Never Again Out of Galveston!!

[sgermic]

While I agree that weather is completely out of the hands of Galveston and RCCL, the embarkation staff leaves something to be desired. Perhaps they need more training, or better IT staff on standby to man the computers?

 

I can understand that there will always be new staff that are inexperienced and will eventually get the hang of the system, but that doesn't take away from the guests' frustration.

 

Of course, what we really need is a year round Galveston departure port...am I right? Huh? Huh?

[notree]

I have never had a bad experience in Galveston. We always go down early and stay at La Quinta on Seawall. I love the Air Plane museum, Moody gardens ( especially the aquarium) and the Old Mansions. I always run the sea wall and walk it with the wife in the evening. We go out to eat and try and finds an out of the way place recommended by a local person but the restaurants along the Sea Wall such and Landry's are all pretty good. Galveston is still recovering from the hurricane but they have a can do attitude that I respect. We use Lighthouse parking and they have always done us right in getting us to the terminal and picked up and delivered back to our car with very little hassle. I know some of the folks we have traveled with used the hotel shuttle and parking with out a problem. Now leaving and coming in on a fog day..LOL...ya gotta just cowboy or cowgirl up and go for the ride!!!

[Galveston Cruiser]

I am sailing into Galveston on the transatlantic this fall, and that is the only part of the trip I do not look forward to.

 

Perhaps you should take a TA into Florida. Expect to have delays as the ship and crew must clear immigration and customs. The ship must be cleared before any one can disembark.

That reminds me, we were held on the ship for 4 hours in Ft. Lauderdale after a TA in order to clear the ship. Most blamed the cruise line and the port who had absolutely no control over the situation.

 

What we all need is patience.

[vettecruiser1]

We are leaving on the same cruise this Sunday and are praying for no FOG but we will take whatever we get! I was waiting for your cruise to end to ask someone which night would be the best night to miss the regular entertainment to see the ice show? I hate to miss anything that people have said was really good (like a juggler...). Your thoughts on that would be greatly appreciated.

 

Also, did you go to Portofino's? If so, was it good and which night would be a good night to skip the main dining room.

 

Any other thoughts would be great Sorry for your bad weather but hope you had fun. Does anyone know what happened to Cruise Director Eric who was on VOS last year this time?

 

Barbara

 

The ice shows can be seen on the first see day during the day at 1:30 and 3:30 if you get the tickets or Wednesday at 6:30 and 8:30. On our cruise there was no headliner entertainment on Wednesday, just the ice show and Love and Marriage at 10:00. The ice show is shown 4 times during the week and it is the same show everytime so just pick either day and you will not miss anything. As for Portofinos we went on Tuesday and the food was 100% out of this world. I'm one of those people that use to say I have already paid for the food I'm not paying anything extra. Well after trying this place out all I can say is the food in here is outstanding and the presentation and waitstaff are 2nd to none. A little tip, formals are Monday and Friday and Portifinos does Mystery dinner on Wednesday and Wine Pairing on Thursday which cost $49 per person on those days instead of $20 person, the reason for the higher price is you get unlimited wine on those 2 nights.

 

We did not have a juggler on our week. Mike the CD does all the bookings and keeps the acts fresh and entertaining. We had a hand magician/comedian, imperssionist/comedian, The Texas Tenors, and a Comic. Not to mention Mike Swzwa"whaterver", he is the most original CD we have seen in 7 cruises and hopefully we will show you FOUNTAINS, his staff has trained over 200,000 hours of rehearsal time to perfect Fountains, or maybe it is just 10 minutes of rehearsal anyway it was the funniest 6 minutes I have ever experienced.

[tbntr99]

We returned a day late as well from the fateful 7.5 hour delay due to fog. Even travelling with a 6 year old, while it certainly not pleasant to get out with 3000+ anxious people, we made the best of it and dealt with it. The captain kept us informed of what he knew, windjammer open for breakfast and lunch. We felt that they did the best they could under the circumstances. No internet and phone charges so we could rearrange our flights for next day.

Quite honestly, even with bad weather and missed port calls, we found the most anoying part of the week was people whio thought the elevators each held 100 people. We're from Jersey and used to NY subways and people jamming in was worse than anything I have ever seen here.

No ones fault but Mother nature - make the best of it - still vacation! :)

[wolfganghowell]

Cruised out of Galveston many many times. Has it been perfect every time? No - but neither has Ft Lauderdale. Galveston and it's people have done an amazing recovery job since Hurricane Ike - they should be commended, not insulted. It's a funky little beach town with some beautiful history.

