Carnival Pride and Port of Long Beach

[Rellik01]

I have enjoyed reading these boards for quite some time and have now started to post. I hope to be able to answer some questions we have regarding our upcoming and much anticipated cruise.

 

We (wife, me 2 children) are booked on the Carnival Pride sailing on a Sunday. We will be flying into LAX the morning before (Saturday) and want to stay in the LA or Holloywood area overnite as my children want to see Hollywood. I have several questions regarding my stay and cruise and am hoping someone familiar with the area can help.

 

Remember, we are trying to spend wisely (tight budget) but not cheap.

- Any general tips and pointers regarding the Carnival Pride.

- Cab fare and travel time from LAX to Cruise terminal.

- Cab fare and travel time from Hollywood area to Cruise terminal.

- Hollywood area hotels.

- early check in procedure-- when, how, where and is it worthwhile.

- Cab fare and travel time from Cruise to LAX.

- Resonable time to expect debarkation (without rushing 2 small children in tow) .

- following cruise 3:40 pm flight from LAX, how to kill some time.

 

Thank You in advance for your advice.

[southbayer]

Its gonna cost you..... Speaking as an L.A. Native, its a 30 min or so cab ride from LAX to the port..... And from the port, to Hollywood is a very long way to go and spend$ by cab....

 

I think you should see Hollywood at least one time, but not in a rush fashion. I don't really want to tell you much about Hollywood to ruin your anticipation, but, forget about what all you expect about it, and go with an open mind... A hint is, remember, L.A. is a huge city, and with it goes its urban problems...

 

At the port, you generally will be let off the ship about 10-11:30, then its 30 min to LAX.

[Rellik01]

southbayer wrote:

"Its gonna cost you..... Speaking as an L.A. Native, its a 30 min or so cab ride from LAX to the port..... And from the port, to Hollywood is a very long way to go and spend$ by cab....

I think you should see Hollywood at least one time, but not in a rush fashion. I don't really want to tell you much about Hollywood to ruin your anticipation, but, forget about what all you expect about it, and go with an open mind... A hint is, remember, L.A. is a huge city, and with it goes its urban problems...

At the port, you generally will be let off the ship about 10-11:30, then its 30 min to LAX."

 

Thanks for your reply.

 

My wife and children would really love to see the Hollywood walk of fame, Grauman's Chinese Theatre and just casually walk the town. As a New York City Police Officer I am more aware than most of what lurks in urban areas , but we thank you for your concern. As we are arriving a full day early into LAX I don't want to waste it sitting in a hotel room. Again, we are on a tight budget but we don't want to be cheap with our vacation.

Thanks:)

[PaddleAddict]

A cab to Long Beach to Hollywood is about 30 miles and would probably cost $60 to $80 (one way). If you're going out there, you might consider going to Universal Studios. The kids would love it.

[davidt1968]

Southbayer is right. You can't rush LA. Here's my suggestion. You may want to check SuperShuttle instead of a taxi. There are so many things to do in LA, and Hollywood is just a small part of it. There are great beaches (Redondo, Huntington,etc), so finding a hotel near the beach is hard to beat. Also, Santa Monica wouldn't be a bad choice either. It has the pier with rides, etc. Plenty of shopping and a whole bunch of people watching. Getting shuttled throughout LA will be expensive as Southbayer has stated. It's really tough to fly across the country and have to worry about getting around. It's probably why I stick to West Coast sailings I can just drive to. One thing you might want to do is check with various websites for offering a "Price" for hotels. I've rolled the dice that way and have got pretty nice hotels. You will find you won't have that much time to kill after you get off the ship. Alot depends when you get off the ship. Again, I totally agree with Southbayer. Don't rush LA. Enjoy the Pride, it's a great ship.

David

 

Carnival Pride: 10/29/06-Halloween Cruise To Mexico

Carnival Spirit: 02/2006-8 Night Mexico

NCL Star: 09/2005-7 Night Alaska

Carnival Paradise: 04/2005-4 Night Baja Mexico

Carnival Pride: 09/2004-7 Night Mexico

Carnival Elation: 06/2003-7 Night Mexico

[southbayer]

Hey David, I'll be leaving the Pride as your waiting in line to get on.... We'll try to leave her in good shape for ya...... This will be my second sailing in 6 months on Pride.... Let us know how the halloween experiance is.

 

Also is you do early check in, you want to get there no later than 9:30 at the most. This will ensure you get to be first in line.

 

Any other questions, just let me know, i've also sailed three other times from this port on Paradise.

[wavecruiser]

Definitely do early check in. I believe it ends at 11 am - we got there at 10:20 and it was plenty of time. You enter the check in area by going into the Queen Mary general entrance (forgot if it was the front or back of the ship, but it's not hard to find). Took about 15 mins, then they tell you boarding will begin between 11:30 and 12:30. We got in the Zone 1 line at 11, and we were near the front. Boarding didn't begin until 12:30, but once you enter the dome for security check, you will be on the ship in 20 mins. It's so worth it because you bypass everyone else in line and you are welcomed onto an empty ship.

