Cruising out of Galveston

[montana200024]

How easy is it to cruise out of Galveston. Flying in to Houston , what airport. How to get to hotels in Galveston where to stay,what hotels  do you recommend,  shuttles busses,.  Please help me., cruising Jan 13, 2024

[LHT28]

25 minutes ago, montana200024 said:

How easy is it to cruise out of Galveston. Flying in to Houston , what airport. How to get to hotels in Galveston where to stay,what hotels  do you recommend,  shuttles busses,.  Please help me., cruising Jan 13, 2024

It is tricky

You fly into IAH  then have to get a ride/shuttle to Galveston about 1 hr away

We have family there  so they took us to the port 

I would fly in a day or more early get  a hotel close to Galveston  or close by  

 

[RocketMan275]

1 hour ago, montana200024 said:

How easy is it to cruise out of Galveston. Flying in to Houston , what airport. How to get to hotels in Galveston where to stay,what hotels  do you recommend,  shuttles busses,.  Please help me., cruising Jan 13, 2024

It's easy.

 

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g55879-Activities-c59-t182-Galveston_Galveston_Island_Texas.html

 

https://www.cruzely.com/complete-guide-to-cruising-from-the-port-of-galveston/

 

https://www.cruzely.com/how-to-get-from-the-houston-airport-to-the-galveston-cruise-port/

 

We fly into IAH Bush since we don't have flights to Hobby.

We fly in the day before (always, always fly in the day before).

We like to stay at the Marriott in the airport.  No need for a shuttle, there is a tram (free) that stops at each baggage claim and take you to the hotel.

We arrange for a shuttle to travel to the cruise port the next day.

Some cruise lines will offer shuttle from the airport to the cruise port.  A bit more expensive than the other shuttles but it may work well for  you since you don't have to do a lot of shopping around.

We used the Princess shuttle before and it worked quite well.  Checked into  hotel. The hotel gave us special luggage tags, told us to leave the bags in the room when we went down for breakfast.  Princess had a rep at the hotel to get us on the shuttle to the port.  

[RocketMan275]

2 hours ago, montana200024 said:

How easy is it to cruise out of Galveston. Flying in to Houston , what airport. How to get to hotels in Galveston where to stay,what hotels  do you recommend,  shuttles busses,.  Please help me., cruising Jan 13, 2024

A few more points.

There are two airports.

IAH-Bush is the larger but it is on the north side of Houston, maybe 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours to Galveston.

Hobby (HOB) is closer to galveston but it is smaller.  Shuttles will be cheaper from Hobby.

We can't use hobby because the nearest airport that has flights to Hobby is an hour and a half drive from home.

If you can fly into Hobby, that will save you some cash.

Whether  you stay near the airport or travel to galveston will probably depend upon when your flights arrive.  As I said, it's maybe 90 minutes from IAH to Galveston.  

[montana200024]

11 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

A few more points.

There are two airports.

IAH-Bush is the larger but it is on the north side of Houston, maybe 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours to Galveston.

Hobby (HOB) is closer to galveston but it is smaller.  Shuttles will be cheaper from Hobby.

We can't use hobby because the nearest airport that has flights to Hobby is an hour and a half drive from home.

If you can fly into Hobby, that will save you some cash.

Whether  you stay near the airport or travel to galveston will probably depend upon when your flights arrive.  As I said, it's maybe 90 minutes from IAH to Galveston.  

Thank you,appreciated 😊 

[montana200024]

2 hours ago, LHT28 said:

It is tricky

You fly into IAH  then have to get a ride/shuttle to Galveston about 1 hr away

We have family there  so they took us to the port 

I would fly in a day or more early get  a hotel close to Galveston  or close by  

 

Always fly day before. It is  new port for us

[Sand and Seas]

17 hours ago, montana200024 said:

Always fly day before. It is  new port for us

Galveston is a lovely island.  As soon as we returned from our last Prima cruise, we booked another out of Galveston and will spend two nights there prior to cruise.