Weather is weather - can't blame the cruise line although many love to try. It's been a strange winter season all over the country, much less the state of Texas.

But this is another example of people doing their research for their cruises - Galveston is not the most flier friendly port - it's a good distance from either airport and is definitely a port that caters more to the car traveler than the airline traveler. I would always recommend flying in early and not booking a departure before 1 pm - and even then, I would have traveler's insurance. By the way, we were delayed only one time by fog.

[whirlybird3]

I rather be on a cruise ship with a few hiccups than a day at work... Remember, we are on vacation! I look forward in cruising the VOS out of Galveston next month :D

[Shekim]

Not to mention Mike Swzwa"whaterver", he is the most original CD we have seen in 7 cruises and hopefully we will show you FOUNTAINS, his staff has trained over 200,000 hours of rehearsal time to perfect Fountains, or maybe it is just 10 minutes of rehearsal anyway it was the funniest 6 minutes I have ever experienced.

I agree! Although I missed the show the repeat was the BEST! And you could tell all the time they spent practicing! I sure wish I'd seen this on the daily...

[Annieeee]

There is a certain lady......goes by the name of cruiseloverandagent......or close to that, that could problably tell us more about the Galveston pier and what is going on.......than anyone else.

 

You have always been forthwright in your answers of what is going on in Galveston.........I hope that we can hear from you!!;)

 

Rick

 

 

I noticed that she does not post as often as she once used to. I agree, her posts are often informative and right to the point.

 

Annieeee

[cruisingbythesea]

There are so many factors to having a good boarding experience. The pier check in staff do the best with the hand they are dealt. They have no control over when the ship arrives, how debark goes with customs, no control over the computer systems, and absolutely no control over the weather. They can't get people on the ship until the other people get off. As with travel anywhere, stay calm and cool, anything can happen. Cheers.

[Schooner Bar Girl]

I noticed that she does not post as often as she once used to. I agree, her posts are often informative and right to the point.

 

Annieeee

 

Erica is currently on a ship and also has a new user name. She does still post here though so you have probably seen her posts but didn't recognize her new user name.;)

[fun_one]

The ice shows can be seen on the first see day during the day at 1:30 and 3:30 if you get the tickets or Wednesday at 6:30 and 8:30. On our cruise there was no headliner entertainment on Wednesday, just the ice show and Love and Marriage at 10:00. The ice show is shown 4 times during the week and it is the same show everytime so just pick either day and you will not miss anything. As for Portofinos we went on Tuesday and the food was 100% out of this world. I'm one of those people that use to say I have already paid for the food I'm not paying anything extra. Well after trying this place out all I can say is the food in here is outstanding and the presentation and waitstaff are 2nd to none. A little tip, formals are Monday and Friday and Portifinos does Mystery dinner on Wednesday and Wine Pairing on Thursday which cost $49 per person on those days instead of $20 person, the reason for the higher price is you get unlimited wine on those 2 nights.

 

Not to mention Mike Swzwa"whaterver", he is the most original CD we have seen in 7 cruises and hopefully we will show you FOUNTAINS, his staff has trained over 200,000 hours of rehearsal time to perfect Fountains, or maybe it is just 10 minutes of rehearsal anyway it was the funniest 6 minutes I have ever experienced.

 

Vettecruiser - Thanks for the info! I can't wait till Sunday.

Can you tell me more about this FOUNTAINS? Don't want to miss it now! Also, do you know if people that went to the Wine pairing dinner thought it was worth it (e.g good wines)? Based on the wine prices on board, paying an extra $60 would only be like 2 bottles and that doesn't seem that bad for 2 people.........

 

And to Cruisingbythesea............right on!

 

Barbara

[lrskier]

Being a Razorback fan from birth, I have to say sailing out of Galveston has been nothing but a breeze for us, even tho it is in the Great State of Texas. But, we do drive, a day early at least and use roll off and have usually cleared Houston by 9 AM.

 

High marks for the staff at the terminal. Both coming and going, we have never had a problem. They were kind enough to ship me my ring I left aboard that my steward found. NO CHARGE. Parking.. Both off terminal lots are far less expensive than FLL as I heard its $100 for a week. Both might give you a free car wash, hurricane!!!

