All Things Charleston 411

[NCTribeFan]

Great.  Thanks! 

 

I'm guessing that everyone, including the drop-offs and not just the people self-parking, have to be do this.

 

They used to control the pax traffic in the old days by making everyone use a shuttle from luggage drop-off or parking, then they changed that and let the drop-offs walk over themselves. 

 

I do think they do a great job with their very limited facilities!

[NCteacherlovescruising]

Our daughter will be sailing out of Charleston this summer.  What area hotels offer cruise parking and shuttle services to the port?

Edited July 11, 2019 by NCteacherlovescruising

[cc75]

7 hours ago, NCteacherlovescruising said:

Our daughter will be sailing out of Charleston this summer.  What area hotels offer cruise parking and shuttle services to the port?

 

We always stay at the Hilton Garden Inn which is just over the Ravenel Bridge in Mt. Pleasant.  The hotel offers free parking to Hilton Honors Members (free to join) and it's only a $10-$12 Uber ride to the port.

[NCTribeFan]

I haven't booked a hotel yet for my late-October sailing.  My only "problem" with staying over in Mt Pleasant is driving across the bridge.  I have extreme anxiety on high bridges over water.  I "accidentally" found myself on the approach to the bridge once and thought I was going to have to just pull over and cry.  It's not a good feeling.

 

If I were riding in the back of an Uber car, I would be a little better. 😯

 

I'll look for a hotel over there.  The prices in the West Ashley area are rather higher than they were a year ago and considerably higher than just a couple of years ago.

 

Ugh.  The Hilton Garden Inn for my night is $247!

Edited July 12, 2019 by NCTribeFan

[Ombud]

On every website except mapmyrun.com I am unable to map from the cruise terminal to 10 Wharfside on Concord St. Why? Doesn't Concord St have a sidewalk? 

[hcat]

How's the weather in May?

Are gardens blooming then?

[Ombud]

14 hours ago, Ombud said:

On every website except mapmyrun.com I am unable to map from the cruise terminal to 10 Wharfside on Concord St. Why? Doesn't Concord St have a sidewalk? 

Decided to uber. It might be humid on the 29th

[TruckerDave]

On 7/15/2019 at 3:26 PM, hcat said:

How's the weather in May?

Are gardens blooming then?

It can be a blast furnace hot/humid or it can be decent. All depends on what you are used to I guess. 

The gardens will be in full effect by then, the start to bloom in April I believe. 

[TruckerDave]

On 7/12/2019 at 7:55 AM, NCTribeFan said:

I haven't booked a hotel yet for my late-October sailing.  My only "problem" with staying over in Mt Pleasant is driving across the bridge.  I have extreme anxiety on high bridges over water.  I "accidentally" found myself on the approach to the bridge once and thought I was going to have to just pull over and cry.  It's not a good feeling.

 

If I were riding in the back of an Uber car, I would be a little better. 😯

 

I'll look for a hotel over there.  The prices in the West Ashley area are rather higher than they were a year ago and considerably higher than just a couple of years ago.

 

Ugh.  The Hilton Garden Inn for my night is $247!

Depending on what route you take to Mt Pleasant you would have to cross the two big bridges on I526 as well. So MTP might not be for you anyway.  Look around the airport area, there are many hotels in this part of town  (airport, arena, Tanger Outlets) and you would not have to cross any bridges to get to the port. 

[NCTribeFan]

I'll probably just bite the bullet and stay somewhere on West Ashley, like I have in the past.

[TruckerDave]

11 hours ago, NCTribeFan said:

I'll probably just bite the bullet and stay somewhere on West Ashley, like I have in the past.

The hotels near the airport will allow a faster trip to the port than if you stay in WA.  (I live in West Ashley right off of 526 and traffic can be a royal pain sometimes.)

[NCTribeFan]

Really?  I didn't realize that.  I'll check hotels there. 

 

Question is whether they'll charge for parking.  Add in the Uber trip and it could end up costing as much as a hotel with a parking/shuttle package. 

 

I've stayed at a few hotels on W Ashley and the traffic hasn't been bad.  I usually check in late afternoon, then drive over to the waterfront park for an evening stroll.  I'll be there on a Friday evening this time, though, so expect it could be a bit more congested.  Cruise sails on Saturday, so don't expect a traffic issue.

 

I finally found a Sunshine review on the Carnival board that described the parking/check-in changes.  I didn't realize that parking was no longer inside any of the old warehouses.  If that's posted in this thread, I missed it.  I've only self-parked a couple of times and it was nice to not have to leave the car out baking in the hot sun for the duration.

