San Pedro from a San Pedran

Hi all. Can anyone confirm the port that celebrity Eclipse sailes from in October 2019. I thought it was San Pedro but saw controversial information on another cruise site. Want to book a precruise stay and need to know if we should book closer to Long Beach or San Predro.

Celebrity ALWAYS cruises out of San Pedro. The terminal in Long Beach, which only accommodates one ship at a time, is owned by the Carnival Corporation and is used 99% of the time by Carnival. The only exceptions, which are rare, are the occasional port stop by a cruise line owned by Carnival Corp.--typically Princess or Cunard--on days when Carnival has no ship scheduled in port.

ALL other cruise lines (Princess, HAL, Oceania, NCL, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, etc.) use the world Cruise Center in San Pedro. In fact, Royal Caribbean actually paid for the terminal to be refurbished several years back when it brought Mariner of the Seas to LA for a few seasons.

What misinformation were they spouting on some other board?

Hi all. Can anyone confirm the port that celebrity Eclipse sailes from in October 2019. I thought it was San Pedro but saw controversial information on another cruise site. Want to book a precruise stay and need to know if we should book closer to Long Beach or San Predro.

Bruin Steve is correct.

Hi Bruin Steve,

Thanks for the confirmation of our port in Los Angeles. The misinformation came from CruiseMapper. See attached photo.

Just an FYI. The Port of Los Angeles has begun the demo process at Ports of Call Village. This is going to be an ongoing process over the next three years. At the moment only the San Pedro Fish Market, Spirit Cruises and Ports of Call Restaurant are still open. The fish market and Spirit Cruises will remain open during the entire process but the POC restaurant is closing at the end of the year...or sooner. Acapulco Restaurant is part of this renovation and is CLOSED.

Haven't been in San Pedro in about 24 months, retired from DWP working in that area where even locals don't want to go. The "Red Car" street car had been removed from service over three years ago. Two years ago just a handful of shops were open with a few restaurants, looked like a ghost town. While Pedro used to be a "cool" place to walk around and eat back in the day, the area on the hill just West of the harbor has taken a drastic turn for the worst. Other than a couple of government buildings the area is drug rehab, halfway houses with a large homeless population. I can almost bet the city is planning on a "gentrification" of the area when millions are offered for that land for high rise condos.

Wow, sounds like a wicked place to visit.

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OK, we will be in town in mid-May and probably stay at Doubletree. It appears that Von's would be a decent place to shop for stuff that we cannot fly with. I looked at their ads and it appears that all the pricing is reflective of the 'club pricing'. I'll be there this time for one day, what kind of hoops will I need to jump through (that would be a sight!!) to get their special pricing on a couple of bottles of wine?

Jim

OK, we will be in town in mid-May and probably stay at Doubletree. It appears that Von's would be a decent place to shop for stuff that we cannot fly with. I looked at their ads and it appears that all the pricing is reflective of the 'club pricing'. I'll be there this time for one day, what kind of hoops will I need to jump through (that would be a sight!!) to get their special pricing on a couple of bottles of wine?

 

Jim

Sign up for a card--quick and easy--but sometimes they have one you can use at the register for guests.

Hi Bruin Steve,

Thanks for the confirmation of our port in Los Angeles. The misinformation came from CruiseMapper. See attached photo.

The Port of LA's Berth #46 is an overflow berth 2 miles south of its World Cruise

Terminal. CruiseMapper thinks it's the Carnival berth over in Long Beach by the

Queen Mary.

LA hasn't publicly posted berthing assignments for 2019 so I dunno for sure, but

about once a year a ship gets bumped down to Berth #46 and confusion like this

ensues.

We are looking into flying into San Diego, renting a car and driving to Carlsbad for a 4-night precruise stay. We will then drive from Carlsbad to the World Cruise Center in San Pedro for our Sunday, October Celebrity embarkation. We will need to drop the rental car somewhere (Long Beach Airport, somewhere in San Pedro). Any recommendations on which car rental would be best to suit our needs and shuttle service to get from drop off site to ship? First time in the area so need lots of help. Many thanks!

I plan to stay in the area two days pre cruise in December, after arriving by train. I usually stay at Hilton properties, and am considering eiter the Doubletree in San Pedro both nights, Doubletree Downtown L.A. both nights or one night in each hotel. I assume there is more to do in downtown L.A. than in San Pedro, but I am relucant to rely on L.A. traffic from downtown getting to the port the day of the cruise. My concern is whether I will be bored staying in San Pedro for 2 days with no public transportation. Any thoughts from the locals?

I plan to stay in the area two days pre cruise in December, after arriving by train. I usually stay at Hilton properties, and am considering eiter the Doubletree in San Pedro both nights, Doubletree Downtown L.A. both nights or one night in each hotel. I assume there is more to do in downtown L.A. than in San Pedro, but I am relucant to rely on L.A. traffic from downtown getting to the port the day of the cruise. My concern is whether I will be bored staying in San Pedro for 2 days with no public transportation. Any thoughts from the locals?

