With mega-ships like Royal Caribbean’s Surprise of the Seas and Carnival Cruise Line’s Mardi Gras calling Port Canaveral house, it is no surprise that over 4 million cruise passengers visited right here in 2022, making it the world’s busiest cruise port.
In contrast to Miami or Fort Lauderdale, nevertheless, the closest airport is not simply down the street. If you need to fly to Florida on your cruise out of Port Canaveral, it will probably require a bit of bit extra planning.
There are 4 airports inside 75 miles of Port Canaveral: Melbourne Orlando Airport (MLB), Orlando Worldwide Airport (MCO), Orlando Sanford Airport (SFB), and Daytona Seaside Airport (DAB).
Whereas Orlando Worldwide Airport (MCO) is the biggest with essentially the most flight choices, it isn’t the closest.
This is a information to the 4 airports close to the Port Canaveral cruise port.
The place is Port Canaveral positioned?
Port Canaveral is positioned on the japanese coast of Florida. It is about 45 miles from the Orlando Worldwide Airport, making a cruise from Port Canaveral a straightforward pre- or post-cruise addition to an Orlando theme park trip.
Equally, the cruise terminals are positioned lower than 5 miles from the Cocoa Seaside Pier, so your tropical trip does not have to finish whenever you dock. If you cannot discover any ideally suited flight instances the day your cruise concludes, take into account extending your journey by a day and absorbing a bit of bit extra sunshine on the seashore.
Earlier than arriving at Port Canaveral, it would be best to be certain that you are headed to the appropriate terminal. A terminals (5, 6, 8, and 10) are positioned off of exit 54A, whereas B terminals (1, 2 and three) are positioned off exit 54B.
What are the closest airports to Port Canaveral?
At just a bit beneath 30 miles away, Melbourne Orlando Airport (MLB) is the closest airport to Port Canaveral. The second closest is the Orlando Worldwide Airport, which is roughly 45 miles away. Orlando Sanford Airport (SFB) and Daytona Seaside Airport (DAB) are the furthest, at about 60 and 70 miles, respectively.
No matter whether or not you are flying out of Melbourne Orlando Airport or Orlando Worldwide Airport, you will need to be certain that you funds at the very least one hour of journey time from the port to the airport. This doesn’t embrace additional time to verify in and undergo safety. Orlando Sanford and Daytona Seaside can normally be reached in about an hour and fifteen minutes if there is not a whole lot of site visitors throughout rush hour.
You also needs to plan on arriving the day earlier than your cruise is scheduled to depart. Even you probably have a number of flight choices the morning of your cruise, you do not need to danger falling sufferer to a prolonged delay or canceled flight. Your ship will not watch for you, and also you may arrive after your cruise has set sail!
Most cruise strains additionally recommend reserving your return time no sooner than 12:00pm on the day you get again. Once I lately mentioned on Carnival Vista, our ship’s disembarkation course of was delayed, and the primary teams weren’t allowed to get off till round 9:00am, that means that there was no approach I may’ve made the ten:40am flight. I did not get to the airport till near 10:30am!
Learn extra: The pricey cruising mistake newbies make planning their first cruise
Orlando Worldwide Airport (MCO)
Orlando Worldwide Airport (MCO) is without doubt one of the busiest airports within the nation, serving over 24 million passengers per 12 months. To place that into context, Atlanta is ranked because the busiest airport within the nation, serving a bit of over 45 million individuals per 12 months.
It is smart when you think about that MCO is the gateway airport for Walt Disney World, Common Orlando, and Sea World!
Which means that out of all 4 choices, you are more likely to encounter the longest wait instances at Orlando Worldwide Airport. This additionally means that you will have essentially the most flight choices. When you’ve got a most well-liked airline or flight time, it is extra more likely to be accommodated right here than at smaller regional airports. Furthermore, MCO has a few lounge choices for these with entry together with The Membership MCO, American Airways Admirals Membership, Delta Sky Membership, United Membership, and Plaza Premium Lounge.
Yow will discover home flights on the next airways to and from MCO:
- Alaska Airways
- Allegiant
- American Airways
- Avelo Airways
- Breeze
- Delta Airways
- Frontier Airways
- JetBlue
- Silver
- Southwest
- Spirit
- Solar Nation
- United
Some choices for getting from MCO to Port Canaveral embrace renting a automotive, reserving a shared shuttle, or utilizing a rideshare service like Lyft or Uber.
In line with Uber’s web site, the typical route worth from MCO to Port Canaveral for UberX is $68 and $90 for UberXL; nevertheless, that is topic to vary and will be extra relying on the time of day and demand.
Shared shuttles can sometimes be booked for round $20 – $30 per particular person, per approach if booked by way of a 3rd celebration like Airport Canaveral or Go Port.
After all, you’ll be able to at all times e book transfers instantly by way of your cruise line; nevertheless, they are typically costlier. Carnival, for example, advertises their transfers at round $37 per particular person.
