Car rental from port canaveral to port of Miami

[mbbarron]

My cousins who are traveling with us on our Dream cruise in 3 weeks
need some tips on the best car rental picking up from Port Canaveral and dropping off at Port of Miami. (Yes, they're a little crazy to get off a Disney ship and get onto "another" ship but it is Thanksgiving week so better deals on other ships were available.)

So far they're only finding a rate through Alamo in the $80 range for a one day rental.

Any help fellow Disers?

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

That doesn't sound like an outrageous price. One way rentals are always expensive.

You can find other options Googling "transportation from Port Canaveral to Port of Miami."

 

[LWQuestie]

I'm guessing they'll need the car on 11/20? If that's correct, they can get an economy or compact from Budget for $68. That was without trying to apply any coupons.

I chose the pickup location at Port Canaveral - CC5 - and drop off in Miami Beach - M1B. There is a slightly closer drop off location, but it closes at 12 noon on Sundays.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

As far as I know Alamo does not have a rental location near Port Canaveral.

Budget has a location near the port. We have used them and they will pick you up at the ship. There is a designated waiting area for them. Just collect the luggage and ask a CM where the pick up area is. Budget runs 3-4 shuttle vans to the port on the days that ships arrive, to shuttle folks over to their rental office which is just a few miles away. The shuttle is free.

When we used them the price was $40 for a one day rental and gas.

FYI...Most rental car companies in Florida do not charge a one-way rental surcharge. We have used Alamo, Budget, Dollar & Avis and have never been charge a one way fee.

One other thing. As the pick up date gets closer car rental companies often have last minute rental rate specials.

 

[mbbarron]

Do you know if the Miami Beach drop off location offers a shuttle to the Port of Miami? I also have to check to see if they're open that AM. 12 Noon is not a problem as I'm sure they'll want to be on the ship by then but forgot to mention that drop off day is Thanksgiving day! Don't know how many non-airport locations will be open that AM.

 

[phred52]

Do you know if the Miami Beach drop off location offers a shuttle to the Port of Miami? I also have to check to see if they're open that AM. 12 Noon is not a problem as I'm sure they'll want to be on the ship by then but forgot to mention that drop off day is Thanksgiving day! Don't know how many non-airport locations will be open that AM.

My first thought is that noon WILL be a problem

You have to think about what time you might be off the first ship, gather luggage and get through customs. 8:00 ? 8:30? 9:00??

Then you must wait for the shuttle to the car rental .... then very often you must wait in line to rent the car .....(think too, about how many other people are getting off multiple cruise ships at the same time and renting a car at the same place with one or two agents handling all the rentals )

Then drive to Miami. I'm thinking that driving from one port to the other will take 3.5 or more hours depending on traffic...

I don't think there's a shot of making that noon deadline.

 

[LWQuestie]

Do you know if the Miami Beach drop off location offers a shuttle to the Port of Miami? I also have to check to see if they're open that AM. 12 Noon is not a problem as I'm sure they'll want to be on the ship by then but forgot to mention that drop off day is Thanksgiving day! Don't know how many non-airport locations will be open that AM.

I think that Thanksgiving Day drop-off is going to be the problem. I checked about 4 Miami locations near the cruise port and they are all closed. Dollar charges a $200 (!!!!!!!) one-way drop fee. National might be an option, but I didn't look into that one.

 

[mbbarron]

They have a day in between when they get off one ship and get onto the next, so noon arrival at port won't be a problem. They get off the Disney Dream on Nov. 23rd and get onto a Celebrity ship on Nov. 24th (Thanksgiving). I've told them to just drop off the car at MIA airport location, and that there should be shuttles to the port. They want to find a location closest to the port to drop off but I agree that Thanksgiving day might be a problem.

Anybody else have a suggestion?

 

[LWQuestie]

They have a day in between when they get off one ship and get onto the next, so noon arrival at port won't be a problem. They get off the Disney Dream on Nov. 23rd and get onto a Celebrity ship on Nov. 24th (Thanksgiving). I've told them to just drop off the car at MIA airport location, and that there should be shuttles to the port. They want to find a location closest to the port to drop off but I agree that Thanksgiving day might be a problem.

Anybody else have a suggestion?

I think you are misunderstanding why noon came up in the first place.

I was trying to guess the date of the car rental drop off and the first date I guessed was 11/20, which was a Sunday. (Clues: three weeks away; Thanksgiving week)

We were assuming that your family members wanted to leave the Disney Cruise, rent a car, drive directly to Miami and get on another cruise on the same day. The issue with this was that the rental agencies in the Miami cruise port area were all listed as closing at noon on Sunday, and we didn't think it would be possible to get there from Port Canaveral and drop off the car before noon.

Since that's not the case, none of the original advice is relevant!

I guess my point, for those playing at home, more information is better than less!