Is it easy cruising out of Galveston?

[3red7s]

Hello folks.....we have done many cruises, but have never sailed out of Galveston Tx.  We are coming in from Cleveland OH & will come in one day prior to our cruise.  Does RC offer shuttle service from Houston to Galveston?  If so, for how much?  How far in advance should I book out? And is the shuttle service on the same day of the cruise departure?  How about the return?  anything you can offer would be greatly appreciated? 

[firefly333]

Houston has 2 air ports. Hobby is the closest and about half the distance. Rcl does offer morning of the cruise shuttles and prices depend on which airport. I cant remember for sure. Hobby might be $46 one way thru rcl. Pp

[joepeka]

I'm sure I will be corrected if this comment is inaccurate but last we used it, the shuttle is only day of cruise and only from airport to cruise port. So if you come in the day prior and are at a hotel, that shuttle won't be an option.

[wdwkings]

Been to Houston plenty of times For work and have seen the transfer desk at both airports.  
 

Personally I would not use them and do what we did this spring for our only time sailing from Galveston.  We flew into Hobby and did an Uber to the port.  We did stay near the airport and used the hotel van.

 

If you fly into the day before as you stated, you could be halfway to the port in the time it takes to head back to Hobby to catch the RCL shuttle.  At Bush, so only use that airport if you have to, the drive is further to the port but you would have to backtrack to the airport to catch the shuttle. The shuttle could be ok but the time and cost would have to align to make sense.  

 

 

[neverbeenhere]

My good friend U. Ber will get you from the airport to the Island. Then he will get you to the pier on the day of your cruise. The airport to island trip won’t be cheap, but it will be efficient. 
 

Then you can book a shuttle back to the airport after you board the ship of dreams. Or Mr U. Ber can whisk you away the morning you arrive back in port. 
 

Galveston cruises… there will be a limited drink menu for the first few hours of your cruise.(Royal wants to limit paying too much in tax to Texas) 

also, depending on your sail date, there can be fog issues leaving and returning. So plan your flight leaving with a good buffer of time. 

[Tree_skier]

1 hour ago, 3red7s said:

Hello folks.....we have done many cruises, but have never sailed out of Galveston Tx.  We are coming in from Cleveland OH & will come in one day prior to our cruise.  Does RC offer shuttle service from Houston to Galveston?  If so, for how much?  How far in advance should I book out? And is the shuttle service on the same day of the cruise departure?  How about the return?  anything you can offer would be greatly appreciated? 

Use Galveston Express from the airport to Galveston the night before.  The morning of... Uber is your best bet. 

 

https://galvestonexpress.com/galveston-taxi-rates-schedule/

Edited April 10 by Tree_skier

[nelblu]

5 minutes ago, Tree_skier said:

Use Galveston Express from the airport to Galveston the night before.  The morning of... Uber is your best bet. 

 

https://galvestonexpress.com/galveston-taxi-rates-schedule/

Used them on day of arrival and departure.  Had a 10AM and return at 9AM.  Reasonable for the distance involved.  Mine (solo) was $35 each way.  My return driver was very knowledgeable of e roads as the main artery was backed up either accident or traffic. 

 

 

[Tree_skier]

2 minutes ago, nelblu said:

Used them on day of arrival and departure.  Had a 10AM and return at 9AM.  Reasonable for the distance involved.  Mine (solo) was $35 each way.  My return driver was very knowledgeable of e roads as the main artery was backed up either accident or traffic. 

 

 

I used a private car service last time and regretted it.  I should have stuck with what I know works best. 

[Tree_skier]

The reason I don't just suggest Uber for the entire trip is we tend to be a little luggage heavy and I don't want to get caught with Toyota Corolla and have to carry bags on my lap to or from the airport.

 

If you are light packers I'd just use uber.

 

Edited April 10 by Tree_skier

[Etta1213]

We fly in the day before, stay in modest lodging near the airport, using motel shuttle, then use a limo service the morning of the cruise to get to the port; same driver takes us back to the airport after our cruise; not very expensive. Some folks stay overnight near the airport, then shuttle/Uber back to the airport to use RC's shuttle the morning of the cruise. Lodging is quite more expensive on the island, but some folks want time along the seawall.