[Cuizer2]

The Pride docks where the Paradise is below ...

 

 

And here is the Pride at its Long Beach dock ...

 

 

Here are a bunch of people looking to board the Pride ...

 

 

If you get one of those aft corner suites, this is the view (this is from the Pride in May 2004) ...

 

 

And here is the Pride in October 2005 getting ready to leave Cabo. The Pride was only moving at about 2 knots when the photo was taken. The sunset was taken at a different time, but it is a Pacific Ocean sunset ...

 

[phroggie]

The cruise terminal is easily reachable by public transportation from Hollywood or Universal City. You will have no problem arriving in time for early checkin. The luggage "problem" will be no different than what you will experience on an airport parking shuttle.

 

The fare: $2.50 per person each way.

 

Checkout the Metro Red and Blue Lines at http://www.mta.net and the Passport "C" at http://www.lbtransit.com/Schedules/Default.aspx?routegrp=34 .

 

Contrary to local, popular belief, LA has wonderful public transportation as long as it's going where you're going. In the case of Hollywood to Carnival's cruise terminal, you're in luck.

 

Consider also staying in Long Beach and riding into Hollywood from there.

[JRGAPI]

We will be sailing on the Pride on 11/12/06. We live in Georgia and like you had no idea on where to stay and what kind of transportation to use. From my research and reading this board I booked a private van with Supper Shuttle, there are four of us, and the price is very reasonable.

This is for transportation from LAX to the hotel and from the port back to LAX after the cruise. The hotel provides shuttle to the port on cruise day.

I kept biiding on priceline for a 4* hotel in the Long Beach area and got a great price at the Long Beach Hilton. So you may to check into this.

Hope this helps.

 

JR

[southbayer]

Try the Coast Hotel Long Beach, its the closest Hotel to the port... Its a very nice hotel right along the water, with views of the queen mary... Alot of cruisers stay there..... Comp shuttle, and breakfast.:D

[davidt1968]

I'm actually staying at the Best Western on Long Beach Blvd. I have one night hotel, parking for the whole cruise, and breakfast (which includes cereal, breads, fruits and make your own waffles) for $110 plus tax. This also includes shuttle to and from the port. Nice hotel, nice breakfast. Hard to beat this deal. It's also not too far from the transit. Early check-in 9:30 is good. I belong to Carnival Vacation Club, so I go to the VIP line (This will be the first time), so I'll be pigging out first at the buffet (and gaining weight first). I've been to this port 3 previous times and it's pretty easy. 18 days and counting for me.

David

Carnival Pride: 10/29/06-Halloween Cruise in Mexico

Carnival Spirit: 02/2006-8 Night Mexico

NCL Star: 09/2005-7 Night Alaska

Carnival Paradise: 04/2005-4 Night Baja Mexico

Carnival Pride: 09/2004-7 Night Mexico

Carnival Elation: 06/2003-7 Night Mexico

 

[Jerafam5]

- Cab fare and travel time from LAX to Cruise terminal.

 

Just to give you an idea of the high priced cabs in the area, we took a cab 3.5 miles and it cost us $11.00. I would suggest renting a car for the day, it may cost you much less and you will have the ability to go where you want. We rented a car and it was only $40 for the day. There is an Enterprise rental area at the Queen Mary. Call Enterprise and tell them you want to pick up at LAX and return to the Queen Mary location. There was no extra charge for us to do this. That way you will be able to go all over Hollywood and Los Angeles.

 

- Cab fare and travel time from Hollywood area to Cruise terminal.

 

With LA traffic you need to allow yourself at LEAST an hour.

 

- Hollywood area hotels.

 

Not sure other than the Sheraton at Universal Studios.

We stayed at the Queen Mary. It was nice being so close and not having to worry about driving in the morning traffic. We toured the Queen Mary and we also went across the bay (there were water taxis available for $1 a person) and walked around the shopping area.

 

- early check in procedure-- when, how, where and is it worthwhile.

 

We utilized the early check in and I thought it was worthwhile, my husband didn't. One thing we didn't realize though is that your luggage needs to be dropped off in the parking garage with the porters before checking in. When you arrive to the terminal, you will see the large parking garage. The porters are all lined up ready to take your luggage. Drop the luggage off and then proceed to Queen Mary. The early check in area is located in the back (aft) area of the Queen Mary. Don't take your luggage with you! It is a pain in the neck!!!! We got there at 10am and it was fairly crowded, I would arrive earlier.

After you check in proceed back to the dome. There will be 2 lines there, one for the early check in (ZONE 1) and the ones that didn't check in. Be sure to get in the right line. We accidently got in the wrong line. The line we were supposed to be ran along the side of the dome.

 

-Cab fare and travel time from Cruise to LAX.

 

Again, I recommend at least an hour. You may want to check into the shuttle services for your return to LAX. Cab fare is OUTRAGEOUS!!!

 

- Resonable time to expect debarkation (without rushing 2 small children in tow).

