The Tri-Rail Train helps you transfer from Fort Lauderdale to Miami airport.
Somehow, more than five years after quitting my corporate job that helped me rack up hundreds of thousands of Southwest Airlines points, I still have points left. And I’m still using them to my advantage. You might know by now that we typically use the Southwest points to fly for free from Kansas City to a bigger cities with better direct flights. So when we went to Costa Rica in April, we flew from Kansas City to Fort Lauderdale for free, and then booked our actual flight to San José from Miami.
But we did have to transfer airports: from Fort Lauderdale to Miami. With more airlines offering layovers at different airports in the same city/region these days, it’s important to know how to get from Fort Lauderdale to Miami, or vice versa, most efficiently.
So here’s what you need to know about transferring airports between Fort Lauderdale and Miami.
What You Need To Know
If you’re planning to do this, there are a couple of important things to keep in mind. Most importantly, since you’ve got two separate tickets (Southwest + International Flight, for example), these airlines will not communicate with each other in case of delay. And this means they aren’t going to have any sympathy for you if something goes wrong, like if you miss your connection. For that reason, I recommend booking tickets with PLENTY of time in between to connect. The average travel time between Fort Lauderdale and Miami is 90-180 minutes.
If you plan to take the public transportation route — which I’ll detail below — I’d recommend a minimum of 4-5 hours between your arrival time to one airport and departure time from the other airport. Remember that you’ll have to go through customs/immigration, find the shuttle, take the shuttle, wait for the train, take the train, potentially shuttle between terminals, go to the check-in desk, go through security again, etc.
Of course, it’s also always an option to take a taxi or an Uber. But if you’re like us, and you’re doing this whole airport-transfer thing in the first place because it was saving you money, you might not want to take an Uber or taxi. With the shuttle and train option, you can expect to pay less than $5 per person for the entire trip.
Obviously, an Uber will cost more. As I’m writing this, it’s a Saturday afternoon, and Uber is telling me it’s about $50 to take an Uber right now. On top of that, the estimated drive time is about 50 minutes, but traffic, construction, and other delays can always come into play, too. Before deciding to go the cheap route, make sure you have enough time in case you hit the higher end of every possible wait listed below.
Fort Lauderdale to Miami Airport Instructions via Tri-Rail Shuttle and Train
After arriving at Fort Lauderdale airport on Southwest Airlines (Terminal 1)
1. Follow all signs for ground transportation and exit airport on lower (arrivals) level. 5-15 minute walk.
2. Once outside, follow “Ground Transportation Zones” directions to Zone B: Shuttles to Tri-Rail Train and Brightline Train.
3. Wait for Tri-Rail Train shuttle, which should arrive every 20 minutes, and get on. The shuttle is free. 0-20 minutes.
4. After making two more stops at other airport terminals, you’ll ride it to Tri-Rail Fort Lauderdale Station – Dania Beach. 15-20 minutes.
5. Get off the shuttle and find the ticket kiosks at the train station. Buy a one-way ticket to Miami Airport Station with cash or card. (On weekends and holidays, the cost is $5 per person. On weekdays, it should be $3.75 per person.)
6. Find the Southbound train platform, which should be Track 1, and wait for the train to arrive. Trains should typically come every 30 minutes to every hour, but check the weekday and weekend/holiday train schedules. 0-60 minutes.
7. Get on the train and ride it about 45 minutes to the last stop, Miami Airport Station. Keep your ticket handy — while it won’t be checked as you board the train, a worker will come through the train cars and check it at some point. 45 minutes.
8. Disembark the train and follow the signs for “Airport,” which will take you to the MIA Mover. The MIA Mover is monorail that provides free transport to the Miami International Airport terminals. 5-10 minutes.
9. After arriving, follow the signs to whichever terminal your flight departs from.
10. Check in at your airline’s ticket desk and proceed through security.
Miami Airport to Fort Lauderdale Airport Instructions via Tri-Rail Train and Shuttle
After arriving at Miami Airport on your international flight
1. Once you’re through customs/immigration, walk or take the Skytrain to the “Central Terminal.” Follow the signs for terminal/exit but do not leave the airport. 5-20 minutes.
2. Follow the signs for MIA Mover to Tri-Rail. 5-15 minutes.
3. Get on the MIA Mover monorail and ride it to Miami Airport Station. 5 minutes.
4. Follow the signs for the Tri-Rail and find the ticket kiosks. Buy a one-way ticket to Tri-Rail Fort Lauderdale Airport Station – Dania Beach with cash or card. (On weekends and holidays, the cost is $5 per person. On weekdays, it should be $3.75 per person.)
5. Find the Northbound train platform, and wait for the train to arrive. Trains should typically come every 30 minutes to every hour, but check the weekday and weekend/holiday train schedules. 0-60 minutes.
6. Get on the train and ride it about 45 minutes to Tri-Rail Fort Lauderdale Airport Station at Dania Beach. Don’t mistake it for “Fort Lauderdale Station,” because you won’t be able to get to the airport as easily from there. Also, keep your ticket handy because a worker will come through the train cars and check it at some point. 45 minutes.
7. Disembark the train and follow the signs for the FREE Tri-Rail shuttle to Fort Lauderdale Airport, which should come every 20 minutes or so. 0-20 minutes.
8. Get on the shuttle and ride it to your terminal. The shuttle will make three stops: Terminal 1, between Terminals 2-3, and between Terminals 3-4. 15-20 minutes.
9. After arriving, follow the signs to your terminal. No need to check in at the desk unless you want to, because you can typically download domestic boarding passes on your phone, so you can just go through security.
So, there you have it! The step-by step instructions of transferring from Fort Lauderdale to Miami, or the other way around.
Is there anything else you want to know about the process? Have you ever done it before? Let me know in the comments!
-Cathy
I’m a foreigner, and I don’t have a permanent residency in the United States, so I have to do immigration.
Under these circumstances, I want to enter Miami and take a flight from Fort Lauderdale Airport to Canada, can I transfer within 5 hours? People in my country say it will not be easy because it takes a long time to enter the United States, but few people in my country actually entered Miami and transferred from Fort Lauderdale, so I couldn’t find a specific answer.
So I’m sorry, but I’ll ask in the comments.
I’m sorry if there’s anything wrong with my poor English.
Hi there!
Thanks for stopping by, and for your comment. 🙂 Your English is perfectly fine, by the way!
Unfortunately, I don’t have a great answer for your question. If immigration/customs took less than an hour, you might be able to make it work with a 5-hour layover in between, but I’ve never been in your situation so I can’t say how long it would take. As an American coming back into the U.S., I’ve definitely had to wait for an hour before, though this only happened a couple of times. As a non-resident, I can’t even begin to imagine how long it might take.
While I’ve only done the transfer between Miami and Ft. Lauderdale once, my notes said that it can take anywhere between 90-180 minutes, so you want to be sure you have plenty of time. I might not risk it in your situation, especially since you’re continuing on to another country.
Another option would be to take an Uber or private shuttle between the two airports. Traffic can be variable, but right now at about 2:30pm EST, it’s showing that the drive takes about an hour. Of course, it would be more expensive than the public transit options, but if transferring airports is saving you a few hundred dollars, you might not mind spending some of it on an Uber.
I hope this helps!
-Cathy