Getting to Miami

Getting to Miami by Air

If you are flying to Miami, then Miami is well served by two international airports, Miami International Airport (code MIA) in Miami itself and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (code FLL) to the North.

There were nearly 34 million passengers passing through Miami International Airport in 2009, many of those to connect with the cruise ships that operate out of Miami and Fort Lauderdale.

Getting to Miami by Car

If you are driving to Miami down the Atlantic coast then Miami is located on I95 and if you are coming down the Gulf coast from Tampa, then I75 is your route which conveniently cuts across to the southern end of Florida from the west coast.

There is also the aptly named Tamiami Trail (Tampa to Miami) which runs from Tampa down the Gulf coast through Bradenton, Sarasota, Punta Gorda, Fort Myers to Naples and then across the State through the Everglades to Miami.

If you are staying in the Central Florida/Orlando area then Miami is about a four hour drive via Florida’s Turnpike/Ronald Reagan Turnpike (around 230 miles). From the south, Key West is about a three hour drive away (around 150 miles).

Getting to Miami by Train

Miami is also accessible by the Amtrak railway with services from the North Eastern states. Both the Silver Star and the Silver Meteor services start their journeys in New York and end in Miami. The Silver Star detours via Tampa and takes 30 hours in total whereas the “more direct” Silver Meteor only takes 28 hours to cover the 1,400 miles!

Getting to Miami by Greyhound Bus

You can also reach Miami by Greyhound bus with services from across the United States. There are four Greyhound bus stations in the Miami area plus another in Fort Lauderdale. As an example, the fastest service from New York to Miami takes around 31 hours.

Cruising from Miami

Miami is the busiest cruise terminal in the World and lives up to its name “Cruise Capital of the World”. A number of cruise lines operate cruises to Key West, Mexico, the Bahamas, the Eastern and Western Caribbean, South America and as far afield as Europe. Cruises can last anything from 3 days to 11 days plus longer durations.

Some of the largest cruise lines including Azamara Cruises, Carnival Cruise Line, Celebrity Cruises, Crystal Cruises, Fred Olsen Cruise Lines, Norwegian Cruise Lines, Royal Caribbean and Oceania Cruises operate out of the Port of Miami.

There are eight passenger terminals and in 2009, some four million passengers passed through the port.

Cruising from Port Everglades

The nearby Port Everglades between Greater Fort Lauderdale and Hollywood also saw around four million passengers in 2009.

Port Everglades is home to Carnival Cruise Line, Celebration Cruise Line,

Celebrity Cruises, Costa Crociere S.p.A., Cunard Line, Discovery Cruise Line, Holland America Line, Lindblad Expeditions, MSC Cruises, P&O Cruises, Princess Cruises, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, ResidenSea, Royal Caribbean International, The Yachts of Seabourn and Silversea Cruises. This is more cruise lines than any other port on the world.

Both ports are able to accommodate some of the largest cruise ships in the world including the Royal Caribbean International Genesis class, “Oasis of the Seas” at 225,000 gross tons.