Which islands have the most reasonable airfare?

[FLDVCFamily]

We are from FL, and we're open to going basically anywhere in the Carribean. You'd think we could get cheap airfare, but nope...every time I see a good trade, the airfare is like 2 grand for a family of 4. We can go to the port and take a cruise for less. I'd love to grab one of these great Carribean trades I keep seeing...what am I doing wrong, or is that just how much airfare costs?

 

[itd1sah]

Where in Florida do you live?

I live in Sarasota and I find that airfares to the Caribbean can be cheaper on AA from Tampa rather than Miami for the same flight/same day.

I have flown out of Orlando to Jamaica because the fare on JetBlue was the
best price. Right now I have a one way in November to Aruba on Southwest from Orlando because the fare was so much cheaper than AA from Tampa.
Paid 154 for the one way and it is a non-stop.

I also weigh in the cost of parking and in some cases a one-way rental.

 

[chriskre]

I live in Miami and just to get to Cayman costs around $500 which is the same as it costs from the Northeast.

I usually just factor it into the overall cost of the trip and since I am saving on the room and food since I will have a kitchen, it's not so bad. But then again I am only one person, not four.

Cruising is definitely a bargain for us Floridians and pretty tough to beat price wise, but there is also something to be said for the full island experience. Not getting on and off the ship where they never give you enough time to really enjoy the beaches and local restaurants is something that you avoid by flying in.

 

[tschwa2]

Take a look at where Spirit, Jet Blue and Southwest fly to and from in the Caribbean. Check if other airlines match those prices.

 

[FLDVCFamily]

Take a look at where Spirit, Jet Blue and Southwest fly to and from in the Caribbean. Check if other airlines match those prices.

Ooooh, that is a good idea.

We live in the Melbourne area for the poster who asked. I've never seen a reasonable flight out of Melbourne unless it was just a puddle jumper to the Abacos though so we normally fly out of Orlando. Yeah, the flights to the Carribean are the same from here as from Boston or New York which is crazy!

The thing is, it's hard to beat the bargain of cruising especially since we like maybe 25 minutes tops from Port Canaveral. Every time I price out the airfare, my husband says "let's just cruise then" and we do. I'd like to take my kids to one of the islands for a week at least once though, especially because some of the timeshares in the Carribean look so nice!

 

[Skinsfan1311]

San Juan, Cancun, Cozumel, Montego Bay

 

[SMHarman]

Ah yes the island of Cancun.

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[dmharris]

Ooooh, that is a good idea.

We live in the Melbourne area for the poster who asked. I've never seen a reasonable flight out of Melbourne unless it was just a puddle jumper to the Abacos though so we normally fly out of Orlando. Yeah, the flights to the Carribean are the same from here as from Boston or New York which is crazy!

The thing is, it's hard to beat the bargain of cruising especially since we like maybe 25 minutes tops from Port Canaveral. Every time I price out the airfare, my husband says "let's just cruise then" and we do. I'd like to take my kids to one of the islands for a week at least once though, especially because some of the timeshares in the Carribean look so nice!

I'm not a cruiser so totally ignorant about this, thus the question. Wouldn't it be great, especially for Floridians if you could take a cruise to say, St. Thomas, stay a week and cruise back? If enough people did it, it could be an interesting new venture for a cruise line? A more relaxing vacation.

 

[chriskre]

I'm not a cruiser so totally ignorant about this, thus the question. Wouldn't it be great, especially for Floridians if you could take a cruise to say, St. Thomas, stay a week and cruise back? If enough people did it, it could be an interesting new venture for a cruise line? A more relaxing vacation.

These cruises are only offered to the Bahamas.
Cruise/stay vacations and you use the ship as a taxi.
I'm sure we'll be seeing them to Cuba soon too.

 

[Karen G]

Not getting on and off the ship where they never give you enough time to really enjoy the beaches and local restaurants is something that you avoid by flying in.

Slightly off topic for this thread, but we did a wonderful cruise out of NYC (Bayonne, NJ port) to Bermuda in July. We picked that cruise because the ship stays docked for three days. You can come and go as you please, and it was just amazing. Bermuda is our new favorite place and I'd do the same cruise again in a heartbeat. There are beautiful beaches, amazing golf courses, friendly folks who live there, and it's very clean. The ship is like your hotel and you can return for your meals if you don't want the extra expense of eating out.

I don't know if there are similar cruises out of Florida, but it would be worth checking out.

 

[Marathoner]

Slightly off topic for this thread, but we did a wonderful cruise out of NYC (Bayonne, NJ port) to Bermuda in July. We picked that cruise because the ship stays docked for three days. You can come and go as you please, and it was just amazing.

Were there taxis at the port to drive you into NYC? How much were the fares each way?