 

Rhapsody was a great ship to be at home in Texas; Bring her back and we'll continue to enjoy our orange shirted friends aboard.

 

 

The only bad experience we have had was in SFO on Princess. Arrived early, it was COLD and the terminal isn't enclosed. Lines moved tho just wasn't fun but you know, better than staying at home anyday.

 

Remember, Arrive near port day before. Arrive at terminal by 1 pm before air passengers begin arriving. Leave lots of time for departing flight as well since Fog, customs, etc can delay you.

 

Let's book another.

 

The Oasis boarding was effortless. Departing was tedious, first full ship of bodies, 6300....... LRSkier

[Pearland Cruisers]

I have sailed out of Galveston many times, but it doesn't take too many trips out of Florida to make sailing in/out of Galveston a bitter pill to swallow. In Port Canaveral, we were both on and off the ship in less that 10 minutes. In Galveston - 2 or 3 hours on our last few trips. I understand there are weather delays, training issues, etc, but there is something fundmentally wrong with the process in Galveston. Last time, I said I would not saild out of Galveston again. Been a few months, so I am softening my position somewhat, but don't have anything booked yet. They really need to work on this!

[ssb]

We just returned (a day later than scheduled) from Galveston. Never again will I take a cruise out of this port. I don't think I would travel here even if I lived in Texas!!

 

We were on board the Voyager of the Seas for the February 14, 2010 voyage. It is such a hassle to get to Galveston from Houston....cheapest one-way car service we could find was Galveston Limousine from IAH. $55 per passenger. The van was pretty new and the driver, Evelyn, was excellent. We arrived a day later and missed Mardi Gras, but when we drove through Galveston and saw the city, we realized we shouldn't have been disappointed.

 

Galveston embarkation was a nightmare. Arrived at noon but didn't get on board until after 3:00. Lots of waiting in line....it was as if the staff had never loaded a ship before. Everything was chaotic.

 

Disembarkation was even worse....ship came in to port seven hours late due to the fog. We missed our flights and had to spend another night in Houston....didn't arrive home until Monday evening. At least going through customs wasn't a hassle and they seemed very nice, but once again the cruise staff were less than helpful.

 

We just returned (a day later than scheduled) from Galveston. Never again will I take a cruise out of this port. I don't think I would travel here even if I lived in Texas!!

Why not ? Should we fly to New York City with snow and ice

and deal with that mess!

We were on board the Voyager of the Seas for the February 14, 2010 voyage. It is such a hassle to get to Galveston from Houston....cheapest one-way car service we could find was Galveston Limousine from IAH. $55 per passenger. The van was pretty new and the driver, Evelyn, was excellent. We arrived a day later and missed Mardi Gras, but when we drove through Galveston and saw the city, we realized we shouldn't have been disappointed.

 

You should have flown Southwest to Hobby Airport or come a day earlier and enjoyed the city along with family friendly Mardi Gras or the rest of the city

Galveston embarkation was a nightmare. Arrived at noon but didn't get on board until after 3:00. Lots of waiting in line....it was as if the staff had never loaded a ship before. Everything was chaotic.

Computer problems happen!!!!!!!

Disembarkation was even worse....ship came in to port seven hours late due to the fog. We missed our flights and had to spend another night in Houston....didn't arrive home until Monday evening. At least going through customs wasn't a hassle and they seemed very nice, but once again the cruise staff were less than helpful.

Was it cruise staff, customs, immigration, coast guard or pier staff?

May be it had something to with medical examiners, police and FBI surrounding death of a passenger on board which turns

out to be of natural causes. Respect their families.

OR was it circumstances beyond anyones control.

Mother Nature - FOG

IT could have been

hurricanes, forest fires, tornados, Floods ,

Mud Slides and Snow.

YES snow and weather!!!!!

How many times… have we from Texas

been stranded in NEW YORK State

because of snow or bad weather. MANY!!!

SHOULd I SAY

We returned recently (a day later than scheduled

because of weather) from New York City.

Never again will I take a plane out of this airport or city.

I don't think I would travel here, even if I lived in New York State !!

How immature does that sound ?

Weather happens everywhere !

Its out of control this year everywhere.... even all over New York State and you're town!

[Cuizer2]

We just returned (a day later than scheduled) from Galveston. Never again will I take a cruise out of this port. I don't think I would travel here even if I lived in Texas!!

