Advise please on flying into USA

[Shogun]

Hi Folks,

 

Can not get a flight through cruise line so doing it myself.

 

Flying Delta is this go or bad would use likes of BA or Virgin.

 

Flying to Atlanta have a few hours to use up its there lots of shops or could I take taxi ride to some place close by.

 

Then flying onto Ft Lauderdale do not know who with yet. Could this be Delta as well.

 

Staying in airport hotel, is down town area far away.

 

When going to cruise terminal would you go early or late for boarding.

 

Would like to see Ft Lauderdale, been told there is a massive mall close buy, would you go to it, is it to far to go by taxi.

 

Spending one day in Ft Lauderdale after cruise what would you do that day.

 

Thanks.

 

yours Shogun

[Globaliser]

Flying Delta is this go or bad would use likes of BA or Virgin.

If you're happy to fly from a London airport (don't know where you live) and you're cruising from Fort Lauderdale, my advice would be to fly BA or Virgin to Miami, and then get a Super Shuttle to a hotel in downtown Fort Lauderdale.

 

This avoids three bad things, which between them are worth paying some money to avoid:-

1. Flying to Atlanta

2. Connecting in the US

3. Flying with a US airline

 

When you go to your ship, it'll be a short taxi ride away.

 

What hotel you use in Fort Lauderdale is a matter for you. If there's a good alternative to a chain hotel, I'll always try to do that. I've stayed at the Riverside Hotel, and quite liked it, and it's in an interesting location.

[steve20832]

The shopping Mall you are thinking of is Sawgrass Mills Mall. www.sawgrassmillsmall.com There are hundreds of stores there. It is about 35 miles from the Miami airport and 15 miles from Ft Lauderdale and will be much cheaper to rent a car for the day. I also agree with the previous poster of flying directly to Miami with British Air or Virgin Air. Atlanta airport is the worst one. It will also avoid you switching planes and save you time also.

[Shogun]

Hi There,

 

thanks for info,

 

should of said that I wanted to fly out of London direct with likes of BA but no seats, only way to get out to US was by Edinburgh , Atlanta, Ft L.

 

And fly out before cruise and stay and stay after cruise flying out over Christmas holidays.

 

Got good price for cruise so willing to put up with hassle.

 

Whats so bad about Atlanta.

 

yours Shogun

[friend of Eeyore]

It's been a while since I flew into Atlanta, but I don't remember it being so bad. Maybe Globaliser was just saying that connections, in general, are bad.

 

Atlanta is a major hub airport with several terminals. All the terminals are connected by an underground passageway with trains, or you can walk between (I've done it when the wait for trains was long or very crowded).

 

As I recall, there are shops there, if you're there for 2-3 hours. If you're there for more like 6-7 hours, then I think Peachtree City isn't too far. I wouldn't leave the airport for only a couple of hours though. In my opinion, going into Atlanta itself would be risky - the airport is actually south of Atlanta by a bit. If you've only got an hour or two layover, then you'll probably spend most of it transferring terminals and eating.

 

I was always flying in or out of Atlanta, not transferring, but I don't remember it being that horrible.

[friend of Eeyore]

Was looking at a thread, and found this link: http://www.gofox.com/flights/airportmaps.php?map=4 which gave a simple map of the ATL airport, and thought: that's not very good... so I googled Atlanta Airport, and found the official site: http://www.atlanta-airport.com/Default.asp .

 

The site has a list of the shops: http://www.atlanta-airport.com/Default.asp?url=sublevels/shops_n_restaurants/shop_page.cfm , you'll have to click on the terminal you'll be in, and choose food, retail, or service.

 

This is a map of the airport. If you click it, then you zoom in, and then you can also click on each terminal for more detail.

http://www.atlanta-airport.com/Default.asp?url=sublevels/shops_n_restaurants/shop_page.cfm

[Shogun]

Hi Cathy,

 

Thanks for info, and links , may be some people are harder to please than others, I just take things as they come. I am sure everything willl be OK.

 

 

After a long flight a couple of hours just walking about can be very nice before you start the next leg.

 

 

yours Shogun

[ratherBcruzin]

Have you checked going on other European airlines? A connection through Western Europe is still easier than connecting in the US as you have to clear US customs and drag your bags through a circus to recheck them onto Florida.

[CruisinMatt]

I don't think that connecting in Atlanta is any worse than connecting in any european airport.

[Desert Cruisers]

I traveled for 20 years on business and have continued to travel for pleasure since then. The Atlanta airport is like most other large airports - hectic and confusing especially for infrequent travelers. Don't be put off by the negative comments. The airport in Miami has its share of problems. Any large airport whether in the USA or Europe or anywhere else can be a pain for transferring and getting around especially during a holiday.

