Just off Magic....avoid Galveston at all costs!

[megmno]

It sounds like it would be worth paying for the Baggage Express program. Does anyone know if Magi offers it (flying out of IAH)?

[nwcruiselover]

This is yet another example of why people shouldn't book flights too soon after debarkation, and why travel insurance is an important part of making travel arrangements. Most of the time everything works like clockwork, but with reasonably scheduled flights and travel insurance, some of the stress is removed. Nancy

[VegasBaby8]

So sorry about your experience but I have never had a problem in Galveston at all. Porter's are the only way to go. We are going again in May on the Magic and I can't wait.

I am sure missing your flight was horrible though. Hope you made it home without too much of a delay. Can't wait to read your review.

[okgirl]

There is a really nice cruise terminal in Laporte Tx, Carnival used after Hurricane Ike hit Galveston. We sailed on Conquest leaving out of Laporte. (Houston Port Authority). It was so much nicer, bigger & updated than the Galveston port. I am not sure why it is not offered as a sailing port.

 

One of the problems with Bayport cruise terminal is the parking and there just isn't anything around it. No restaurants, no hotels, no nothing.

[geezersgirl]

I have sailed out of Galveston many times and never had a problem. Its the best port I have ever sailed out of.

 

I agree. Sailed out of Galveston many times and will again in a month. I found it a much more organized port than LA or San Pedro.

[jonbgd]

One of the problems with Bayport cruise terminal is the parking and there just isn't anything around it. No restaurants, no hotels, no nothing.

Just alot closer to the airports and my other house:D

[geckog]

I've cruised out of Galveston multiple times, and only had a problem getting off the one time we arrived late. In that case, it was the zone jumpers that were the problem. I personally wouldn't cruise out of Galveston from December through February, and if flying, I would always allow plenty of time to get to the airport.

 

Sent from my Kindle Fire using Tapatalk

[misguidedangel]

Well, I agree, it isn't the best port and they need to double the width of the covered area because when I was getting ON and OFF the Magic it was total chaos, utter and total chaos...they need to have more room because when porters dump the bags for people waiting for their rides it only makes it worse to get through with dozens and dozens of people with stacks of luggage waiting their ride.

 

Now to answer Janey's post..

 

Embarkation is organized and debarkation is not bad, not great, but not bad...

 

Remember, this sailing as delayed by fog and people were probably getting off way before their bags were getting off....

 

Customs lines--gime me a "Oh fudge cake" break here!!!! I got off the Magic on December 4th before 9am. My friend, a US citizen, collected her bags and went to her line. I say to her I shouldn't be long, so wait for me outside the doors here.....I head off to the Non US Citizens line and proceed to wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, and wait some MORE!!!! I waited over ONE HOUR to clear US customs and the shocking part of it was there was only EIGHT people in FOUR groups ahead of me!! YES, 15 minutes per person to clear US customs..the BC line was moving so fast that the people with tag #'s over 20 were FLYING through the BC line...I had tag #12 and waited in Customs line for over ONE HOUR...needless to say my friend breezed through in under five minutes and waited over an hour and finally left when she thought I left without her....no, the two agents at the Non US customs lines were being total Aholes!!!!!!

 

Whenever I sail through Miami I go through a line with citizens and non citizens. I got through customs at Miami in around 30-40 minutes and I had at least 30-40 groups of people in front of me. I also got off the ship in the LAST call for debarkation and customs only had SIX lanes running. Galveston had eight lines running and the two slowest were the NonUS...

 

It makes no sense to separate citizens and non-citizens. Everyone has to go through so let the non-citizens go through the lines with citizens as everyone has to be checked...

 

Janey, since you are not a Non-US citizen, now you know that it isn't quick and efficient to get through customs and that Florida KNOWS what to do and how to get people in and out FAST!!!!

 

I agree, Galveston is has attractions and is a good place to come two days earlier and take a day to check out the waterpark or Moody Gardens (which we did), but the port area is total chaos.

 

In the future when I sail out of Galveston, I will take my Tag #1 and not bother to wait on the ship because I have a later flight...no, I can stand outside and wait out there just as easily as I can on the ship KNOWING that the customs is NOTHING like ports in Florida.....

