m.

 

Since it was a ship booked flight they waited for us and several other passengers, but they were pulling away and starting the life boat drill a few minutes after we got on. The group from our flight were the very last people on board, and if we did not book it with the cruise line I am sure we would have missed our cruise.

[Flatbush Flyer]

And this (yesterday) is why you should never fly in to an embarkation port (under any circumstances) on day of departure:

AVIATION

Technical glitch delays flights on East Coast

ASSOCIATED PRESS

WASHINGTON — Air traffic was snarled and passengers’ tempers frayed Saturday as many flights to and from airports throughout a large swath of the Northeast from New York down to the Carolinas were delayed or canceled.

 

The Federal Aviation Administration blamed the problem on “technical issues” at an air traffic control center in Lees-burg, Va. Around 4 p.m., the agency said the problem had been resolved, and that officials were working to lift any remaining orders to hold planes on the ground. By 9:30 p.m., general arrival and departure delays were 15 minutes or less, according to the Federal Aviation Administration’s Flight Delay Information site.

 

Delays began building about 9:45 a.m., according to FlightRadar24, a flight monitoring website. Flights bound for airports in the Washington area were some of the most affected, as well as Baltimore-Washington International and Charlotte-Douglas International in North Carolina.

 

By midafternoon, 50 percent of inbound flights and 42 percent of outbound flights had been cancelled at Washington’s Reagan National, and delays were averaging about three hours, according to FlightRadar24.

 

The agency said the snarl was the result of an “automation problem” at the Leesburg center. The center handles high-altitude air traffic for the affected region. The problem wasn’t believed to be caused by an accident or hacking.

 

Information posted online by the FAA indicated there was a problem with the En Route Automation Modernization computer system, also known as ERAM, at the Leesburg center. The FAA finished installing the troubled computer system in the last of 20 high-altitude traffic control centers earlier this year. The completion was years behind schedule.

[wwcruisers]

A few years ago, DH and I were returning to SoCal from a business trip in Seattle. We boarded our early morning non-stop flight at SEATAC, and sat, and sat... and sat. Finally the Captain told us that they could not take off because the ENTIRE Alaska Airlines computer system was down, and he could not file a flight plan. :eek: We de-planed, and stood in a very long line at the Alaska counter -- only to be told that the earliest flight out would be the NEXT evening. We just looked at each other and said "Thank goodness we're not trying to get to a cruise ship!" Since then, we've heard of similar crippling computer glitches on other major airlines, so -- "IT" definitely happens! :rolleyes:

 

Footnote: to Alaska Airlines' credit, they ponied-up for all of the expenses involved in our extended stay in Seattle, and worked very hard to make things right for everyone inconvenienced by this problem. They remain one of my favorite airlines! :cool:

[JVilleGal]

A few years ago, DH and I were returning to SoCal from a business trip in Seattle. We boarded our early morning non-stop flight at SEATAC, and sat, and sat... and sat. Finally the Captain told us that they could not take off because the ENTIRE Alaska Airlines computer system was down, and he could not file a flight plan. :eek: We de-planed, and stood in a very long line at the Alaska counter -- only to be told that the earliest flight out would be the NEXT evening. We just looked at each other and said "Thank goodness we're not trying to get to a cruise ship!" Since then, we've heard of similar crippling computer glitches on other major airlines, so -- "IT" definitely happens! :rolleyes:

 

Footnote: to Alaska Airlines' credit, they ponied-up for all of the expenses involved in our extended stay in Seattle, and worked very hard to make things right for everyone inconvenienced by this problem. They remain one of my favorite airlines! :cool:

 

Ditto, Alaska Airline, while not perfect all the time, they make things right and are my airline of choice! I'm even fly Business Class on KLM next month curtesy of my Alaska Air miles.... Who knew, Alaska could take me to Europe! :D

[17pioneer]

In 2005, we almost missed a cruise when we were scheduled to fly in the day before. Going to Seattle, all flights on East Coast cancelled due to massive storm, scheduled out of LGA at 9AM, at 3PM finally got to ticket agent after waiting on line for 4 hours, she found two seats out of JFK leaving at 6:30PM.

Needless to say, traffic was a nightmare, but we made it with about 30 minutes to spare. There was nothing the next morning that would have gotten us there in time.

[iheartbda]

Glad the OP has decided to fly in the day before, wise choice.

 

There are just too many things that can delay a flight and not all of them weather. Son was just on a business trip to Fla. and two "ladies" behind him peppered their loud conversation with eff this eff that every third word. When his seat mate asked one to stop kicking the back of her seat, they went into near riot mode.

 

When the plane landed, everyone had to sit for another half hour waiting for the air marshals to came escort the "ladies" off the plane.

[Sat1]

Most airplanes fly several legs each day, If it has a delay,weather, mechanical, whatever, it has a "domino" effect. Your flight could be delayed, and miss the connection. Also check for the on time record for the flight. Good luck.

[GUT2407]

Last cruise we had one couple join us on day three ( day two was a sea day) because theflightbthey were on was delayed.

 

To make matters worse for them, the ports had to be changed due to extreme conditions,meaning they flew from Sydney to Melbourne, then after the change in port order had to fly from Melbourne to Tasmania.

[DocF]

We have flown same day twice, both on transatlantic cruises. We did this booking flights through the cruise line, so they became responsible for missed connections with the ship. We had no problems.

 

Incidentally, both of these instances, the flights cost significantly less than any fares I could find on my own.

 

Doc

[donaldsc]

Sorry for the confusion, I'll be flying from Portland, OR to Miami for a sailing on the Breeze (not on my signature yet ). There is one connecting flight, however, I can't remember where that is and will have to check. I have thought about weather but not in that connecting city.

 

Thanks for all your comments, I'm reading them all :).

 

Couple of thoughts -

 

1. Even though Portland may not have weather problems, the plane that will be picking you up has to come from somewhere else that may have weather problems such as Chicago.

 

2. Same problem can occur at your connecting airport wherever it is. This doubles your chances of weather or other problems.

 

3. How long is your connect time between flights

 

4. What happens if one of your planes has mechanical problems. I had a flight delayed for 1/2 day because the plane needed a new radio which would have taken 5 minutes to install except that they had to fly one in from another airport.

 

5. I have had problems where there were long enough takeoff delays so that the crew exceeded their allowable flying time and they had to find and bring in a new crew.

 

Get my drift.

 

DON

Edited August 17, 2015 by donaldsc