 

In Atlanta, you do have to drop your bags off after going through passport control and customs. But, the drop-off area is close by.

 

Choose the flight(s) that fit your schedule and budget. A nonstop is always best but may not be available.

 

As for Ft. Lauderdale, I agree with the suggestion that you should rent a car if you are going to Sawgrass Mills. One word of caution - car rental and hotel rates are very high during the Christmas season so you need to get going on making reservations.:)

[Shogun]

Hi There ,

 

Re renting a car as I have never driven on the wrong side of the road before, is a first trip to Saw Grass going to be a simple drive or am I going to be a hazard to other drivers.

 

yours Shogun

[Shogun]

As to trying to find another way of getting there, having to fly out before I wanted to and stay after cruise just to get a flight, I except thats it holiday time and booking a late trip you have to take whats given but the cruise price was to good to miss.

 

Thanks for advise

 

yours Shogun

[CruisinMatt]

Shogun, you can take a taxi to Sawgrass but it might be a bit expensive. It's located in a western suburb of Fort Lauderdale called Plantation. Maybe you should consider staying at a hotel in the Sawgrass area. There are several.

[Desert Cruisers]

Another suggestion re Sawgrass Mills - There may be organized tours of Sawgrass Mills, i.e., a bus picks you up, drops you off for a few hours and then takes you back to the hotel.

 

While it is not difficult to find Sawgrass Mills, if you are not comfortable driving on the "wrong" side of the road, I wouldn't rent a car. I would stay nearer to the Fort Lauderdale beaches. You will be closer to things to do besides shopping and it will be easy to get a taxi to the port. For hotel suggestions, go to the "east coast departures" discussion board.:)

[Globaliser]

Whats so bad about Atlanta.

Clearing immigration, for a start: 60-90 minutes for non-US citizens is typical at ATL. Forget walking around for a couple of hours. Think standing in a queue for that length of time, stressing about whether you're going to make it to your connecting flight.

 

Then the standard US thing if your connecting: Collect baggage at first US port (ie Atlanta). Clear Customs. Re-check the bag. Re-clear security. Then go to the connecting flight.

 

And some Atlanta-specific problems, the way you're doing it: This is Delta's biggest hub. The airport is huge. Getting to the next gate can take some time. If you don't have plenty of time, you could again be very stressed.

 

And, of course, flying Delta can be a pretty miserable experience (though I hear that they have recently bucked up their ideas a bit on the international sectors).

 

If you have to connect because you can't get a non-stop from London, my advice would also be to try connections via European airports first.

[Globaliser]

I don't think that connecting in Atlanta is any worse than connecting in any european airport.

This isn't true. If you're connecting at a European airport, you can through-check your bags to your final destination. And you don't need to clear immigration unless you're crossing an immigration border. A London-Paris-Miami itinerary, for example, does not cross an immigration border.

[CruisinMatt]

This isn't true. If you're connecting at a European airport, you can through-check your bags to your final destination. And you don't need to clear immigration unless you're crossing an immigration border. A London-Paris-Miami itinerary, for example, does not cross an immigration border.

 

What about Miami - Madrid - Lisbon or Miami - Paris - Lisbon?

[rwdtgb]

Just flew back from Rome via Atlanta on Delta and the flights were great. When we arrived in Atlanta the longest lines at passport control were for us the US citizens, there was only 2 post open for us and about 12 for non Citizens. The then let the US folks use all the lines.

 

Don't hesitate flying into Atlanta.

 

Tom

[ratherBcruzin]

What about Miami - Madrid - Lisbon or Miami - Paris - Lisbon?

Not exactly the same. When you enter the EU countries participating in an open-border policy called Schengen, which includes most mainland European countries but not the UK, you must clear immigration (but not customs) before continuing onto another Schengen country. Theoretically, you cross the Schengenland border when entering Spain or France, and continue "domestically" onto Portugal. However, bags are thru-checked to Lisbon.

[Globaliser]

What about Miami - Madrid - Lisbon or Miami - Paris - Lisbon?

Precisely as ratherBcruzin says. So if you connect in Europe, there is none of this "collect your bags, clear customs, then give the bags back to the airline" nonsense that you get in the US.

 

And this is the same even for an international -> domestic connection. If you fly Miami-London-Edinburgh, you clear immigration at London because that's where you cross the immigration border, but you don't see your checked bags there: They cross the customs border at Edinburgh so you only need to collect them there.