Port Everglades Terminal

Well duhhh! If you’re coming here, it’s either to drop someone off in envy that they’re going on a cruise or basking in excitement that your about to embark on a destination. The terminal is a little confusing but if you follow the signs all shall be well. Drive slow and carefully since there are cops monitoring speed. Parking daily in the garage is $ 15. Make sure that everyone in the car has an Valid ID in order to enter the Terminal.

Port Everglades cruise terminal is like JFK airport, very busy and tons of people.
The attendents at the terminal were extremely helpful and got us wheel chairs to board the ship.
The boarding process is easy, just make sure all your paperwork is done, passports are out, id’s are out and your credit card.
Once you have checked in it is off to the ship and a mai tai or two

I boarded Carnival Cruise Fantasy last weekend and it was a complete nightmare!
I would like to share with my friends and family this blog I created of the terrible experience I had when cruising with Carnival Cruise Line onboard Ship Fantasy this past weekend!
When spending your money on a weekend vacation make sure to do your research, I didn’t and had a terrible time!
Time is the one thing we can never get back! Make sure you spend yours wisely! Not EVER onboard a Carnival Cruise!

This port is awful. I was injured, could barely walk, and they did not have a wheel chair to provide. On top of that, they made me walk all around the entrance, instead of allowing my transportation to pick me up in front, which would have taken 10 seconds. Not to mention the complete disorganization at checkin with the line going around the building. Employees at entrance were of no help, except for one guy who took pity on me and finally let my ride through, after I had already walked more than I was supposed to. Awful.

Very long wait to get into Emerald Princess terminal today. Explained by staff that the ship was late coming in was not acceptable. Hopefully the cruise will be better.

Great terminal location
Easy in and out if on a bus or shuttle. I think it would be difficult to drive and park yourself. And not accessible to walk into, rather long road from gate to ships. But organization to drop luggage and board is good. Royal Caribbean staff is fast for checking you in. This is the first terminal we walked right into, checked in and boarded. SFO and Princess you can sit up to an hour. The terminal is clean and well kept.
I prefer boarding here for Caribbean cruises.

Arrived to the port around 10:30am for RC’s Oasis of the Seas. A porter helped us right away with our luggage as soon as we got out of the taxi. We must have hit the perfect time to arrive because we flew through security as well as the check-​in process. It was great and organized really well by RC. We got our photos taken, and were ushered upstairs to the waiting area. We only waited about a half hour before we were set to board the ship! It’s a decent terminal and for the time we arrived, the crowd (or whatever there was of a «crowd») was definitely under control. In my opinion, the Disney terminal at Port Canaveral is nicer and more «welcoming» looking, but this was sufficient and clean.

This was our first time cruising out of this port and was very pleasantly surprised as to how easy it was both for embarkation and disembarkation. This review is based on a Royal Caribbean cruise. We pulled up in a cab and a friendly porter quickly took our luggage and pointed us in the right direction. We arrived around 10:30am and even though there were people leaving from the previous cruise along with us coming to board the ship, it didn’t seem very chaotic at all. We quickly got thru security and then within about 15 minutes or so, we were checked-​in. We are Emerald status with Royal Caribbean so we did have our own check-​in line which I’m sure helped to speed us along through the check-​in process. Once checked in, you can head upstairs where there are plenty of seating, all broken up into sections based on your Crown & Anchor status. Right around 11am, they started the boarding process in a very orderly fashion. All in all, a very pleasant experience.
Upon our return, we did walk-​off so we were off the ship a little before 8am and quickly got thru customs and were in a cab and off to the airport by 8:15 and at the airport by 8:30.
Would definitely love to cruise out of this port again!

We took a cruise from this port on Carnival Cruise Lines. We stayed at a local hotel the night before so we took a shuttle to the port.
The port is generally organized, they seem to have it down to an art of disembarking passengers taking their luggage, and getting them into line to check in for their vacation.
The staff at the port seems generally friendly, and it is as organized as it can be. The lines are long but they seem to move along fairly quickly.
If you are going on a cruise, and you are checking these reviews to determine if this point makes a difference, I recommend you don’t think twice and book. I’ve been to several ports and on several cruises, some ports are better, some ports are worse, but in the end you are going on a cruise and the small amount of time required to check in and get through this line is really not a big deal.

