How long does it take to get off Encore? Trying to book a flight home

[Throwaway112212]

Hey guys.  
 

We’ll be on the encore 12/4-12/11, arriving at MIA at 7am.  NCL says disembarkation doesn’t begin for 2 more hours.  Is this accurate?  And will we really dock at 7?  I thought most shops come to port over night?

 

I realistically have two flight options, an 11:40a out of Miami and a 8:50p out of FLL.  The flight from FLL gets us home to late to be able to work the next day, but we’re afraid 1140a in Miami is too close.  We also don’t want to lug bags around with us all day, or try to kill 8 hours just waking around.

 

I guess it all comes down to how quickly we can get off the ship.  Figuring 2 hours at MIA and a 20 taxi min ride, we’d need to be in the taxi by 9:20 - is that even possible?  Is getting to MIA 2 hours early too soon?  Too late?

 

Can anyone who’s recently disembarked from Encore shes any light on the time frames?  Will they really not let anyone off before 9?
 

Sorry for the questions.. first time cruiser and I don’t like not knowing what to expect haha.

 

TIA

[Coastalbreezes]

Often, but not always due to weather, tides or other circumstances, the ship will arrive in port much earlier than 7:00 a.m. Setting up the gangways, getting clearance from the port etc takes at least an hour, sometimes longer.

That being said, in my own experience I've seen people needing to hurry off lined up to disembark as early as 6:00 a.m. and the lines stretch the length of the ship. If you are in the Haven you are first off. My last couple of cruises from Miami disembarkation began a little after 7:00. You can definitely make your MIA flight but if you aren't in Haven expect to line up early. 

[phillygwm]

Generally speaking, the ship will be in port and disembarking between 7:00-8:00.  There can obviously be delays.  NCL recommends not booking anything before noon but, realistically, you shouldn't have a problem with 11:40.  If you're Haven, you're good.  Otherwise, if you're carrying your own bags, you can be among the first off but I'd want to start to line up early in that scenario.

 

If you're near the front of the line, getting off the ship and through the cruise terminal isn't an issue.  I would NOT use an NCL airport transfer because they'll sit there until the bus is full (a lesson I learned the hard way coming off the Sky.)  Grab a taxi or Uber and you should be OK.  It isn't a long trip to the airport. 

 

In my experience, lines at MIA can be really long.  Having Pre Check is helpful, but was still relatively long.  Clear may also be useful, if you have it, but it's only at checkpoints E, F, G, H, & J.

 

 

 

 

[www3traveler]

There is no way to know from cruise to cruise.

 

For example, this past week at the end of the Panama cruise, people were still leaving the ship after 11 A.M.  From what I understood, most of the issue was with the Immigration people inside the terminal.

 

Once you leave the ship, you go into the luggage holding area (which is huge), find your luggage which can take awhile, then you clear Customs and Imigration, then there is a long line for transporation.

 

Since I have to fly to the West Coast,I a book a room at an airport hotel and fly out the next day.

 

Keep in mind that several other ships at both Miami and Fort Lauderdale are also disembarking passengers which can make for long lines at the check-in counters at either airport.

[Peachypooh]

We had a choice of flights leaving MIA after getting off the Enclore  of 11:30a.m. or 1 p.m. We chose 1 p.m. We got to the airport by 9:30 a.m. !!

However   we were in the Haven and took our bags with us and got a taxi.   I think 11:30 am is a popular choice  but then again nothing is guaranteed.

Out of all the ships we have been on we are almost always at the port of Miami by 6 a.m. with announcements to disembark 1-2 hours later (the earliest being 7:15 a.m.)

[Throwaway112212]

Thanks for the input so far.  I looked a bit into other ships port times and there’s two other huge ships due to be in port at the same time we are, oasis of the seas (6am- 6800ppl) and seascape (7am- 5900), and 4000 on our ship (7am).  In total there’s 26,000 passengers arriving between 6a and 8a.  Even ignoring oasis of the seas, would getting a ride out of the port be an issue with seascape there as well?  Will oasis snarl up customs/traffic before we even start disembarking?

[FlGoodShips]

We live in the area and usually cruise out of Miami.

Have gotten off all ships (carry your own luggage) by 8am-830am at the latest. Just line up early..as others have said and again, carry your own luggage. 

[eileeshb]

I’ve had “interesting” occurrences at Miami disembarkation, first time my flight got cancelled , second  time there was a lengthy delay due to a couple of arrests, and a couple of deaths (unrelated to the arrests), and the last time us dirty foreigners were required to wear identifying stickers, go out one specific exit to the terminal and we weren’t supposed to wait to the last embarkation slot. 

