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Help-transport Dallas to Galveston


Nicksmom1
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Hello,

 

I am cruising in January on Royal Caribbean. Flights are much more expensive than I anticipated and I now have to pay for my nephew and 2 nieces along with my son and myself. I was not expecting to have to pay for my nephew and nieces. It is much cheaper to fly into Dallas, but I'm not having any luck with reasonable transport. These kids deserve a vacation and I want to be able to provide it for them. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks

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Hello,

 

I am cruising in January on Royal Caribbean. Flights are much more expensive than I anticipated and I now have to pay for my nephew and 2 nieces along with my son and myself. I was not expecting to have to pay for my nephew and nieces. It is much cheaper to fly into Dallas, but I'm not having any luck with reasonable transport. These kids deserve a vacation and I want to be able to provide it for them. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks

Have you checked out flying to both Houston Hobby (HOU) and Bush Intercontinental (IAH)? Hobby is the closest airport to Galveston and has many Southwest flights.

Edited by clarea
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If you have never driven I-45 thru' Houston down to Galveston, I don't suggest you start now! Can't see how you'd save that much money by renting a car and paying parking for a week. As Bob said, check Southwest for fares into Hobby airport. Then you can book a reasonably priced shuttle to Galveston, only about 40 miles from Hobby. Lots of shared ride shuttles available.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I am doing this with my kids in March. It saves me over $800 in airfare and close to $400 in transfers to Galveston. I found a rental car for just over $300 for the 8 days through Costco. With paying for the rental car and parking at $65 for the week, I still come out over $800 ahead. It is worth the 300 mile drive for me. As a single mom, that $800 can go a long way for excursions and such.

 

Hope everything works out for you! Have an awesome trip! :D

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  • 2 weeks later...
Hello,

 

I am cruising in January on Royal Caribbean. Flights are much more expensive than I anticipated and I now have to pay for my nephew and 2 nieces along with my son and myself. I was not expecting to have to pay for my nephew and nieces. It is much cheaper to fly into Dallas, but I'm not having any luck with reasonable transport. These kids deserve a vacation and I want to be able to provide it for them. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks

 

I am in a similar boat as you. I am flabbergasted as why it's so expensive flying into Houston. Southwest into HOU is no better than others into IAH. I'm coming from LAX and the best fare for April 1-9 is $418 round trip. Ridiculous. Then the transport to Galveston for the 5 of us on top of that! I realize now I would have been better off sailing out of Ft. Lauderdale on Allure of the Seas on the same dates, but I'm now committed.

 

You should look at flying into Austin. It's about the same price as Dallas yet you're far closer to Galveston. I know JetBlue has nice nonstops there from Long Beach and I'm considering it. The way I have my trip now, I'll be flying into HOU on Southwest, renting a car for the entire duration of the cruise, pay the $70 for parking, and return it to HOU on departure day. This is actually cheaper than getting a roundtrip shuttle for 5 from the airport and renting the car for 2 days prior. Something ain't right.

 

They've really got it set up to soak you for these Galveston departures. I see that only Enterprise has an office in Galveston, squashing competition for one-way rentals. I wish RCL left out of Baytown like Princess.

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The cruise terminal near Baytown (Bayport Cruise Terminal) is closed. They are selling the property.

 

Ah, thanks for the update. I guess they found yet another way to squash competition for Galveston. What happened to the free-wheeling capitalist culture of Texas?

 

I guess my point is that for non-Texans, cruising out of Galveston present lots of extra expense, and I get the feeling that the system is set up that way. When I see that Enterprise is the only car rental vendor on the island, coupled with the fact that they are closed on Sundays (cruise departure day) it smells fishy. I also heard that there used to be shuttle service from the Avis in Texas City to the port, but that's gone too. Then add the high cost--for whatever reason--of flying into Houston and you've got a whole lot of obstacles for cruisers. Call me a conspiracy theorist, but it seems like it's all set up to keep the power in the hands of the parking lot owners and the shuttle industry.

 

I recently cruised out of San Juan, PR and I had a $25 taxi to the port and the same cost from the port to the airport. $50.00 round trip for a family of 5, including tip. A round trip shuttle from IAH to the port costs about $375 and from HOU it's $300. Air fare from LAX to HOU or IAH is $120 more expensive per person than Dallas, Austin, or San Antonio too. It's a shame that families have to get so creative to minimize all these costs.

Edited by LMK5
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Ah, thanks for the update. I guess they found yet another way to squash competition for Galveston. What happened to the free-wheeling capitalist culture of Texas?

 

I guess my point is that for non-Texans, cruising out of Galveston present lots of extra expense, and I get the feeling that the system is set up that way. When I see that Enterprise is the only car rental vendor on the island, coupled with the fact that they are closed on Sundays (cruise departure day) it smells fishy. I also heard that there used to be shuttle service from the Avis in Texas City to the port, but that's gone too. Then add the high cost--for whatever reason--of flying into Houston and you've got a whole lot of obstacles for cruisers. Call me a conspiracy theorist, but it seems like it's all set up to keep the power in the hands of the parking lot owners and the shuttle industry.

 

I recently cruised out of San Juan, PR and I had a $25 taxi to the port and the same cost from the port to the airport. $50.00 round trip for a family of 5, including tip. A round trip shuttle from IAH to the port costs about $375 and from HOU it's $300. Air fare from LAX to HOU or IAH is $120 more expensive per person than Dallas, Austin, or San Antonio too. It's a shame that families have to get so creative to minimize all these costs.

 

 

Wow...:eek: Tin foil hats must be on sale this week.

