Late arrival to FLL, getting to Miami

[Partyof4LA]

Our cruise is out of Port of Miami. We fly into Fort Lauderdale the night before, not landing until 10:20pm. We need to get from FLL airport to Hampton Inn Brickell-downtown Miami, then to port in the morning. After the cruise, we are staying at Doubletree in Hollywood for 2 nights then flying back home from FLL. We plan to do an Everglades tour, but otherwise will likely relax at the beach and pool.

This is our first time in FLL or Miami and I need some advise on the best way to get from one point to another. I've searched and see most everyone recommends shuttles such as SAS, but they don't do airport pickup after 3pm.

 

[dskib]

Were renting a car. $55. Going to return it and take the shuttle to the ship.

 

[Partyof4LA]

I looked into a rental for the first leg. With parking fees at the hotel, it was pushing $100. I would like to see if there is a more convenient option. The last cruise from port canaveral, we took magical express from airport to wdw resort. Then private transportation from wdw to port, then dcl shuttle back to airport. I never drove. It was very nice. I'm just not familiar with FLL, Miami, or Hollywood to know what's out there.

To rent a car, we would have to get on shuttle to rental place at the airport, wait to do paperwork, wait for the car, install a car seat, then drive somewhere I've never been late at night all while very tired. Then the morning of the cruise, have to fight the crowds at the counter to return the car and wait for an open shuttle (I've done that before in port canaveral and it was miserably busy at the rental place). That all seems like a big to-do to have the car less than 12 hours.

I certainly don't mind renting a car after the cruise for our two nights in Hollywood. We would be more rested and have more time at that point.

 

[danielocha30]

The distance is long, reconsider renting a car, even UBER will be expensive.

 

[Shanti]

I looked into a rental for the first leg. With parking fees at the hotel, it was pushing $100. I would like to see if there is a more convenient option. The last cruise from port canaveral, we took magical express from airport to wdw resort. Then private transportation from wdw to port, then dcl shuttle back to airport. I never drove. It was very nice. I'm just not familiar with FLL, Miami, or Hollywood to know what's out there.

To rent a car, we would have to get on shuttle to rental place at the airport, wait to do paperwork, wait for the car, install a car seat, then drive somewhere I've never been late at night all while very tired. Then the morning of the cruise, have to fight the crowds at the counter to return the car and wait for an open shuttle (I've done that before in port canaveral and it was miserably busy at the rental place). That all seems like a big to-do to have the car less than 12 hours.

I certainly don't mind renting a car after the cruise for our two nights in Hollywood. We would be more rested and have more time at that point.

Maybe rent the car for the entire trip? That way it would be waiting for you at the port right after the cruise. That would be a convenient option, though not cheap. Have you looked into any of those rental car programs in which you can bypass the rental car desk and just go straight to collect your rental? I know Hertz offers that, at least at some locations.

Maybe change your hotel to one that allows free parking?

 

[rcchello]

You could switch to a hotel close to FLL (with hotel shuttle service) and catch a shuttle to the port the next day. Do you really want to arrive at your hotel in Miami after midnight?

 

[twoprincesses12]

We just did the trip between FLL and Port of Miami for a cruise. Uber was less than $40 each way. We stayed at a Boutique hotel in Ft. Lauderdale and grabbed Uber the morning of. We also took an Uber to Total Wine in Ft. lauderdale to get some nice bottles for the cruise.

 

[Partyof4LA]

We get a team member discount at Hilton hotels, the Miami hotel is only $35. I know it's nice enough, clean, and has breakfast. There weren't any in/near FLL that could compare to that so switching hotels isn't something we want to do. I am ok getting to the hotel after midnight. We can sleep in later the morning of the cruise so it's fine.

I don't mind paying for rental + parking fee for hotel, it just seems like it's quite a bit of a hassle to get a car for less than 12 hours. I got the info for a guy who does private transportation in Orlando on these boards (not one of the major companies) and have used him on 3 trips. He's picked us up from the airport late at night before for a universal trip. I was hopeful that someone had recommendations for something similar in FLL.

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll look into the costs of renting a car to keep for the whole week and parking it at the port during the cruise. Seems that's the only easy-ish option given how late we land in FLL.

 

[Partyof4LA]

For those who have done Uber, how reliable is it that we would be able to get a ride that late? I've never used Uber, but looked into it a bit and it says you can't pre-request a ride FROM the airport. I would consider that to get to Miami, but don't want to be stuck without a ride

 

[TikiThunderPirates]

As a reference, taxis are around d $75.00 from FLL to Miami Cruise Terminals for a standard size. I always find it nice to know a taxi price incase all else fails. You can pretty much always get a taxi at an airport. Even late at night.

 

[FigmentSpark]

Until you've finalized your plans, keep checking the prices of rental. They seem to change all the time, even by the hour. The ones at airports especially play that game. Don't book a final price, just book a reservation and if a better deal happens or your change your mind, just cancel the res you made.

I went from a $698 minivan rental for 12 days out of MCO to $297 for the same just by watching the prices. As the trip was within 3 weeks, prices were literally changing by the hour. I checked 3 times a day for a week until prices started going up again in the last week. It's crazy, but it's an option and if you have the time to watch the prices, it can pay off. Even this year, our booked price for a 12 day van started at $890CAD and is down to $553CAD and that's out of Toronto airport (we're driving this year), so it's not just MCO that has crazy changes.

As someone else mentioned, price out a rental to park at the port (+ parking fees) and then you can decide if it's worth the peace of mind, given the ubers or other transportation you'll need.

