Anyone missed the ship? How often?

[CruisinMermaid]

My family and I are flying out of San Diego 10:45 pm, due to arrive at Miami at 10:30 am the next morning. Our ship departs Ft. Lauderdale at 5 pm that day. That gives us a buffer of 6 1/2 hours should any complications or delays occur with our flight.

 

This is our first cruise from another port. We usually sail out of San Diego. Does anyone know how often people actually miss the ship because of a delayed flight?

[Keith1010]

I doubt most people hav statistics on this.

 

We usually suggest arriving to port the day before your cruise rather than flying in the day of the cruise. We say this so that if there are any major flight delays or cancellations you do not miss the ship.

 

If you have not firmed up your flight plans you might want to consider a flight earlier the day before. If that is not possible then hopeflly your flight will arrive on time or close to it.

 

Also, the day of embarkation all passengers need to be on their respective cruise ship a minimum of 90 minutes before departure.

 

Keith

[zebra36]

Probably a VERY SMALL percentage of people actually miss their boat, however, the feeling here is that most(?) do not want to take that chance and make arrangements accordingly. It looks like your arrangements include a connecting flight and depending on when your cruise is ie: winter? that may add a complicating factor.

[tcha]

We booked a flight that arrives in Tampa at 10 am for a 4 pm sailing. I'm bringing everything in a carryon, except snorkel gear. If the gear does not make it due to changing planes, will the airline (AirTran) send it to the ship at the next port?

[DebbieS732]

It does happen. A good friend was flying to Vancouver to catch a cruise to Alaska. They booked air through the cruise line. Due to a mechanical problem with the plane, they missed the ship and had to be flown into the 1st port of call. Fortunately, they had purchased the insurance.

 

A lot of it depends on what alternative flights are available should yours get delayed or canceled and whether you can get on one. I would definitely do some research and have a 'plan B' in mind, just in case. Airlines have drastically cut back on the number of flights they are offering per day.

[ohioNCLcruiser]

On our Hawaii cruise around 20-40 people missed the ship.

 

Cruisers from San Diego never made it though ;)

[paul929207]

We were on the Star Princess last spring and 30 or 40 people did not make it to Valpariso, Chile before we sailed. They joined us two days later at our first port.

[Chat Noir]

Flying in early for one cruise allowed us to accept a voluntary bump resulting in future airfare vouchers. Those vouchers paid complete airfare for the next year's cruise. We always fly in a day early, not only to ensure extra time, but now also in hopes of being able to accept a well compensated bump. :)

[kenish]

Since there are no SAN-MIA nonstops (that I can think of), hopefully the OP has adequate connect time, the connecting airport will not have WX problems, and the inbound flight that provides the plane for the MIA leg will not have any upline cancellations or delays. Also, 10:45pm is the last flight out of SAN for all the airlines. Realize if the flight is cancelled you will not get to MIA in time on the next flight in the morning unless the airline can put you on a nonstop out of LAX and you make a mad dash up I-5.

 

Flying in early for one cruise allowed us to accept a voluntary bump resulting in future airfare vouchers. Those vouchers paid complete airfare for the next year's cruise. We always fly in a day early, not only to ensure extra time, but now also in hopes of being able to accept a well compensated bump. :)

 

Be very wary of a promise to "Accomodate you on the next available flight". With all the capacity cuts, some have found this is a few days later! I wouldn't accept a vol unless without being confirmed on a later flight and a printed boarding pass.

 

Don't mean to sound like "Gloomy Gus" but it's the reality of air travel nowadays.

[grandmato4]

I've never read any actual stats on how many people miss their ship because of a delayed plane but unfortuantely it does happen and especially during bad weather in the winter but can happen any time due to mechanical failure and a host of other things that happens.

 

I remember watching the news before Christmas this year and they were interviewing many people at the Buffalo Airport that could not fly out- not because our airport was closed but because airports they had to make connections in were closed or the airports that the planes were coming from were closed so they were stranded in Buffalo when they were suppose to be in Florida leaving on their cruises. I sure did feel for those poor people:( Several had attempted to fly out the day before but when their flights were canceled were having trouble finding room on flights the next day to still make it to Florida before their ships sailed.

