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Favorite cruise line out of Galveston?


ElisabethH512
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Unfortunately Galveston is the only port close enough for my to drive to within a few hours and would be convenient.

 

 

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Galveston is never going to be a major cruise port because of its geographical location and distance from a major airport (70 miles). We have cruised out of Galveston and consider it the worst cruise port in the USA....when it comes to convenience. Yes, it is certainly convenient for some Texans, but a pain for anyone who does not live within close driving distance. It is also a further distance from much of the Caribbean ports...then are the Florida ports...most of which are convenient to major airports. Looking at future cruise schedules for the next several years, Galveston will continue to get some Carnival and RCI ships for shorter (usually 7 days or less) cruises to the limited number of ports within range of that port. Disney also has some cruises. Otherwise, it does not appear that the cruise industry has a lot of interest in that port.

 

Hank

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Since you’ve sailed Carnival, I’d give RC a try and see what you think.

 

Now that Princess and NCL have pulled out of Houston, those are your only choices outside of Disney.

 

I’ve been on 3 Carnival and Princess cruises out of Hou/Gal, the limited itineraries are a bigger problem than the choice of ships.

 

If you keep cruising from there I’d choose based on ports over cruise line, some of the alternate routes only come up occasionally.

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We have sailed out of Galveston 7 times. 4 Carnival, 1 Princess and 2 Royal Caribbean. The last one on Liberty of the Seas was one of the best. We are Platinum on Carnival and have sailed out of NO, Mobile and Miami as well as Galveston. We can drive 650 miles to three different ports and like Galveston the best of the three. As stated above, the airport is about 70 miles from port. It might be easier to fly to New Orleans. There are plenty of hotels near the port and it is not a long taxi ride from the airport if your hotel doesn't offer shuttle.

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Thanks for the responses everyone. I can drive about 5 hours north and get to Galveston so due to budgetary limits at the minute, it’s just easier to do that vs fly somewhere. I’m looking forward to cruising out of other ports once im finished with this grad degree and have a little more wiggle room in the budget.

 

 

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I like the Liberty of the Seas -- decent food and good entertainment. Give it a try.

I usually park at EZ Cruise. Call them for a $10 or maybe more discount code when you make an online reservation.

Or you can park at some hotels for free if you stayed there, and take a free or small charge shuttle, or take a taxi (maybe $20 each way).

RCI also is doing some 4 and 5 day cruises on smaller ships (Vision or Enchantment), but these don't have the ice rink and the always great free ice show

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  • 2 weeks later...

I’m in a similar boat so to speak (pun only slightly intended). We’re looking to do our first cruise next year and it’s super convenient to not have to fly. We live in San Antonio - I’m willing to make the 4 hour drive if it means I don’t have to pay an arm and a leg just to get to the port.

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  • 2 weeks later...

We have sailed out of Galveston several times, but only with Carnival. We have sailed the Freedom x3, Magic and Breeze and planning another Breeze before she moves away next Spring. The Breeze is our favorite Carnival ship and we only put her above the Freedom because we like the Cloud 9 Spa access on the dream class. We have also sailed out of Miami and PC but we like sailing out of Galveston the best because we can drive there in a day. We tried RC twice and just prefer Carnival. We like the Cozumel plus itinerary the best with a long day in Cozumel, Belize and Roatan with 3 sea days. We do like Grand Cayman, but since we stay on the ship for Jamaica, we prefer the other itinerary over it. Good luck on your decision and have a fun cruise :)

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  • 2 weeks later...

First of all, I am not unhappy that so many people think Galveston is such a terrible port. Ships already sail completely booked. We really don't need more people driving demand, and thus price up.

 

As for what cruise line is best I can only relate my experience. We just returned Thursday from our fourth departure this year, this one on Vision. She's an older, smaller ship and lacks some of the flash of the new ones but her Captain and crew absolutely hit it out of the park. In September we did a week on Freedom and it was not good. We have been on all of the Carnival and RCL ships for the last 8 or 9 years and I think that will be our last Carnival sailing. Liberty, and before her Navigator, and now Vision are wonderful ships with wonderful crews and the experience is just amazing. We no longer care about the ports since we've visited all of the ones out of Galveston and most of the others in the Caribbean, Central and South America. It's just the cruise experience.

 

If you're a grad student you're lots younger than we are so do what we did. Check out every angle for yourself and stay with the experience you most enjoy. And don't overspend! You can have just as much fun in an inside cabin while doing without soda and alcohol for a week. Happy sailing!

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