Flying in the same day as cruise

[Diznerd13]

My family and I are going on the fantasy on April 2. We will be flying into Orlando the day of the cruise. We have done this before but I've been reading so much about people flying in the night before that I'm getting a little freaked out about our cruise.

Opinions?
Do a lot of people fly in the night before?
Anybody else fly in on the day of your cruise?
Are we crazy???

 

[CScott095]

We fly in the Thursday before a Sunday cruise. We live in Colorado so we lose two hours, we spend two days at the parks, and if there are luggage issues, we have time to resolve them.

 

[TrySomethingNew]

If you bought air through Disney- they will get you to the boat. But, it is risky otherwise since a delay could cause you to miss the ship. Direct flight is generally better to reduce your risk, as is leaving earlier in the morning. Really it depends on what you are comfortable with. Good luck!

 

[MuppetBaby]

Flying in the day of scares me way too much. We fly fairly often and have been delayed for everything from lightening to fog to mechanical issues to hurricanes and snow. I've had delayed/lost bags and traffic issues.

We fly in on Saturday morning for a Monday Dream departure. That still allows us time to drive down in case there are flight issues.

 

[TeaBee]

My family and I are going on the fantasy on April 2. We will be flying into Orlando the day of the cruise. We have done this before but I've been reading so much about people flying in the night before that I'm getting a little freaked out about our cruise.

Opinions?
Do a lot of people fly in the night before?
Anybody else fly in on the day of your cruise?
Are we crazy???

We fly in the night before because we're flying from the west coast and would have to take a red eye to make it otherwise. Also, if something crazy happened and we missed one flight, we'd still be able to hopefully catch another scheduled flight out and still make it. What time does your flight arrive? Is there any wiggle room for flight delays/cancellations?

 

[Shanti]

We flew in same morning as our cruise which sailed from Miami. We really liked going straight from the airport to the ship, & not having to worry about an overnight stay.

I'm fine with flying day-of under these conditions:

• Flight is early-morning (preferably among the first flights of the day, so projected arrival is several hours before embarkation deadline.) Our flight timing was such that even if it had been 5 hours late, we would have made the cruise. 5 hours is extremely unlikely first thing on a clear morning, of course. Most delays happen later in the day or are due to forseeable weather issues (such as winter snowstorms up north, or fog in areas prone to fog).
• Flight is nonstop (reduces likelihood of baggage or weather issues).
• Flight does not occur in a time/place prone to weather issues that might affect a flight. (We flew from Texas in winter, where weather is typically mild at that time of year.) The fact that we flew the earliest flight time from our airport meant we likely wouldn't have to worry about the plane coming in from somewhere else.

 

[Diznerd13]

We have a 645 am direct flight from Pittsburgh. We did this same flight for our cruise 2 years ago and had no problems.

 

[c todd]

Most likely, you'll be fine but how would you feel if you didn't make it? I really wanted to fly in the same day, it's so much easier and cheaper. It's only a two hour flight, could get in in the morning and go straight to the ship. But after really thinking about it, it just wasn't worth taking the chance of missing the boat. It's not like we would only miss a day, we wouldn't be able to get on the ship unless we met it 3 days later on an island. Air travel is so crazy these days, why chance it?

 

[Weedy]

What time is your flight? What time will you need to get to the airport? Leave your house? Get up that morning? That's a hard way to start a vacation. You may be too tired to enjoy the first night of the cruise.

 

[southerngirl528]

We have a 645 am direct flight from Pittsburgh. We did this same flight for our cruise 2 years ago and had no problems.

Sounds like you have a good scenario for flying in day of cruise but I personally would never do it. I have worked in the travel industry in the past and booked hundreds of Disney cruises. I can't count the number of times that I have heard travel horror stories. Before that job I had NEVER purchased travel insurance. After several years of working in the business, I now do insure almost all high end vacations, like a cruise. I hope all goes well for you and your travel so that you have no reason to stress.

 

[The Sasquatch]

Waaaaay too much risk...

