Atlantis Harmony 2023: Flights & Hotels

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The Big One is back for 2023 on the Harmony of the Seas! Most of you will be flying in for the cruise, so here’s my tips and advice for your travels to Fort Lauderdale.

Dates, Sail Time, Port

Where: Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Florida (not at the Port of Miami)

When: Saturday, February 4 - Sunday, February 12

  • The cruise sets sail at 4:30pm on Feb 4. You should be at the port no later than 1 hour before the sail time, so 3:30pm in this case.

  • We dock back on Sunday, February 12, and will be off the ship in the morning, sometime between 8am-11am ish.

Keep all of the above in mind as you search for flights and hotels.

Which Airport?

Two major airports serve the Fort Lauderdale area:

  • FLL: Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport

  • MIA: Miami International Airport

FLL is just a 10 minute drive to Port Everglades, while MIA is about 30-40 minutes away. 

If you plan on exploring the gay neighbour and nightlife in Miami the day before the cruise, you might prefer MIA as it’s a bit closer to that area. In contrast, for those who want to stay close to the port for minimum fuss in getting to and from the port, FLL would be preferable. 

Sometimes the flights available from your origin and any flight preferences you have (such as for certain airlines) may force you into one airport over the other, but honestly it’s no big deal as they’re not very far from each other or to Port Everglades. Millions of people every year fly into MIA to take cruises here, and likewise for people who fly into FLL to go to South Beach.

When to Fly In, Before the Cruise

For most people, I strongly recommend flying in on or before Friday, Feb 3. In other words, do not try to fly in the morning of the cruise on Saturday. Most people fly in on Friday, while some boys will fly in earlier to enjoy Miami.

Just remember: the ship will not wait for you. A cruise ship is not like a plane where they might keep the doors open a little longer knowing that your incoming flight was delayed (well at least some airlines do). Flying in on Saturday puts you at real risk of missing the cruise if your flight gets delayed or canceled.

Flying in on Friday gives you a buffer in case something goes wrong with your flight. In case of a major flight delay or cancellation, you have a good chance of getting rescheduled onto a later flight on Friday or maybe one on Saturday morning, and still be able to make it in time to the port.

If you are still considering flights that arrive on Saturday, at least make sure that it arrives in the morning. You should be at the port no later than 3:30pm, and it’ll take time to go through passport control and customs (for international flights), pick up your luggage, and grab a ride to the port.

The only possible exception is if you’re flying in from somewhere very close that has lots of daily flights to the Fort Lauderdale area, like from Orlando or Tampa. The risk is a lot lower when the next flight out is just an hour later and the airline has 12 flights a day for that route.

When to Fly Out, After the Cruise

Cruise ships always dock back early in the morning (while most of the passengers are still asleep) and disembarkation usually starts around 8am or so. Most people will be out of the terminal with their luggage between 9am to 10:30am. 

The bottleneck in getting to your flight home isn’t usually getting off the ship itself or getting through the cruise port terminal, it’s ground transportation: there’ll be thousands of people trying to get to the airport from multiple cruise ships (we probably won’t be the only ship disembarking that day), then you’ll have the standard traffic through the city and at the airport.

I recommend a flight scheduled in the afternoon. A flight that departs around Noon-ish is okay if you can commit to getting up early and being one of the earlier ones to get off the ship. I don’t recommend any morning flights - probably the earliest flight that I think you can safely make is maybe an 11am flight out of the closer FLL airport.

Most of you will be checking luggage with the airlines, so keep in mind the cutoff time for that. For most domestic US flights you’ll need to have your luggage checked in 45 minutes before the scheduled departure time. That jumps to 60 minutes for most international flights. 

Where to stay

If you’re flying in Friday or earlier (as I recommend) you’ll need a place to stay. Like all major cities there are tons of accommodation options. For those unfamiliar with the area I’ll suggest a few different neighborhoods:

  • South Beach is home to the main gay neighborhood in Miami, with several LGBT restaurants, bars, and nightclubs here, most of them between 10th to 13th Street and between Washington Ave and Ocean Drive. And obviously South Beach, the actual beach, is right there as well. There are some particularly gay-friendly hotels here, such as the AxelBeach Miami. If you plan on getting your vacation started before Saturday, South Beach is a great area to stay in and explore, especially for those flying into MIA airport.

  • Brickell is a trendy area of downtown Miami and is somewhere I’ve stayed at several times before. There’s a good amount of restaurants and shops, including the Brickell City Centre. Hotels in this area tend to be more affordable than South Beach, but it’s still close enough that you can hit the gay bars and clubs for the night. A great alternative to South Beach for those flying into MIA airport.

  • Aventura is roughly halfway between MIA and FLL airports, and about 20 minutes to the port. The draw of this area is the wealth of shops and restaurants - everything from Target to Macy’s to the Apple Store - which is great for picking up last minute items for the cruise or international visitors who wants to do some shopping in the US.

  • Central Beach and the surrounding area in Fort Lauderdale is a good option if you want to stay as close to the port as possible but don’t want to be near the airport, and want a bit of shops and restaurants nearby, as it’s close to The Galleria mall.

  • Airport hotels near FLL are a popular option as well. You’ll be very close to the port and will have a wide variety of hotels at different price points. This is the best option especially for those flying into FLL and want the minimum of hassles before the cruise.

TIP: Look for hotels that’s walking distance to a pharmacy (like CVS or Walgreens) so that you can easily pick up last-minute items before the cruise

CruisesJoey T