Flying into Houston, porting out of Galveston

[miyamoon]

This is our first time cruising. We are flying Southwest to Houston the night before our cruise and we are porting out of Galveston on Royal Caribbean the next day. Is there a hotel anyone would recommend in Galveston that provides free shuttle from the airport? Or is it cheaper to rent a car? Please help! thank you!:p

[CruiserBruce]

You should look over on the Gulf Coast Departures board, here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=414

 

for tons of info.

[lgsshedden]

in a similar situation and the short answer is you have two options when you fly into Houston the day prior to cruising: stay at the airport and use the hotel shuttle to link up next day with the cruise line transfer, or arrange private transportation and stay in Galveston itself. Lots of options both with the transportation (taxi, SUV, limo, bus, shuttle) and hotels. As the previous poster indicated, several threads on the Gulf Ports board with advice and experiences.

Hotel prices vary greatly, the transportation will be better priced than the cruise line the more people you have, a bit more expensive if there's only 2 of you.

[Eng23]

This is our first time cruising. We are flying Southwest to Houston the night before our cruise and we are porting out of Galveston on Royal Caribbean the next day. Is there a hotel anyone would recommend in Galveston that provides free shuttle from the airport? Or is it cheaper to rent a car? Please help! thank you!:p

Galveston is about a 45 minute to 1 hour drive depending on which Houston airport you fly into. Bush Intercontinental Airport is the furthest airport from Galveston. As you are flying Southwest you will arrive at Houston Hobby Airport so the drive will be closer to 30-40 minutes depending on traffic. Due to the distance you are not likely to find a hotel providing a free shuttle from Hobby Airport to Galveston.