Info on long beach

[Serendipity333]

Booked an NCL cruise out of San Pedro Cruise Terminal and wondered where to stay, how to get to hotel from Long Beach airport (then to cruise terminal) and where to buy wine and groceries. As we have now figured that all out from experience thought I'd share it with those who may be looking for similar info.....

 

HOTEL: Booked Westin Long Beach 'cause we had miles in a plan we had to use up. GREAT choice. Lovely room with lots of room. Friendly staff. Good location for Long Beach. Had dinner in their restaurant twice and thoroughly enjoyed them. Empty fridge in room. Clean. Outdoor pool.

 

TRANSPORTATION BETWEEN LONG BEACH AIRPORT AND HOTEL AND HOTEL/SAN PEDRO TERMINAL: Nearly booked a van ride but felt they were a little high so did some research and decided taxi might be as cheap. Turned out cheaper! Flat rate taxi from airport to Long Beach hotels was $23.00 and it cost us the same to go from hotel to cruise terminal (but that was not flat rate). Great taxi service both times.

 

SHOPPING AND WINE: About 4 blocks north (sorry, didn't actually count them but am somewhat limited in my walking these days and I was still able to hobble there and back) is Walmart and Albertsons, with Starbucks and a couple of drug stores around there too. Got some extremely well priced wine from Albertson's (if you had an Albertsons card there was a sale and then a further discount if you purchased 6 bottles) and we ended up with our favourite sparkling wine for half price. You could also catch a bus or walk a couple of blocks west and catch the free Passport bus (and there was a Starbucks on the way too). Had to buy a new suitcase when we arrived so Walmart was very welcome and the suitcase was used to wheel our "booty" back to hotel. We don't always want to eat in restaurants so bought some fruit, salad, dressing and snacks at Albertsons to have in our hotel room too.

 

GETTING AROUND: We didn't want to spend a lot of time or money so took the free Passport bus for a sightseeing ride to the end of the line each way and hopped on and off. It runs very frequently and will take you to Queen Mary and Aquarium. Was a good way of seeing what was around, as well as checking out a bit of downtown Long Beach and seeing where restaurants and hotels were situated for future visits. Found taxi's reasonably priced.

 

 

LONG BEACH VS. LAX: Personally preferred downtown Long Beach area to staying in LAX airport area. Have cruised out of San Pedro twice now and stayed in LAX airport hotel area first time. Found the hotels cheaper at LAX airport than Long Beach but prefer Long Beach as it is nice to be able to walk to shopping and have more restaurant choices.

 

VAN RIDES: Found van rides generally a lot more expensive to get in Long Beach area than from LAX airport area, probably because LAX is a huge airport with a constant stream of people needing to get to their CA destination.

[Bruin Steve]

I'm happy to hear it all worked out so well.

And happy that you've basically confirmed my mantra on where to stay in Long Beach---First choice= Hyatt, Westin, Renaissance, Hyatt at the Pike...nicest hotels, best location, most convenient...worth the money. Location, location, location...That Passport bus is an asset...

 

And Long Beach is far nicer for a pre-cruise stay than LAX!

[Langley Cruisers]

^ Agree with both of you, and on Steve's advice on this board we have stayed at both the Renaissance and the Hyatt in Long Beach, both FABULOUS hotels. :)

 

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[Cruisin' Chick]

Definitely glad you followed the advice and stayed at a nice hotel in Long Beach. I always recommend staying at a LAX area hotel ONLY if you have an early flight out of there the next morning. Otherwise, do a little research and stay in a decent area. Steve lists many good places in Long Beach, and there's other recommended areas and hotels listed on this board.

 

Hopefully the Albertsons mentioned in your post will stay in business. Many of the ones in the San Fernando Valley have closed in the past few years.

[Keith1010]

Great information.

 

Keith

[kc320]

How long did it take you to get from San Pedro pier back to Long Beach airport? I am trying to figure out my flights for my April cruise & trying to avoid LAX if possible..what is the earliest flight from Long Beach would anyone reccommend...

[it's5o'clocksomewhere]

How long did it take you to get from San Pedro pier back to Long Beach airport? I am trying to figure out my flights for my April cruise & trying to avoid LAX if possible..what is the earliest flight from Long Beach would anyone reccommend...

 

It would probably be a 30 minute ride but depends on the day of the week. Flights out of long beach earliest is 645/650 because they cannot take off until 7.

[escaping40below]

Is there a flat rate from the Long Beach airport to the cruise terminal or is it just to the hotels? Arrive in the morning and so will be going straight to cruise terminal.