Nice building, rudest staff that I’ve encountered boarding a cruise.
We were boarding with several seniors in wheelchairs and that consistently tried to rush us through and split our party up, separating the seniors from those holding their identification. They seem more interested in getting everyone out of their way so they can go home than providing any service.

My wife and I were exiting through the Port Everglades Terminal after our Oasis of the Seas Cruise came to a close.
From my experience, for the amount of volume they had (at least 3000 + passengers), they directed traffic pretty smoothly. We were in and out of the U.S. Customs line in no time and it only took less than 10 minutes for them to hail us a cab with at least 30 – 40 people in front of us.
I thought the staff members and police officers worked well together as a team, which made them very efficient in servicing the people with their traveling needs.

We have cruised out of Port Everglades Terminal on at least five occasions and it has been one of the easier ports in terms of access and efficiency. The port is approximately 2 – 3 miles from Fort Lauderdale Airport, which makes for a quick and inexpensive taxi ride.
The security personnel can be a bit intense, but as long as you have a general idea of where you’re going… it’s usually not a problem. Also, please ensure you have ID readily available for everyone in the automobile upon arrival to the port. Given the fact that there are multiple ships that cruise out of Port Everglades, I think they do a good job of moving thousands of people in/​out. For the Royal Caribbean sailings, my experience has been better when arriving after the early morning rush e.g. 12:30 — 1:00 for faster lines.
Disembarkation was most challenging when we carried our own luggage (thought it would be faster), but it was really just a hassle given the layout of the port when getting off the ship. Space is pretty tight and there are only Two elevators to the main level. Beyond that, all usually goes well.
FYI, there are numerous hotels near the Port for a Pre or Post-​Cruise stay. Also, A1A is close by if you prefer to stay right on the beach.

I’ve been to four of the five terminals in FL and this one is my favorite. There’s a great place to park that’s quick and easy to the port and the people seem to be nicer than Miami. I will go to Miami when a ship I want only goes out of there, but try to find one that goes out of FLL.

When I was younger — around the time Top Gun and Hunt for Red October came out — I wanted to be in the Navy. My dad, being a Cuban — American Reagan Republican, supported that choice as well. Times changed, I took drafting and my high school only had Army ROTC so the civilian world it was. However, I still have respect for our troops and try to make it to Fleet Week.
Centrally located to I95, 595 and US1, Port Everglades functions for Cruise ship, commercial shipping and as a military port. The Broward Convention Center is also on the property. Given the current security situation, getting inside the port is now as strict as is to the airport. There was also additional screening to get into the military side. I’m talking sheriff SWAT, military MP and K9 working dogs. Everyone I came into contact with was courteous and professional. The multi-​story garage and terminal building were functional and we’ll kept, though no fancy aesthetic touches.
My tour this Fleet Week was of the USS Cole, a US ship with an actual combat history. The two sailors who gave us the tour were friendly and knowledgeable, explaining each weapon system and even telling us about Navy cooking (supposedly they also have Taco Tuesday!) It would have been nice to see the inside of the ships, but they did allow us to take pictures around the gun mounts and outside of the ship. There was also Navy merchandise for sale.

There are many cruise lines that depart from Port Everglades terminal. Including Carnival, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, Holland America and several others. Making it a very busy but well maintained port.
Located within 2 miles of Fort Lauderdale-​Hollywood International airport in Fort Lauderdale, it is pretty easy to find. Port Everglades’ primary entrance is from I-​595, whose eastern terminus is the port’s entrance road, Eller Drive. I-​595 connects with I-​95, as well as the Florida Turnpike, Sawgrass Expressway and I-​75. The port also can be accessed at the intersection of State Road 84 (east) and US1 or by taking US1 or A1A to the 17^th Street Causeway in Fort Lauderdale and turning south on Eisenhower Boulevard.
Cruise terminals 1, 2, and 4 are located at the north end of the port. Cruise terminals 18, 19, 21, 22, 24, 25, 26, and 29 are at the Midport facilities located in the center section of the port.
Parking at the port will cost you $ 15 per day so you may want to look into off site places like Park N Go for half the cost that will shuttle you to/​from the port.

