Fly same day as cruise or day before?

[Don Pedro]

Never count on the weather any time of the year. I know everyone first thinks of winter, but we were delayed this summer for 3 hours because of thunderstorms right over JFK airport. By the time the storms passed we were down to 60th in line for takeoff.:eek:

 

Excellent point! Here in Texas, major thunderstorms, with their severe lightning strikes and wind-sheer, frequently cause airport closures. Also in this heightened age of security a suspicious or an unattented package or suitcase can cause an airport to be shut down for several hours.

[willysgrandma]

If you are flying out of the tri-state area, fly the day before. In fact, wherever you are flying from, fly the day before.

 

The airlines are too unpredictable nowadays to have to stress if your flight is cancelled or late for any reason.

 

If you fly the day before, you'll be able to relax in your hotel room and sleep later the day of the cruise - you'll be fully rested when you board the ship.

 

As a TA, I ALWAYS recommend cruisers to fly the day before nowadays.

[relo854]

We have been traveling the past 12 years...to either the Cancun area or the Carribean. In May of 2007 and again in October 2007 we flew to Cancun via Charlotte NC airport. The FIRST delay we've ever had was in May and even a longer delay in October. I was so nervous about missing the connecting flight but those flights were delayed also. Seems like air delays are getting more and more common. Another thing I was thinking is the closer to the sail time, the more hectic the ship boarding must be...I'd rather be relaxed.

 

If the ship leaves 4:00 p.m. they allow you to board at what time? Can you use the ship amenities prior to the sail time?

 

Thank you..the more of you who said it would be more relaxing to get there a day ahead, the more it sounds like that is what we will do...

 

Thanks for the idea of priceline etc......

[wrp96]

If the ship leaves at 4pm you have to be onboard by 3pm. They usually allow you to start boarding somewhere between 11 and 12. They will have lunch available in the buffet, the spa will be open, etc. The only thing that won't be available is the casino and the shops.

[Cam6959]

I am an expert in this field (tee hee) my 2nd cruise I flew in with 4 family members the day of in January. Thankfully, the cruiseline had over a hundred people delayed due to weather so they held the ship for an hour and a half and we barely made it. They were taking away the gangplank as we hopped (literally) onboard. This year being the smart cruiser I am I accidently purchased my air the day of my October cruise. Guess what -- mechanical problems out of Omaha. Could not make any connecting flights to Port Canaveral that day. Nada. Nothing. a three night cruise and we missed the boat. It cost us an arm and a leg to get to Nassau and then spend one night in a luxurious resort. We got to the resort at midnight so not too wonderful. Woke up, got ready and went to the ship. Thankfully I bought insurance and am now waiting for a check to defray our costs. Was it worth it to fly in the day of and save money? No way. The stress alone about killed me! Moral of story...the day before..:D I know you already made that decision I just to verify for you the wiseness of that decision.:D :)

[wrp96]

Wow, that's some travel luck there.

 

Note to self: Do not let Cam6959 make my travel arrangements. Also, make sure I am not on any flights that Cam6959 is booked on.:p

[Pomperaugrr]

We always try to fly in a day early. In March 2004, we sailed on the Adventure, out of San Juan. We flew in from JFK the day before. On the date we sailed, close to 200 passengers missed the sailing, due to an unexpected snow storm on east coast. We stayed in San Juan until 1:00 am, but had to leave finally. Most of those who missed the ship caught up with us in Aruba, two days later. :(

[temple1]

On our last cruise we flew in to Ft Lauderdale the day before our departure - rented a car and had the luxury of shopping and dining without having to worry about transportation. We dropped the rental car in Miami and took the rental agency shuttle to the ship. On our return we rented a car and spent the day sight seeing.

 

In the end - in addition to the flexibility = the 2 cars were much less than using the cruise lines shuttle from Ft Lauderdale to Miami.

[BobBeaSea]

Another vote for the day before. For the OP, you won't be alone if you fly in the day your ship departs, probably 90% who fly do it on the day the cruise starts.....might not do it on their second cruise though :).

[cleob]

My DH and I have been on two previous cruises and will be sailing out of San Juan in March. We flew to the ports the day of each previous cruise and after our last cruise we vowed to never do that again. Its way too nerve racking! When we took the Navigator in 2004 our flight (booked through the cruise line) was delayed and we were literally told to run to the desk to check in. We left within minutes of our boarding. The only upside of this was that we missed the muster drill which was already in progress when we boarded!

This cruise we're flying in the day before. With the unpredictable New England weather and massive flight delays we felt this would make for a less stressful beginning of our cruise.