 

Heck, when I went through customs at Long Beach it was so fast it wasn't funny..they only had five or six customs agents working and they were pushing people though really fast...

 

The Magic she is grand and worth going on again, but the weather in Galveston is very unpredictable and I like having warm, sunny embarkation and debarkations....Florida has been able to do that for me, heck, California too had hot and sunny weather...Both times I have gone through Galveston the weather at embarkation has been cool to nice or crappy. It was 11C at embarkation and perhaps a few degrees warmer and WET at debarkation...

 

Next cruise, thank the stars, is out of Miami....

[tajones78636]

We have sailed out of Galveston 5 times and only been delayed 1 time because of fog. We are Carnival diehards, however we did cruise on RC last year and their embarcation and disembakation was so much better then Carnival. The really bad about sailing out of galveston is the water in the gulf can be rough.

[jhale]

We sail out of Galveston for most of our cruises, and while the port has seen improvement in the last few years, any little hiccup does seem to cause chaos.

 

Debarkation has always been a mess, especially when the ships come in late.

 

Overall we've found it to be tolerable 80% of the time so we'll continue to sail from there as it is our "homeport."

[boaterette]

I think that when I sail out of Galveston I will fly back the day after.

[CruisingFans]

We have been on over 30 cruises with all but 8 out of Galveston and have never encountered any problem with embarkation or debarkation. The only time we were inconvenienced was when we had to spend an extra day onboard because of heavy fog (last March). That was not Carnival's fault, so hopefully your experience was a rare occurrence.

[clackey]

I am sorry to hear that you had a bad trip and am a bit surprised. We have done 6 sailings out of Galveston without hitch. Embarkation and Debarkation have always been fairly easy and we have never had a problem with luggage. The only time that we had a fog delay was in Mobile.

[hillbillycruisers]

We've sailed out of Galveston 5 times...only delayed once due to the weather. Our last cruise was on the Triumph last month, and it was by far the fastest debarkation we've ever had. We always drive down from Missouri, so we avoid all the potential airline problems. We will continue to sail out of Galveston, as we like the town and have had a lot of fun times there! I guess if there are folks who dont want to use Galveston as a port, they are free to go elsewhere...as for us...we'll keep comming back. Looking forward to crusing from there later this year!!!:)

[IamAlyce]

We, too, just got off the Magic today. Our experience was a bit different than the OP. We weren't bothered by the fog delay but we drove and didn't have to worry about flight issues. We actually sat outside and watched the all the different ships/freighters also waiting... It was actually kinda neat.

 

We didn't feel like the port or ship staff were incompetent. If anything, it was the guests that were creating the issues. People were agitated, irritated, and probably a little impatient. The crew, however, repeatedly were on the intercom system providing updates and asking people to avoid the gangway until called. It sounded as though many, many people were ignoring that request... Which then made for a crowded mess.

 

It was a little chaotic in the terminal but, again, that was due, in large part, to the guests...not the staff. Those traveling with passports made it through customs clearance extremely quickly...at least compared to those of us traveling with birth certificates. The port staff were very clear, repeatedly, in their instructions of who belonged in which lines...but people were trying to hurry and were going through the quick moving passport line...only to be moved out bc they had birth certificates, not passports. Or, they were trying to cut in front of other people that had already been waiting in the slow moving birth certificate line... And that led to anger and security having to intervene a few times.

 

We did learn today that paying a little extra for a porter gets you right up to the customs line and helps you avoid the passport & birth certificate lines! That's definitely what we'll do next time!

 

I totally agree, I thought everything was handled very well, and true, Galveston does get fog, but we have sailed out of many ports, and I have not seen any more issues in Galveston than any other one.

 

We were told very early on that there was a delay, and the staff (James especially) encouraged everyone to relax, enjoy the cabin, breakfast, games, etc and we got many, many updates. I also think it was the guests that caused any of the problem with the staff trying to keep everyone from rushing out. I am also a Platinum cruiser, and went down to the lounge at 10:30 am, which was when it was suggested. When they told us it was time to disembark, lots of people from out in the lobby and upstairs, pushed past the ones trying to disembark and there was a huge mess in the luggage area. People yelling and trying to push into the luggage areas even while the unloading was taking place. I totally understand that people had flights (our son was one of them) but it just made it all worse! It's too bad that it couldn't have gone smoother but on my end, I would say Carnival did the best they could. I am happy to cruise out of a "home port" and hope Carnival keeps bringing they're ships, large and small!

