Please tell me about things near the Galveston Port?

[Jimbo]

Where is the best place to stay? What is there to do nearby? Best places to eat? Give me some ideas what we can do there before jumping on the ship?

 

We have never cruised from that port.:confused:

 

Jimbo:)

[Galveston Cruiser]

Galveston is a barrier island on the Gullf of Mexico 50 miles from Houston. One can do as much or as little as one wants on this great island.

Check out Galveston.com for loads of information.

[Host Kat]

Where is the best place to stay? What is there to do nearby? Best places to eat? Give me some ideas what we can do there before jumping on the ship?

 

We have never cruised from that port.:confused:

 

Jimbo:)

Howdy and welcome to Galveston Island!

 

To help you with your research, click here http://www.galveston.com/default.asp for the Official Website of Galveston Island, Texas. Check out the Where to Stay and What to Do tabs.

Kat

[meandsis]

My family and I have stayed in Galveston a couple of times. The ferry ride is awsome. The dolphins swim alongside the ferry! We like to eat at Guido's Seaside Inn.....The home-made chips are excellent. Salsa's and Joe's Crabshack on Seawall Blvd are great. We like to stay at Quality Inns and Suites while there, as every room has a balcony and their breakfast spread is to die for! They have Tx shaped Waffles.

If you are staying during the holidays, be sure to visit the strand for great shopping and see all of the costumed people at "Dicken's on the Strand". They also have harbour cruises to take at night to see the spectacular Christmas lights lining the Ocean (over a million lights!).

Have fun while in Galveston.....not enough time to do it all.

And of course, Walmarts is always open on 61st st. lol

vannoy

[nomoreknothead]

Eat at Fish Tales! Casey's, Salsa's!

[Jimbo]

My family and I have stayed in Galveston a couple of times. The ferry ride is awsome. The dolphins swim alongside the ferry! We like to eat at Guido's Seaside Inn.....The home-made chips are excellent. Salsa's and Joe's Crabshack on Seawall Blvd are great. We like to stay at Quality Inns and Suites while there, as every room has a balcony and their breakfast spread is to die for! They have Tx shaped Waffles.

If you are staying during the holidays, be sure to visit the strand for great shopping and see all of the costumed people at "Dicken's on the Strand". They also have harbour cruises to take at night to see the spectacular Christmas lights lining the Ocean (over a million lights!).

Have fun while in Galveston.....not enough time to do it all.

And of course, Walmarts is always open on 61st st. lol

vannoy

 

How far is the Cruise Terminal from the Quality Inns and Suites?

 

Jimbo:)

[jst]

We always drive to Galveston and stay at one of the Holidays (prefer the one at 5002 Seawall Blvd as they have a full-time restaurant), for the evening meal really like Salsa's

(good food not too expensive and nice atmosphere and you can sit outside if the weathers nice). Have eaten at Fishtales, but not impressed and thought they were a little high. There are lots of things to do in Galveston before your cruise, Moody Gardens, which is series of glass pyramids has a great aquarium, rain forest and I believe a space exhibit in no.3.

If you stay on Seawall Blvd the beach is across the street, and due to the shape of the island the ships dock relatively close to everything.

We have cruised out of this port about 10 times as it's only a 4 hour drive, and we used to have Rhapsody, Splendour, Galaxy, Grand Princess and Carnival sailing from this dock, but now we have to wait for Voyager to come back each year from the Med for just the Spring Season. Maybe RCCL will shine on Galveston and give us a year round ship again as we are not Carnival fans (they have two ships year round).

[CGBCruiser]

How far is the Cruise Terminal from the Quality Inns and Suites?

 

Jimbo:)

 

It's about 4 miles.

[dna1990]

If you like history, Galveston has some great historic homes and mansions. The immigration Seaport museum and such.

 

If you like planes, boats, etc - The Lone Star aviation museum has an impressive collection, many birds in active status or can be seen being restored. The Ocean Star oilrig is fun and close to terminal. The Elissa is a prideful sailing vessel, also close to terminal. I have not been post-Ike, but Seawolf park has some military ships to tour.

 

If you like outdoors, rent a bike to ride on the Seawall. Fly a kite.

 

If you need 'commercial', try Moody Gardens or Schlitterbahn.

 

Shopping? All around the Strand.

[Jimbo]

Keep it coming, I think we are going to need more then 2 days though to do everything.:(

 

Jimbo:)

[Cruisingzs]

Check out the movie "The Great Storm" It very close to the dock and gives you a real appreciation for all that you see. It tells you alot about the history of Galveston.'

It is part of the Texas Seaport Museum where the tall ship Elissa is docked. You can tour her and be amazed at how different it will be from your cruise!

We like to eat at Fisherman's Wharf, Guido's and Sunday brunch at the Galvez

Also, take a horse drawn carriage ride. It's only about $20 but worth it!

[MrSnarkyPants]

Check out the movie "The Great Storm" It very close to the dock and gives you a real appreciation for all that you see. It tells you alot about the history of Galveston.'

It is part of the Texas Seaport Museum where the tall ship Elissa is docked. You can tour her and be amazed at how different it will be from your cruise!

We like to eat at Fisherman's Wharf, Guido's and Sunday brunch at the Galvez

Also, take a horse drawn carriage ride. It's only about $20 but worth it!

 

A friend of mine was married on the Elissa. That and the whole Texas Seaport Museum shouldn't be missed.

 

Ashton Villa is a good historical home to tour. The first floor was damaged by the Ike storm surge and they're still repairing it. They were touring the upper floors during Dickens on the Strand, but I'm not sure if that was a one-time deal or not. Anyway, keep an eye on Ashton Villa, and if they are offering tours, take one.

 

If you've got a car and some time to spare, take the ferry over to the Bolivar Penninsula. Grab a bite at Stingaree near Crystal Beach - they have great crabs when in season and potent margaritas. Unlike Galveston you can drive on the beach on Bolivar, so you'll see a lot of families out fishing and such. Even before Ike wiped the place out there wasn't much commercial save for some grocery stores and bait shops on Bolivar. The ferry is free, but at peak times the wait can be over an hour.