One "mechanical" issue and you are done

 

[starrydominique]

Both my parents and inlaws flew in the afternoon before on our last cruise. They also didn't want to risk it. They did a fly, snooze, and cruise hotel package and everything went super smooth and they got to spend an extra afternoon on Cocoa Beach.

 

[Ensusieasm]

My family and I are going on the fantasy on April 2. We will be flying into Orlando the day of the cruise. We have done this before but I've been reading so much about people flying in the night before that I'm getting a little freaked out about our cruise.

Opinions?
Do a lot of people fly in the night before?
Anybody else fly in on the day of your cruise?
Are we crazy???

We always fly in the day before the cruise just because of flight delays and because we always cruise this time of year and love to see Flower and Garden at Epcot.

 

[princessmommyx3]

Chances are you will be fine, people do it all the time with no issues. But, there is always a chance things could go wrong. I once had a 7:00 am direct flight (not for a cruise) and couldn't think of a possible scenario of how I could be delayed. Well, at 6:30, the gate attendant announced there would be a 2 hour delay due to crew rest requirements. I think their flight the night before had come in late.

Also, on our last cruise, there was a family ahead of me at guest service on day 3 (Cozumel, our first port day) who had just boarded the ship in Cozumel because mechanical issues had delayed their flight the morning of the cruise and they missed the ship.

If you can't change your plans, I suggest just thinking positive and try not to worry. Most likely everything will be fine.

 

[Uncleromulus]

Most likely--

 

[NancyIL]

Chances are you will be fine, people do it all the time with no issues. But, there is always a chance things could go wrong. I once had a 7:00 am direct flight (not for a cruise) and couldn't think of a possible scenario of how I could be delayed. Well, at 6:30, the gate attendant announced there would be a 2 hour delay due to crew rest requirements. I think their flight the night before had come in late.

Also, on our last cruise, there was a family ahead of me at guest service on day 3 (Cozumel, our first port day) who had just boarded the ship in Cozumel because mechanical issues had delayed their flight the morning of the cruise and they missed the ship.

If you can't change your plans, I suggest just thinking positive and try not to worry. Most likely everything will be fine.

For my May 2013 flights to Houston for the Transatlantic out of Galveston - the plane arrived late at my home airport the night before, so my first flight to Dallas was delayed leaving. That caused me to miss my scheduled connecting flight, and the flight I was put on was also delayed. I arrived in Houston 3 hours late. Fortunately, I arrived 2 days prior to my cruise - otherwise I would've missed the boat!

When I cruise out of Port Canaveral in December, I'll spend a few days at WDW first. I'm shopping for airfare now, and plan to arrive 3 or 4 days early.

 

[Allison]

Nope, too much risk for me. A cancelled or delayed flight could result in missing the cruise.

 

[Meriweather]

I always do the day before now.
Seen too many people miss their cruise and have to fly to the next port.
And once we had a mechanical issue that cost us 6 hours, so not chancing it anymore

 

[RedSox68]

Honestly, it depends on your comfort zone with timing and flying. We have had delays from our airport several times -- one because of mechanical and one because of a tower electrical problem -- that delayed our take off. One time we idled so long on the ground that the plane couldn't make it to Orlando and they had to land to refuel at another airport (this was supposed to be a direct flight). But each time we were flying in the day before and all it did was cause us to lose a dinner reservation.

We have never flown in the day of because we fear any delay or redirection will cause panic and possibly a missed cruise. The pier is about 2 hours from the airport also, so it takes a while to get there once on the ground. I just think flying in the day before is a nice safety net. That kind of stress is no way to start your vacation.

 

[Capt_BJ]

"comfort level" agree 110%

We've flown 'day of' many times with no problems. And flown day before and enjoyed the lower stress. Other factors:

time of the year and where you are leaving from - how likely are weather delays

how many flights from your starting point - how difficult to get re-routed if needed

direct flight or intermediate stops

heck, a lot of folks who drive, arrive early just in case too

but I suspect that if a poll was taken of everyone on the ship you'd find the 'day before crowd' is WAY under 50% and I base that on hotel occupancy in the port area.

best solution? Move like we did - it is now a 30 minute ride to the port!