Sell flying in to Miami for me...

[7SeasSailor]

I've done it a couple of times and would do it again. Its a bit of a pain if you drive out of the airport into the rush hour but once you are on the turnpike its ok. Stop once for toilet and caffeine top up and haven't had a problem. I can appreciate that its not for everybody.

[Guest]

We are doing it because money saved = worth hassle of long drive.
We're not really interested in Miami or anywhere on route, but if you were this might be another factor in its favour.

[Demonwar]

We are doing it for the first time, I'm driving as soon as we get there as I usually sleep well on the plane and we have a hotel the night before at Heathrow so not a travelling long day and not very stressful.

With travelling from Jersey into Miami and the Heathrow hotel plus minivan we got it for 3adult,17yr and 11yr old for £2425 + about 100 for the London to Jersey Flights. No brainer really for us.

[DebsMK]

Have done this before and did it last year due to the fact we used miles on BA and saved £2000. However, if there was not this huge saving again I don't think I would bother. We arrived a bit late and then had a HUGE queue in the airport (lots of tour groups). By the time we came out of the airport with our hire car, it was very dark and we struggled to find the overnight hotel even with a sat nav. It also took a whole day off the holiday at the beginning travelling to the Gulf Coast and a whole day off when we returned back to Miami. The traffic on the way back was at a standstill and we just made it to the airport in time. We then had a terrible problem with our extra baggage and the check-in computer not recognising we had paid despite us having a receipt! The BA check-in staff were very rude and even told us to stand aside in the middle of our rant with them so they could check in First Class pax. Bad experience all round. Oh and car from Dollar was dreadful! Needless to say we are flying via Tampa this year

[WDocW]

There are quite a few discussions on the topic of flying into MIA and which route to use up to Orlando and whether to do it straight after the flight or not.

The third point is particularly "person sensitive" in that the right answer for one person is the wrong one for someone else (much like choosing onsite vs a villa, to me it's barmy to stay in a hotel room when you could have a whole house but I understand others feel differently and respect that!). Basically you need to consider when you are scheduled to arrive in Miami - if your flight arrives before 4pm for me it makes sense to drive up same day and get all the travelling done. Later arrival would tip the balance in favour of staying in a motel and finishing the trip in the morning but you then eat into your first day.

The drive up is easy but dull. Turnpike marginally faster, 27 more laid back and simpler to get to Davenport area if staying there. Traffic on the turnpike will flow at 85ish, on the 27 it will be more like 65-70. Do not risk speeding in the towns along the 27!

MIA itself is, well, an airport. It is in a bit of a "wrong side of the tracks" type area but now the rental car center is open it's fine as long as you have sat nav of some description.

[beezer]

We are flying into Miami from Heathrow this year with a connecting flight to Orlando (BA). This was actually cheaper than just flying into Miami. As it's about an hour flight and go through Orlando as a domestic passenger , we would rather have this than the drive the next day. We saved over £1000 doing this rather than direct (2A- 1C).Last year flew into Tampa stayed at a local hotel and drove up the next morning which really worked well. I wouldn't do the drive the same day from Miami but that's down to the individual.

[Pookle]

We're doing it next year but have decided to go the Keys as well. It was £2,000 cheaper than flying into MCO so it was a no-brainer for us!

[Pussycat Doll]

Originally Posted by rjarvis

At Christmas we flew into Miami for the first time and thought it was fine if a little scruffy.We drove straight from Miami over to Naples which is about a 1-1.5 hour drive.On our way back to Miami we stopped at Disney Vero beach hotel to break the journey up.
Naples is so beautiful we are doing the same this August before driving up to Orlando.

I think Miami was about £1000 cheaper than Orlando this time.

Richard

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We are doing exactly the same! Staying in Naples for 6 nights then on to our villa. We did toy with the idea of a couple of days in Miami at the end of the holiday as we really do like it there but our flight home isn't till 9.30pm so we thought we'ed take a leisurely drive down on flight day and maybe have a stroll around Lincoln Road for a while. Pussycat

[poohsfriend]

We are flying into miami in August as it worked out quite a bit cheaper. DH tends to sleep quite well on planes so we will drive straight to Orlando (we are due to land about 3pm). We originally planned on staying near the airport the night before our flight but decided to spend that night in Orlando instead - we have booked a cheaper hotel so wake up in Orlando but don't mind that we won't arrive until later. I will share the driving and I am sure we will be fine between us as we will be buzzing just to be on holiday - have planned a meal/caffeine stop about half way too to keep us going!
Can't come quickly enough - particularly with the weather we have been having here recently. Fed up of watching my DS play cricket while huddled in several layers of clothes and wrapped in blankets!

[Alice2111]

We flew to Miami when travelling down to the keys , very busy in immigration took nearly 3 hours as there were lots of flights arriving at once. Then had to get a transfer to the car hire hub and ended up getting lost . Would definitely stay at an airport hotel next time , Tampa is our airport of choice , collected bags and hire car ( Avios preferred) within an hour of arrival.