I’d never been on a cruise before so I had no idea what to expect. My sister and I rented a car from Hertz at FLL the day that we were embarking, since our flight got in at 4:30am. We returned the car to the Hertz location at Port Everglade, which is actually at the Crown Plaza Hotel. We got their free shuttle to port. It was perfect! Dropped us off right at the door to go through customs. We decided to arrive at the ship early (Holland America Nieuw Amsterdam) and breezed through customs and check-​in. I highly recommend this. There were no lines when we got there! The security/​customs folks were all friendly and helpful. We carried our bags on and I’d recommend doing so if you can. Saves a ton of time and hassle. Got on the ship early, got into our room, ate lunch, hit the pool… All before the crowds!
On our day of return we acted similarly. Took our own bags, breezed through the line and customs… No sweat. Hertz picked us up again to bring us to the Crown Plaza where we got another car for the day. Again though, all easy breezy no problem. Friendly staff.
I would cruise out of here again, anytime! I think the ultimate way to be is low maintenance. If you’re a pain in the ass, then the staff probably won’t be too welcoming. Hey, there are thousands of people doing the same thing at the same place. Be patient and friendly and you’ll be treated the same way.

The port is close to many hotels and the airport. It was easy for us to get in and out on our Celebrity cruise (which was awesome by the way). The cruise line was VERY adamant that we show up at a certain time based on our cabin number– at about 3:00 pm. We decided to chance it and come early, since we had to check out of the hotel and no one gave us any issue. We were in line and through security in about half an hour, tops.
The staff is fine but do hint that you give a tip for bags (which we would have any way).
Leaving was fairly painless too. We left our cabin on the boat at 9 am and I was out of customs and at the airport by 10:00 at the latest.
Word of advice — do not take a hotel shuttle if it isn’t free. We were staying very close by in the Best Western Plus and they charged 20 bucks a pop to ride over in a van with other people. I called an Über and it was 11 for both me and my mom and all of our luggage. They try to tell you a taxi will over charge you, but even if they take you the long way, I can’t imagine it would ever be 40 bucks.

We sailed on Celebrity recently. Our hotel provided shuttle service to the cruise port. Be prepared to tip not only your shuttle driver but the port luggage handlers. They’re not shy about sticking their palms out either. Understandably so as there is so much luggage. It’s amazing how your luggage eventually makes it to your cruise ship cabin.
Once inside the port terminal we waited forever to get our sea passes as they only had four Celebrity cruise ship windows opened. We chose poorly. Got into the line that didn’t move for a good ten to fifteen minutes.
Once we got our sea passes we went upstairs and waited some more. It’s a hurry up and wait mentality.
Upon our return from our Caribbean cruise we chose express disembarkation. This way we were one of several hundred people who got to get off the ship first. Another hurry up and wait experience. Once we got through customs our prepaid airport shuttle van was waiting. Only took under fifteen minutes to get to the FLL airport.

This port is very easy to get in and out of. Make sure you have a photo id for everyone in the car to enter the port. You can park right in front of your ship. Make sure you abide the speed limit because there are cops throughout the port.
There is an entry on 17^th Street and an entry off of Federal Hwy. There are signs up showing you which terminal your cruise departs from. It is also easy to pickup and drop off passengers. There are people directing you to pickup locations. There is a cell phone lot waiting area since you can’t stop in front of cruise and waiting to pickup people for an extended time.

Terminal 18.
If you are sailing on the Allure or Oasis, or lucky enough to be on a Royal or Celebrity ship on a weekday, you will have the privilege of going through Terminal 18. The security is SO quick. Even with over 6000 pax on one of the Monstrosity of the Seas, or a smaller ship like the Equinox we were just on with under 3000, the security and check in is so fast.
Even if you show up early and have to wait until the ship is ready to board there are plenty of seats to wait in.
Debarkation is even better. With Express Walk off, we were walking off Deck 5 at 7:45am and past customs about 20 mins later, even with our customs agent being super thorough.
Pro tip: when sailing out, try to spot the «Flowrider House» on the port side of the ship. Spoiled ass rich kids… only seen them using that million dollar shit once.