Still fly in the day before
Two miles is nothing, but a cancelled flight is a missed ship. Fort Lauderdale has plenty of hotels within ten minutes of the terminals, many with park-and-cruise packages that include your parking for the week. Arriving rested is worth more to a body with limits than the saving on one hotel night.
Parking at the port: whoever needs the shortest walk should never ride to the garage. Drop them at the door first, with the luggage, then park. Private lots work differently — you park first and ride a shuttle in.
Which garage serves your terminal
- Heron Garage — about 1,800 spaces, serving Cruise Terminals 2 and 4. Follow the orange signs with the flying heron.
- Palm Garage — about 1,960 spaces, serving Cruise Terminals 19, 21, 25, 26 and 29. Follow the green signs with the palm frond.
- Surface lots A, B and C cover the rest. Terminal 18 has no garage of its own — it's served by Lot C alongside it and Lot B nearby.
- Follow the colour, not the words. On a busy morning it's far easier than reading every sign while driving.
Know your terminal number before you leave the hotel. It's on your cruise documents, and it decides which entrance you use.
The port publishes this and most people never see it
Port Everglades states it has ample disabled parking with unimpeded access to crosswalks and elevators, and it keeps a dedicated page of disabled parking details. If the walk from the car is your limiting factor, read that page before you choose a garage — and ask at the booth when you arrive.
Parking at the port, and what it really costs
- $20 a day for a standard vehicle, $25 for oversized, charged for the day you arrive and the day you collect the car.
- No reservations and no pre-payment. You take a ticket on entry and pay at a machine before you collect the car — there are no cashiers at the exits.
- Garages are at or within easy walking distance of the terminals, so most people need no shuttle at all. That's the reason to pay the port's rate.
- Oversized vehicles over 24 feet need the port's parking management team in advance, not a decision made at the gate.
Where to park: port-run and private, together
The port takes no reservations. Private lots do, and booking ahead gets the better rate and a guaranteed space. The trade is a shuttle ride each way — which for some bodies is the whole question.
| Where | Who runs it | Roughly | What to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Port Everglades garages & lots | Port-run | $20/day ($25 oversized) | Heron and Palm garages sit at or beside the terminals, so most people need no shuttle. No reservations or pre-payment; take a ticket and pay before you collect the car. |
| Rightway Parking | Private | from about $7/day | Compares several private lots and park-and-cruise hotels in one place, with a guaranteed space. |
| On Air Parking | Private | from about $5/day | A lot in Dania roughly 4 miles out, with a free shuttle and free cancellation. Cheapest published rate we found. |
| Park-and-cruise hotels | Private | varies | A hotel night plus parking for the week, often with a terminal shuttle. Price the room and the parking together before deciding. |
Ask one question before you book any of them
"Is the shuttle wheelchair accessible, and does it have a lift?" Only some are. If a high step into a van is a problem for you, that question matters more than the daily rate — and the lot at 11am on sailing morning is the wrong place to find out.
Getting there from the airport
- Fort Lauderdale (FLL) is under two miles away — a short ride, but allow 45 minutes to an hour for the whole transfer process as the port advises.
- Miami (MIA) is about 27 miles south. Cheaper flights sometimes land there, but I-95 at rush hour can add an hour.
- Palm Beach (PBI) is about 50 miles north.
- The port doesn't run its own airport shuttle, so it's a cruise line transfer, a private transfer or a rideshare — book an accessible vehicle in advance if you need one.
Coming home, which is its own problem
Disembarkation happens early, after a week of doing more than usual. Priority debarkation goes to guests needing wheelchair assistance, so put your name down the evening before and read the instructions that night rather than in the morning. Pay for your parking at the machine before you walk to the car, not after.
Check with your cruise line
- Ask which terminal your ship uses on your date, and which garage or lot serves it.
- Ask how to request pier and wheelchair assistance, and by when — 30 days is the usual deadline.
- Ask whether there's an accessibility lane at check-in and whether your companions can use it with you.
- Ask about the distance from the drop-off point to check-in at your terminal. It varies more than you'd expect between terminals.
Prices change without notice
Every rate here is a guide, not a quote. Parking prices, shuttle hours and terminal assignments change without notice, and private lots price by season and sailing length — one local lot has been reported jumping from about $10 to $15 a day over the holidays. Confirm current rates directly with the port or the lot before you travel.
Get the deadlines before they pass
The free Accommodations Guide, plus reminders timed to your sail date — including the 30-day window for pier assistance.
The sail date is optional — we only use it to time your reminders. Unsubscribe anytime.
Where this comes from
- Firsthand observation on recent sailings, with the date noted above.
- How we check things — our method, and what "last checked" means.
Last checked 22 September 2026.
Everything here reflects publicly available information at the time of writing and is not a quote or a guarantee. We are not affiliated with any parking operator listed, and none of them paid to appear here. Sailed from here recently? Tell us what you found and we'll fold it into the page.