Getting to San Diego airport after cruise

[Kesohio63]

Any recommendations for the best way to get to the airport in San Diego after our cruise on the Wonder in March? We aren’t flying home until the next day but will spend the night at one of the hotels near the airport. Just wondering if public transportation is doable with luggage or would a cab or uber be better.

 

[deanimal]

San Diego is one of the easiest cruise ports to access from the airport. There is a bus that goes pretty much directly from the port to the airport in about ten minutes. It is wheelchair accessable so I was able to roll right on with my suitcase and since I was travelling with two young kids it was nice to not have to worry about booster seats. I think it cost less than $2 per adult and the kids were free.

 

[cruisehopeful]

The cruise port, the airport and the local hotels are all very close. Personally, I would take taxi or a ride share. Your hotel will likely have a shuttle to the airport.

 

[Quellman]

We stayed at a hotel across from the Terminal. Was able to do lots of stuff in the immediate area. Took a ride share to the airport easy. As mentioned public transportation is easy too.

 

[hardcorestitch]

Any recommendations for the best way to get to the airport in San Diego after our cruise on the Wonder in March? We aren’t flying home until the next day but will spend the night at one of the hotels near the airport. Just wondering if public transportation is doable with luggage or would a cab or uber be better.

You need an Uber in this case. Uber has vehicles with the capacity for your luggage.

 

[TikiThunderPirates]

If you're doing carry on only, you can walk. There is a nice pedestrian path the entire way. It's 2.5 miles along the waterfront.

 

[deanimal]

If you're doing carry on only, you can walk. There is a nice pedestrian path the entire way. It's 2.5 miles along the waterfront.

I was thinking of doing this too since we only had one medium sized bag, but I let the kids wear themselves out at the awesome playground on the harbourfront so we took the bus. Some people seemed to think it was a bit odd. I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks this is a perfectly reasonable option!

 

[Carohs]

Yes, the bus is perfectly doable. Yes, an Uber is likely better. Distance from port to airport isn't all that far, is your hotel nearer or further than the airport from the cruise port? You may be better off heading to your hotel directly.

 

[Kesohio63]

We’re staying at the airport Hampton Inn and plan to spend the rest of the day sightseeing before we fly home the next day.

 

[DCLMP]

If you're doing carry on only, you can walk. There is a nice pedestrian path the entire way. It's 2.5 miles along the waterfront.

I never knew that. That would replace the jog around deck 4 before disembarking.

 

[Gre<3Disney]

Since you folks sound pretty knowledgeable about getting from the ship to the San Diego airport post cruise, I have a related question. DCL recommends not booking a flight earlier than 12:15 after our Pacific Coast cruise this fall. If we do Express Walk-off when the ship is cleared for disembarkation, do you think we would be able to make an 11:35 flight? That's the latest non-stop flight to our east coast airport other than a red-eye that evening. We sure would like to avoid that. Thank you in advance!

 

[TikiThunderPirates]

If we do Express Walk-off when the ship is cleared for disembarkation, do you think we would be able to make an 11:35 flight? If I

If the ship has no delays, yes. If the ship is delayed, might be cutting it tight. Does this happen? Yes. I've been on a cruise (arriving in San Diego) our debarkation was delayed several hours. Most people made it off by 10am. If you can get a quick Uber at 10am, you would be at the airport by 10:20am. 11:35am flight probably has last boarding around 10:50am. 30 minutes to get through security and get to your gate (that's without checking luggage) is tight in my opinion.
Will this happen to you?? Who knows. If the ship gets in as scheduled and you debark by 8am you will have plenty of time. What is the listed debarkation time for your cruise? If it's anything later than 9:00am, I'd personally be very hesitant, but there are lots of people who would take the chance.

 

[Gre<3Disney]

If the ship has no delays, yes. If the ship is delayed, might be cutting it tight. Does this happen? Yes. I've been on a cruise (arriving in San Diego) our debarkation was delayed several hours. Most people made it off by 10am. If you can get a quick Uber at 10am, you would be at the airport by 10:20am. 11:35am flight probably has last boarding around 10:50am. 30 minutes to get through security and get to your gate (that's without checking luggage) is tight in my opinion.
Will this happen to you?? Who knows. If the ship gets in as scheduled and you debark by 8am you will have plenty of time. What is the listed debarkation time for your cruise? If it's anything later than 9:00am, I'd personally be very hesitant, but there are lots of people who would take the chance.

The itinerary says 8:00am. To be honest, I wasn't even thinking about the possibility of the ship being delayed. We've sailed with DCL many times and never had that happen - but I know it can. Thank you for reminding me of that. I'll have to think long and hard about whether I want to take that risk. I don't want to be stressed out at the end of a relaxing cruise!
Thanks again for your reply!

 

[Carohs]

We’re staying at the airport Hampton Inn and plan to spend the rest of the day sightseeing before we fly home the next day.

Is that the one right by the waterfront? It's basically across the street, around the park, and across the street again. Very walkable from the ship.

 

[cruisehopeful]

If the ship has no delays, yes. If the ship is delayed, might be cutting it tight. Does this happen? Yes. I've been on a cruise (arriving in San Diego) our debarkation was delayed several hours. Most people made it off by 10am.

Seems like a San Diego problem. I boarded in San Diego once and the previous cruisers weren't allowed off the ship until 10am because of customs. Those of us attempting to board were in a long line in the sun for over an hour. The crew were visibly affected by the short window of time between people leaving and boarding.

OP, make sure you have a good backup plan if you are going to attempt the flight before noon. Everyone in your group should have TSA pre check, too.

 

[Kesohio63]

Is that the one right by the waterfront? It's basically across the street, around the park, and across the street again. Very walkable from the ship.

Good to know! It looks like there is also a bus that runs from the cruise port area to the airport.

 

[dllocals]

If the ship has no delays, yes. If the ship is delayed, might be cutting it tight. Does this happen? Yes. I've been on a cruise (arriving in San Diego) our debarkation was delayed several hours. Most people made it off by 10am. If you can get a quick Uber at 10am, you would be at the airport by 10:20am. 11:35am flight probably has last boarding around 10:50am. 30 minutes to get through security and get to your gate (that's without checking luggage) is tight in my opinion.
Will this happen to you?? Who knows. If the ship gets in as scheduled and you debark by 8am you will have plenty of time. What is the listed debarkation time for your cruise? If it's anything later than 9:00am, I'd personally be very hesitant, but there are lots of people who would take the chance.

Yes, we to experience a longer than expected delay in San Diego. We were off around 11:00!
Thankfully we drove our car. It’s best not to pressure yourself. Spending time in San Diego afterwards is a bonus.