Best time to get a flight on last day of cruise? (Port Canaveral)

[DisneyJade]

Last year, Delta wouldn’t let us check in our luggage in, until 2 hours from our departure.

Ugh. That's what I'm afraid of. I wonder if Hyatt books day rooms.

 

[Marc D]

Ugh. That's what I'm afraid of. I wonder if Hyatt books day rooms.

It does. They are available from 10 AM to 6PM. You can call the hotel directly to book.

 

[aliceinvunderland]

Not having to take off shoes, belts, jackets, etc. and not having to unpack your liquids bag, laptops, and other electronics and then take the time to get dressed again and repack your bags is a big difference.

Not to mention the fact that you’re in line with people who are seasoned travelers. Pre-check people know how to get through security quickly and efficiently, which also makes the line move faster.

 

[Dug720]

Not to mention the fact that you’re in line with people who are seasoned travelers. Pre-check people know how to get through security quickly and efficiently, which also makes the line move faster.

Yes!!!!! Nothing worse than being stuck behind people who either got it randomly on their ticket or were just pulled over to the line (really makes me feel not as safe when they do that - at least for PreCheck and/or Clear you've had at least some form of a background check) and start stripping and pulling stuff out even with the TSA agents saying they don't have to.

 

[jimmymc]

Between noon and 2. Anything before that and you risk the ship getting in late or traffic, and later means you'll have to spend a long time in the airport.

 

[Ralph&Pam]

I actually wish we had an earlier flight. We don't leave until almost 6pm, and we have TSA pre-check. I worry we're going to be sitting in MCO for 6 or 7 hours, or more!

Will the airlines even check our bags in that early, or are we going to be sitting on a pile of luggage too?

We have had to wait until 4 hours prior to flight time to check bags after arriving at MCO early for flights on SW.

 

[motherof5]

So I’m looking at flights out of Orlando and just wondering which times are best for leaving. How long does disembarkation take? Would it be best to grab a flight later in the day? What times would you recommend? Thanks!

I would pick latest flight to be on the safe side.

 

[RedHead0186]

I would echo the TSA pre-check. It’s a huge timesaver! We are flying out of Orlando after a spring break cruise and the flight leaves at 11:45.

Shhhh don't give away the secret! If everyone signs up for Pre-Check then those lines will start being really long!

Just kidding, I echo the sentiments that pre-check is great. Especially at MCO where the regular security lines can be an hour long. When I flew home from Paris last summer I realized I had totally forgotten how to do 'normal' security screening because I hadn't had to do it in years! I was the idiot pulling out all my liquids and electronics at the last minute, which of course were not packed for easy removal. The security agent took pity on me and helped me out, I felt so stupid, lol.

All of that to say, yes, pre-check is great!

 

[RedHead0186]

I would pick latest flight to be on the safe side.

The last flight can be problematic, too. If something goes wrong with your flight, then there are no other options and you're stuck for the night. Also, if there are delays that cause a ripple effect, it could delay your flight by a few hours. That's especially true in the summer when Orlando gets those nasty afternoon storms. They're short, but can disrupt things for a few hours afterwards. I've definitely been stuck in that situation before.

 

[motherof5]

The last flight can be problematic, too. If something goes wrong with your flight, then there are no other options and you're stuck for the night. Also, if there are delays that cause a ripple effect, it could delay your flight by a few hours. That's especially true in the summer when Orlando gets those nasty afternoon storms. They're short, but can disrupt things for a few hours afterwards. I've definitely been stuck in that situation before.

That is something to consider as well. I usually get a last minute resort at airport when that happens. Sometimes easier to get hotel then another flight.

 

[DisneyDad1736]

The last flight can be problematic, too. If something goes wrong with your flight, then there are no other options and you're stuck for the night. Also, if there are delays that cause a ripple effect, it could delay your flight by a few hours. That's especially true in the summer when Orlando gets those nasty afternoon storms. They're short, but can disrupt things for a few hours afterwards. I've definitely been stuck in that situation before.

I think we might just stay at wdw for a night and go to MK or something. Im guessing there is reliable transportation from wdw to Mco?

 

[scrappinginontario]

Personally we don’t book earlier than noon. Saturday we flew out at 1:55 and it was perfect.

We had late dining so our breakfast on debarcation day was 8:15. We ate at a leisurely pace, got off and through customs then took bus to MCO. Had time to repack luggage with Fri night dinner clothes, pjs annd other things we’d needed overnight. SW was extremely packed but moved well. Went though security (TSA-pre), grab food and relax for about 15 mins at gate.

We've never flown home on the last day of our cruises because MCO is nuts when the cruise ships pull in. We've always chosen to stay a day or two at WDW before heading home. If we did have to fly home on the last cruise day, we'd definitely choose a late flight to try and avoid the massive security lines that MCO has before the earlier flights on that day.

Waiting a day to fly out doesn’t really affect cruise traffic as PC has many ships arriving and leaving 7 days a week. You won’t be at the airport with many from your cruise but will be with many others from cruises arriving the following day.

Cruise guests make up very little of the MCO traffic on a daily basis.

 

[NEGeekymama]

So you have options:
1. Express walk off the ship usually starts at 7:15 Am and you could be at your car in the garage or getting a pick up from someone before 8 am.

2. Do breakfast in the MDR in the morning which means you have either an early breakfast time or the second breakfast time to correlate with early or late dining. Then you get called off ship based on the color and character of your luggage tags.

Generally speaking most people are off ships before 9:30 am. You could reasonably be at MCO airport within 1 hour of leaving the port in a vehicle.

Security lines can be long at MCO without Clear Or TSA pre check and decide if you are checking luggage or not.

That being said if you give yourself three hours max to drive from port, check in luggage and go through regular security it is enough time.

If planning to be off ship at express walk off then an 11 am flight or later should be fine. Otherwise a 12:30 pm flight or later would also work for you. Depends on how early you like to get to airports for flights etc.

Some folks pick last flight out at end of day and go to Disney Springs for the day to enjoy a little more Disney before heading home. So that is also an option.

Just as a heads up, when we arrived back in Port Canaveral on the Fantasy last week (3/4), the ship wasn't cleared until 7:45am.

We did our seated breakfast in the MDR at 8:20am. I can't remember the exact time we got off and through customs, but our shuttle dropped us off at MCO around 11:50am, give or take.