Carnival Cruise Line - Florida

To celebrate our 8th anniversary, my husband and I planned a trip to Florida. More specifically, we planned to take a Carnival Cruise around the Bahamas for a few days and we left out of Florida. I realized when we were booking our flights and making our travel plans that figuring out exactly how to go on a cruise can be tricky. After all, Cape Canaveral is about an hour from Orlando. It would be a bit costly to take a taxi to the port and back again, but what other options were available?

My friend who lives in Orlando suggested that we utilize a shuttle service. I didn't even know that this was possible. After reading as many reviews as possible, I chose to book through America Around the Clock just three days before we would need transportation.

Now, the thing about going on a cruise is that most people book their shuttles, hotels, and flights months in advance. I didn't do that. Normally, I'm quite the planner, but I got busy, wasn't sure when we'd be flying in, and things just didn't happen. So when I found out that we could book a shuttle, I was excited.

Most of the shuttle services were already booked by the time I started looking, but America Around the Clock was fantastic. We paid $66 per person for transportation before and after the cruise. (This didn't include a tip, so if you enjoyed your driver, always make sure to give a few extra dollars.)

So, here was our plan for taking a cruise from Port Canaveral:
We flew in on Friday night and took a free shuttle from the airport to our hotel, the Sheraton Suites Orlando Airport. We stayed at the hotel and the room was fantastic and spacious. Our two-bedroom room with two beds and a fold-out couch on a Friday night was $120 (including tax). Skip the hotel buffet because it's overpriced and not that great. There are several restaurants, including a Denny's, within walking distance of the hotel. There is also a convenience store, so if you want to pick up some wine to take on the cruise, you can.

Saturday morning, America Around the Clock picked us up directly at our hotel. They even had a sign in the window of the bus with my name on it so we would be sure to find them! There was fantastic communication throughout the entire time and I loved that the driver was willing to text us at any point so we didn't feel lost or confused. They took us to the port and helped us off the bus. Going to the port, we rode in a huge, spacious bus with plenty of room. It was very comfortable and the driver was fantastic and friendly.

When we returned from our cruise, we were supposed to be picked up at 10:00am; however, we cleared customs early and I just texted AATC to let them know. They were fantastic! They picked us up at 8:30 with no extra charge, helped us load our stuff, and got us to the airport with plenty of time to spare. Going back we took a van since there were only three of us and again, the trip was smooth sailing.

If you're planning a cruise, I would definitely recommend flying in the day before your ship leaves. I loved having the extra time to unwind and relax before a busy day of getting on the ship.