Getting from IAH to Galveston

[tekzilla]

We are flying in the night before our cruise and looking for the best way to get from IAH to our hotel in Galveston. Any suggestions? Thanks

[sappygirl]

We are flying in the night before our cruise and looking for the best way to get from IAH to our hotel in Galveston. Any suggestions? Thanks

From what I read people usually rent a car or hire a driver to take them to Galveston. There may also have a shuttle but I am not sure.

[T. Advisor King]

We sailed on the Conquest in March and I did a lot of research on this matter. We flew in on Saturday and stayed near IAH that night.

 

My first question is how many are in your party?

 

We were a family of four. I believe Carnival's bus/shuttle was $40 per person, each way. That gave us a starting point of at least $160 to work with in terms of finding a better deal. I never checked to find the embarkation point of the bus (i.e., would it pick me up at my hotel, or would I have to take a cab into the city to find the bus?).

 

My first plan was to rent a car one-way. Unfortunately, there is no way that I could figure to do it. I think there is only one rental office in Galveston (for drop off) and they were closed Sundays and wouldn't accept "parking it on the street" with "keys through the mailbox".

 

My next plan was to hire a limo to take us down. I figured if I could get it for the same price as the bus, then it would be worth it because my kids would think it would be fun. I found the website for Houston's limo association and sent emails to something like 50 companies. The best offer I got came in around $175 or so. That surprised me a little because I didn't think there'd be a ton of demand for limos on Sunday morning, other than from cruise passengers. In the meantime, I'd found taxis for $95 and a town car for $109. I booked the town car (and ultimately tipped the driver another $25 for a total cost of $134). The car arrived at our hotel at the exact time they promised. It was very convenient and I can't imagine that Carnival's bus would have been more convenient.

 

If you just have two people in your party, then a regular taxi should be fine, or you might want to take the Carnival bus. But if the bus is $80 for two and you have to take a cab from your hotel to wherever the bus leaves, then it might not save you any money (or it might be a negligible amount).

 

I'm not sure what CC's rules are about posting names and contact info about services (i.e., the town car company), but if that interest you, just reply with contact info and I can send you the company's name and phone number.

[powelweb]

I'd be interested in knowing who you used and how the service they provided was. I think that it permissible within the CC guidelines and based on other threads I've seen on these departure boards- it's travel agencies that can't be specifically recommended and on the port boards, it's tour operators that can't be simply promoted unless in response to a specific question.

 

In our case, I've already arranged a super shuttle van for 10 to transport from Houston hotel to Galveston for a family cruise, but people keep joining the cruise, and it's my own family of 3 that has been bumped from the shuttle (don't laugh- out of 13, we're also the ones who can manage luggage and aren't in our golden years yet), so I'm looking for another transport for us that is less expensive than the cruise transfers at $46 per person each way.

 

We when last sailed into Galveston on the Voyager repo in December, we used Boston Coach for a towncar service, and they were excellent, but their quote has jumped from $178 including tip (granted that was a Saturday pickup) to $250 without tip, so I'm pricing out other services.

 

We have our DD who will be 6 and will need a booster seat, so just lots of details to track.

[T. Advisor King]

Okay, I just didn't want to break any rules (which is a bit of a joke in reference to the current "are rules meant to be broken" thread on the Carnival boards).

 

The company we used from our hotel near IAH to the Galveston cruise terminal was "Z-limousine". Here is a link to their website.

 

http://www.houston-airport-town-car.com/prices.html

 

The pricing still refers to $109 for that trip. Their numbers are 1-877-504-2171 or 832-607-8495.

 

z-limousine@hotmail.com

 

If you think a taxi will do, I think I've got a quote at $95, but I'll have to find it. We (family of four) packed tightly and fit three medium to large suitcases, four backpacks and one garment bag in the Town Car.

[tekzilla]

 

My first question is how many are in your party?

 

There will be just two of us. Im guessing that the cruise line transfer wont work in our situation.