Our Ride on the Brightline Train (Fort Lauderdale to Miami)

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Last week Abby and I took a mother-daughter trip to Fort Lauderdale and Miami, Florida. We were impressed with everything there was to do. We were excited to discover that the new Brightline Train connects the two cities. The train made it so easy to travel between the two areas, and today I would like to share our Brightline experience with you. So come along as we ride the Brightline Train (Fort Lauderdale to Miami).

What is the Brightline Train?

Located in Florida, Brightline is a privately owned high-speed inter-city rail service that currently connects West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Aventura, and Miami. The company is 100% carbon neutral and just completed an expansion to Orlando and, hopefully, will continue to the Tampa area! If you have been following me for any time, you know we do not like to drive when traveling. Walkability and ease of getting around are two significant factors when deciding where to visit.

While locals to Southeast Florida may already know about the Brightline Train, we just happened to stumble on it a few days before our last-minute trip. We had flights in and out of Fort Lauderdale Airport, six days apart, and aside from a Jimmy Buffet concert, we had yet to set any set plans. I didn’t want to spend the entire trip in one spot. I was even toying with jumping on a flight to the Bahamas when I read about Brightline.

We quickly switched gears and decided to split our South Florida trip between downtown Fort Lauderdale and downtown Miami! I will tell you about our Brightline experience in just a minute, but I want to review the basics. So, next, I will cover the Brightline stations, schedules, and how much Brightline tickets cost.

Brightline Train Stations & Brightline Train Stops

Brightline started with three stations – West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, and Miami. They recently opened two more stations in Adventura and Boca Raton. As I mentioned above, they are expanding to Orlando, and the expansion is 90% complete. They recently doubled their fleet of trains from 5 to 10 in anticipation of this new route! It is expected to begin operations in mid-2023, with the station located at Orlando International Airport.

This expansion opens up so much travel between Central Florida and Southeast Florida. The stations are close to the major airports in each community, allowing travelers to cover more ground and use multiple airports on a single trip if desired. You can tell that I am very excited! Not only is Brightline a clean and comfortable commuter train, but it brings a charming European-style rail experience to the United States.

Brightline Train Schedule

The trains run 10-15 times per day, with the time between trains as short as 30 minutes. The best way to check current times is through the BOOKING section of their website. Trains run north to south and vice versa throughout the day.

Regarding duration, the ride from West Palm Beach to Maimi (currently the longest route) is approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes. This hour and a half is on par with the average drive time (outside of rush hour). It’s the same for other cities as well. The big perk for me is that the stations are downtown in each city, where parking is often difficult and expensive. I like the idea of just hopping off the train and getting started exploring.

However, when the new Brightline Orlando route launches, the estimated travel time is around 3 hours from Orlando to Miami. Taking the train will save you at least an hour and a tank of gas!

How Much Does The Brightline Train Cost?

Brightline Tickets

Brightline single-ride tickets start at just $10 and go up from there. Ticket costs will vary based on the time of day and demand. I did notice them often changing as our dates approached. They seemed to get more expensive as time passed – especially the PREMIUM tickets. 

Brightline Smart Fare vs. Premium Fare

Brightline offers two classes of tickets: SMART and PREMIUM.

The Brightline SMART fare is simply a ticket for a seat (not preassigned) in the main cabin.

A Brightline PREMIUM fare includes a pre-selected seat in the Premium cabin with slightly more seat space. It also includes access to the lounge at the station and complimentary food and drinks both in the lounge and on the train itself! It also includes private car rides to and from the station to anywhere within a five-mile radius. I will dive deep into this perk later because it’s the least important for me and the focus of most negative Brigthline reviews.

Is Brightline Premium worth the extra cost?

The difference in price between the two can vary quite a bit, making this question hard to answer. When we booked our one-way ticket from Fort Lauderdale to Miami, the SMART fare was $17, and the PREMIUM was $37. We opted for the latter because I wanted to see what it was all about, and it was 100% worth it. On the way back, we didn’t end up using Brightline only because we wanted to visit another area, Wynwood Walls, and it was easier to Uber it to our next destination. But, when I looked, the SMART fare was $21, and the PREMIUM fare was over $65. It would not be worth it to me in this case. I’ll share more about this later!

Brightline Train Passes

Brightline also offers a COMMUTER PASS and a FRIENDS AND FAMILY PASS for durations from 1 month to 1 year. Prices start at $127 but vary based on stations, fare class, and the number of rides. View the options and get a Brightline Pass Price here.

Our Brightline Train Experience

So, let’s talk about me and Abby’s Brightline Train experience. Riding on a Friday, just after lunch, we thoroughly enjoyed our train trip. It was near perfect, and the one hiccup at the end was expected and an important part of this Brightline review!

Brightline Reviews

Before booking, I read a lot of reviews online. Most of them centered on the free ride to and from the station. The gist I got was that it was unreliable and typically an Uber booked on your behalf. And it may or may not show up!

I almost didn’t even mess with requesting the ride, which you do when you book the ticket, but I bit the bullet to inform you all better! And it worked – 50% of the time!

Buying Brightline Train Tickets

We bought our Brightline Tickets via the Brightline App just 24 hours before our trip. The SMART fare was $17, and the PREMIUM fare was $37, so we splurged for PREMIUM. Again, it’s all in the name of good journalism! And you know that I love airport lounges, so it was only fitting to get myself into the Brightline Lounge. Plus, it covered lunch for us, which is easily $50.