 

If your flight will arrive in Houston early, staying on the island is a wonderful way to start your vacation.  If your flight arrives later in  the day, staying at airport hotel might be a better idea.   We found that the hardest part to figure out was how to get from Houston to Galveston.  If you read about it, you will see mentions of heavy traffic and constant ongoing construction.  The time of day and day of week you arrive will play into the potential of increased travel time to the island.  We booked a private shuttle (again) will Galveston Saltwater Moms.  There are many other shuttle services available too.

 

For our upcoming 2nd cruise from Galveston, we bypassed a direct flight into IAH that arrived later in the day and chose a connecting flight that arrives earlier in day at the smaller (and closer to island) Hobby airport.  That way, we will get to spend maximum time in Galveston prior to cruise.  It really depends on what type of flights you are looking at.  Travel from IAH will take longer as it is on the far side of the very busy Houston area.    

 

We found lots of good advice  regarding hotels and shuttles on cruise critics Gulf Coast Departures board:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/316-gulf-coast-departures/

[ssb]

8 minutes ago, Sand and Seas said:

Galveston is a lovely island.  As soon as we returned from our last Prima cruise, we booked another out of Galveston and will spend two nights there prior to cruise.

 

If your flight will arrive in Houston early, staying on the island is a wonderful way to start your vacation.  If your flight arrives later in  the day, staying at airport hotel might be a better idea.   We found that the hardest part to figure out was how to get from Houston to Galveston.  If you read about it, you will see mentions of heavy traffic and constant ongoing construction.  The time of day and day of week you arrive will play into the potential of increased travel time to the island.  We booked a private shuttle (again) will Galveston Saltwater Moms.  There are many other shuttle services available too.

 

For our upcoming 2nd cruise from Galveston, we bypassed a direct flight into IAH that arrived later in the day and chose a connecting flight that arrives earlier in day at the smaller (and closer to island) Hobby airport.  That way, we will get to spend maximum time in Galveston prior to cruise.  It really depends on what type of flights you are looking at.  Travel from IAH will take longer as it is on the far side of the very busy Houston area.    

 

We found lots of good advice  regarding hotels and shuttles on cruise critics Gulf Coast Departures board:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/316-gulf-coast-departures/

visitgalveston.com ,    galveston.com   , galvestonhistory.org

[minnie00]

We flew into IAH and took Lyft to Galveston Island, we did an XL and I think it was $80 ish, we stayed at the Hilton Galveston Resort, ate dinner at Landrys Seafood next door, took hotel shuttle to port, all easy breezy. It takes an hour to get to the hotel from airport.

the new RCCL port was really nice but luggage drop off was a cluster….just dump your bag and go. 

home….ordered an XL…think we got a Black Xl…not sure but it was like double the price back to the airport. Pricey and a full hour ride back.

this was not our favorite port to sail out of given more choices….just a lot of costs and travel. 
just my 2 cents. Air was pricey too but the Allure cruise was $100’s cheaper than others at the time. Good luck and have fun 🤩 

[malissaboymom]

@RocketMan275 what shuttle company do you use from your Houston hotel to the cruise ship?

[c-leg5]

8 hours ago, minnie00 said:

We flew into IAH and took Lyft to Galveston Island, we did an XL and I think it was $80 ish, we stayed at the Hilton Galveston Resort, ate dinner at Landrys Seafood next door, took hotel shuttle to port, all easy breezy. It takes an hour to get to the hotel from airport.

the new RCCL port was really nice but luggage drop off was a cluster….just dump your bag and go. 

home….ordered an XL…think we got a Black Xl…not sure but it was like double the price back to the airport. Pricey and a full hour ride back.

this was not our favorite port to sail out of given more choices….just a lot of costs and travel. 
just my 2 cents. Air was pricey too but the Allure cruise was $100’s cheaper than others at the time. Good luck and have fun 🤩 

You would pay port surcharge if you were picked up from within the port.

 

We don’t do lyft or uber but aren’t these charges listed on the app and extra for popular times?

