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Port of Call - Orlando (Port Canaveral)

pgerbphoto

By pgerbphoto,
in Royal Caribbean International

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reallyitsmema

reallyitsmema

Posted
Posted
Thanks! I have to think this will work out cheaper for my family than a RCCL excursion since we're 6 people. We rented cars at all of our ports while sailing on Disney Magic last week and it saved us a ton.

 

You're welcome. Some of the other agencies might also offer after hours drop off, but we only checked Hertz so we could get rid of the last of our Hertz points.

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starrcards

starrcards

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We "ported" at Port Canaveral on our first Grandeur cruise. We went to Rusty's for lunch and hung out in that area for a while. Then back to the ship. Was OK.

 

Since then we have been to Kennedy Space Center (not on a cruise) with our the 9 year old son. He loved it. Three to 4 hours was sufficient. Would recommend.

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cb at sea

cb at sea

Posted
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The OP is wise to NOT do Disney...simply not enough time for the money spent! A lot of folks will leave the ship, which means the pools will be MUCH less crowded that day....a port day is a great day to USE the ship you've paid to vacation on!!

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Scotty G

Scotty G

Posted
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I always find it very annoying when RCI calls our local port "Orlando". :mad:

 

We are 45 miles from Orlando, which is land locked and in the middle of the state. It is not even in the same county!

 

So what you could do is research on travel sites the many things to do in the area.

 

Here are a few I could suggest: Kennedy Space center is fun and educational. The beach is popular which runs from Jetty Park (less than a mile away), all the way down to Melbourne and can be accessed very easily by taxi. The little town of Cocoa Village about 8 miles away is a walking town with delightful shops and cafes. Kayaking is one of my favorites and we have two rivers, the Banana and the Indian River (Intercoastal waterway) within a mile of the port. Airboat tours located just 5-10 miles away. There are fishing tours that leave right out of the port there. The port area also has many nice waterfront cafes, plus the addition of Exploration tower.

 

And of course this thread may be moved by CC to the "ports of call" section, which is also a good research area.

 

No matter what you do, enjoy and welcome to our area! :)

 

Great response, my feelings exactly!

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familylifeguy

familylifeguy

Posted
Posted

Thanks so much for posting this question! We're on Anthem 11/11 with our three foster sons ages 2, 4, and 6. Just can't justify the cost of Disney. I wanted to do a beach day but am not sure if that's best especially with people saying it will only be in the 60s. The concern I have with Uber is having car/booster seats. If I rent a car I'm going to have to rent those too, which is fine, but just trying to see if there's a better option. It seems like the trolley is too far to walk to the stop and so is Jetty Park. Spending $19 per person seems like a lot to pay for transport to the beach with RCCL.

 

I'll be checking this often in case anyone has any affordable ideas for fun days with little ones.

 

 

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knbcruisers

knbcruisers

Posted
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I would endorse any water-based tour as noted above. The river all along the Space Coast region there is beautiful and full of wildlife. Regarding Familylifeguy’s weather concerns, it could just as easily be 85 here like it will be today or 65.

 

 

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wilmingtech Great Review Rare

wilmingtech

Posted
Posted (edited)
If you do decide to walk to Jetty Park, make sure you check the cruise schedule to see which terminal you will be using. We are coming in on Anthem on November 13th and we are at terminal 6 which is on the other side of the channel from Jetty Park, is over three miles away and is not walkable.

 

https://www.portcanaveral.com/Cruise/Cruise-Lines-Schedules

 

Just want to thank you for posting this. We are on the December 17th sailing of Anthem and will be parked at Terminal 3 which is closer to Jetty Park. I just assumed that Anthem would always be up by Terminal 1 (2 or 3) as I have always remembered always seeing Disney and Carnival back by the West Basin and RCI and NCL closer to the center on the south side of the port. This is great info as it is a long...long.. way to go from Terminal 6 to the other side of the port.

here is a direct link to the PDF

https://www.portcanaveral.com/PortCanaveral/media/Cruise-Assets/FY2018/FY-2018-Cruise-Schedule.pdf

 

Here is a link to the Cape Canaveral Map -

https://www.portcanaveral.com/PortCanaveral/media/Cruise-Assets/2016%20Images/10188-CAFR-Dev-Map-with-fonts-DavidP.png

 

-Sean

Edited by wilmingtech
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reallyitsmema

reallyitsmema

Posted
Posted
Just want to thank you for posting this. We are on the December 17th sailing of Anthem and will be parked at Terminal 3 which is closer to Jetty Park. I just assumed that Anthem would always be up by Terminal 1 (2 or 3) as I have always remembered always seeing Disney and Carnival back by the West Basin and RCI and NCL closer to the center on the south side of the port. This is great info as it is a long...long.. way to go from Terminal 6 to the other side of the port.

here is a direct link to the PDF

https://www.portcanaveral.com/PortCanaveral/media/Cruise-Assets/FY2018/FY-2018-Cruise-Schedule.pdf

 

Here is a link to the Cape Canaveral Map -

https://uniim-cache.shutterfly.com/ng/services/mediarender/THISLIFE/021030690755/media/123290625763/medium/1503921172/enhance?fromCloud

 

-Sean

 

You're welcome.:) We originally assumed we were at terminal 1 too and were just going to pay to rent a car from one of the rental agencies within walking distance. I was surprised when I looked at the schedule (forgot Majesty would be at terminal 1), so that is why we are doing Hertz now. Need to take a shuttle or taxi no matter which agency we use, so might as well use our free rental.;p

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carrieluvsgreg

carrieluvsgreg

Posted
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Also- keep in mind Disney is on the “other side” of Orlando. Meaning- it’s 45 miles to Orlando then you cross town and Disney is an additional 15 or so miles. Orlando traffic can be really bad certain times of day and times of year.., I live north of Jacksonville and it typically takes me 3 hours (or just under) to get from my door to ikea. (Mall at millennial) we went in July and encountered really bad traffic coming back (no accident) it took us almost 5 hours to get home.

Disney springs is nice- you do get to park for free. But I honestly wouldn’t try it on my own. Too many variables to risk it.

 

 

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ConnMom

ConnMom

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With young children, I also would suggest either a beach afternoon or a visit to the Brevard Zoo. The zoo is clean, well designed and manageably sized. It includes a petting zoo and a wonderful platform from which you can feed the giraffes.

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nolesrule

nolesrule

Posted
Posted

The kids are probably a bit young for the Kennedy Space Center, and you certainly can't get everything in with that short of a day. It's enough time for the main visitors center, but the bus tours are probably not an option.

 

We have the same dilemma coming up on Monday trying to figure out what to do as our plans to visit with family fell through due (for a good reason, my brother and his wife had a new baby and live in Tampa... alas too far to rent a car for the day and visit them).

 

That said, as a fan of the NASA space program (and Florida native and expat), I found the Atlantis exhibit alone worth the price of admission, and I'm heavily leaning toward doing that. Our kids are a little bit older though.

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carrieluvsgreg

carrieluvsgreg

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How close are the car rentals to the port? Which ones?

 

 

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National is a couple of miles from the port and offers a shuttle to the port. We book one way rentals every time we leave out of port canaveral. It is also shared with enterprise.

 

 

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