Time Difference difficulties florida vs australia

[Cruiselover800]

My wife and I are going on a cruise leaving from Sydnia Australia.  We live in Florida.  I am going to have to book the plane flights pretty soon and this time difference is making me crazy.  Its like 15 hours ahead.  Thinking about spending a day in hotel when we get there to make sure flights are not late and do not miss the cruise.    Any ideas or help you have would be great.  

[GUT2407]

4 minutes ago, Cruiselover800 said:

My wife and I are going on a cruise leaving from Sydnia Australia.  We live in Florida.  I am going to have to book the plane flights pretty soon and this time difference is making me crazy.  Its like 15 hours ahead.  Thinking about spending a day in hotel when we get there to make sure flights are not late and do not miss the cruise.    Any ideas or help you have would be great.  

I wouldn’t dream of flying all that way the day of the cruise.

[Tranquility Base]

I just had a look at (for example) the Qantas site.

Their direct (1 stop) service which shows a couple of hours transit in DFW.

 

Leaves MIA mid afternoon on Day 1.

Arrives SYD early morning on Day 3.

 

For example: a Wednesday afternoon departure will get you there Friday morning.

 

As always, make sure someone else double & triple checks dates (days of the week) for these critical dateline crossing flights.

 

Hope this helps.

[Docker123]

Just to make sure you know, when you fly from the US, it is 15 hours PLUS 1 day ahead.

 

So, if you leave Florida on Tuesday, you arrive Thursday.

 

As Mr Gut has suggested, allow at least one night before boarding. All those issues about delays, plus a little time to time adjust.

 

[OzKiwiJJ]

Actually it's really only an eight hour time difference. Just look at the hours, in that respect we're eight hours behind. Of course you have to factor in the day difference too, you don't want to arrive after your cruise has left. Generally you "lose" a day travelling from the US to Australia.

 

Definitely plan to arrive a day or so before your cruise. With cruises we've done from US or Europe we arrived three days or more in advance to give us time to get over the jet lag. We do easy sightseeing for the first day or so, making sure we're out in the open for several hours each day.  That way by the time we've boarded the ship we're relaxed and ready to enjoy the cruise. Planning your sleep time on the flight is also important but on flights from the US that's relatively easy.

 

Most US flights arrive in Sydney early in the morning. Even if your hotel room isn't available until the afternoon most hotels will store your baggage so you can get out and about. I suggest wandering around Circular Quay and the botanical gardens, or take a ferry to Manly to enjoy the beaches there. Gentle exercise, fresh air, and (hopefully) sunlight will help reset you to our time zone.

[Toryhere]

27 minutes ago, Cruiselover800 said:

My wife and I are going on a cruise leaving from Sydnia Australia.  We live in Florida.  I am going to have to book the plane flights pretty soon and this time difference is making me crazy.  Its like 15 hours ahead.  Thinking about spending a day in hotel when we get there to make sure flights are not late and do not miss the cruise.    Any ideas or help you have would be great.  

I have flown from Miami to Sydney on several occasions. 

It is better to go through DFW because it is so much easier than LAX. The QAntas flight to Sydney leaves DFW at 8pm and gets to Sydney at 6.05am, two days later. So theoretically you could arrive on the day of the cruise without any drama. But the flight from DFW is about 17 hours long. This means you will be tired and jet lagged after landing in Sydney. I know I always feel a bit exhausted after that flight, and that’s after getting sleep on the lie flat seats in business class. If you fly economy, you will be totally knackered. Even if you made the cruise, you wouldn’t enjoy the sail away or be up to anything much on the first evening.

in that case, I’d suggest you arrive at least one day before the cruise and get a hotel room where you can get some sleep before embarking onto the ship refreshed and adjusted to the time difference.

[Pushka]

4 hours ago, Cruiselover800 said:

My wife and I are going on a cruise leaving from Sydnia Australia.  We live in Florida.  I am going to have to book the plane flights pretty soon and this time difference is making me crazy.  Its like 15 hours ahead.  Thinking about spending a day in hotel when we get there to make sure flights are not late and do not miss the cruise.    Any ideas or help you have would be great.  

 

Thats funny. We have to deal with several hours difference going to the US East Coast. All part of the joy of travel. We always allow a rest day before doing anything much. That doesn’t mean we veg out in bed all day but we don’t go on tours etc except for walks in the local area. 

Edited January 27, 2019 by Pushka

[Kiwi_cruiser]

If you can, I would suggest you spend at lest 3 days in Sydney, Australia.

 

That way if you hit any delays you got time up your sleeve and if you get here on time, then you got time to recover from the flight and explore Sydney 😊

[Elorac123]

On 1/27/2019 at 9:10 AM, OzKiwiJJ said:

.

 

Actually it's really only an eight hour time difference. Just look at the hours, in that respect we're eight hours behind. Of course you have to factor in the day difference too, you don't want to arrive after your cruise has left.Generally you "lose" a day travelling from the US to Australia.