[world~citizen]

Probably a VERY SMALL percentage of people actually miss their boat, however, the feeling here is that most(?) do not want to take that chance and make arrangements accordingly. It looks like your arrangements include a connecting flight and depending on when your cruise is ie: winter? that may add a complicating factor.

 

Our cruise began in New Orleans. We booked our flight out of NYC 2 days early. We got to the airport and our flight was cancelled five minutes earlier. The snowstorm of the century hit and we were on the redial button for three days. We missed the ship and caught up with it at its first port (Cozumel).

 

Even in good weather, I absolutely positively do not understand people who fly overseas to meet a ship three hours after they get off the plane. They do though and I suppose it works.:eek:

 

We always plan to arrive at the departing port a day or so early.

[nho9504]

I normally dont pick last flight out because if the flight is cancelled, the nextflight out would be next day.

 

In your case, you also need to think about you are 3 hours BEHIND the eastern time - even if you can fly out the first flight next morning - you have a 5+ hours flight and 3 hours time difference, that means 8+ hours - a 7 o'clock departure would mean 3pm arrival at MIA the earliest - that is IF there is a direct flight from SAN to MIA departs at 7am.

 

Look at the scenario of in case a Plan B is needed - can you make it with the Plan B? that is the question you should ask, not if your current flight can make it or not. On paper, you have no problem taking your current flight. In reality, the last flight of the day often is not the smartest choice.

[SelectSys]

My family and I are flying out of San Diego 10:45 pm, due to arrive at Miami at 10:30 am the next morning. Our ship departs Ft. Lauderdale at 5 pm that day. That gives us a buffer of 6 1/2 hours should any complications or delays occur with our flight.

...

 

Your situation is almost identical to what we experienced this holiday season with disastrous results (i.e., we missed the boat.) Our flight situation was SAN-ATL-FLL on Airtran. We wanted to take this flight as this would avoid:

 

1) A drive to LA for the AA non-stop

2) Keeping the kids from missing school

3) Spending a bit more money

 

I thought is would be an easy trip to make with enough contingency in terms of time to make the connection. What I didn't think hard enough about is that SAN has a takeoff curfew.

 

Well this plane had a very minor mechanical issue which caused our aircraft to miss the SAN take off curfew and at that point I knew we missed the cruise. If we had been in LA on AA, it would have been corrected in 20 minutes and we would have been on our way. Even if the aircraft had a real issues, AA would have been likely to substitute another aircraft or had enough maintenance staff to get the aircraft to MIA in time.

 

The net effect for me was -

1) Missing 4 days of my cruise

2) Needing to buy 4 tickets to Cartagena CO on Dec 22 at the last minute (expensive)

3) Lots of other expenses unplanned for food and lodging.

4) Extra stress and headaches

 

If you really want to do the red eye remember the limitations of SAN - the curfew and airline staffing levels to correct problems quickly. If you really want to do the red eye my recommendation is to go from LA and do the non-stop on AA. My experience was a classic case of trying to be both "penny wise and pound foolish" and trying to take the easy way out (i.e., no drive to LAX.)

 

BTW -

 

Avianca (Columbia's carrier) is a well staffed airline and really provided a great service both on the ground and in the air. The aircraft while a bit old seemed well maintained and the efficiency of their hub operation in Bogota was great.

[kenish]

Select Sys- My post above yours was a hypothetical "what if" where I mentioned the curfew as something that could go wrong out of SAN. I was astonished to see it actually happened to someone...sorry to read about your experience!

 

I think residents local to SAN and SNA are curfew-aware since they are among the few US airports with stringent curfews.

[keltic]

Cruising is part of my job, I it has happened to me many times. I left the ship, I got on and off in the middle, and I usually leave home with a B plan. I normally make a list of airlines flying from departure point to the next port of all. I make a note with the reservation phones, schedules, and to get to the next call....in case something happens.

 

I tend to book cheap flights (or with good cancelation, changes alternatives) just in case I need altering my plans or buying a new ticket.

[SelectSys]

Select Sys- My post above yours was a hypothetical "what if" where I mentioned the curfew as something that could go wrong out of SAN. I was astonished to see it actually happened to someone...sorry to read about your experience!