[SurfCat]

On 7/1/2019 at 1:12 PM, cc75 said:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRJ3SPuqV1c            Skip to the 4:00 minute mark.  It appears everyone is going into one of the old parking warehouses and being bussed to the terminal on tour busses.  From what I was able to find over the weekend they're using the warehouse as checking and releasing people to the terminal in groups to go thru security so the old terminal isn't overwhelmed.  

 

 

Looks like a nightmare.

[waterbug123]

On 7/15/2019 at 3:26 PM, hcat said:

How's the weather in May?

Are gardens blooming then?

 

You might get lucky and have pleasant weather.  But typically by May in Charleston we are well into summer, which means dang hot and dang humid.  Temps in the 90s are not unheard of in May.

Everything is fully green and much will be in bloom.  You'll probably miss the height of the azalea season (azalea blooms usually peak in April) but as we are well into summer by May, I'm sure you'll see plenty of other flowers.

[MooNGaTe27]

we are taking a charter bus to Charleston does anyone know the drop off procedure when you get dropped off be charter bus 

 

[NCTribeFan]

On 7/19/2019 at 1:56 PM, SurfCat said:

 

 

Looks like a nightmare.

I don't see that it's that much different than it used to be.  Just split up the check-in and the security scan.  They have to stagger the pax arrival in the terminal simply because it's so small.  There nowhere for a mob to line up outside the building, since there's not a lot of space out there, either.  The review thread I read implied that it all went rather smoothly. 

 

I have always been fairly impressed with how well organized they are there given the extreme limitations they're working with.  Love the silent disembarkation.

 

At least, that's how I felt on my several Fantasy-class sailings.  We'll see how it goes with this larger ship and 1,000 more pax!

 

I'll try to remember to come back after I sail and add my thoughts.

[SurfCat]

Would love to hear your thoughts.  We will be dropped off by a family member and I'm curious of the difference in that and what we saw in the video.

[NCTribeFan]

Thread on the Carnival board has post from someone onboard now who just stayed at the Cambria in Mt Pleasant.  They offer a parking package (for about $25-30 more) but also give you a $25 Uber gift card.  Rate is about the same or a little less than the cheapest I found on W. Ashley. 

 

Breakfast not included, though.  I've been known to have my shrimp & grits on the evening before sailing and bring the leftovers back to the room.  It's quite adequate reheated in the morning for breakfast!

 

Yes, I'd have to cross the bridge, multiple times if I check in and then head into the historic district that evening.  But the best way to overcome your phobia is to just face it, right? 😵  Still think I'd be better off driving down I-526.  Two smaller bridges instead of one gigantic one!  The Ravenel bridge is beautiful, though!  Wish I could appreciate it more.

 

Ugh.  When I updated for the cruise package, the date changed.  Just changed it back to October and price is now $80 more, so never mind!  Too bad.  Looks like a nice, modern hotel. 😞

Edited July 25, 2019 by NCTribeFan

[NCTribeFan]

UPDATE:  I ended up staying at the Sleep Inn where I'd stayed last year.  Parking/shuttle package was over $200 with all the taxes.  I really think the prices have jumped way up since there's a larger ship in town now.  Supply & demand, after all.  Decent-enough room; decent-enough breakfast.  I opted for the 10:30 shuttle.  It arrived a few minutes late but their vans are nice, new black Mercedes.  Much nicer than before.  We were at the port around 11.  Stopped to drop off the luggage (it went straight from the van to the porters (I tipped both the driver and the porters)); then we walked across over to the building now being used for check-in, which was already full.  Obviously, people are NOT arriving at their check-in time!  Went straight to check-in (this was my Diamond sailing), then into the shuttle line.  Stood for a few minutes, then loaded onto the little bus and over to the terminal.  Through security, up the stairs, show your boarding pass a few more times, then on to the ship.

 

We had a medical emergency and did a u-turn (complete with stemware sliding off unoccupied tables in the MDR and crashing onto the floor) and returned to Bermuda 6 hrs after we'd left.  This put us arriving back in Charleston at 4 pm rather than 8 am.  Yes, the "extra" sea day was nice but it would've been nice if Carnival had given folks an hour of free internet so we could change travel plans!  They allowed free in-cabin calls, but I wanted to find somewhere to stay on the way home.  I have poor night vision and knew I wouldn't want to drive very far.  As Diamond, we were first off the ship after all the self-assist (which seemed to be 50% of the pax).  We were back at the hotel just before 6.  I went in and asked for availability and stayed in a similar room for about $140.  Obviously less than the package I'd booked the night before the cruise.  I'm sure the demand was much less and no parking/shuttle required.

 

Anyway, it's an OK hotel.  Staff is nice and it's convenient enough if you want to go into downtown.  I was too tired that Saturday night.  The Friday night before sailing, I went into town, parked in a garage, and walked over to Mason's Famous Lobster Rolls.  Had a Classic roll & a draft beer.  It was delicious!