How do you work that  out ??

15 hours is 15 hours

OP is confused enough

Cheers Carole

 

[Docker123]

I have often used the World Clock to help with times in different parts of the world. 

 

Www dot timeanddate Dot com / worldclock

https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/

 

see

 

 

[Kiwi Kruzer]

34 minutes ago, Docker123 said:

I have often used the World Clock to help with times in different parts of the world. 

Www dot timeanddate Dot com / worldclock

https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/

 

I keep that one in my favourites. It helps when following bridge cams around the world. You sometimes see a great sunrise then - oops -  realise its a sunset.

[OzKiwiJJ]

1 hour ago, Elorac123 said:

How do you work that  out ??

15 hours is 15 hours

OP is confused enough

Cheers Carole

 

I used a world clock and looked at the difference between Sydney and Miami. https://www.worldtimebuddy.com/

 

And Miami is 16 hours behind, not 15, due to daylight saving in NSW, or 8 hours ahead timewise but a day behind. But if the OP is going to Brisbane it would be 15 hours  or 9 hours and a day behind.

 

 

Edited January 28, 2019 by OzKiwiJJ

[losfp]

Time differences aren't so bad. Generally we have to do it every time we go to the states, so you guys will need to deal when you come down here 🙂

 

I agree with most others that flying in on the day of the cruise is asking for trouble. Especially as you won't be able to get a direct flight.  We flew to Orlando in 2015 and went via DFW, which I much prefer to LAX. I would definitely give yourself a couple of days to ensure that you cover yourself in case of delays or missing connections.. and to allow yourself to adjust to the time difference.

 

So in this case, let's say the cruise departs Sydney on Friday.  If you want to arrive on Friday, you'll have to leave the US on Wednesday.  But that's super risky. I would prefer to leave on Tuesday at the latest, and probably Sunday or Monday to give yourself an extra day to adjust and do a little bit of sightseeing before going on the cruise.

[possum52]

As we were checking in on one of our cruises an older American couple stumbled out of the lift. They had arrived in Sydney that morning and had come straight from the airport to the OPT. Their flights had been delayed and they were absolutely exhausted. We saw them a couple of times during the cruise and they had taken a few days to recover from their travelling. They said they would NEVER consider flying in so close to the start of their cruise again. They were fortunate probably that they weren't delayed further and missed the cruise - they would arrive at least two days earlier in not three. We don't fly the same day - did it once and I was a nervous wreck!

 

Leigh

[avalon007]

We about 6.5 hours drive from Sydney & always leave the day before, stay overnight close to the OPT in a nice hotel & enjoy the leisurely lead up to the cruise. 

 

I know US vacation times if you are working are less than ours, so maybe you have a time restriction but anything can happen & delay your flight - leave early & reduce your stress levels is my advice.:)

 

Enjoy your time in Australia when you get here.

Edited January 28, 2019 by avalon007

[GUT2407]

37 minutes ago, avalon007 said:

We about 6.5 hours drive from Sydney & always leave the day before, stay overnight close to the OPT in a nice hotel & enjoy the leisurely lead up to the cruise. 

 

I know US vacation times if you are working are less than ours, so maybe you have a time restriction but anything can happen & delay your flight - leave early & reduce your stress levels is my advice.:)

 

Enjoy your time in Australia when you get here.

We’re about 1/2 that distance, still go the day before most times. If not at least leave home as early as possible.

[Cruiselover800]

thanks for everyone's input.  Sounds like we are going a few days early!

thanks again

[Obilix]

Just a suggestion, if you are leaving on your cruise from the Overseas Passenger Terminal you might wish to consider the Holiday Inn, Old Sydney.

 

It is located less than 300 yards from the Passenger Terminal, all down hill, is quite pleasant, very well kept, not overly expensive, and a short walk ( 20 minutes walk for an old unfit crock like me) from the city centre, and even less from both the the Opera House, Circular Quay and the Harbour Bridge.

 

Incidently, you can walk across the Bridge, if you've a mind to, about half an hour, for free and catch the train back from Milsom's point to Wynyard station, which again is only 500 yards from the hotel. Or you could walk back.

 

No, you don't have to pay mega bucks walking across the top of the Bridge span to have an excellent view of the Harbour to the heads.

 

 

[Bubbeh]

I agree with OzKiwiJJ, try to stay somewhere in or around The Rocks.  Early last year we went to New Zealand (on a cruise out of Sydney) and stayed at the Amora Hotel.  It was really good value for the location and only a short walk (dragging suitcases) from the harbour.  I would recommend it to others.  You will certainly be able to fill a day waiting for your room by checking out The Rocks and why not take a harbour ferry to Manly for the fish and chips with the seagulls.  We're from right across the continent but when in Sydney we always make a day for a trip to Manly for fish and chips on the beach.

Edited January 29, 2019 by Bubbeh
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