How late can I disembark - Liberty OTS

[sgferguson]

Looking for some info from experienced cruisers on disembarking as late as possible on Liberty OTS in Galveston.  It’s been 15 years since my last cruise so I’m sure things are a little different these days. 

 

I’m taking a shuttle back to Hobby airport but our flight isn’t til 4:25pm. Trying to avoid sitting at the airport for 3 or more hours. What’s the latest we can leave the ship and do we even have a choice when we disembark?  Ideally I’d like to be one of the last off the cruise and take a 12:05 shuttle to the airport. I think the only thing worse than being at the airport for half the day would be to get stuck in the cruise terminal for 2-3 hours if I book the later shuttle but have to disembark at 8am. 

 

I know many people recommend leaving early, but I’m a very frequent flier so getting to and through the airport is second nature to me.  Plus I have priority check in and security so I feel comfortable arriving at the airport without a lot of extra time to spare. 

 

Appreciate any feedback!

[Clarea]

They will want you off the ship by 9:30am to 10am.

[Hogbay]

LIFE IS LIKE A BOX OF CHOCOLATES,  looks like you need to get a big box .

[sgferguson]

3 minutes ago, Hogbay said:

LIFE IS LIKE A BOX OF CHOCOLATES,  looks like you need to get a big box .

 

🧐 🤷‍♂️

[blackshirt]

We had an 11am shuttle booked and stayed on as long as possible. We were still through customs and at the shuttle pick up point by 10:30. There is also nowhere inside the terminal to wait. Once you clear customs, you are outside.

[Coralc]

9:30 to 10:00 AM. You can sit outside for awhile, there are benches. Bring a book. You can probably catch one of the earlier shuttles. There are places to eat at the airport before you go through security. Again, bring a book. Our flight was at 2:00 pm, and we were there way early. It is an awkward port for those of us that fly in. 

[Clarea]

6 hours ago, Coralc said:

 ...  Bring a book. ...

 

What's a book?  😉

[kerryincork]

I am afraid you will have to be off the ship before 10.30.

 

Depending how many in your party you can do a tour that will drop you and your luggage off at the airport. This is what I do when I have a flight on the same day.

 

Also they usually want you out of your cabin between 07;00 and 8:00, all the bars are usually closed so you end up hanging about anyway.

[Paulette3028]

12 hours ago, sgferguson said:

Looking for some info from experienced cruisers on disembarking as late as possible on Liberty OTS in Galveston.  It’s been 15 years since my last cruise so I’m sure things are a little different these days. 

 

I’m taking a shuttle back to Hobby airport but our flight isn’t til 4:25pm. Trying to avoid sitting at the airport for 3 or more hours. What’s the latest we can leave the ship and do we even have a choice when we disembark?  Ideally I’d like to be one of the last off the cruise and take a 12:05 shuttle to the airport. I think the only thing worse than being at the airport for half the day would be to get stuck in the cruise terminal for 2-3 hours if I book the later shuttle but have to disembark at 8am. 

 

I know many people recommend leaving early, but I’m a very frequent flier so getting to and through the airport is second nature to me.  Plus I have priority check in and security so I feel comfortable arriving at the airport without a lot of extra time to spare. 

 

Appreciate any feedback!

Is there an excursion you can book for the day of disembarkation?  When you do that, you are off the ship early go about your excursion and then meet up with your luggage at the airport.  It makes the day go by very nicely and you feel as if you are still on vacation, because you are on an excursion.  Not sure if anything is available in Galveston, since I have never sailed from there.  As others have said, you will need to be out of your cabin by 8ish, and off the ship much earlier than you want.  The ship needs to handle its B2B cruisers and ready the ship for the new cruisers.  Just like you wanted to board to start your cruise as early as possible so do others.

[HBE4]

What we did on our Nov 2018 Liberty cruise: left the cabin around 8:30-ish, went to Cafe Promenade to grab coffee and a bite to eat which we took to the R-Bar seating area (much less crowded than seating at Cafe Promenade).

 

Off the ship at 10:00 (you can always leave later than your designated time) and probably out of the terminal by 10:30.  Unfortunately, that only leave 95 minutes before your shuttle which leaves very little time to do anything in Galveston. If it's Sunday morning, there may not be much to do in Galveston anyway.

 

You may want to head over to the Gulf Port departure threads to get info from some of the local Galveston residents.  Hobby is only 45 minutes away. Even if you double that, you'll be at Hobby by 1:30 for a 4:30 flight. You might want to take a later shuttle. But discuss with the locals first as I'm not familiar with traffic patterns there.

[39august]

I would book an earlier shuttle. There is really no comfortable place to wait after  clearing customs. You'd be more comfortable at the airport.