Elaine

[llachance]

"Customs lines--gime me a "Oh fudge cake" break here!!!! I got off the Magic on December 4th before 9am. My friend, a US citizen, collected her bags and went to her line. I say to her I shouldn't be long, so wait for me outside the doors here.....I head off to the Non US Citizens line and proceed to wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, and wait some MORE!!!! I waited over ONE HOUR to clear US customs and the shocking part of it was there was only EIGHT people in FOUR groups ahead of me!! YES, 15 minutes per person to clear US customs..the BC line was moving so fast that the people with tag #'s over 20 were FLYING through the BC line...I had tag #12 and waited in Customs line for over ONE HOUR...needless to say my friend breezed through in under five minutes and waited over an hour and finally left when she thought I left without her....no, the two agents at the Non US customs lines were being total Aholes!!!!!!"

 

You are a visitor to the good old USA. It is the responsibility of the customs agents to do what they were hired to do. I have been full vetted by our Customs Agency and still have stood in long lines and had extra scrutiny. My husband routinely does because he has visited Columbia for business. That said I have waited 3 hours in Vancouver and almost 2 hours in Tahiti to go through their customs screening so it isn't just the US guys that take their time.

[gregg204]

Cruise out of Galveston in 3 weeks.

 

I have read good and bad reviews about Galveston port.

 

No sense worrying about what ifs and things that may not happen, based on others experiences.

 

Can't wait for our cruise on the Magic. :D

I couldn't agree with you more. New Orleans was a breeze compared to Galveston fo me, but I'd sail out of Galveston again if the itinerary and price was what I was looking for.

[travelingtriumphess]

Any port is hit or miss I'd think, though I've encountered issues with debark. My impression of Carnival is they have the right amount of people to barely handle the usual. If something happens UNusual .. they handle it very poorly and make poor judgement calls.

 

Carnival doesnt do problems well, but they do have the best value cruise for the price. You just know this going in if you ask me.

If anyone knows what is going on, Firefly does!

I have sailed out of Galveston twice, and so far, it has been smooth as butter. I may have been lucky, or I may just not expect too much. I figure once I'm on the boat, who cares? I wouldn't let embarkation color my whole experience.

[misguidedangel]

Porters--you can get a porter at debarkation, but it doesn't guarantee you get to the head of the line. The family behind me in customs at Galveston had a porter and that poor porter stood and waited and waited and waited like everyone else...he could have dropped off and picked up half a dozen more loads, but no he was stuck in line waiting..

 

I waited in line for over an hour, do you want to know how long it took for CPB agent to clear me.....less than 60 seconds.....yep, I waited in line for more than a minute for every second that the agent was checking me.....One other note, the customs agents in Miami are always nice and friendly, not so in Galveston..perhaps it all depends on the weather.....

 

Customs--what is the difference. I SAIL through customs at Miami in a matter of minutes, I sail through pre-clearance customs at my home airport before I fly out....if I am getting on a bus and heading to the airport they should have a line for "in transit" people and Green Card holders or US Visa holders who use that line, when in fact they can use the regular line because they have a green card or a visa.....As for lines at YVR (aka Vancouver) it is a busy airport and there tends to be a big issue with language barrier they need to deal with. I have been through Toronto Pearson airport customs when there was six transborder and four international flights and it took all of 15 minutes to get from as far back as you can go to the front of the line. That would be between 2000-3000 people Canadian Customs at Pearson processed and it was so fast it wasn't funny. Heck, it took at least 60 or more minutes before the baggage handlers would go outside to get the bags off the planes (thunder/lightning storm) and then they had this mass of passengers converging at Canada Customs....

[travelingtriumphess]

We have been on over 30 cruises with all but 8 out of Galveston and have never encountered any problem with embarkation or debarkation. The only time we were inconvenienced was when we had to spend an extra day onboard because of heavy fog (last March). That was not Carnival's fault, so hopefully your experience was a rare occurrence.

Just me! But I'm all for spending an extra day on board (as long as they provide food). I always take my flight plenty after disembarkation.

[okgladmom]

We were 4 hours late because of fog...even though it was sunny all morning.

