How to Choose an Airport and Cruise Port Car Service in Brandon, FL

Why this matters in east Hillsborough

From Brandon, Valrico, Lithia or Riverview, getting to the airport or the cruise port means the interstate, traffic you cannot predict, and then parking. Leave a car for a week-long cruise and you pay for every day it sits. Ask a neighbor to drive and you owe them a favor at five in the morning. That is why a lot of families out here book a car service for the trips that bookend a vacation.

Here is what to ask before you book.

1. Tell them your flight or sailing time, not just a pickup time

A good car service will ask when you fly or when boarding opens, then work backward. Give them the details and let them suggest a pickup time, and be honest about how long your family takes to get out the door.

2. Count the bags as well as the people

Four people with carry-ons fit almost anywhere. Four people with a week of cruise luggage, a stroller and a car seat do not. When you book, say how many passengers and how many bags so the right vehicle shows up.

3. Ask about groups

Traveling with grandparents, cousins or another family? One larger vehicle is usually easier than coordinating two or three cars. Ask what the largest vehicle is and how many passengers it actually seats.

4. Book the ride home at the same time

The trip back is the one people forget. Give the car service your return flight or the day your ship comes in, and confirm how you will find each other when you land or disembark.

5. Confirm the night before

Check the pickup time, the address and the phone number you will use to reach the driver. One quick call or text the night before saves a lot of stress at dawn.

6. Pick local over whoever answers first

A car service based on this side of the county already knows the roads out of your neighborhood and how long the drive really takes at six in the morning versus four in the afternoon. Ask where they are based and which towns they cover regularly. A driver who lives nearby is also less likely to be stuck across the bay when your pickup time comes around.

One more thing worth asking: whether they can handle the rest of your plans. If the same company that drives you to the airport also does dinners, concerts or a night out with friends, you only have to save one number in your phone.

Our pick: 55 Rides

Full disclosure: 55 Rides is an East of Tampa partner, which is why they are named here and others are not.

55 Rides is a family-run black car service owned by Michael and Octavia Brand, serving Brandon, Valrico, Lithia, FishHawk, Riverview and the rest of Tampa Bay. The airport run is the easy call. For bigger trips they have a 15 passenger van that carries 14 guests, and the same van does brewery, wine and taco tours, concerts and game days when you are not traveling.

Skip the drive and the parking garage. The vacation can start in your driveway.