 

They had to beg cruise lines to use Bayport and offer big financial breaks to the cruise lines to get them to use it. I also take it you have never actually been there...It is in a large industrial area, surrounded by chemical plants, refineries, and shipping ports. Then add in the extended transit time the open water and it doesn't exactly add up to an appealing place for a cruise port when Galveston is already there with many more hotels, restaurants and other touristy stuff.

 

As far as car rental stuff not being open on Sundays...economics 101. If there was a market for it and it made financial sense to be open then it would be. So much for your capitalist comment.

 

 

As far as cost...geography. You $25 cab ride in P.R. is not a valid comparison as it is only about 8 miles form the airpot in P.R. to the port but 75 miles form IAH to the port. :rolleyes:

Edited by TruckerDave
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Wow...:eek: Tin foil hats must be on sale this week.

 

They had to beg cruise lines to use Bayport and offer big financial breaks to the cruise lines to get them to use it. I also take it you have never actually been there...It is in a large industrial area, surrounded by chemical plants, refineries, and shipping ports. Then add in the extended transit time the open water and it doesn't exactly add up to an appealing place for a cruise port when Galveston is already there with many more hotels, restaurants and other touristy stuff.

 

As far as car rental stuff not being open on Sundays...economics 101. If there was a market for it and it made financial sense to be open then it would be. So much for your capitalist comment.

 

 

As far as cost...geography. You $25 cab ride in P.R. is not a valid comparison as it is only about 8 miles form the airpot in P.R. to the port but 75 miles form IAH to the port. :rolleyes:

 

My point is that, all things being equal, Galveston is very expensive to cruise from if you have to fly in. Do the math yourself. Check out costs to Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, even NYC and you'll find them all cheaper when you consider flight and ground transportation costs. Why do you think there are so many threads here on Cruise Critic seeking to find a way around all the extra costs?

 

It costs less to fly into Dallas, San Antonio, or Austin than it does to either Houston Airport. Houston is the largest city in the state. Where's the economics 101 in that? Talk to a couple of the private parking lot operators near the port and they'll tell you the ways that the port is driving up their costs so the port parking lots can gain an advantage. The Galveston port doesn't allow taxis on the property unless they pay a $30.00 fee per appearance. The driver told me he will have to drop us off 500 yards away. Didn't see that in San Juan. All the taxis came right up to the curb at the terminal.

 

From Charleston you can drive to any of the Florida ports in a day. Just out of curiosity, why would you go out of Galveston?

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My point is that, all things being equal, Galveston is very expensive to cruise from if you have to fly in. Do the math yourself. Check out costs to Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, even NYC and you'll find them all cheaper when you consider flight and ground transportation costs. Why do you think there are so many threads here on Cruise Critic seeking to find a way around all the extra costs?

 

It costs less to fly into Dallas, San Antonio, or Austin than it does to either Houston Airport. Houston is the largest city in the state. Where's the economics 101 in that? Talk to a couple of the private parking lot operators near the port and they'll tell you the ways that the port is driving up their costs so the port parking lots can gain an advantage. The Galveston port doesn't allow taxis on the property unless they pay a $30.00 fee per appearance. The driver told me he will have to drop us off 500 yards away. Didn't see that in San Juan. All the taxis came right up to the curb at the terminal.

 

From Charleston you can drive to any of the Florida ports in a day. Just out of curiosity, why would you go out of Galveston?

 

 

I lived in Houston for almost 20 years, I moved to Charleston last May.

 

Why does it cost more to fly into Houston...simple...because the airlines can charge it and people will pay it. (plus all of the fees and taxes Houston has added on to everything. got to pay for stuff somehow and locals sure as heck don't want to pay for it, so tourists get stuck with the bill.) Supply and demand, large city with a big demand to fly there thus airlines are able to charge premium prices. Economics 101. And again your comparison to P.R. is irrelevant.

 

Yes, Galveston is one of the more expensive ports to cruise from. I always found the actual cruise rates to be higher than out of Miami as well. More supply and demand. (and as an aside, I can sail from Jax or P.C. MUCH cheaper than I can sail form Charleston. 5+ hr drive vs 10 minute drive. more supply and demand) The airport is 75 miles form the port...Miami, FLL and NY probably are not that far when you combine the distances form all 5 major airports to their respective ports.

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I lived in Houston for almost 20 years, I moved to Charleston last May.

 

Why does it cost more to fly into Houston...simple...because the airlines can charge it and people will pay it. (plus all of the fees and taxes Houston has added on to everything. got to pay for stuff somehow and locals sure as heck don't want to pay for it, so tourists get stuck with the bill.) Supply and demand, large city with a big demand to fly there thus airlines are able to charge premium prices. Economics 101. And again your comparison to P.R. is irrelevant.

 

Yes, Galveston is one of the more expensive ports to cruise from. I always found the actual cruise rates to be higher than out of Miami as well. More supply and demand. (and as an aside, I can sail from Jax or P.C. MUCH cheaper than I can sail form Charleston. 5+ hr drive vs 10 minute drive. more supply and demand) The airport is 75 miles form the port...Miami, FLL and NY probably are not that far when you combine the distances form all 5 major airports to their respective ports.

 

Ah, so you're not sympathetic because you don't have to go through the process. Fair enough. Yes, there are some economics involved, but also some tactics by the local authorities as I illustrated, thereby distorting Economics 101. Anyway, I'm committed because the kids like the ship (water slides) and want to go cave tubing in Belize, but never again.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I cannot tell what your starting point is, so not sure of the feasibility... But, we drive to Galveston from South Dakota, because it is so much cheaper than flying. (We do enjoy road trips though!) We have run into weather in the winter. However, I've been driving between SD and the Rio Grande Valley for twenty years and have never been delayed more than a few hours due to weather.

 

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

Edited by pete98
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