Edited April 10 by Etta1213

[The sea calls my name]

37 minutes ago, Tree_skier said:

The reason I don't just suggest Uber for the entire trip is we tend to be a little luggage heavy and I don't want to get caught with Toyota Corolla and have to carry bags on my lap to or from the airport.

 

If you are light packers I'd just use uber.

 

We did our first cruise out of Galveston in March and a young couple with a toddler were denied to get into the UBER they booked because ALL their bags would not fit into the trunk. The driver never got out and would not let them in holding a carryon. He drove off after telling them to call for a bigger car.  I felt so sorry for that couple. So if you use Uber make sure you consider the size based on your luggage.

 

[bgoff60]

Rent a modest car from the airport for the week and drive to Galveston.  We stayed at a B&B called Avenue O B&B.  Great place!!!  AND you get a 5 star breakfast the morning of your cruise, you get to park your car at their residence (in the back area) FOR FREE and, they shuttle you to the cruise port for free as well and pick you up when the cruise is over and take you to your car at their place.  They are about 5 minutes from the cruise port and is super fast to get there.    (They are also cruisers...)

[Anton]

My Galveston plan, which I've done many times:  I fly in from Huntsville Alabama, which is a direct flight for me, and since it's United Express I have to go to IAH (George Bush Intercontinental Airport) which is the one farthest away from the port.  I stay at the Marriott in the airport, which you get to by the airport tram underground, direct from baggage claim.  This works for me since I look at the night before the cruise as just being close to the port and not a night on the town in Galveston.  I eat at the hotel or take an Uber to a local restaurant.  I book Galveston Express for 8am the next morning and they are always there, often early.  I board the tram and go to Terminal A and walk out Door A-114 and look off to the left past the traffic lanes.  That's where they will be in a black van.  I've done it enough to be on a first name basis with one driver and his son who is also a driver.  Off we go and usually arrive at the port early, even if we have to stop at Hobby airport for other riders.    Then on debarkation day Galveston Express is right there where they dropped me off on boarding day.  $70 round trip for seniors, I think $80 for younger people.  As I said, it works for me and is easy.   It's probably not everyone's cup of tea.

 

[Lane Hog]

Galveston's great to sail from.  Admittedly ground transport to/from can be a challenge, but it's worth it to me to avoid the congestion you find in the Florida megaports. 

[buncosquad]

I am doing this embarkation port on Harmony next month with a 10 person family group flying in from 4 cities around the country to IAH.

 

Ugh, this ship is insane size and appears sold out, save for maybe several inside cabins. I dread it for the shear size and pax capacity, but for the grandkids...

 

I can't imagine the gymnastics I read of relying upon shuttles (good as they may "usually" be) from the airport, to a hotel, back to the airport the next morning in order to join a shuttle to travel to the ship at distance for embarkation. That sounds exhausting.

 

I like to design for zero stress.

 

Using private transfers from IAH to Galveston then spending two nights at Tremont House before cruise embarkation. Whew.

 

Using same company for private transfer from Tremont House to port for morning of embarkation. 

 

For disembarkation, once again using same private transfer from port, via Johnson Space Center, then continuing on to IAH.

 

I just want to relax. And have a drink (even if limited in port by Texas law). 😎

 

Edited April 11 by buncosquad

[RobInMN]

Here's the forum for Gulf Coast departure ports, which includes Galveston.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/316-gulf-coast-departures/

 

We cruises on Allure out of there last September. We could fly direct to IAH, but not Hobby, so that sealed that deal.

We used the Galveston Saltwater Moms from the airport to the Hampton Inn / Home 2 Suites on the sea wall. They do not have a shuttle to the port, so we used an Uber. Surprisingly, it seemed like hardly any hotels I looked at had shuttles to the port.

In hind sight, a suggestion I saw on the above forum is what I would probably do next time. (too late for me as I booked a non-refundable rate for the hotel). Get a hotel near the airport that has a free airport shuttle. Then use GSM, Uber, or other private transfer to the port the morning of.

 

Post cruise, we did the RCL Houston Space Center transfer to the airport, as none of us had done that before.

 

[George C]

The problem with Galveston is it’s not that close to an airport, we don’t like to drive so we fly to hobby then Uber to a nice hotel. Lots of good hotels in the area . We do upscale hotels like San Luis , Hilton and Moody Gardens.

