Many cruise passengers arrive in Florida via Miami, Orlando or Tampa airports and then choose to hire a car to get the most out of their time before they embark or after disembarkment.

Because of the lack of space at port locations in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Port Canaveral and Tampa, car hire companies such as Dollar or Alamo do not have depots actually at the ports, but most usually provide a complimentary shuttle between the airports and ports.

In Miami, a free shuttle is run by Dollar/Thrifty and Alamo from the main international airport locations to the port and again in reverse. Some hotels also run shuttles both from the airport to the hotel, and from the hotel to the port, however, in higher end hotels the price for the shuttle seems to boost the room rate, while in cheaper hotels, the shuttle appears to boost numbers! Regular cruise passengers advise that you don’t choose your hotel by access to the shuttle, rather choose a great hotel in a great area and make the most of your time in Miami. If you have hired a car for one night, you can then return to the airport to drop off the car and use the shuttle. Budget car hire don’t offer a shuttle between the port and the airport and also don’t offer rentals for less then 2 days.

For passengers arriving at Fort Lauderdale the situation is very similar. Although there is a downtown Dollar/Thrifty location close to the port, you still have to get the shuttle to make the last bit of the journey. There are paid shuttles that run between Port Everglades and Miami International, and Fort Lauderdale and Port of Miami. You can expect to pay at least $15 per passenger for these shuttles, but at least the price is fixed, as opposed to a taxi which will be on a meter.

At Port Canaveral the car hire depots are about 3 or 4 miles away from the port and once again, they run shuttles to and from the port. With the closest airport being Melbourne International, this is not regularly used by UK cruisers. A taxi from Orlando International to Port Canaveral will probably start at $100. While a one day hire using Dollar would be around £30 to £50 depending whether you have an economy car or a large minivan 7 seater. Once again, experienced cruisers drop off their party and luggage at the port, and then return to the car hire depots to get the shuttle back without luggage!

At Tampa, the cruise terminal is quite new and the car hire companies have been slow to provide shuttles. You will most likely have to get a taxi either from the airport or your hotel.

There are some great cruise forums out there where you can get really valuable advice to help you get the most out of your trip and make it as smooth as possible.