departure ports - Miami, Fort Lauderdale or Port Canaveral
 

I have never been on a cruise & am trying to plan a trip for this summer. We would have to fly to a departure port. Does it matter which port we use? How far is each of the above from the local airport? How easy to get there? Anything else I should consider?

Miami & Fort Lauderdale airports are very close to the port but Port Canaveral isn't. Port Canaveral uses the Orlando airport which is a good 60 miles or so from the port. With this airport you have the added expense of just getting to the port. Check out a map of Florida and you'll se how far the port is from Orlando (where Disney World is). I would reccomend flying in the day before and staying at a hotel with a shuttle to the port. That way you know you'll make the ship and won't get delayed for any reasons which can and does happen!

Sail out of either Fort Lauderdale or Miami. Forget Port Canaveral. If you find a Western Caribbean itinerary that you like (as well as a ship), then Tampa might be a good option to consider as well. But not many ships sail from Tampa.

My preference is Fort Lauderdale over Miami. More choices, better facilities, easier city to get in and out of.

We flew to MIA, cruised from MIA, back home from FLL - it's only maybe 1/2 hour difference on a shuttle, and not much $$ difference.

Check how easy it is to get to MIA or FLL from your home airport, direct flights or layovers, price difference.

We have cruised out of Miami two or the maximum of three times and each time I swear never again!!! Why, the airport is chaotic and the people at the port are the rudest we've ever run into.. On the other hand our experiences in Ft. Lauderdale have been much more positive. NYC is a dream...seriously, the people there are the most helpful and kindest men and woman we have run into. Boston, our home port is a breeze, but I realize that is not probably on your itinerary.. In Boston..you fly to Logan Airport,take a taxi through the tunnel and your there... or you drive to the port and unload with the help of the porters your luggage and drive across the road to a covered garage.. and that's it.. Rather than sail out of Florida we cross the atlantic for trans-atlantic cruises...no fuss, no muss.

Jeri:

You don't mention where you live, but there are a lot of home ports these days, so do check and see if you can find one within driving distance. See: http://allthingscruise.com/cruise-re...parture-ports/ for a map. There are links to cruises departing from each port as well.

That said, if you're flying in anyway, I wouldn't focus as much on the port as I would about finding a cruise that really excites you at a price you like. Finding flights that are convenient and reasonably priced are also an issue. (I like Kayak.com for flight searches).

All of that said, there's a good chance you'll end up at either Miami or Lauderdale. Lots of cruise options as well as a lot of flights in and out. As Orlando gets more Disney traffic in the summer, you might find better flight options to these cities as well.

Come back and post when you decide!

Thanks for the helpful responses. I live in the Washington, DC area, so there are lots of flights to either FLL or MIA. Definitely going to cross Port Canaveral off the list. The distance sounds like it's just an unnecessary hassle.

Wish I could leave from Baltimore, triathlete, but the only cruises from there in June don't have itineraries we like - lots of at sea days and ports in the Bahamas where we've already visited. You can look at the cruises I've narrowed it down to in my newer post, "help us pick a first cruise - Caribbean in June"

BTW, I have to ask about your handle, Dayenu. Are you a Passover fan? Of course, there is never enough traveling, so how did you pick the name?

Jeri:

Just another thought or two that I hope may be helpful to you. If you check the air travel forum, you will see many rants, including my own, about MIA. While there may be some improvement when the rebuilt Terminal A reopens, it presently is, IMHO, a very unpleasant airport, both for arrivals and departures.

While this situation may have been changed with the basing of several mega-ships at FLL, it generally has been easier to get transportation from there to the airport. E.g. we arrived at the Miami Cruise Terminal one morning when several other ships arrived. We had only our roll on baggage and naively walked off our ship early in the morning and got a cab to the airport. During our trip, we heard the dispatcher request 300 cabs at the cruise terminal.

If you are departing from Miami, and can get someone to share the cost, renting a car at either airport and driving to the terminal area may be the most convenient way to get there. Avis and Hertz have agencies close to the terminal with a free shuttle to any ship in the port. This also has the benefit of convincing any nervous flyer that the most dangerous part of the flight is transportation to and from the airport.

I agree with ParrotMom. We willl never fly out of MIA again. The personnel there were so rude - yelling at everyone to get in line - or have you ticket ready - or put your suitcase here and this was an ordinary day - no flight delays etc. Usually I behave myself but the woman who was at the desk was so rude I found myself telling her she was treating us all like cattle.(that didn't even phase her) FLL on the otherhand was so easy.