Taking Amtrak to Orlando

[Gma&Gpa]

We will be taking our next cruise from Port Canaveral. To get there, we are coming from Richmond to Orlando via Amtrak.  Any suggestions on the best way to get from the Amtrak station to Cocoa Beach to our hotel? There will be 5 of us and arriving late morning. We haven't chosen a hotel yet, but it will be in Cocoa Beach.

[CruizinSusan70]

Uber XL or Lyft XL

[SRQbeachgirl]

4 minutes ago, Gma&Gpa said:

We will be taking our next cruise from Port Canaveral. To get there, we are coming from Richmond to Orlando via Amtrak.  Any suggestions on the best way to get from the Amtrak station to Cocoa Beach to our hotel? There will be 5 of us and arriving late morning. We haven't chosen a hotel yet, but it will be in Cocoa Beach.

 

Are you on the Autotrain and bringing your vehicle? If yes, you can go FL-46 to I-95, or if you want to avoid I-95 (we always try to) you can go FL-417 to FL-528. Both have tolls.

 

If you aren't bringing a vehicle, then I agree with the previous poster that Uber XL or Lyft XL may be your best bet. You could also look into some of the private shuttle services, but read reviews online before booking.

 

BTW - I have done the Autotrain once from Sanford (Orlando) to Lorton. We had a 13-hour delay stuck on the tracks just south of Jacksonville because a CSX train derailed in front of us. Hope you have a decent amount of time padded between your arrival and the cruise, just in case.

[Gma&Gpa]

We are not bringing our vehicle.  We are coming in a day ahead.  Should be in around 10:30 am on Friday, cruise begins on Saturday.   I haven't used uber, do we wait until we arrive to contact them?  

[SRQbeachgirl]

17 minutes ago, Gma&Gpa said:

We are not bringing our vehicle.  We are coming in a day ahead.  Should be in around 10:30 am on Friday, cruise begins on Saturday.   I haven't used uber, do we wait until we arrive to contact them?  

 

You can schedule ahead for Uber XL to make sure there is a large enough vehicle available to handle the passengers and luggage.

[dbrown84]

20 minutes ago, Gma&Gpa said:

We are not bringing our vehicle.  We are coming in a day ahead.  Should be in around 10:30 am on Friday, cruise begins on Saturday.   I haven't used uber, do we wait until we arrive to contact them?  

you should go ahead and setup your account now.  no one in your party has an uber account?

[dbrown84]

4 minutes ago, SRQbeachgirl said:

 

You can schedule ahead for Uber XL to make sure there is a large enough vehicle available to handle the passengers and luggage.

or get two ubers.  5 people with luggage is a lot

[htkodiak]

Get a one way car rental and return it the  morning of the cruise , then take hotel or car rental company shuttle to cruise terminal.

[mz-s]

4 hours ago, Gma&Gpa said:

We are not bringing our vehicle.  We are coming in a day ahead.  Should be in around 10:30 am on Friday, cruise begins on Saturday.   I haven't used uber, do we wait until we arrive to contact them?  

 

You do not "contact" Uber per se, it is an app on your smartphone.

[thinfool]

If you have never used uber/lyft before may I suggest that you install the app on your phone, make an account complete with your credit card information...then open the app, look it over, maybe even book a ride to the grocery store and another trip back home.  That way you will have some familiarity with how it all works.

For me, the cool thing is that, because the app has payment information you can just exit the vehicle when you get to your destination.  NO haggling or hassling about fare or tips.  And the app allows you to add a tip for your driver...in a word....cool!

[CruizinSusan70]

Come to think of it, since there are five of you depending upon how much luggage and carry ons you have should determine whether you would need 2 UberXL's or possibly 1 regular and one XL.  The regular one is cheaper and will accommodate two with luggage, leaving the other 3 for the XL version. Unless you have a lot of luggage, a regular and a XL should accommodate the 5 of you.