Edited August 13, 2023 by c-leg5

[RocketMan275]

9 hours ago, malissaboymom said:

@RocketMan275 what shuttle company do you use from your Houston hotel to the cruise ship?

We once used the cruise line shuttle with Princess.  There pickup point from the airport was the Marriott.  We stayed their and that was convenient.

This  year we're  using a limo service, Galveston Limo.

[slyster]

I think one of the other problems people have found cruising from Galveston is that Lyft or Uber were not reliable transportation if you stay close to the port.  The drivers don't make as much money as they do driving from Houston to the port.  I read that they rejected requests because of it.  That made me really nervous thinking I needed to hire a private car or get on a shuttle.

[momof3cruisers]

I personally really like sailing from Galveston. There are a lot of transportation options to get from either airport to the island. There is a lot of history and some great architecture. There is a trolley that is easy to get around on and it’s also pretty walkable. Tons of restaurants to choose from as well. 

[momof3cruisers]

Just now, momof3cruisers said:

I personally really like sailing from Galveston. There are a lot of transportation options to get from either airport to the island. There is a lot of history and some great architecture. There is a trolley that is easy to get around on and it’s also pretty walkable. Tons of restaurants to choose from as well. 

 Adding—we took a taxi back to the airport as neither the Uber or Lyft apps were responding and it was $95 not including a tip. Later we talked to some of the people in our cruise group who had just walked out of the port area and across the street and got an Uber for $65. 

[c-leg5]

4 minutes ago, momof3cruisers said:

 Adding—we took a taxi back to the airport as neither the Uber or Lyft apps were responding and it was $95 not including a tip. Later we talked to some of the people in our cruise group who had just walked out of the port area and across the street and got an Uber for $65. 

They would save the port surcharge by doing that.

[whynottry77]

We love cruising out of Galveston. We come in a day early, flying into Houston so its further. We always use  Saltwater Moms. It's a wonderful group of ladies. They will keep you entertained with all kinds of history and stories about the Island. If they have time, they may offer to stop at Buc-ees if you have not had experience.  The Island has some great restaurants and a lot of places to keep you entertained if you have the time. We are going in January and coming in 2 days earlier so we can spend from time on the Strand (shops etc.,). We re staying at the Tremont which is wonderful, lots of history but not a bargain hotel. There are also a lot of hotels by the seawall which also has lots of restaurants.

[Sand and Seas]

2 hours ago, whynottry77 said:

We love cruising out of Galveston. We come in a day early, flying into Houston so its further. We always use  Saltwater Moms. It's a wonderful group of ladies. They will keep you entertained with all kinds of history and stories about the Island. If they have time, they may offer to stop at Buc-ees if you have not had experience.  The Island has some great restaurants and a lot of places to keep you entertained if you have the time. We are going in January and coming in 2 days earlier so we can spend from time on the Strand (shops etc.,). We re staying at the Tremont which is wonderful, lots of history but not a bargain hotel. There are also a lot of hotels by the seawall which also has lots of restaurants.

We loved the staying at the Tremont too. Easy to walk around to so many great restaurants, bars & shops.  If you can, I recommend you stay at least two nights pre-cruise to enjoy the island.  We also found it easy to walk to the cruise port for embarkation.  

 

We also loved using the Galveston Saltwater moms for our transportation.  Our vacation truly started when our friendly 'mom' picked us up at IAH.    And....we had our first stop at a Buc-ees!  Didn't know what we were missing before that and we loved it😊

 

For us, the toughest part of our cruise planning from Galveston was figuring out transportation from the airport to the island.  Now that we have found how easy & pleasant it is with the Saltwater Moms, we planned another cruise from Galveston for the spring.  

[merinski]

How do you find Salt water moms? Looking for transportation from Moody Gardens Hotel to Port for Princess cruise in Jan.

[whynottry77]

12 minutes ago, merinski said:

How do you find Salt water moms? Looking for transportation from Moody Gardens Hotel to Port for Princess cruise in Jan.

Hi, They have a facebook page, you can send them a message. It may take a few days to get a response

 

[merinski]

thank you