 

I think residents local to SAN and SNA are curfew-aware since they are among the few US airports with stringent curfews.

 

I thought about both the curfew and fog but just not hard enough. I even looked to see what kind of aircraft AirTran used for SAN service to see if it would be an old aircraft. I actually went back and forth on the options before finally deciding to "save" $1000 and a trip to LAX by flying AirTran.

 

Bottom line - Given the time of year, airport, and selected my carrier I just didn't have any real practical back up. AA and B6 both had early morning non-stops that could have worked but were both way oversold.

 

To the OP - if your plan is still to do the red eye I would recommend flying from LAX.

[pcur]

I have been flying from CA to FL for cruises since 1973. I stopped flying in the same day about 11 years ago. My TA told me to only take red-eyes the night before to arrive the same morning as the cruise, because that way you have an entire day of potential flight delays to get to the ship. Red-eyes are usually not cancelled, because the delay just pushes the departure time to later in the night, but you still get in the arrival airport in the early morning.

 

We much prefer to fly in the day before and stay in an inexpensive hotel. It's about an extra $100 maximum, and we always get hotels with airport and cruiseport shuttles. Even if we have to pay for the trip to the cruiseport, it's about $30. We think this extra expense is well worth not having to worry about making the ship.

[kenish]

Peggy- Although your comments are true for most airports, the OP was asking about SAN. They have a very strict curfew...if your 1045pm departure is delayed by just a few minutes, it is NOT departing! That's what happened to SelectSys.

[pcur]

Hmm....SAN must be different than SFO and LAX, because I was late leaving both on red-eyes. But, if the OP doesn't fly out the day before and stay overnight, then I still think a red-eye would be the next best thing as opposed to the next morning.

[flhokie]

Hmm....SAN must be different than SFO and LAX, because I was late leaving both on red-eyes. But, if the OP doesn't fly out the day before and stay overnight, then I still think a red-eye would be the next best thing as opposed to the next morning.

 

 

SAN and SNA different from LAX and SFO. They both have strict curfews because of noise so nothing will leave or arrive after the curfew.

[SelectSys]

SAN and SNA different from LAX and SFO. They both have strict curfews because of noise so nothing will leave or arrive after the curfew.

 

SAN is VERY different from LAX and SFO. While LAX and SFO have multiple runways and 24 hour operations, SAN has but single runway. It is terrain limited with a short runway that make true long haul operations problematic. It sits on a small pocket of land and the primary departure path goes over very expensive coastal real estate which, as is the case of SNA, results in curfews forced onto operations of the operation.

 

Arrivals at SAN are permitted 24 hours/day. It is departures that are limited. Actually departures are allowed if the operator is willing to pay a fine. Airtran should have taken up a collection to allow the flight to go... I would have been willing to pay the $2k to let the plane take off (assuming a first violation in the reporting period)

 

Here are the rules:

http://www.san.org/airport_authority/airport_noise/faqs.asp

 

"What is a curfew violation, and how are they enforced?

 

The Airport Use Regulations (Regulations) for San Diego International Airport were adopted by the Board of Port Commissioners in 1989, and include Time of Day Restrictions (curfew). The curfew states that Stage 2 aircraft can depart from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Stage 2 aircraft have been phased out at San Diego International Airport as of January 1, 1999 for all regularly scheduled commercial, cargo, and commuter operators for their aircraft weighing more than 75,000 pounds. Stage 3 aircraft can depart between 6:30 a.m. and 11:30 p.m. Lifeguard, emergency flights, or flights for military necessity are permitted to operate as needed, and landings are permitted 24 hours a day at SDIA. When a violation of the curfew occurs, the Curfew Violation Review Panel (CVRP), comprised of Airport Authority staff from several departments, meets to decide whether or not the operator should be fined for the violation. The administrative fines for violations of the curfew are: $2,000 for the first violation by a particular operator in a compliance period; $6,000 for the second violation in a compliance period; and, $10,000 for the third violation in a compliance period. Each compliance period is six (6) calendar months. Here is a more detailed description of the Airport Use Regulations."