Lots of questions, please help - trip insurance, Deck 2, and Miami port to FLL

[Tulip2796]

As we go back and forth about whether to book a TA sailing, more and more logistical questions come up. I figured it best to just post all of them in one thread.

Trip insurance - I'd definitely get insurance since the cruise is so long (13d) and you just never know. But since it's a one-way, we'd like to add on several days at the end in Spain. Can I get insurance that covers both the cruise portion and the land part? And where do I start to look?

Deck 2 - I'm seeing that our room choices are quite limited. No verandahs so we'd have to get an Oceanview. And on Deck 2. We really prefer the higher decks and a verandah as that's what we know. Deck 2 just seems so close to the water. Do people generally like Deck 2? It's a long cruise so we wouldn't want to have a room situation we really didn't like.

And last, we'd drive to Miami (it's long but easier I think than dealing with a flight) to board the ship but our flight back would be to FLL. Logistically, any ideas on how best to do this? Park at the port and get back to port from FLL when we get back, initially leave car at FLL airport and find a way to ship? Between parking for approx 18 days and getting between 2 places I don't know what would be most cost effective and convenient. Thank you all!

 

[eeyoreandtink]

You could rent a car one way to drive, then fly to your home airport.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

As we go back and forth about whether to book a TA sailing, more and more logistical questions come up. I figured it best to just post all of them in one thread.

Trip insurance - I'd definitely get insurance since the cruise is so long (13d) and you just never know. But since it's a one-way, we'd like to add on several days at the end in Spain. Can I get insurance that covers both the cruise portion and the land part? And where do I start to look?

Deck 2 - I'm seeing that our room choices are quite limited. No verandahs so we'd have to get an Oceanview. And on Deck 2. We really prefer the higher decks and a verandah as that's what we know. Deck 2 just seems so close to the water. Do people generally like Deck 2? It's a long cruise so we wouldn't want to have a room situation we really didn't like.

And last, we'd drive to Miami (it's long but easier I think than dealing with a flight) to board the ship but our flight back would be to FLL. Logistically, any ideas on how best to do this? Park at the port and get back to port from FLL when we get back, initially leave car at FLL airport and find a way to ship? Between parking for approx 18 days and getting between 2 places I don't know what would be most cost effective and convenient. Thank you all!

Insurance - you can cover whatever non-refundable expenses you have on any trip. It's best to use a 3rd party insurance company, as DCL insurance won't cover anything that's not paid through DCL. We get travel insurance for the medical/evacuation coverage as most US health plans don't cover out of country. There are several travel insurance comparison sites you can use. Just google that and once on one of the sites, you put in the parameters of what you want covered (dates, amounts) and they'll show you many different company's policies you can compare.

I love deck 2. We've only stayed on deck 2 on the Magic (and Wonder) for those cruises on that class ship. So convenient to debarking in ports, and it's much easier to catch an elevator at the start of the run than in the middle of it. Very handy - one or two decks up to dining rooms/entertainment venues, also.

I'd probably look into parking at the airport (they might have long term lots that are typically less cost than parking directly at the airport), and getting transportation to a port-close hotel the day before the cruise.

 

[Geomom]

We stayed in a 9C category oceanview room (2116) on Deck 2 on the Wonder for our Alaska Cruise. Loved the location so much we're booked just down the hall from there for our upcoming Magic cruise. 2116 was right at the aft elevators--easy to go up 1-2 floors for the MDR's, 2 floors to the promenade, easy elevator access to go up to deck 9 for beverages/pool deck. We loved being that close to the water--it was not TOO close, remember there are rooms on deck 1 above the water line as well.

Here are a few pics we took from our porthole on deck 2:

 

[Deb T.]

We did the EBTA last year and really enjoyed it!

Trip Insurance: We've used Allianz several times. Never had to make a claim (yet). Just enter the amount of non-refundable trip expenses you'd encounter. For example, if your Spain hotel is refundable, you don't need to cover it with insurance.

Deck 2: You can book this and then keep checking for an available veranda cabin to switch to. If all else fails, you can try for an upgrade at the port as soon as you arrive and check in. We've never stayed on Deck 2, but wouldn't hesitate to book it if there were no other cabins available. At least you'd still have a nice view of the outside.

Miami: If you are driving down the day before, there are several hotels that offer packages where you can stay the night and leave your car there while on the cruise (they shuttle you to/from the port). That would be my first choice. My second choice would be to park the car at the FLL airport, only because I know we'd be worn out from traveling all day and wouldn't want to deal with the added hassle of tracking down the car. You could take Uber from FLL to the port after dropping it off.

Good luck with your decision!