Melbourne Orlando Airport (MLB)
Melbourne Orlando Airport (MLB) is the closest airport to Port Canaveral. Serving lower than a million passengers per 12 months, it is significantly smaller than MCO.
There are solely 5 home airways that fly to MLB, together with American Airways, Avelo, Allegiant, Delta Airways, and Solar Nation. The vast majority of flights come from Charlotte, North Carolina on American Airways and Atlanta, Georgia on Delta Airways.
TUI Airways additionally flies into Melbourne Orlando Airport from the UK.
Despite the fact that it is technically nearer, the drive time tends to be much like MCO. Plus, since there are fewer passengers departing from MLB, there aren’t as many shared shuttle choices. A experience will be secured by way of Melbourne Airport Categorical, although.
The very best guess for extra flexibility is to plan on utilizing a rideshare service from MLB to Port Canaveral and vice versa for round $55 – $70.
Orlando Sanford Airport (SFB)
Situated additional than MCO, Orlando Sanford Airport (SFB) is a regional airport that may give you higher flight values because it’s a bit of bit bigger than Melbourne Orlando Airport. In 2022, they served roughly 2.8 million home and worldwide passengers.
The first airline that flies out and in of SFB is Allegiant, that means that in case you aren’t a fan of funds airways, you’ll probably need to look elsewhere. For individuals who shouldn’t have a desire, although, you may be capable of rating an excellent deal in your flight on your cruise out of Port Canaveral.
Solar Nation flies from the Minneapolis–Saint Paul airport, too, albeit extra seasonally than Allegiant.
The traditional drive time is about an hour, however it may be extra relying on site visitors. It is vital to funds at the very least 1.5 hours, if not two, for switch time, so you aren’t in a rush and find yourself lacking your flight.
Port Canaveral Fast Shuttle presents a service from SFB to Port Canaveral for $40 per approach, or $80 round-trip, per particular person, whereas Ubers are likely to vary anyplace from $65 to $90. After all, these charges are topic to vary. If you need essentially the most correct pricing, it’s best to try to schedule an Uber or Lyft forward of time by way of the app.
Daytona Seaside Airport (DAB)
Lastly, Daytona Seaside Airport (DAB) is the additional of the 4 airports on the record. Equally to Melbourne, the 2 main airways that fly out and in of DAB are Delta Airways and American Airways, with the first routes being from Atlanta, Georgia and Charlotte, North Carolina.
Moreover, American Airways presents seasonal every day nonstop flights from Washington, DC; Philadelphia, PA; and Dallas, TX.
Avelo additionally flies from New Haven, CT and Wilmington, DE twice weekly.
Daytona Seaside Airport is the best choice for individuals who need to take pleasure in a while on the coast both earlier than or after their cruise. Cocoa Seaside, nevertheless, is nearer to Port Canaveral, and you may benefit from the seashore with the comfort of a shared shuttle from the Orlando space.
Since there are not any shared shuttles from DAB, you will should depend on a rideshare service, rental automotive, or e book a non-public experience. At minimal, an UberX is normally round $100. It is not unusual, nevertheless, for rides to be nearer to $150 or $200 for an UberXL.
If I do not need to fear about flying, am I capable of drive and park my automotive on-site?
Sure! Port Canaveral presents on-site parking for individuals who want to have their automotive throughout the road once they return from their cruise trip.
As of November 2023, parking prices $17 per day, together with the day of arrival and day of departure, for all automobiles and RVs. Which means that parking for a 5-night cruise will value $102 earlier than tax. Money shouldn’t be accepted.
There are different third-party heaps with cheaper charges, resembling Park Port Canaveral and Cruisetime Parking at Port Canaveral.
What cruise strains sail from Port Canaveral?
Most mainstream cruise strains provide sailings from Port Canaveral, together with MSC Cruises, Carnival Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean, Disney Cruise Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, and Celeb Cruises.
Whether or not you are in search of a fast 3-night escape to The Bahamas onboard Carnival Glory or Utopia of the Seas or need a longer getaway to the Caribbean, there’s the right itinerary for everybody.
In 2024, the next mainstream ships will sail from Port Canaveral at the very least as soon as:
- Carnival Cruise Line: Carnival Freedom, Carnival Glory, Carnival Liberty, Carnival Venezia, Carnival Vista, Mardi Gras
- Celeb Cruises: Celeb Equinox
- Princess Cruises: Caribbean Princess
- Royal Caribbean: Journey of the Seas, Attract of the Seas, Mariner of the Seas, Voyager of the Seas, Utopia of the Seas, Surprise of the Seas
- Norwegian Cruise Line: Norwegian Epic, Norwegian Escape, Norwegian Jade
- Disney Cruise Line: Disney Magic, Disney Fantasy, Disney Treasure, Disney Want
- MSC Cruises: MSC Seashore