Buying our Brightline tickets was easy, although we got hung up a few times because the rideshare request would error out and say the Uber price was no longer available. Starting the process over three times was a pain. So, you have to be quick! But this is only for PREMIUM tickets that are utilizing that feature.

Brightlines prides itself on being smart; everything is in the app, including digital easy-to-scan tickets.

Brightline Train (Fort Lauderdale Station)

Our Uber ride picked us up on time at the Hyatt Centric Las Olas. He was friendly and got us to the station within minutes. In this case, Uber saved us $10. We also could have walked the half mile, but we had luggage, and again, I was researching!

Booking.com

The Fort Lauderdale Brightline Station in Broward County was fantastic! Everything was spotless and welcoming. I loved the bright and cheerful ambiance. We bypassed the ticket counter and luggage check, as we were carrying our bags on, and went up the escalator.

Upstairs you’ll find the Mary Mary bar, a general waiting area, and a small grab-and-go market. It was empty when we got there because we arrived an hour early so that I could take photos for this post and enjoy the lounge! By the time we left, there were people at the bar who looked like they were having a great time.

The Premium Lounge at Brightline Fort Lauderdale

The lounge at Brightline’s Fort Lauderdale station is a sectioned-off area of the upstairs lobby. You scan your ticket for entry. Inside there was complimentary coffee and juice and a breakfast spread. Shortly after we arrived, they switched over to lunch and brought out new finger foods.

course, this is a partial meal, but I was more than happy with the selection of finger foods! The spread included fresh sliced fruits, muffins, cheeses, salad, snack mixes, crackers, fresh vegetables and dip, whole fruit, and more.

The self-serve drink selection also impressed me! While small, it was nicer brands, including Stella Artois, Samuel Adams Winter Lager, Shock Top, Matua Sauvignon Blanc, a French Rose, and Sterling Vinter’s Collection Cabernet Sauvignon. Sodas and bottles of water were also available.

I got my $40 PREMIUM upgrade (total for both of us) value from our time in the lounge alone!

What is it Like to Ride the BrightlineTrain?

The Brightline PREMIUM ticket gets you Priority boarding into the front PREMIUM train car. Once there, we had a place above to store our roller bags, similar to an airplane. Our seats were terrific! We had tons of legroom, and it was nicer than any plane I have been on.

Each car has a dedicated attendant who first offers everyone an individually wrapped tower. Not a think little wipe, but a small towel. And then he began service. The food and drink are again complimentary, and I enjoyed some bubbly and charcuterie.

The only problem is that we needed more time! The nonstop Brightline train ride from Fort Lauderdale to Miami is a short 38 minutes (48 minutes if the train stops in Adventura). I would have enjoyed being on it longer!

Brightline Train Station Miami

We arrived at the Miami station a few minutes late, having to slow down to some construction. The Miami Train Station is larger and looks just as lovely. I learned later that there is a Miami Metro Mover stop adjacent to the station.

The Metro Mover is a free tram-line rail service with three loops throughout downtown Miami. It stopped at our hotel, the Hyatt Regency Miami, so we could have taken that. It also goes to the Brickell area, so check that option out.

Shortly after getting off the train, I was notified via the app that my rebooked complimentary Uber ride was canceled. It’s good because I got to experience it working and not working and give you an honest review. It must have happened to others because a line had already formed at guests’ services. We opted to get a new Uber on our own, but I could have taken the free Metro Mover.

Brightline Premium Rideshare Service Review

What I was hoping you could take away from my experience is that while the complimentary rideshare is an excellent perk for PREMIUM tickets, I would not factor it into your decision. You need to take one, and it works; that is great. If it doesn’t, just take an “oh well” approach.

When it works, it will save you a lot of money, though, so I would at least attempt to book the rides. Just be prepared to find another option and give yourself plenty of time. Wanting this extra buffer after reading the reviews related to the rideshare is another reason we went to the station early.

This component is their Achilles Heal. I wonder if they would be better off just eliminating this. It’s costly and attributed to almost all the negativity I have read. Does offering these rides do more harm than good?

Is Brightline Premium Worth It?

Yes, if the price is right! I was delighted with the experience, and it was absolutely worth the extra $20 per ticket for us. I would think twice if there is a significant price difference. The main perk for us was the free food and drink. We were taking a 1 pm train on a Friday, and I appreciated a little mid-day bubbly and not having to worry about lunch.

Plus, it feels a bit bougie, so an excellent way to treat yourself if you are boarding the train for a day date or special occasion!

I did pull up a random day next week and see some times offering a $17 SMART fare and a $27 PREMIUM fare. That is a no-brainer for me! But looking at the same train for this afternoon, I see a $19 SMART fare and a $69 PREMIUM fare. So, your mileage will vary here based on the fares!

The Brightline Train is Expanding to Brightline Orlando, Florida

I have friends in Orlando who are very excited about this expansion. Not only will the new Brightline route give them easy access to four Southeast Florida cities, but it also gives them access to other airports. I am very into overseas travel right now, and many direct routes go in and out of Miami. The option to take the train down and get a better (usually cheaper) flight is a game changer. And vice versa, people as far south as the Florida Keys can drive to Miami and then take the train the rest of the way!

And how is this ironic? Brightline West is in the works to connect Los Angeles with Las Vegas and more. I remember this being talked about when we lived in Southern California (before we moved to Alabama), and one of the stops would have been minutes from where we lived in Apple Valley, California. This service would be such a fantastic resource for that area!

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