 

[RedSox68]

Our cruise is out of Port of Miami. We fly into Fort Lauderdale the night before, not landing until 10:20pm. We need to get from FLL airport to Hampton Inn Brickell-downtown Miami, then to port in the morning. After the cruise, we are staying at Doubletree in Hollywood for 2 nights then flying back home from FLL. We plan to do an Everglades tour, but otherwise will likely relax at the beach and pool.

This is our first time in FLL or Miami and I need some advise on the best way to get from one point to another. I've searched and see most everyone recommends shuttles such as SAS, but they don't do airport pickup after 3pm.

Just started researching this as we are doing the same thing next year.

 

[anricat]

There are other shuttle companies that work out of FLL, not just SAS (who we had a bad experience with, for what it's worth). Have you tried Jiffy Jeff (http://www.gojiffyjeff.com) or FG Car Services (http://fgcarservices.com)?

 

[richmo]

You could switch to a hotel close to FLL (with hotel shuttle service) and catch a shuttle to the port the next day. Do you really want to arrive at your hotel in Miami after midnight?

This is what we did. We had a late evening arrival at FLL, rented an Alamo car and stayed at a Hampton Inn just south of FLL off of I-95. The next morning we took a leisurely drive down A1A (instead of rush hour on I-95), drove to MIA International Airport, dropped the car off and took the free Alamo shuttle to the port. Did the reverse going home (except didn't stay at the Hampton, just flew home from FLL)

 

[RedSox68]

This is what we did. We had a late evening arrival at FLL, rented an Alamo car and stayed at a Hampton Inn just south of FLL off of I-95. The next morning we took a leisurely drive down A1A (instead of rush hour on I-95), drove to MIA International Airport, dropped the car off and took the free Alamo shuttle to the port. Did the reverse going home (except didn't stay at the Hampton, just flew home from FLL)

The A1A is a lovely drive! Good tips.

 

[ajo]

We flew to FLL and stayed at an airport hotel. Used Jiffy Jeff the next morning to get to the POM. Worked great!

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I looked into a rental for the first leg. With parking fees at the hotel, it was pushing $100. I would like to see if there is a more convenient option. The last cruise from port canaveral, we took magical express from airport to wdw resort. Then private transportation from wdw to port, then dcl shuttle back to airport. I never drove. It was very nice. I'm just not familiar with FLL, Miami, or Hollywood to know what's out there.

To rent a car, we would have to get on shuttle to rental place at the airport, wait to do paperwork, wait for the car, install a car seat, then drive somewhere I've never been late at night all while very tired. Then the morning of the cruise, have to fight the crowds at the counter to return the car and wait for an open shuttle (I've done that before in port canaveral and it was miserably busy at the rental place). That all seems like a big to-do to have the car less than 12 hours.

I certainly don't mind renting a car after the cruise for our two nights in Hollywood. We would be more rested and have more time at that point.

Personally I'd stay at a hotel near FLL that offers a free shuttle. Then you only have to deal with one set of transfers to get to the ship instead of 2.

 

[richmo]

Personally I'd stay at a hotel near FLL that offers a free shuttle. Then you only have to deal with one set of transfers to get to the ship instead of 2.

Problem there is the OP is sailing out of Miami. There are several hotels near FLL that have free shuttles to Fort Lauderdale port, but Miami port is 30-40 miles away - I doubt any free shuttles to Miami are available.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Problem there is the OP is sailing out of Miami. There are several hotels near FLL that have free shuttles to Fort Lauderdale port, but Miami port is 30-40 miles away - I doubt any free shuttles to Miami are available.

Sorry, I should have clarified. I mean since OP is flying into FLL, there are many hotels close to the airport that will pick them up at FLL. Currently OP is looking for transfers from FLL to Miami hotel and again from Miami hotel to port.
My way gets them a very short, free ride to a hotel which they will be tired late at night, then they only need to find transfers in am to the port. It's no further than MCO to PC so it shouldn't be hard to find. It would take an hour max. If they decide to rent a car at FLL, there would be minimal driving late at night in the dark. If they pack right, they could leave their cruise luggage in the trunk and just bring a small bag from the car with clothes for the next day. (In cases like this, I usually just bring cheapy toothbrushes from the Dollar Store and toss them for minimal repacking in the am.) A lot of these hotels offer free breakfast too.

Even if they want to stick with Hampton Inn (to use points maybe?) there is one with a free FLL shuttle very close to FLL.
http://hamptoninn3.hilton.com/en/ho...ruise-port-FLLANHX/maps-directions/index.html

jmho.

 

[SplashMom]

We are doing something similar and I haven't made my decision yet. We are flying into FLL and I have reserved the Home 2 Suites by Hilton at the FLL airport. We are planning to get the hotel shuttle from the airport to the hotel (we have a late arrival). We have a car rented but I'm not sure we want to drive to Miami. We have four days before the cruise and I can't decide whether to stay in Fort Lauderdale or stay in Miami. Both hotels are booked for now. I've been checking out shuttles (Jiffy Jeff and QLS) from FLL to the hotel in Miami (Hampton Inn Bricknell). We can then just get a cab on cruise day. I've been going back and forth about staying in Fort Lauderdale or Miami, what transportation to use, and whether to rent a car or not. I change daily, lol. I'm not normally an indecisive person but we've never cruised from here before and I want to do the easiest thing, but something we will enjoy. I'm watching to see what you will do, lol!