 

From the time we left our room until the time we got in the cab it took us 40 minutes. We did self-debarkation. We left our room at 8:20am. I heard horrible stories of debarkation, it wasn't nearly as bad as I heard. We chose self-debarkation because people said finding your luggage in the warehouse was a nightmare, but when we were getting off the luggage was divided into sections and it looked like it would be very easy to find your luggage. We will not self debark next time! The waiting in line may make your kids restless, just have something to distract them.

 

- following cruise 3:40 pm flight from LAX, how to kill some time.

 

We were off the ship and on our way home by 9:00am. That would allow you a little bit of time to explore. There is Expedition Park in LA that has museums you can visit. There are also a couple of malls near the airport. If you don't get a chance to explore Long Beach, there are lots to look at across from the Queen Mary and of course the Queen Mary.

The ship offered a "shore excursion" from the Port of Long Beach to LAX. They take you the scenic route up the coast. I didn't check the price, but it may interest you. Depending on the cost of the shuttle, again you may want to look at how much it would be to rent a car for those couple of hours. You may have more freedom that way and a place to put your luggage.

 

Hope I helped a little!

 

Shondra

[Rellik01]

Thank you all for taking the time and posting this very useful information. Please keep it coming.

 

Thanks

[Bruin Steve]

Shondra (Jerafam5) gave you some of the best information. Most Angelenos would tell you to rent a car.

 

Sure, the Rapid Transit System can take you from Hollywood to Long Beach (but not really to or from LAX) but it does go right through some of the worst parts of the city...I don't know if I'd recommend that to tourists...I won't even take it.

 

If you are only getting in the day before, it doesn't really matter that much where you stay--you will arrive, check into a hotel somewhere, head out for your sightseeing and then back to the hotel to sleep, wake up in the morning, check out and head to the ship...

 

I would NOT stay in Hollywood proper...it's pretty scuzzy and you don't really want to hang around in that area at night with young kids...

 

I'd propose you either stay in Long Beach or Universal City (especially if you have a rental car)...

 

If you stay in Universal City, you could pick up the car at the airport, drive to Hollywood, check out Grauman's Chinese, the Walk of Fame, et al (I really wouldn't spend the whole day in the immediate area) then continue on to Universal City, just over the hill, check into the hotel and then head out for the real show business Hollywood--Universal City and Burbank...You could either visit the Theme Park at Universal (something the kids might really like)...or check out ahead of time if you can get tickets to the taping of a show at NBC Burbank (some might have age restrictions)...then you could head over to Universal City Walk for dinner and to walk around...or go to dinner at one of my favorites--Miceli's on Cahuenga...City Walk is pretty lively at night...

 

In the morning, you could drive down to Long Beach...and depending on when you get out of the hotel and on what you might want to do, you could make some stops along the way (or a little out of the way)...Beverly Hills? Venice Beach?...depending f course, on when the ship sails (remember to leave PLENTY of time)...

 

If you stay in Long Beach, you could do much of the same...then head down to Long Beach late at night and check in...When you get up in the morning, you could stay locally in Long Beach, check out the Aquarium of the Pacific or the Queen Mary before boarding the ship...

 

Good luck...

[phroggie]

Sure, the Rapid Transit System can take you from Hollywood to Long Beach (but not really to or from LAX) but it does go right through some of the worst parts of the city...I don't know if I'd recommend that to tourists...

 

Having used those lines (by choice, not necessity), I'm really hard pressed to understand what you're talking about. And, unless they re-routed the Harbor and Long Beach Freeways last week, they go through the exact same parts of the city. The LACSD's Transit Detail maintains a very visible presence on the rail lines.

 

Personally, I would prefer to speed by on a rail and rubberneck rather than inch my way through the Four-Level (or is it the Four-Letter?) Interchange.

 

...I won't even take it.

Like I said and you so admirably illustrated by your own, self-admitted lack of experience:

Contrary to local, popular belief, LA has wonderful public transportation

[Ichellebereel]

I'm on the same cruise you guys are on. I rented a car from Lax and dropping it off near Queen Mary for 34.00 from budget. See you on the cruise!

 

Rochelle

[southbayer]

Hey David, I would try the Coast for next time, its the closest to the queen mary.... Let us know how all the holloween stuff goes ok! And how does that vacation club work anyway, maybe i can join too!

 

J.R.

I'm actually staying at the Best Western on Long Beach Blvd. I have one night hotel, parking for the whole cruise, and breakfast (which includes cereal, breads, fruits and make your own waffles) for $110 plus tax. This also includes shuttle to and from the port. Nice hotel, nice breakfast. Hard to beat this deal. It's also not too far from the transit. Early check-in 9:30 is good. I belong to Carnival Vacation Club, so I go to the VIP line (This will be the first time), so I'll be pigging out first at the buffet (and gaining weight first). I've been to this port 3 previous times and it's pretty easy. 18 days and counting for me.

David

Carnival Pride: 10/29/06-Halloween Cruise in Mexico

Carnival Spirit: 02/2006-8 Night Mexico

NCL Star: 09/2005-7 Night Alaska

Carnival Paradise: 04/2005-4 Night Baja Mexico

Carnival Pride: 09/2004-7 Night Mexico

Carnival Elation: 06/2003-7 Night Mexico