Drving from DFW

I am flying into DFW ( I have family in Texas that are cruising with me), night before our Valor cruise. My flight gets in 9:30pm, and we plan on at least starting the drive to Galveston Port. Suggestions on what area to stop for the night? No one is familiar with the area at all. I figured we should plan on stopping before Houston/Galveston. Or would you suggest driving entire way and not getting hotel til I guess 2 am time frame? We have a later check in, 1:00pm, although I am platinum, so have priority boarding.

We drive from DFW to Galveston all the time. Plenty of hotels for pre-cruise in Galveston itslef, but it sounds like you would be getting there pretty late.

One option is to stay on the South side of Houston. That way you'll avoid traffic going through downtown, which can be very bad. There are plenty of inexpensive hotels in the Webster / League City area, right off I-45. Then it's only a 45 min drive to the port. But you'd still be getting in to your hotel pretty late.

There's hotel in Buffalo, Texas as well as Fairfield, Texas. That's about half way between DFW and Houston, and right off I-45.

Whatever you do, be certain to stop at Bucee's in Madisonville. It's right off I-45. Great place to take a little break and bathroom stop.

...There's also hotels in Coscicana, Tex. That's about 1-1/2 hours from DFW

Thanks! Now Bucee's I know. First time I saw one of these near Temple, I could not get over how many gas pumps they have.

I'd try driving as far as you feel comfortable. It's a pretty straight shot down I-45 and either Huntsville or Conroe are the first larger cities you'll see. Conroe is about a 3 hour drive from DFW and it has most of the major brands. From there without traffic it's around a two hour drive to the port.

There are hotels all along the way, Ennis, Corsicana, Fairfield, Buffalo, Madisonville, Huntsville, Conroe, etc. We had planned on driving from our location (between Waco and Fort Worth, near Lake Whitney) down to Galveston, but you can stay a ways north of there and save enough to pay for your week's parking.

I have a different philosophy about driving to Galveston from Fort Worth (my home).

I don't like taking I-45 and I really, really hate driving through Houston.

The question is: How do you get to Galveston without driving through Houston?

Here's what I do:

Leave a day early.

I-35 South to Waco.

Texas 6 south to Navasota.

Texas 105 east through Conroe to Cleveland.

Texas 321 south to Dayton.

Texas 146 south to LaPorte. Spend the night. (Most recently at the Comfort Suites; reasonable and very pleasant.)

Continue on 146 south to the I-45 merge, then Galveston.

It may take a little longer, and the stretch through Conroe can be slow at times, but I arrive relaxed.

No drive straight 45 to Galveston. Traffic going thru Houston can vary but its manageable.

The key Don't drive thru during rush hour.

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I have a different philosophy about driving to Galveston from Fort Worth (my home).

 

I don't like taking I-45 and I really, really hate driving through Houston.

 

The question is: How do you get to Galveston without driving through Houston?

 

Here's what I do:

Leave a day early.

I-35 South to Waco.

Texas 6 south to Navasota.

Texas 105 east through Conroe to Cleveland.

Texas 321 south to Dayton.

Texas 146 south to LaPorte. Spend the night. (Most recently at the Comfort Suites; reasonable and very pleasant.)

Continue on 146 south to the I-45 merge, then Galveston.

 

It may take a little longer, and the stretch through Conroe can be slow at times, but I arrive relaxed.

While the I45 route is VERY boring......your alternate route is crazy. (for someone coming down from DFW airport). Plus you can just stay on TX6 and it ends right at I45 just before the bridge to Galveston in I45.

If you wanted to actually do something like that, a better choice would be to go down I35 to Waco, take highway 6 down past Navasota, get on highway 290 and take that to I610 south and then west to I-45, which then goes directly to Galveston (and ends a block or two from the cruise dock). I WOULD take 99 south of 290, or Beltway 8 off 290, but both of those are toll roads that don't accept cash in all their locations.

I-635 around Houston on Saturday morning shouldn't be a problem.

If you have a toll tag and come down I-45, when you get to Beltway 8 you can go east and then south and avoid virtually all the Houston traffic. You rejoin I-45 well south of I-635. About mile marker 30, in fact.

While the I45 route is VERY boring......your alternate route is crazy. (for someone coming down from DFW airport). Plus you can just stay on TX6 and it ends right at I45 just before the bridge to Galveston in I45.

Your drive, your choice.

My drive, my choice.

Hwy 6 all the way if you want to avoid 45. I agree with Trucker Dave.

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We are sailing on Sunday, Sept. 16 out of Galveston. I will be flying into Love Field in Fort Worth/Dallas and staying with my cousin in McKinney. We are planning on leaving early in the AM and driving to Galveston. Will traffic be less since we are traveling both ways on Sunday and how much time should we allow for the drive? MapQuest says 4 hours and 45 min.

Sunday should be a perfect time to drive. About 5 hours. Be sure to stop at Bucee's in Madison ville (about half way between DFW and Houston)

Sunday should be a perfect time to drive. About 5 hours. Be sure to stop at Bucee's in Madison ville (about half way between DFW and Houston)

Thanks, I kind of figured traffic would be a little bit lighter on Sunday. Will definitely look for Bucee's in Madisonville.

While Sundays mean lighter traffic, they can (and often will) have lane closures on Sundays when working on the roads because lighter traffic means less people inconvenienced.

https://drivetexas.org is a really good source of up-to-date road construction and closure information.

If you wanted to actually do something like that, a better choice would be to go down I35 to Waco, take highway 6 down past Navasota, get on highway 290 and take that to I610 south and then west to I-45, which then goes directly to Galveston (and ends a block or two from the cruise dock). I WOULD take 99 south of 290, or Beltway 8 off 290, but both of those are toll roads that don't accept cash in all their locations.

 

I-635 around Houston on Saturday morning shouldn't be a problem.

 

If you have a toll tag and come down I-45, when you get to Beltway 8 you can go east and then south and avoid virtually all the Houston traffic. You rejoin I-45 well south of I-635. About mile marker 30, in fact.

290 is great....but it is under construction between just west of toll roll 99 coming into 610. Beltway 8 (toll road with cash) will get you from 290 to I-45 and miss downtown Houston.

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Can you take Beltway 8 and pay cash? Some sections I know you can't (I-45 to 290, for example).