Pre-Cruise

Our cruises are usually planned to maximize our relaxation time before, during, and after the cruise. We try to pick ports that are easy to get to and offer relatively hassle-free planning. After cruising out of Miami on the Fascination in 2008, we swore off cruising from there unless the cruise itinerary was really spectacular. For our 2012 cruise, my in-laws decided to come with us. As a courtesy, I let my mother-in-law pick the cruise after sending her the list of the ones we were considering. Of course, she picked the one cruising from Miami. Aside from Nassau, I liked the itinerary, so we agreed. Unfortunately, the pre-planning for this trip took much more time than I like to spend.

Last time, we flew to Miami and headed straight to the ship. This time, after months of looking, a reasonable airfare was not to be found so we grudgingly accepted the fact that we were going to have to drive 12+ hours to Miami. It was also difficult to find a reasonably priced hotel that offered a cruise shuttle or the option to park your car at the hotel. Sure, there are hotels that let you park your car there but it's not included in the hotel rate and the shuttles were often an additional charge too. Yes, it's cheaper than parking at the port but not cheap enough for me. The $20/day Miami port parking fee was something that we were just not going to pay. Read more