 

We were on board the Voyager of the Seas for the February 14, 2010 voyage. It is such a hassle to get to Galveston from Houston....cheapest one-way car service we could find was Galveston Limousine from IAH. $55 per passenger. The van was pretty new and the driver, Evelyn, was excellent. We arrived a day later and missed Mardi Gras, but when we drove through Galveston and saw the city, we realized we shouldn't have been disappointed.

 

Galveston embarkation was a nightmare. Arrived at noon but didn't get on board until after 3:00. Lots of waiting in line....it was as if the staff had never loaded a ship before. Everything was chaotic.

 

Disembarkation was even worse....ship came in to port seven hours late due to the fog. We missed our flights and had to spend another night in Houston....didn't arrive home until Monday evening. At least going through customs wasn't a hassle and they seemed very nice, but once again the cruise staff were less than helpful.

 

Galevston is not my favorite port either.

[BallFour4]

While weather does play a part in all departures I'd suggest to anyone with a cruise from virtually anywhere to arrive before noon.

 

We've cruised from Galveston 13 times with only one delay clearing US Customs. That process took 2 hours versus the usual 30 minutes.

 

Transportation options vary based on times and price, so next time look around. Flying into IAH versus HOU adds to travel time.

 

Galveston remains a great port for departure, both the cruise lines there now have premium demand ships that sail full. In a soft economy those ports that have a significant number of drive up passengers do well.

 

We've had the delays and lines at Miami. No perfect port experience exists.

 

 

[Cuizer2]

While weather does play a part in all departures I'd suggest to anyone with a cruise from virtually anywhere to arrive before noon.

 

We've cruised from Galveston 13 times with only one delay clearing US Customs. That process took 2 hours versus the usual 30 minutes.

 

Transportation options vary based on times and price, so next time look around. Flying into IAH versus HOU adds to travel time.

 

Galveston remains a great port for departure, both the cruise lines there now have premium demand ships that sail full. In a soft economy those ports that have a significant number of drive up passengers do well.

 

We've had the delays and lines at Miami. No perfect port experience exists.

 

 

 

If Galveston is such a great port, when did Princess and NCL both leave? Royal Caribbean used to have a ship there full time. Now only seasonal. Carnival is the only line with a full time ship (or two).

[newcrew42]

We returned recently (a day later than scheduled

because of weather) from New York City.

Never again will I take a plane out of this airport or city.

I don't think I would travel here, even if I lived in New York State !!

 

This just cracked me up. :)

 

I could insert so many cities in this statement.

 

How 'bout...

Chicago

Atlanta (many times)

Memphis

Los Angeles

Columbus, OH

Cincinnati, OH (whose airport is really in KY by the way!)

 

When you travel, things happen.

 

It's all in the attitude!

[VillaHappy]

We were on board the Voyager of the Seas for the February 14, 2010 voyage. It is such a hassle to get to Galveston from Houston....cheapest one-way car service we could find was Galveston Limousine from IAH. $55 per passenger.

 

That cost is a big turnoff for me! We always travel with our two kids, so this means $220 one way, plus tip, to get us from the airport to Galveston?!? Ouch!

[LoneStarJeffe]

Hi All,

 

I have cruised from Galveston several times and never had a problem with check-in.

 

Cost to get from the airport to the ship terminal is certainly a factor that I suspect is balanced against overall cost of the cruise + airfare to leave from a different port. If the cost of cruise, airfare, and shuttle is cheaper from another port, than that is what you should use. However, I suspect for some, depending upon where they come from, the cost might be cheaper overall to cruise from Galveston. Even if the shuttle cost is higher. The TOTAL cost, not shuttle cost is what is critical.

 

Why did other cruise lines leave? For the same reason RCL repositions Voyage every summerr. They can make more money if they resposition the ship. If the revenue was there, they would all be based at Galveston. I do not care why ships use or do not use Galveston. What counts is what is the best value for me at the time I book my cruise.

 

I am sorry the OP had such a bad experience. Fog is always bad. So is a full customs inspection which happens periodically at every port. So is a strike which happens now in France for air travel. I also hate hurricanes and snowstorms.

 

Finally service. I was not there and fully believe the OP had a bad experience. If that happened to me, I would absolutely reconsider the value of traveing out of Galveston. I think the OP is right to do so. However, I have not had that experience. Thus, like the OP factors his negative experience into deciding whether or not cruising from Galveston makes sense, I factor my positive experience. I will continue to cruise out of Galveston.