[Cam6959]

Wow, that's some travel luck there.

 

Note to self: Do not let Cam6959 make my travel arrangements. Also, make sure I am not on any flights that Cam6959 is booked on.:p

 

Wrona I am hurt you would not question my travel arrangement abilities! :rolleyes: LOL MOST of the time I do really, really well....it is just when I see a really good deal sometimes,:p I just can't help myself and book the day of...okay I used to this ... last time I REALLY learned my lesson. Now I am totally trustworthy as far as booking at least the day ahead. :cool:

[jillybabes]

Another vote to fly in the day before...Living in Florida we usually drive to the port and spend the night before near the port so we can wake up and get to the ship as early as we can...Later, Jill:cool:

[Scorpiorose]

THE DAY BEFORE.....we made the miracle by 20 minutes, they had packed up the photo and ticket people.....literally 20 minutes! We had plenty of time but who knew American Air would have two planes, as it would happen our first one and our connecting one, break down mechanical problems......we had to hoof it......go the day before.

[ppfqp]

Day before, day before, day before. For our 2005 Disney cruise, my dh wanted to fly in the same morning. "What can happen???" he said. "It's the first flight out of the day, no connections, the plane will be waiting at the gate that morning and Southwest is always on time. It's springtime and weather won't be a problem."

 

Yeah right. The plane was at the gate, but there was no crew. We sat waiting in the airport. After an hour and a half, the crew showed up. They'd had weather delays the night before and had to get adequate rest (always important!). Finally, we were able to board, taxied out to the runway and then returned to the gate. There were thunderstorms in the Orlando area and the airport was under a hold. Got back off the plane, waited another hour, got back on the plane. A flight that was supposed to arrive at 9:30 didn't make it to Orlando until 2:00 pm.

 

There were numerous people on our flight trying to make connections to other ports for cruises. No luck - they all missed their ships.

 

We were lucky, though we finally arrived in Orlando several hours late, we made it to Port Canaveral and on the ship just in time for sailaway. We were fortunate, but very hungry, tired, stressed and haggard, and missed out on enjoying the whole process of embarkation and exploring the ship. Our embarkation picture shows the stress on our faces.

 

When it came time to plan our next cruise, there was NO argument from dh about going a day early! It's just not worth the risk - you never know what can happen and it's much more fun to enjoy embarkation day on the ship rather than spend the day it traveling to it.

[wrp96]

Wrona I am hurt you would not question my travel arrangement abilities! :rolleyes: LOL MOST of the time I do really, really well....it is just when I see a really good deal sometimes,:p I just can't help myself and book the day of...okay I used to this ... last time I REALLY learned my lesson. Now I am totally trustworthy as far as booking at least the day ahead. :cool:

 

 

I figured you would see the LOL in the message!;) I've had my own travel faux-pas myself, I don't need to add anyone else's bad travel luck added to it.

 

If you want to learn from mine, never give yourself only an hour for a connection at DFW, never book a flight home before noon after a cruise, and always have a change of clothes and toiletries in your carryon just in case you get an unexpected overnight somewhere.:p

[TahoeBob]

Sailing out of either Seattle or Van Couver. The ship is due to sail at 4:00 p.m. We will be flying in from Connecticut and are not sure if we should fly the same day or fly the day before. Travel agent said people do both....We will purchase the air thru the cruise line and not sure how all this works (this is our first cruise). We're thinking just to be sure we would fly the day before but don't want to spend the money if we don't have to (we'd rather spend the money on the excursions)! What happens if the airfare is booked thru the cruise line and due to the airline delays you get to the dock after the sail time? Comments and/or experiences are greatly appreciated...thank you.

 

On My first cruise on the vision in 2004 I met a family from Reno Nevada. (I live at Lake Tahoe 60 miles away) they had a flight that was to leave at Reno at 9:30 A.M. and its only a 1 hour 20 minute flight I flew the day before out of Sacramento, I was at our hotel in San Pedro by 6:30 P.M. had dinner spent some time by the pool in by bed by 11:00 got up had breakfast and was on the ship by 11:45.

 

back to the people from Reno well there flight was delayed in Reno do the heavest fog to hit Reno in over 50 years, they made it to the dock at 4:45 for a 5:00 sailing.

 

Take a guess who was stressed?

[phantom728]

If we are flying to a port, we always go the day before. Had we not done this on our first cruise...we would have missed our ship because of a large snow storm that blanketed from NJ to MI. It was such a relief when we saw the amount of folks that did miss the ship because of the storm.

