Pairing a few days at Disney World or Universal with a cruise is one of the most popular ways to do Orlando, and Port Canaveral sits just 45 miles east of the parks. Keep one rental car for the whole trip, enjoy the parks, then make the easy drive to the coast and leave the car with Portside for $14.95 a day while you sail.
A "park-and-cruise" trip usually looks like this: fly into Orlando, spend a few days at the theme parks, then sail from Port Canaveral and fly home after. The piece people overthink is the car and the parking. The clean answer is to keep one rental car for the entire trip. You use it at the parks and the hotel, then drive it the 45 minutes to the coast on embarkation day and leave it with Portside, so there is no shuttle to coordinate between the parks and the port and no second transfer to book.
From the Disney and Universal area, Port Canaveral is about 45 to 60 miles depending on your hotel, and the drive is a straightforward hour or so east on SR-528 (the Beachline). Our gated lot is just off SR-528 at Exit 52 (Banana River Drive), one exit before the port, so you pull in before the terminal traffic, park, and step onto the free shuttle that drops you right at your ship. When you return, the shuttle brings you back to your car for the drive to the airport.
If your last park day is the day before you sail, many families drive over that evening and stay near the port in Cocoa Beach, then enjoy an unhurried cruise morning. Others keep it simple and drive straight from the parks on embarkation day, which works well for an afternoon departure as long as you leave a buffer for the Beachline. Either way, your car ends up in the same place: our secure lot, reserved for your exact dates.
Because you keep the same rental the whole time, your only added cost for the cruise week is parking, a flat $14.95 a day that covers both your drop-off and return days and the free terminal shuttle. There is no per-person transfer fee between the parks and the port, and your car is watched the entire time you are at sea in a gated, fenced, 24/7 monitored lot. Reserve before your trip so the parking is locked in while you focus on the parks.
Port Canaveral is about 45 to 60 miles from the Disney and Universal area, roughly an hour's drive east on SR-528 (the Beachline). If you are parking with Portside, take Exit 52 (Banana River Drive), one exit before the port, then ride the free shuttle to your ship's terminal.
Usually yes. Keeping one rental car for the whole trip means you use it at the parks, then drive it to the coast and park with Portside for $14.95 a day, with no separate park-to-port transfer to book. The car waits in our secure lot and is ready for your drive to the airport when you return.
Yes. From the Disney and Universal area it is about an hour to Port Canaveral on SR-528. For an afternoon sailing you can drive over on embarkation morning with a buffer, or stay near the port in Cocoa Beach the night before. Reserve your Portside parking in advance either way.
Most parks-and-cruise travelers drive to Portside's gated lot off SR-528 at Exit 52, park for $14.95 a day, and ride the free shuttle to their terminal. Your spot is reserved for your exact dates and the car is monitored 24/7 while you sail.
$14.95 a day, free shuttle straight to your terminal, guaranteed reservation.
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$14.95 a day, free shuttle straight to your terminal, no hidden fees.