 

I wish the OP the best and again I am sorry for having such a negative start to a cruise. I hope future cruises go better and say thanks for sharing your experience!

[Coralc]

Just as clarificaion, the initial post about Voyager that came from this screen name was from my partner. I also went on a cruise the same week, but on Liberty. Funny, because we had the opposite itinerary, only difference was we started with Labadee and went to Ocho Rios, not Montego Bay. We had great weather almost all week, except it rained in Jamaica - at least we were able to dock! Interesting how we went the opposite way and how different the week ended up for us!

 

Sorry to hear about all the issues with Galveston. I'm more of a Florida port fan myself!

 

The original Poster wasn't even on this cruise! Apparently he was on Liberty as his signature indicates. I'm sure Galveston is wonderful, but I don't know that the OP is reading. :)

[BallFour4]

If Galveston is such a great port, when did Princess and NCL both leave? Royal Caribbean used to have a ship there full time. Now only seasonal. Carnival is the only line with a full time ship (or two).

 

NCL had bathtubs for ships that never sailed from Galveston... they were at Bayport, a container shipyard in LaPorte, Texas.

 

Princess had a short term contract for a seasonal sailing of the Grand. Celebrity did the same.

 

Royal pulled the Rhapsody for the lucrative overseas market, leaving Galveston as a full time 7 day sailing to replace it with the Voyager for seasonal trips.

 

Galveston remains a valuable port for cruise lines. Carnival invested millions for terminal enhancements and the end result is cruise passenger counts remain high based on not only number of departures, but the number of passengers on the larger vessels. The "or two" count is at two.

 

Bayport terminal is ready with some shortcomings for parking, gulf travel times, etc. and those help the survivability of Galveston. Look how few days passed after Ike nearly submerged the island before the cruise terminals were back in full operation. Amazing recovery...

 

If you want me to defend the place I love, where I grew up wade fishing, surfing, and being a weekend beach bum then just ask.

 

If you don't like Galveston, or it does not measure up to your standards then stay away :) Keep your tofu. I'll keep my grilled redfish.

 

.

[Cuizer2]

 

NCL had bathtubs for ships that never sailed from Galveston... they were at Bayport, a container shipyard in LaPorte, Texas.

 

Princess had a short term contract for a seasonal sailing of the Grand. Celebrity did the same.

 

Royal pulled the Rhapsody for the lucrative overseas market, leaving Galveston as a full time 7 day sailing to replace it with the Voyager for seasonal trips.

 

Galveston remains a valuable port for cruise lines. Carnival invested millions for terminal enhancements and the end result is cruise passenger counts remain high based on not only number of departures, but the number of passengers on the larger vessels. The "or two" count is at two.

 

Bayport terminal is ready with some shortcomings for parking, gulf travel times, etc. and those help the survivability of Galveston. Look how few days passed after Ike nearly submerged the island before the cruise terminals were back in full operation. Amazing recovery...

 

If you want me to defend the place I love, where I grew up wade fishing, surfing, and being a weekend beach bum then just ask.

 

If you don't like Galveston, or it does not measure up to your standards then stay away :) Keep your tofu. I'll keep my grilled redfish.

 

.

 

I don't do tofu. It cost me more to go from the airport to the cruise port then it did for me to go from LAX to George Bush International. When is Galveston going to get an airport, or a car rental agency so people can rent a car in Houston, drive it to Galveston, drop it off for the cruise and then drive it back to Houston?

[BallFour4]

I don't do tofu. It cost me more to go from the airport to the cruise port then it did for me to go from LAX to George Bush International. When is Galveston going to get an airport, or a car rental agency so people can rent a car in Houston, drive it to Galveston, drop it off for the cruise and then drive it back to Houston?

 

OK, when you come here it's redfish then :) Enterprise was on the island but their facility was totaled from Ike. Numbers of people that live on the island are not what it was before, UTMB has returned to a lesser degree.

 

Why not fly into Hobby? The costs of commute to Galveston are much less. Can you get to John Wayne on OC and fly Southwest?

 

Galveston has a small airport that serves the offshore rig industry and some gen av from the residents that live close, and for those practicing IFR approach patterns from Houston.

 

One thing to consider... the beachfront resorts are back big time. Summer was very good for the island, and new plans are in place for more construction and remodels of existing hotels.

 

Until then... your options are less. You'd be amazed at the numbers that drive to the port. I'm not in the travel industry (health care) but I'd wager at least 1/2.

 

.