[jevotm]

I cant stress enough, FLY THE DAY BEFORE! Then when you get on the ship you can relax rather than pass out from exhaustion.

[Cam6959]

Wrona I carry two days worth of clothing changes just in case my luggage doesn't make it. Like my first cruise -- 4 days until we had clothes. :eek: Thankfully, I was a fully prepared traveler :rolleyes: and had ordered everyone to pack two days worth in carry on. The one thing we didn't pack? Swimsuits and as EVERYONE knows cruise ships do not sell female swimsuits because of sanitary reasons. okay, everyone but me knows.... I do now! And I totally agree -- always have an hour and a half minimum between flights. :cool:LOL Anytime you need help planning your cruise let me know! I will be glad to help!

[Jeka]

Thanks....The day before sounds like what we should do. I am NOT a last minute/hurry around person and I would be a nervous wreck until we got on the ship (not to mention...cranky). Just was looking for opinions on what other people think...thanks again.......

 

And don't pay the cruise lines airfare!!!!! You can do a lot better. I'm not sure where in CT you are from but try Jet Blue, Southwest and delta. you'll save enough for the hotel room.

[TPKeller]

Well, nobody has mentioned it yet, so it is my honor and privilege to pull out the old "Pulling a Jamie" thread!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=391074

 

This is one of the most famous threads ever to be written here on Cruise Critic. This story had people on the edge of their seats, ducking out of work and other important appointments, for the better part of almost 10 hours one August day in 2006, generating 430 replies (280 in the first 10 hours... a rate of almost one reply every two minutes for 10 hours straight!), and as of today, nearly 43,000 views.

 

It takes a long time to read, but rest assured, once you do, you will never willingly fly in the same day again. :D

 

Theron

[Oville]

Well, nobody has mentioned it yet, so it is my honor and privilege to pull out the old "Pulling a Jamie" thread!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=391074

 

This is one of the most famous threads ever to be written here on Cruise Critic. This story had people on the edge of their seats, ducking out of work and other important appointments, for the better part of almost 10 hours one August day in 2006, generating 430 replies (280 in the first 10 hours... a rate of almost one reply every two minutes for 10 hours straight!), and as of today, nearly 43,000 views.

 

It takes a long time to read, but rest assured, once you do, you will never willingly fly in the same day again. :D

 

 

Theron

 

And everyone was so nice and supportive!!

[RWolver672]

We sail out on a saturday from Miami on our 09/27 Liberty cruise, and I can't get off work on friday until 5:30pm! Dag nab it!!! Would it still be better to fly in the day before late, late and spend a few hours in a hotel or would it be better to fly as early as we could on the day of?

 

We will be flying Southwest into Fort Lauderdale! Can't look at flight schedules until sometime around Feb/Mar 2008.

 

I would suggest flying out right after you got out of work. Even though you'll be cruising in the fall, it's right in the middle of hurricane season and there could be thunder storms that would delay your flights on cruising day. You can't board most ships until after noon so you'll still have lots of time to catch up on your sleep before boarding.

[pamssanity]

Sailing out of either Seattle or Van Couver. The ship is due to sail at 4:00 p.m. We will be flying in from Connecticut and are not sure if we should fly the same day or fly the day before. Travel agent said people do both....We will purchase the air thru the cruise line and not sure how all this works (this is our first cruise). We're thinking just to be sure we would fly the day before but don't want to spend the money if we don't have to (we'd rather spend the money on the excursions)! What happens if the airfare is booked thru the cruise line and due to the airline delays you get to the dock after the sail time? Comments and/or experiences are greatly appreciated...thank you.

 

Can't stress arriving the day before enough. Unless you have nerves of steel and a guarantee that your flight won't be cancelled or delayed or you won't hit bad weather. You're spending so much on the cruise-- a bit of insurance that you'll make the ship is invalable.

[wrp96]

Well, nobody has mentioned it yet, so it is my honor and privilege to pull out the old "Pulling a Jamie" thread!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=391074

 

This is one of the most famous threads ever to be written here on Cruise Critic. This story had people on the edge of their seats, ducking out of work and other important appointments, for the better part of almost 10 hours one August day in 2006, generating 430 replies (280 in the first 10 hours... a rate of almost one reply every two minutes for 10 hours straight!), and as of today, nearly 43,000 views.

 

It takes a long time to read, but rest assured, once you do, you will never willingly fly in the same day again. :D

 

Theron

 

Definitely one of the classic threads!!!:p