Galveston cruise port to Houston Airport travel time

[ve3ell]

Hello I am booked on the January 19 2024 cruise on the NCL Prima. 2 people in our group of 10 got their flight times today . they leave Toronto at 825am arrive Houston 1115am . On the return flight they are booked 1215am from Houston arriving 415pm in Toronto. Last time we sailed we were told return flights must be 2pm or later . For an international flight you need to check in 3 hours ahead and be cleared thru customs an hour before your flight. Can anyone let me know how their travel experience by ship bus to Houston airport was. Thanks Russ

[mexicobob]

24 minutes ago, ve3ell said:

Hello I am booked on the January 19 2024 cruise on the NCL Prima. 2 people in our group of 10 got their flight times today . they leave Toronto at 825am arrive Houston 1115am . On the return flight they are booked 1215am from Houston arriving 415pm in Toronto. Last time we sailed we were told return flights must be 2pm or later . For an international flight you need to check in 3 hours ahead and be cleared thru customs an hour before your flight. Can anyone let me know how their travel experience by ship bus to Houston airport was. Thanks Russ

Never taken the ship bus..................but traffic can be terrible as similar to a parking lot. Sometimes not so bad. On occasion fog can be a problem in Galveston, delaying ships. 

Not enough money on the face of this earth for me to do the schedule you describe. Good luck and tell your friends to have alternative plans. 

[cruiser2015]

3 hours ago, ve3ell said:

Hello I am booked on the January 19 2024 cruise on the NCL Prima. 2 people in our group of 10 got their flight times today . they leave Toronto at 825am arrive Houston 1115am . On the return flight they are booked 1215am from Houston arriving 415pm in Toronto. Last time we sailed we were told return flights must be 2pm or later . For an international flight you need to check in 3 hours ahead and be cleared thru customs an hour before your flight. Can anyone let me know how their travel experience by ship bus to Houston airport was. Thanks Russ

First, I assume that you meant the return is a 12:15 PM departure. Otherwise, boy, really bad flights.

They may recommend 3 hours prior for check-in, but that's a lot of time.

Customs must be cleared at the pier - nothing to do with flights.

Lastly, if NCL provides these flights, do you think they might know what they are doing?

I expect they will assign an early disembarkation time to those Toronto bound friends.

 

[jules181]

My home airport is Toronto. I'd book those flights after a cruise.  Flying to Canada isn't exactly an 'international' flight. 

 

The last few cruises with US disembarkation I've been on have been 100% facial recognition without a CBP officer in sight. 'Clearing customs' took all of 10 seconds.

 

Those are really the best flights one could hope for when rolling the NCL Air dice. 

 

Get on the earliest bus from the ship and you'll be fine. 

[ggTexasGal]

9 hours ago, ve3ell said:

Hello I am booked on the January 19 2024 cruise on the NCL Prima. 2 people in our group of 10 got their flight times today . they leave Toronto at 825am arrive Houston 1115am . On the return flight they are booked 1215am from Houston arriving 415pm in Toronto. Last time we sailed we were told return flights must be 2pm or later . For an international flight you need to check in 3 hours ahead and be cleared thru customs an hour before your flight. Can anyone let me know how their travel experience by ship bus to Houston airport was. Thanks Russ

You might want to verify which airport: IAH (Intercontinental) or HOU (Hobby). Hobby is about 30 miles closer to the port than IAH.  The amount of traffic, and travel times, can vary tremendously on any given day!

Safe travels!!!

[1025cruise]

If they are flying to Toronto, I can only assume it's IAH. 

[laudergayle]

Are you certain of those flight times?  I think a red-eye of 12:15 am to 4:15 am is more like something NCL air would book.

[graphicguy]

I know that Carnival and Royal have berths at the Galveston Port, but not sure where the NCL Prima docks.  Does Carnival/Royal share?

 

Is Prima the only NCL ship sailing out of Galveston?

[graphicguy]

Having sailed NCL recently, more than a couple of times, clearing the ship and disembarking has been quick and easy.  Only real issues I’ve had has been out of the Manhattan terminal.  Not sure if that’s an NCL issue or a port issue, however.

 

It’s been a while since I’ve been to Galveston.  And, it was for work.  I ended up staying by the seawall, which was kind of fun.

 

But, I don’t recall any cruise ships being there at the time.

[RocketMan275]

46 minutes ago, graphicguy said:

I know that Carnival and Royal have berths at the Galveston Port, but not sure where the NCL Prima docks.  Does Carnival/Royal share?

 

Is Prima the only NCL ship sailing out of Galveston?

Royal has a brand new terminal.  Norwegian uses one of the older terminals.  Terminal 1 or 2 IIRC.

[Sand and Seas]

If they are flying to/from Houston Hobby much better drive than Houston IAH.  Traffic can be horrible and time consuming getting to IAH.  Also there can often be construction delays on the road to Galveston.

NCL Prima sails from downtown Strand area port. Very nice area to walk around and spend time.

Edited October 31, 2023 by Sand and Seas

[Langham1865]

9 hours ago, cruiser2015 said:

First, I assume that you meant the return is a 12:15 PM departure. Otherwise, boy, really bad flights.

They may recommend 3 hours prior for check-in, but that's a lot of time.

Customs must be cleared at the pier - nothing to do with flights.

Lastly, if NCL provides these flights, do you think they might know what they are doing?

I expect they will assign an early disembarkation time to those Toronto bound friends.

 

They are not talking about customs when disembarking. At some, if not all, flights to Canada, people clear customs prior to their flight.  

[coolrider71]

I live near IAH. Its about an hour and a half from the pier in Galveston to IAH. With traffic maybe another 45 minutes to an hour. I think your fine. Just get off the ship early and no problem.

[jules181]

1 hour ago, Langham1865 said:

They are not talking about customs when disembarking. At some, if not all, flights to Canada, people clear customs prior to their flight.  

You clear customs when you land in Toronto. 

 

Although legally able to, I don't believe the CBSA has setup preclearance at any US airport. 

[Langham1865]

35 minutes ago, jules181 said:

You clear customs when you land in Toronto. 

 

Although legally able to, I don't believe the CBSA has setup preclearance at any US airport. 

I'm not sure, but I thought they did at DCA.... I could be wrong...

[ve3ell]

I talked to the NCL flight dept and they cant change the flight since it was booked thru the special 1 flies free offer. What I had to do was cancel the return flight and book one myself  . I only get 50% of the return flight cost back  from NCL and paid for return flight myself. I still managed to save $300. off the normal return flight cost. If I booked myself both flights  cost $1500. return on Air Canada. Now I just hope there are no weather issues like last year in Toronto when hundreds of flights had been cancelled at the same time. I am so jealous of people that can drive to a cruise in a few hours. Oh we had a light dusting of snow yesterday here north of Toronto.

[jules181]

I think you did all that for nothing. There was nothing wrong with the flights assigned.