While it's important to budget for cruise add-ons like alcoholic beverages and shore excursions, one key part of cruise planning is transportation.
Living in North Carolina means I'm not a short drive to Fort Lauderdale or Miami. Instead, I must factor in the cost of airfare.
Flying is more convenient than driving, but it comes with specific considerations. Though it might be easy to rebook another flight to your land destination, such as New York or Cancun, cruise ships operate on tight schedules and can't wait for late guests.
As such, I always fly in one day early to avoid stress from last-minute flight delays or cancellations.
In a picture-perfect world, all flights would depart as scheduled, leaving cruisers with plenty of time to get from Miami's airport to PortMiami on embarkation day. However, the reality of air travel is that flights can be unpredictable and chaotic.
Unfortunately, Charlotte isn't known for being the most reliable airport. Last July, AirHelp released data about the worst airports for flight disruptions.
Last year, AirHelp released data on the airports with the most flight disruptions. Charlotte ranked #9, with more than 25% of flights either delayed or canceled.
Still, there are worse airports prone to disruptions, including John F. Kennedy International Airport (26.9%), Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (27.9%), Boston Logan International Airport (31.9%), and Ronald Reagan National Airport (40.2%).
As such, it's important not to rely on hope. If flying to your embarkation city, I beg you not to book a flight on the same day as your cruise! If you fall victim to a delayed or canceled flight, you may miss the ship and lose out on your highly-anticipated vacation.
Read more: 11 Things You Should Never Do on Embarkation Day
Recently, I was stuck in Charlotte's airport for a few hours after my first two flights to Tampa with American Airlines were canceled. Thankfully, I planned to arrive the day before my cruise aboard Margaritaville at Sea's Islander departed, so I wasn't too worried about missing my ship.
Instead of landing in Tampa around 1:00pm, I ended up arriving closer to 5:15pm. It wasn't the end of the world, but I was thankful I gave myself a buffer to get to Florida.
Had I booked a flight that landed the same day as my cruise, I would have been more anxious! While I wasn't happy sitting in the airport for hours, it was reassuring that I wasn't racing against the ship's departure.
Another passenger shared their woes about air travel
After over 13 hours of delays, Reddit user Mamm0nn described the unlucky series of events that caused them to miss their Royal Caribbean cruise.
"On our 3rd flight delay.... total of 5hr 30 minute delay so far.... now getting in at 1AM the date of the cruise," they explained in a post.
A second update revealed their original flight was cancelled. They were rebooked on a new flight at 5:00am on the morning of departure; however, it was also cancelled.
"13 hours at Ohare 5 delays 2 flight cancelations We can't get to Fort Lauderdale out of OHare until tomorrow evening," Mamm0nn continued.
Even though they budgeted time for potential delays, the unexpected flight issues left them in a tough spot. Instead of boarding the ship as planned, they returned home after waiting for a bus since there weren't any available rental cars.
Other cruisers flocked to the comments to share their experiences with travel disruptions and advice
AnonUserAccount said, "Agreed. I’ve been delayed on my last three trips, twice arriving past midnight (technically the day of the cruise) and once arriving at 8am the day of the cruise (flight from Dallas was cancelled, took the 5am flight the day of the cruise)."
"I used to fly in the day before. Now I fly in 2 days in advance. This is because the airline screwed me and delayed my luggage and it wouldn’t arrive until the following day when I would have already boarded the ship. So when I arrived following my flight, I basically went straight from the airport to the mall to buy a whole new bag and clothes to put in it. Stressful to say the least," added ItsDeCia.
Firefly0434 wrote, "Because of posts like this I have changed my day before flight to two days before. This will be my first cruise I am not risking missing it."
Elizabeth Wright
Elizabeth graduated from New York University's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute with her M.A. in Journalism in May 2023. Growing up, she traveled frequently with her family and fell in love with cruising after sailing on the Oasis of the Seas during her freshman year of high school. Having sailed on nearly 30 cruises across different lines, including Royal Caribbean, Carnival, MSC, and Princess, she loves sharing her insight and expertise on all things cruising!