 

[Karen G]

Were there taxis at the port to drive you into NYC? How much were the fares each way?

We took a car service from our hotel in NYC (We stayed two nights pre-cruise.) As I recall it was about $60-$70 with tolls. After the cruise we took an excursion we bought on the ship for a bus tour of Manhattan where they stowed our luggage under the bus and took us to the Newark airport after the tour. We had a late flight that day.

Similar cruises also go out of the cruise port on the Hudson River so one could take a taxi there from a Manhattan hotel. I believe the Norwegian Breakaway sails from that location and they were in port in Bermuda the same time we were. We were on the Celebrity Summit.

 

[chriskre]

I don't know if there are similar cruises out of Florida, but it would be worth checking out.

I've never seen them.
That Bermuda cruise gig you guys have is fantastic.
I'd love to do it one day.
I'm planning to do something similar in Hawaii next year on NCL Pride of America.

 

[ibcnu]

I found that sometimes it's much cheaper to fly to San Juan or St. Thomas, then find a cheap puddle jumper or ferry to more remote outter islands within the BVIs, such as Anagada, Jost Van Dyke, Virgin Gorda, etc.

 

[am1]

BA miles on AA.

 

[Skinsfan1311]

Ah yes the island of Cancun.

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OOPS!!!

 

[FLDVCFamily]

Slightly off topic for this thread, but we did a wonderful cruise out of NYC (Bayonne, NJ port) to Bermuda in July. We picked that cruise because the ship stays docked for three days. You can come and go as you please, and it was just amazing. Bermuda is our new favorite place and I'd do the same cruise again in a heartbeat. There are beautiful beaches, amazing golf courses, friendly folks who live there, and it's very clean. The ship is like your hotel and you can return for your meals if you don't want the extra expense of eating out.

I don't know if there are similar cruises out of Florida, but it would be worth checking out.

I don't know of anything like this, at least out of Port Canaveral (the port near us).

BTW, we took one of those Bermuda cruises out of Boston about 15 years ago before we had kids. Bermuda was lovely, but the ship was DISGUSTING. We actually attempted to fly home from Bermuda instead of getting back on the boat. It was THAT bad. It was a Norweigan boat I think. We swore off cruising for a good decade plus after that.

 

[FLDVCFamily]

I'm not a cruiser so totally ignorant about this, thus the question. Wouldn't it be great, especially for Floridians if you could take a cruise to say, St. Thomas, stay a week and cruise back? If enough people did it, it could be an interesting new venture for a cruise line? A more relaxing vacation.

Yes, that would be great!

 

[Neesie]

Ah yes the island of Cancun.

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I've flown to Cancun in the Winter for just over $300 non stop and then take a ferry for less than 10 U.S. dollars to the island of Isla Mujeres. Yes, it is a Caribbean island with an awesome beach and lots of activities. Our favorite thing is driving golf carts around the island which is approximately five miles long.

 

[SMHarman]

San Juan, Cancun, Cozumel, Montego Bay

Ah yes the island of Cancun.

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I've flown to Cancun in the Winter for just over $300 non stop and then take a ferry for less than 10 U.S. dollars to the island of Isla Mujeres. Yes, it is a Caribbean island with an awesome beach and lots of activities. Our favorite thing is driving golf carts around the island which is approximately five miles long.

It was an irreverent reply to skinsfan answer to the question of WHICH ISLAND.

Cancun / QRoo is part of the continent not an island.

I agree, a great winter destination but not an island. In contrast NYC is an island but not a great winter destination.

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[GrayFal]

Cayman Islands

Morritts Tortuga Club Morritts grand available thru RCI
Both available thru II as well as Morritts Londoner.
http://morritts.com

Cayman Airways flies R/T for $320-400 if booked ahead.
https://www.caymanairways.com

 

[m61376]

I've never seen them.
That Bermuda cruise gig you guys have is fantastic.
I'd love to do it one day.
I'm planning to do something similar in Hawaii next year on NCL Pride of America.

Make sure to check out the Pride of America; things hopefully have changed, but we were on the Shame of Aloha early on- at least that's what all the passengers called it. It was so bad that a reporter from the LA Times met us in one of the ports one day because one of the passengers called them to do an expose on it. The problem with the cruise is that to only stop in US ports it has to be an American flagged vessel, and most of the crew is American. They were all going into port and getting drunk at night, coming back staggering onto the ship. The service was horrific- forget about getting daily linen changes- we had to call down multiple times to start out with fresh linens, and not be sent up ones that were blood stained . I won't even mention what others found in their room on arrival- let's just say it was disgusting. Freestyle dining meant 2 plus hour waits; they wouldn't even take reservations (although with a lot of arguing they did by later in the week). Let's just say I will never cruise on NCL again.