[weltek]

I would 100% take the 11:40.  In all my NCL Miami experiences I've never been later than 9:30 disembarking, and that was the one time there was a huge backup and wait (like an hour in line ON the ship) and it was never explained. We weren't in a hurry that time, so let the people rush that needed to.

[Throwaway112212]

Thank you guys for all the advice.  We ended up deciding on the later flight.  We’d rather take our time getting off the ship and spend a relaxing day in Fort Lauderdale instead of stressing about the flight.

 

Part of our group did book the 11:40 flight though, I’ll report back and let y’all know how it went.

 

Thanks again!

[BirdTravels]

On 11/18/2022 at 2:53 AM, Throwaway112212 said:

Hey guys.  
 

We’ll be on the encore 12/4-12/11, arriving at MIA at 7am.  NCL says disembarkation doesn’t begin for 2 more hours.  Is this accurate?  And will we really dock at 7?  I thought most shops come to port over night?

 

I realistically have two flight options, an 11:40a out of Miami and a 8:50p out of FLL.  The flight from FLL gets us home to late to be able to work the next day, but we’re afraid 1140a in Miami is too close.  We also don’t want to lug bags around with us all day, or try to kill 8 hours just waking around.

 

I guess it all comes down to how quickly we can get off the ship.  Figuring 2 hours at MIA and a 20 taxi min ride, we’d need to be in the taxi by 9:20 - is that even possible?  Is getting to MIA 2 hours early too soon?  Too late?

 

Can anyone who’s recently disembarked from Encore shes any light on the time frames?  Will they really not let anyone off before 9?
 

Sorry for the questions.. first time cruiser and I don’t like not knowing what to expect haha.

 

TIA

11:40 is a late flight. We normally book something around 11:00. If you want to minimize risk, carry your own luggage off the ship. Self walk off starts between 7:30 and 8:00. And you are out of the terminal as fast as you can walk (15 minutes from ship's security to curb. If you line up early, you'll be on the curb by 8:30 and at the airport by 9:00. 

 

 

[CruizinSusan70]

Since you decided on the nighttime flight out of FLL, a day use hotel could be a good option.  Dayuse.com and other similar sites can hook you up with hotel options and pricing.

[Throwaway112212]

On 11/24/2022 at 9:27 PM, BirdTravels said:

11:40 is a late flight. We normally book something around 11:00. If you want to minimize risk, carry your own luggage off the ship. Self walk off starts between 7:30 and 8:00. And you are out of the terminal as fast as you can walk (15 minutes from ship's security to curb. If you line up early, you'll be on the curb by 8:30 and at the airport by 9:00. 

Thanks for the image- it’s the first time I’ve seen that.  
 

Do you remember what time you were scheduled to arrive in port that morning?  

[BatchawanaBabe]

We just got off the Encore on the 13th.  We picked an 8:30 disembarkation time but could have left earlier.  One word of warning though.  We booked NCL's shuttle to MIA and it took forever to load the luggage.  People were complaining that they'd miss their flights, so perhaps take a taxi.  We wanted to take an Uber but were warned that the driver would have difficulties finding us.

[BirdTravels]

5 hours ago, Throwaway112212 said:

Thanks for the image- it’s the first time I’ve seen that.  
 

Do you remember what time you were scheduled to arrive in port that morning?  

On the picture above, we were scheduled in at 7:00. On another cruise out of Miami this year, we were scheduled in at 7:00 and they scheduled early walk off at 7:45. 

[KC12]

On 11/17/2022 at 11:53 PM, Throwaway112212 said:

Hey guys.  
 

We’ll be on the encore 12/4-12/11, arriving at MIA at 7am.  NCL says disembarkation doesn’t begin for 2 more hours.  Is this accurate?  And will we really dock at 7?  I thought most shops come to port over night?

 

I realistically have two flight options, an 11:40a out of Miami and a 8:50p out of FLL.  The flight from FLL gets us home to late to be able to work the next day, but we’re afraid 1140a in Miami is too close.  We also don’t want to lug bags around with us all day, or try to kill 8 hours just waking around.

 

I guess it all comes down to how quickly we can get off the ship.  Figuring 2 hours at MIA and a 20 taxi min ride, we’d need to be in the taxi by 9:20 - is that even possible?  Is getting to MIA 2 hours early too soon?  Too late?

 

Can anyone who’s recently disembarked from Encore shes any light on the time frames?  Will they really not let anyone off before 9?
 

Sorry for the questions.. first time cruiser and I don’t like not knowing what to expect haha.

 

TIA

We are on same cruise, we originally booked 9:40 Am flight, but AA changed schedule . Last year similar cruise I got to the airport at 10AM . pack light, keep bags in room on Saturday night and easy to walk out.  Elevators can be busy. UBER/LYFT order n your way out. also taxi's. If you get up an moving no problem  do not need two hours early for Miami