DON’T stay in Downtown Los Angeles. Yes, there are a few things one might see in the area, but, overall, it’s not an area one should want to stay in unless one has specific business in the area...That Doubletree isn’t even in a great location in Downtown...unless you have a need to be at the court house or at City Hall.

If you’re arriving by train and want to stay at a Hilton product, consider the new Hampton Inn in Santa Monica. You can get right off the train and onto the Metro Expo Line...and the Hampton Inn is right next to the new Santa Monica Metro Station (end of the Expo Line). I’d even consider staying there both nights, then using Super Shuttle, Execucar or Uber to take you to the pier the morning of the cruise. Santa Monica has lots to see and do—the Santa Monica Pier, Third Street Promenade and Palisades Park are all easy walking distance from that Hampton Inn. There are lots of shops and restaurants, nightlife and attractions nearby...and the area is fairly upscale and safe (unlike the area around that Downtown Doubletree). If you want to do an LA tour (to see Hollywood, Beverly Hills, et al), all of the major tour companies will pick up at Santa Monica hotels...plus the HOHO bus tour uses Santa Monica as well. Venice Beach, the Getty Center and Getty Villa museums are short Uber rides away.

It is the best area to stay in without a car...

Don’t worry about the traffic morning of the cruise, just check out of the hotel early enough in the day and let your shuttle or Uber driver deal with traffic...it’s about 30 miles to the port, and, even with some traffic on a Monday-Friday morning, will likely only take about an hour...even under the worst circumstances, an hour and a half...and there are lots of alternate routes your driver will know.

We are looking into flying into San Diego, renting a car and driving to Carlsbad for a 4-night precruise stay. We will then drive from Carlsbad to the World Cruise Center in San Pedro for our Sunday, October Celebrity embarkation. We will need to drop the rental car somewhere (Long Beach Airport, somewhere in San Pedro). Any recommendations on which car rental would be best to suit our needs and shuttle service to get from drop off site to ship? First time in the area so need lots of help. Many thanks!

If you are driving in and dropping the rental in San Pedro, you have a problem. Only two companies with an office there—Hertz and Enterprise...and both are closed Sundays.

In Downtown Long Beach, Hertz is closed Sundays, Avis is open until noon...it varies company to company. Another thing that varies greatly are drop off charges...and rates. So, consider all carefully.

If it works to drop off the car in Downtown Long Beach, you’ll only be 6-8 miles from the pier in San Pedro...and I’d recommend Uber for that trip. If it works out cheaper to return it to an airport location, there really isn’t that much difference between LAX and LGB...LAX is 20 miles from the pier, LGB is 16 (using freeways rather than the slightly shorter but more frustrating city streets). Uber is a good choice from either, though you have the option of a shared shuttle if you want to deal with possible extra stops.

Thanks so much. We'll check into a LAX drop off and shuttle or Uber to San Predro Port.

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We’re just there

Took Uber to LAX $46.00

Gives u flexibility to shop for rates

We rented from SIXT

LAX. SFO

San Pedro rentals for drop off $$$$$$

DON’T stay in Downtown Los Angeles. Yes, there are a few things one might see in the area, but, overall, it’s not an area one should want to stay in unless one has specific business in the area...That Doubletree isn’t even in a great location in Downtown...unless you have a need to be at the court house or at City Hall.

 

If you’re arriving by train and want to stay at a Hilton product, consider the new Hampton Inn in Santa Monica. You can get right off the train and onto the Metro Expo Line...and the Hampton Inn is right next to the new Santa Monica Metro Station (end of the Expo Line). I’d even consider staying there both nights, then using Super Shuttle, Execucar or Uber to take you to the pier the morning of the cruise. Santa Monica has lots to see and do—the Santa Monica Pier, Third Street Promenade and Palisades Park are all easy walking distance from that Hampton Inn. There are lots of shops and restaurants, nightlife and attractions nearby...and the area is fairly upscale and safe (unlike the area around that Downtown Doubletree). If you want to do an LA tour (to see Hollywood, Beverly Hills, et al), all of the major tour companies will pick up at Santa Monica hotels...plus the HOHO bus tour uses Santa Monica as well. Venice Beach, the Getty Center and Getty Villa museums are short Uber rides away.

 

It is the best area to stay in without a car...

 

Don’t worry about the traffic morning of the cruise, just check out of the hotel early enough in the day and let your shuttle or Uber driver deal with traffic...it’s about 30 miles to the port, and, even with some traffic on a Monday-Friday morning, will likely only take about an hour...even under the worst circumstances, an hour and a half...and there are lots of alternate routes your driver will know.

Thank you so much for the good suggestion. I spent a day in Santa Monica a few years back (arriving and departing by Metro), and it is lovely. I checked the rates at the Hampton Inn and they were close to $400/night! The Doubletree, a few blocks away, is less expensive. I may consider the Doubletree even though it is a further walk from the Metro Station.

Hi Wineaux, we are staying at the Doubletree San Pedro one night pre cruise in January. Where can I pick up a couple of bottles of wine to take on board our HAL cruise? Got a morning to kill so don't mind a walk - can you advise, thanks.