[Coralc]

"Is it easy cruising out of Galveston?" I don't think it is easy cruising out of Galveston, Port Canaveral or Civitavecchia. All 3 of them require to you make additional arrangements to get quite some distance from the airport to the cruise port or to a pre-cruise hotel. 

[cruisinfly]

I've cruised out of Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Port Canaveral, Seattle, and Galveston. It's as easy as any other port and easier than some. Less traffic than Miami or Seattle. Galveston is not a huge area and is usually very easy and fast to get around.

 

I live locally (25 minute drive to the port of Galveston) so I cruise out of Galveston quite a bit. As folks noted, Hobby is a 30-40 minute drive to the port but usually and easy drive. IAH is double that. Hotels are in abundance and you can stay in Galveston or farther North in the Clear Lake Area or Texas City. They are about to open a Great Wolf Lodge in the touristy Clear Lake/NASA area that would be good for a pre/post stay for a family. Also lots of fun touristy stuff to do nearby. Tons of good restaurants of varying cuisine.

 

Uber/Lyft work well in the area. Too much luggage? Call for an UberXL. You can also arrange private tranportation.

[mil76]

Been taking at least 1 RCL cruise a year since the return to Galveston, and cruising logistics have improved immensely over the years from transport options, to the terminal, to the ships.  It's definitely not the best, but it has gotten better. 

 

We usually fly into Hobby since that is half the transportation battle compared to IAH (plus I have free companion status in Southwest). Originally we would fly in the night before and stay by the Airport and take Uber/Taxi/private car service/Shuttle to the port.  But the area around Hobby is seedy, so we started booking a hotel on the way to Galveston and just do 2 Uber trips. 

 

To make things even easier for us, we have gotten my relatives in Texas into cruising, so we take the first Southwest flight the morning of and they pick us up on the way to Galveston.  I assumed if there is bad weather we will change the flight and fly in the previous day and that should cover us as what else could go wrong.  Then last Sunday the same DEN-HOU Southwest flight we're taking next Sunday is the one where the engine cover blew off... 😵

[not-enough-cruising]

13 hours ago, Coralc said:

"Is it easy cruising out of Galveston?" I don't think it is easy cruising out of Galveston, Port Canaveral or Civitavecchia. All 3 of them require to you make additional arrangements to get quite some distance from the airport to the cruise port or to a pre-cruise hotel. 

But it is still relatively easy.

Tens of millions of people do it every year

[3red7s]

WOW such a great response!!!  I have several options which is wonderful.  Thank you everyone!!

[LuvtheWater117]

I don't know if this would be an option but we had a family of 7 going out of Galveston a few weeks ago.  2 Kids, 5 adults, lots of luggage plus a wheelchair.  We flew into IAH, rented a minivan, and drove to the hotel about 25 minutes from the port.  We kept the car all week, found a good parking deal 5 minute walk from the port entrance, and then drove back to IAH after debarking the ship.  We had a later flight so it was nice to have the car the entire day to tour around the island, storing our luggage, etc.  It was slightly cheaper to rent the car for 8 days and pay for gas and parking than to do shuttles for 7.  It was also worth it just to have the freedom to run to Walmart the night before the cruise, pick up dinner at a local restaurant, etc.  

[firefly333]

I'm moving to florida but have another cruise on marriner before I move then October I'm flying into hobby, staying at the holiday express and hopefully have a shuttle lined up. 

[3red7s]

On 4/16/2024 at 1:22 PM, LuvtheWater117 said:

I don't know if this would be an option but we had a family of 7 going out of Galveston a few weeks ago.  2 Kids, 5 adults, lots of luggage plus a wheelchair.  We flew into IAH, rented a minivan, and drove to the hotel about 25 minutes from the port.  We kept the car all week, found a good parking deal 5 minute walk from the port entrance, and then drove back to IAH after debarking the ship.  We had a later flight so it was nice to have the car the entire day to tour around the island, storing our luggage, etc.  It was slightly cheaper to rent the car for 8 days and pay for gas and parking than to do shuttles for 7.  It was also worth it just to have the freedom to run to Walmart the night before the cruise, pick up dinner at a local restaurant, etc.  

good to know