Sorry about the foggy morning...it was a beautiful night in Houston for New Year's Eve.

 

We've sailed from three different ports: Galveston, San Juan & Miami. I'm pretty sure we encountered the same lines and chaos in all of them.

[Grits53]

I read half a dozen reviews the other day about Galveston. Everyone said it had improved and loved the ship. We have it already booked. Nothing we can do now. It will be probably our first and last one in Galveston. I am sorry we booked it with all the rules costing so much money. We will surely go back to Florida our next cruise. Too late to change. Maybe it was a bad day which is what I am hoping.

 

Don't let one person's bad experience affect your decision to cruise out of Galveston! Just think of all the thousands of people who had a GOOD experience at that port! I have cruised out of there many times, and it's no worse than other ports. The OP's cruise was delayed due to fog, which is a recipe for a bad debarkation experience. Any time the ship is delayed, and the next passengers are waiting to board while you are getting off.....it's not going to be a pleasant experience. But this does not happen very often, and odds are greatly in your favor that your experience in Galveston will be great. The new facilities are very nice. You will love the Magic!

[salcruizer]

A few more facts about my Galveston experience now that I finally made it home. Again, I post this for those on the fence.

 

1. I had VIP departure. Plat, plus a suite, plus early departure luggage tags. 130 flight from IAH, which is CCLs recommended earliest.

 

2. I left the ship when my number 3 was called. It was a mess in the atrium. Been on dozens of ships....this seemed as it it were the crews first debarkation

 

3. My luggage was not in area 3. Was told by an inept port agent to find a porter to help me search. He had no luck. Found a shore supervisor. She said there is no way I had tag number 3. My cabin was assigned to tag 25. She held a clip board with cabin numbers and showed my my cabin with 25 nextd to it Told I needed to wait until 25 was unloaded. I showed the port agent the tear-off tag that proved i had number 3. She said my cabin stewart must have changed it. Already missed 130 flight at that point but wanted to get on 230. Had no choice so I waited for the 25 luggage. It wasn't there either.

 

4. Got a guest services rep from the ship and ask why the cabin Stewart changed my tags from early departure and VIP 3 to all the way at the end #25. She said he wouldn't do that and someone must have taken my bags.

 

5. Finally, after missing the 130 and 230 flights I found another guest agent who pointed me to a forklift "free for all" of various number bags. Was left to fend through dozens of bags and finally found ours....with tag 3's but mixed in with all misc numbers.

 

6. My luggage was outside my cabin at 10pm. I saw it wheeled away at 1015.

 

7. My 2 hour trip to IAH included 30 mins in the long, unassisted cab line.

 

8. In all fairness, the porter told me he has never seen such a mess there before. I guess it being a holiday didnt help.

 

I know, one person's bad experience is usually followed by another's great experience. But, even with the fog delay I would have made my flight had CCL not messed up the luggage and even with that if the port had been better staffed it might have saved my hundreds of dollars in airline fees. So while others may disagree, my advise stands. Avoid Galveston.

[Naomi John]

But I also agree with other posts which mention people jumping the "line". if Carnival enforced the debarkation, there would not be a problem. Self Assist, wait for your floor to be called. All others, wait for your zone to be called.

 

Seen first hand of people who just "get off the ship". They do not have flights to catch, no place to go, but have to be first.

 

Bet if the staff asked to see their S&S card and turned them away to wait for their number, embarkation would be easier.

[sjn911]

But I also agree with other posts which mention people jumping the "line". if Carnival enforced the debarkation, there would not be a problem. Self Assist, wait for your floor to be called. All others, wait for your zone to be called.

 

Seen first hand of people who just "get off the ship". They do not have flights to catch, no place to go, but have to be first.

 

Bet if the staff asked to see their S&S card and turned them away to wait for their number, embarkation would be easier.

 

I had it easy in Long Beach and San pedro....Paradise and Star Princess..in that order per port...the Paradise people did kind of crash into line..not bad because i held back just to keep it easy and had next day air because in and out of here can be a true cattle call or country school bus...agreed though I noticed nobdy had to prove ther section and see where that could be needed, Princess checked and let you stay in cabin with room service until your time..i do not remember if that was my friend's perk or not but a great lovely spoiled ending in San Pedro...Sarah