Miami is good for the beach, however it's quite pricey ($250-300 US for a mid-tier marriott like hotel per night). If you want to go to the beach and relax with kids, I tend to prefer Clearwater/St. Pete's, but everyone has their own opinions. With kids for 3-4 days a short cruise out of Miami is always a nice option too since it comes with some reliable babysitting/activities. Probably cheaper and easier for the beach and meals with kids than going to south beach IMO.riseagainstthemachine wrote: ↑ great, thanks for the suggestions, what about miami? my wife always wanted to go and this might be a good option. I just saw they have a bus from the airport to miami beach. how hard is it to get the rapid test for coming back?
we went to walgreens in amherst ny with no issues coming back
to get the naat test did you have to drive or you walked indolfan1980 wrote: ↑ Miami is good for the beach, however it's quite pricey ($250-300 US for a mid-tier marriott like hotel per night). If you want to go to the beach and relax with kids, I tend to prefer Clearwater/St. Pete's, but everyone has their own opinions. With kids for 3-4 days a short cruise out of Miami is always a nice option too since it comes with some reliable babysitting/activities. Probably cheaper and easier for the beach and meals with kids than going to south beach IMO.
Edited to add: I left Florida yesterday and got a NAAT test no problem from Walgreens. I've been to the US several times during covid and have used these services a few times.
It was drive thru (think you can walk to the window too) and admittedly a little hard to find since most were offering PCR only with about a 2-3 day turnaround. I would think about the switch health proctored tests if I was to do it again just to take some of the stress out of it.riseagainstthemachine wrote: ↑ to get the naat test did you have to drive or you walked in
High stress to cruise same day you fly in, one small delay and you miss the boat. Usually advisable to fly in the day before. Otherwise seems like a great idea. Port Canaveral is a little further north is sometimes a consideration and a ways from the airport, but I've sailed from there and enjoyed it.riseagainstthemachine wrote: ↑ probably going to try a cruise from orlando. I see that we can fly from buffalo to orlando pretty cheap and arrive there around 1030am, then take a shuttle out to the cruise. Does anyone have any suggestions or comments about how the best way to do this is, any tips that I should know? We have never been on a cruise before
where should we stay when we fly in, Orlando or somewhere closer to the ship? also coming back, the ship arrives in the morning, how should we do that, get a shuttle back to Orlando and check into another hotel?dolfan1980 wrote: ↑ High stress to cruise same day you fly in, one small delay and you miss the boat. Usually advisable to fly in the day before. Otherwise seems like a great idea. Port Canaveral is a little further north is sometimes a consideration and a ways from the airport, but I've sailed from there and enjoyed it.
Either work for pre departure, much more to do in Orlando or have some beach time. Can fly home same day if flights after say 14:00.riseagainstthemachine wrote: ↑ where should we stay when we fly in, Orlando or somewhere closer to the ship? also coming back, the ship arrives in the morning, how should we do that, get a shuttle back to Orlando and check into another hotel?
thanks for answering my questions. do you have any idea about the NAAT test, can we do that on board or would we need to stay an extra day and do it when we get off the boat. I hear they might scrap that at the end of the monthdolfan1980 wrote: ↑ Either work for pre departure, much more to do in Orlando or have some beach time. Can fly home same day if flights after say 14:00.
Good question. An appointment for a proctored test with someone like switch health likely just as cheap and less stress than commuting into Orlando for a test. On board likely would be expensive. They were offering free on some lines like my NCL free PCR in December but think that ended.riseagainstthemachine wrote: ↑ thanks for answering my questions. do you have any idea about the NAAT test, can we do that on board or would we need to stay an extra day and do it when we get off the boat. I hear they might scrap that at the end of the month