Hi Wineaux, we are staying at the Doubletree San Pedro one night pre cruise in January. Where can I pick up a couple of bottles of wine to take on board our HAL cruise? Got a morning to kill so don't mind a walk - can you advise, thanks.

Without going into too much detail, there are reasons why Wineaux may not be able to answer you here, so let me take a stab.

The best specialty wine shop in the area is Off the Vine Wines, two blocks west of the Crowne Plaza at 491 West 6th Street, #103...That would be your best selection of really good wines. The Doubletree will probably shuttle you there and back if you ask. See offthevinewines dot com

Another option is Vons Supermarket at 12th and Gaffey. Supermarkets and drug stores in California generally carry wine and liquor.

Also, there are several small liquor stores in the area including Ocean Liquor, just across Harbor Boulevard from the cruise terminal.

But, nothing is really within reasonable walking distance of the Doubletree...you’ll likely need a ride...either hotel shuttle or Uber...

JMO - agree transport best & be very very careful if doing a San Pedro walk-about.

We are [hoping] taking a cruise out of L.A. in October. I was looking at the Best Western Plus - 111 South Gaffey Street - San Pedro, Los Angeles.

Do you recommend it?

We are [hoping] taking a cruise out of L.A. in October. I was looking at the Best Western Plus - 111 South Gaffey Street - San Pedro, Los Angeles.

 

Do you recommend it?

If you're driving, there are hotels which offer Park-and-Sail packages.

Two I know of are Crowne Plaza, and DoubleTree. I've enjoyed the

Crowne Plaza (which includes a restaurant-quality breakfast buffet)

and I've heard good things about DoubleTree.

I've neither stayed at nor heard good or bad about that Best Western.

We are [hoping] taking a cruise out of L.A. in October. I was looking at the Best Western Plus - 111 South Gaffey Street - San Pedro, Los Angeles.

 

Do you recommend it?

It would not be my choice. But I do understand that, when it comes to hotels, everyone has different standards and different requirements. I wouldn't completely disregard the BW--it does get decent reviews...but, basically, here is my assessment:

There are really only two hotels in San Pedro that I like--the Crowne Plaza and the Doubletree. Both are a little nicer hotels. The BW is more of a "motel". The other important thing to me is LOCATION. The Crowne Plaza is in, perhaps, the most convenient location in San Pedro. Most of the decent to good restaurants in Pedro are within very short walking distance of the CP. And the pier (World Cruise Center) is, at least for me, in walking distance of the CP (though some take the hotel shuttle). I, personally, have walked from the CP to the terminal--flat and easy, about a block east to the waterfront, then about two or three short blocks north. The Doubletree is in a less convenient area, downchannel near the yacht marina with few restaurants nearby, but the hotel will shuttle you to the pier and to restaurants for free. The Doubletree has the most scenic setting in Pedro.

The Best Western, OTOH, sits on a main, heavily-trafficked thoroughfare where the 110 Freeway dumps out into San Pedro. It is a bit of a distance from the pier and there are only fast food restaurants nearby (El Pollo Loco, Taco Bell, Wienerschnitzel). The area is somewhat unattractive.

If you are looking for just a bed for the night and not interested in dining out or walking around the neighborhood, then check in, close the curtains tight and call for an Uber in the morning... But, if you are arriving with a little time on your hands and you want to maybe walk around, check out some local attractions and then eat a good dinner before retiring, I'd stay at the CP...

We're primarily looking for a CLEAN & nice place to just sleep the night before a cruise. We like for the hotel to have a free breakfast, shuttle service from the airport & to the cruise port. We will be in CA for a few days before the cruise visiting family. Unfortunately the closest family lives 90 minutes from the port.

We're primarily looking for a CLEAN & nice place to just sleep the night before a cruise. We like for the hotel to have a free breakfast, shuttle service from the airport & to the cruise port. We will be in CA for a few days before the cruise visiting family. Unfortunately the closest family lives 90 minutes from the port.

Kelley,

Assuming that, by the "airport", you mean LAX, you need to realize that LAX is 20 miles from the cruise port in San Pedro...23 if you are sailing out of Long Beach (and that bit of information would also be important to know). So, NO hotels in the port area offer a shuttle from the airport. For that trip, you would have to pay for a shuttle, Uber or other transportation. Of course, if you are going to be in for a few nights, staying somewhere 90 minutes from the port, you really don't need a shuttle from the airport, rather just transportation from wherever that might be. The Doubletree has a shuttle to the pier in San Pedro...so does the Crowne Plaza, though they may now charge $5 for that service. OTOH, from the Crowne Plaza to the port, it is actually walkable--lust about 3-4 blocks...I believe the BW will also shuttle you to the port. The BW does have a "free breakfast", such as it is. At the others, you can always get a rate that includes breakfast...or, if you are at the CP, you have plenty of breakfast options close by. Remember, nothing is ever really "free"--it is just blended into the rate you pay.

So, if cost is the most important thing to you, check your rates carefully--often times, you may get a better deal at a nicer hotel. The CP and the Doubletree are, IMHO, definitely nicer hotels. But the BW is okay.