What is the closest airport near Port Canaveral and where do you fly into to get to Port Canaveral for Disney Cruise, Royal Caribbean, and Carnival cruises? How far is Orlando from Port Canaveral?
Orlando International Airport (MCO) is the closest airport near Port Canaveral, which is within the city limits of Cape Canaveral. Orlando Airport is about a 45 minutes drive from the port and 48 miles west of Port Canaveral.
- Kennedy Space Center to Port Canaveral: 20 Miles and 25 minutes drive.
- Universal Studios resort/ SeaWorld/ International Drive Resort area to Port Canaveral: 55 Miles and 1 hour & 5 minutes drive.
- Walt Disney World/ Lake Buena Vista/ Kissimmee To Port Canaveral: 70 Miles and 1 hour & 15 minutes drive.
- Sanford International Airport To Port Canaveral: 68 Miles and 1 hour & 15 minutes drive.
- Orlando International Airport to Kennedy Space Center: 43 Miles and 45 minutes drive.
I’m not sure whether to fly in the day before our cruise or to arrive the day the ship sails, and where do you recommend we stay if we fly in the night before?
You’re better off flying in the day before the cruise as we’ve seen passengers cut it really close time and time again flying in the same day. You’re at risk of delayed flights, bad weather and road conditions( there is only one main highway between Orlando Airport and Port Canaveral) resulting in having to fly to the first port of call to meet your ship, Not fun at all!.
You’re even better off putting all the traveling behind the day before the cruise and staying at a hotel near Port Canaveral vs. one near the Orlando Airport. Once there you can catch the hotel shuttle to the cruise terminal as bright and early as you like the following morning. Click here to check out the Port Canaveral/Cocoa Beach area hotels.
If we decided to fly in the day of the cruise, by what time should we arrive at Orlando International?
You should arrive no later than 1:00pm at the absolute latest, book a flight to arrive by 12:30pm allowing some time for any unexpected delays. A comfortable arrival time to catch a cruise is between 10:00am and 11:30am.
Where do we meet the driver at the airport and coming back from the cruise ship?
Watch our videos to find out how easy we make it to locate your driver:
Do you require a credit card to reserve and do you charge it anything?
How do we pay for the service? Full payment by credit card at time of booking. Why pre-pay? When The time of your service comes our staff’s only focus is to provide you with the best customer experience possible and for the drivers to do what they do best. Getting you to your destination in a prompt, safe, and efficient manner.
Once reserved, passengers receive a full itinerary, payment receipts for every pick up along with the Meet & Greet procedure via email. Give us a minimum of 48 hours notice to cancel and a 100% refund will be immediately issued to your account for refunds of less than $400(A 5% cc processing fee on combined refunds of $400 or more will be deducted from total. Longer cancellation notices required for other vehicles than sedans, vans, and SUV's). See our reservations page for more details. Most importantly, your service is guaranteed by an A+ rated company with the BBB and has been in business for over 35 years.
Do we get a better rate if we book online, by phone, or round trip?
Our rates are designed to be very competitive whichever way you book your service. However, our clients do realize some savings by booking round trips, 3 way land and sea packages, or multiple transportation reservations by booking online.
There are also advantages to booking online: it greatly reduces the margin of error and you will receive a confirmation for every transfer within 48 hours. You can take a copy of your itinerary with you while traveling, plus the total charges, driver “Meet & Greet” procedures and contact information.
We will be staying at a hotel near the airport on the day of the cruise, what time should we leave for Port Canaveral?
Most ships start boarding around 10:30am and most passengers leave the airport area between 10:00am and 1:00pm. The later you leave the shorter the lines outside the terminals will be, especially for those going on a one week cruises. You may leave as late as 2:00pm as long as road conditions allow it, it takes 45 minutes to get to the Port from the Orlando airport area.
We’re arriving on the same day of our cruise at Orlando airport, but at different times, how do you handle multiple arrivals?
We ask that you provide us with the info of the latest arriving flight. We also ask that everyone arriving before that flight to meet at the baggage claim area of the latest arriving flight so everybody can depart from the same place at the same time.
We’re returning a rental car at Orlando Airport, can you still pick us up from there?
Yes and we can recommend a pick up location for you to meet the driver at the airport when you make your reservation.
Can you pick us up from a hotel near Disney first, then Lake Buena Vista and then from the airport?
We are very flexible in our ability to pick you up from any location in metro Orlando and the airport, additional charges apply for extra stops. If you have a special need or request just let us know when booking your reservation and we’ll take care of the rest.
We have an early flight on the way back home after the cruise and we’re worried about not making our flight in time. Do you have any suggestions as to how to make sure we can exit the ship in a timely manner?
You want to make sure that the guest services on the ship know that you have an early flight and that you need to disembark early. You want to request what is called a "Self Assist Debarkation" and be off the ship at least 3 hours before your flight. Some experienced cruisers recommended keeping bags inside the cabin the night before debarkation, allowing them to walk right off the ship with their bags in hand at the time of their choosing bypassing claiming bags at the terminal baggage claim.
What are the earliest and the latest times you’ve ever picked up passengers off of each ship?
Hopefully this table can help:
| Cruise Line Name |
Earliest Time We
Have Picked Up
From This Cruise
Line |
Average Time
Range Passengers
Exit This Cruise
Line |
Latest Time We
Have Picked Up
From This Cruise
Line |
 |
Royal Caribbean
Cruise Line |
6:30 am |
8:30 am –
9:30 am |
10:30 am |
 |
Disney
Cruise Line |
7:30 am |
8:30 am –
9:30 am |
9:45 am |
 |
Carnival
Cruise Line |
8:00 am |
8:30 am –
9:30 am |
10:30 am |
 |
Norwegian
Cruise Line |
7:00 am |
8:30 am –
9:30 am |
10:30 am |
On the day we return home, our flight doesn’t leave until 3:00pm, do we have enough time to check out any of the area attractions?
Provided you leave the port by 9:15am you can spend about 3 hours at Kennedy Space Center(they open at 9:00am). That’s enough to take the bus tour, 5 hours or longer is recommended to see KSC, Guest services there informed us that they do store bags(we no longer do that). KSC is only a 25 minutes drive from Port Canaveral and a 45 minutes drive to Orlando airport.
For those of you who have a flight after 5:00pm you might want to visit one of our many local theme parks such as SeaWorld or Universal Studios.
Once we’re back home and back to the real world, any suggestions?
Look for a one time email from us giving you the chance to post a review on Google/ TripAdvisor, and like/recommend us on a social media. We appreciate your time.
Enjoy your memories, book another cruise, call us and please tell your friends and family about what a great experience you had using “Ace Luxury Transportation, Inc.”