Day before or same day??

[ambushangel]

My DS 9 and I are doing the 4 day on March 13th, and I am now having second thoughts about flying down the same day we leave on the cruise.

I was lucky enough to get a direct flight, but at the time didn't realize the time we would be leaving in the morning. I am starting to wonder if we should not try and get a flight down the day before and just stay the night at MCO then go to port.

If anyone can share some suggestions, I would be very thankful.

 

[lbgraves]

This time of year there could be a storm anywhere in the country that can mess up flights all over. If you can rebook for the night before, it will take away so much stress for you making it to the ship. We always drive down the night before at the latest. I would rather spend a few hours sitting in a hotel room waiting to go to the terminal than be upset because we will miss the ship. JMO.

 

[dcandmc]

My family is on that same cruise. We are flying down the afternoon/evening before. Doing what you're doing would make me a nervous wreck, both from worrying about a flight delay and from getting up so early and rushing to get everything done on Sunday. By dinner time on Sunday, I would just be exhausted (and I have no doubt that the kids would be in meltdown mode).

 

[WDWLVR]

We've done both and even with great weather I would still prefer to fly down the day before. To get there same day we would have to wake up at 4 am to get to our early morning flight. Needless to say we are tired that first night. Better to fly in early and get a good nights sleep.

 

[Billinaz]

Without a doubt, the day before.

 

[banderson]

From a fellow Canadian, fly out the day before. The ship will not wait for you and quite, frankly, anything can go wrong. By flying out the day prior, you can always come up with a plan B if necessary.

Happy vacation!

 

[Verandah Man]

Another vote for arriving the day before if at all possible!!!

 

[tvguy]

Day before, without hesitation.

I work graveyard, and we flew out the day after Christmas. I had to work Christmas night, and because of the holiday got up at 9 am (pacific) Thursday morning, did Christmas, worked, packed, caught a noon flight on Friday, and since I can't sleep on planes, didn't go to bed again until 1:30 am (eastern) Friday night/Saturday morning at the hotel in Orlando. It was rough, but worth being there the day before.

 

[scrapperjill]

The day before....for sure. You never know what unexpected things may happen...delaying your travel plans. We once sat on an airplane for over an hour due to a fuel problem....only to be transfered to another plan....then to have the flight cancled altogether...You just never know...I'd rather have something come up and know I had at least 24hrs to make new plans...than arrive late..and have the ship gone.

 

[tink11]

Another vote for the day before. The weather can be so unpredictable this time of year in this area. Not to mention the possibility of a plane problem, or delay. We are cruising on the 27th of Feb., and i first booked to leave the same day as the cruise, the more I thought about it (and remembering hurricane Jeanne) I changed my flight to the day before. It cost me a little over a hundred dollars, but the peace of mind is worth it! Have a great cruise!

 

[mmouse37]

Yet another vote for the day before....we usually go down at least the day before but once we had no choice but to fly the day of...we were travelling with friends who had 2 small children and that day was a nightmare....up at 4:00am , 7 am flight...waiting for car service, checkin line, boarding line and by the time we boarded the ship at 1:00 pm we were all wiped out...not my idea of the best way to start the cruise!!!

Would not fly down day of again unless no other option was available....did you check prices for the day before and/or change fee charged by airline...is it doable??

MJ

 

[ambushangel]

Thanks everyone for the advice.

I talked to my TA and he said that it's probably not do-able.

He said that Disney only puts on one flight the of the cruise and he's not sure if there will be one the day before.

The more I talk to people, the more I regret not booking for the day before the cruise.

 

[fljelad]

I spent hours trying to find a flight that would get me to MCO on the day of before I realized that I would save myself a lot of grey hair and stomach acid if we went the day before! Not only did we save a total of $180 by flying on a Wednesday rather than a Thursday, our hotel for the extra night was only $60 with breakfast included! Such a deal!

 

[SeaSpray]

Can you cancel the air portion of the trip? I believe I've read about people doing that before. Do you already know which flights are available for you, for the day before, and the prices? I just wouldn't want you to cancel your current airfare only to find out the new airfare would be outrageous or booked solid.

 

[Aisling]

To the OP, it's better for all the mentioned reasons to go down the day before, but if you can't, don't worry. So many people fly in the same day and have no problems. I'm not a big traveler, but in our 5 trips to Orlando, we took early flights, and were never delayed.

I'm going to put up a poll and see the stats!

 

[rcumming]

We went on the 3 day cruise last June, we loved it BUT I got a flight out fo dallas the night b4, and needless to say that was a mistake. We ended having our flight cancelled after 2 hours on the run way. SO they had to re route us after we spent the night in the airport. Not an easy feat for us with a 1 year old dd. The next day we got on the flight to memphis then from there on to orlando. WE got there and had to wait in a long line for Alamo to give us our rental we had as we were staying after we got back. After standing in line for about 45 min (its about1:45pm by now, running behind schedule to catch the boat). We got out of line and got a rental from L&M who honored our rate. (I will use them again). WE finally were on our way. THen we got lost needless to say we go there about 4:00pm just in time.

This time when we go in June We are leaving in the morning 2 full days before we leave so that that never happens again for us.

Definately make your flight res. at least 2 days before if you can so that you wont be rushed and tired like us.

But our trip was wonderful

 

[mmouse37]

Oh...so you have DCL air booked....in that case do not worry about flying down the same day....I tought you were booked on your own. DCL is responsible for getting you to the ship...if for some reason you do not get to the ship that day, they will fly you to next port.

If you can and/or want to, cancel DCL air (it is usually cheaper to do on your own, except maybe a holiday week) and book your own if you still feel that uncomfortable.

MJ

 

[ambushangel]

When we booked with the TA, he booked everything through DCL. I guess they are taking care of everything (air, transportation to port, cruise).

I just thought it might be a little easier on my DS if we went down the day before.

I'm just a worry wart and don't want anything to go wrong.

 

[disneydad123]

I agree, fly dowm the day before. My family and I sailed on the 4 night Wonder Jan. 9 and we took a midnight flight from SLC. I will never do that again. We were so tired that I felt we completely lost the whole first day. After the sail away party we were napping.