Transportaton to Port of Galveston

Can any one recommend reliable in expensive transportation from Houston Hobby airport to Port of Galveston?

This thread will probably be moved. I booked in Galveston and somewhat regret it already. Galveston Express seems to be the best option at this point for our trip. This seems to be a more difficult port to get to when flying in, but the price was right for the Breeze.

It's not that much more complicated than say Port Canaveral. Lots of shuttle options as well as car rentals. It sounds like you found a good option. Galveston is a fun place to sail from. It's not as pretty as the Florida ports, but the island itself has lots of charm and once you set sail all is forgotten!

Can any one recommend reliable in expensive transportation from Houston Hobby airport to Port of Galveston?

We did a one way car rental with Enterprise. I drove our family members to the hotel for a one night stay prior to embarkation, dropped the car off at Enterprise, Galveston, then they shuttled me to the hotel. Upon return to Galveston we hired a limo, cheaper than one way rental bac and cheaper than a taxi.

It's not that much more complicated than say Port Canaveral. Lots of shuttle options as well as car rentals. It sounds like you found a good option. Galveston is a fun place to sail from. It's not as pretty as the Florida ports, but the island itself has lots of charm and once you set sail all is forgotten!

I have been spoiled and only cruised out of ports with very easy access to airports. Galveston just seems to have many fewer options than other ports.

Supershuttle offers service too!

We are using them from the airport to our hotel and from the port back to the hotel.

Would have used them to the port - but we have a group of 11 once everyone gets to Galveston and they can't do a group that large in a single vehicle. So to the port we using Galveston Shuttle and Limo.

Here are links - if that helps!

http://www.supershuttle.com/

http://galveston-shuttle.com/

I have been spoiled and only cruised out of ports with very easy access to airports. Galveston just seems to have many fewer options than other ports.

Agreed! :o

BUT....I think there are more options now that when we went there for the Magic in 2011. Guess it's a work in progress!

We also did Enterprise, one way. Cost about $100 but gave us freedom to explore Galveston Island, wine shop, etc. - there were 2 of us - we also spent the night in Galveston the night before we set sail (Country Inn and Suites - nice!) - we took Galveston Express on the way back (about $40 total) - we had a mid afternoon flight so weren't in a rush - it was fine but fairly disorganized -

We also did Enterprise, one way. Cost about $100 but gave us freedom to explore Galveston Island, wine shop, etc. - there were 2 of us - we also spent the night in Galveston the night before we set sail (Country Inn and Suites - nice!) - we took Galveston Express on the way back (about $40 total) - we had a mid afternoon flight so weren't in a rush - it was fine but fairly disorganized -

When you did Enterprise one way how did you handle getting to the port for the cruise? Did Enterprise drive you there, or did you have to take a taxi?

We booked transport through Carnival.

It was easy and very organized.

Round trip was $74 per/person.

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Arrived in Houston a day early. We did super shuttle (van) last December to the ship Don't remember the price but no complaints. Booked carnival transportation (bus) back to the airport & it was just ok.

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If you need a hotel as well, the LaQuinta Houston hobby has a cruise package that picks you up from airport and next morning drives you to port of Galveston.

The enterprise car rental works well but I heard they stopped letting people drop off in Galveston, maybe they went back to allowing it.

I cruise solo and I spent a ludicrous amount for a roundtrip town car ride because I didn't want to wait for the Carnival shuttle to fill up (IMO the cheapest option between Houston & Galveston).

When we cruised out of Galveston last February, 6 in our party, we got a cab right at the airport. we paid $100, including tip. I had looked around at other options and didn't see any better prices. I had read that getting a cab to bring you to the port was VERY expensive. Not so, at all. Our driver also offered to come back at the end of our cruise and pick us up. we should have taken him up on that because we waited in line longer to get back to the airport. Not horrible, maybe 20- 30 minutes.

When we cruised out of Galveston last February, 6 in our party, we got a cab right at the airport. we paid $100, including tip. I had looked around at other options and didn't see any better prices. I had read that getting a cab to bring you to the port was VERY expensive. Not so, at all. Our driver also offered to come back at the end of our cruise and pick us up. we should have taken him up on that because we waited in line longer to get back to the airport. Not horrible, maybe 20- 30 minutes.

Was that to IAH or Hobby Airport? The latter is closer to Galveston.....

We cruised out of Galveston this past April, and I agree, trying to find reasonably priced transportation for a small party (2 of us) was a bit of a challenge.

We did Galveston Express, and while our particular trip worked out fine, I would not book them without a backup plan given their reviews. My plan was to just suck it up and pay for a taxi. Expensive but better than missing the ship. If I had it to do over I'd take a look at Super Shuttle. I did not realize they ran from port to airport there.

If everything goes well with Galveston Express, it's fine. If one thing goes haywire, the owner/manager is an absolute jerk. To put it mildly. I'm good at reading reviews with a weather eye on the unreasonable, and his negative reviews are very valid. It's definitely a gamble.

One other tip I wish I'd done was to get to Galveston the night before rather than stay in Houston the night before. Just one less thing to worry about and there are lots of hotels down there with free or cheap shuttles to port.

I like the rental car idea, expect id be coming one way from Fort Worth. The only problem for me, is all the cruises I've taken from Galveston has been on Sunday and enterprise isn't open. You would have to drop it off the day before and then during the limited open hours(for a Saturday).

If you chose to use a hotel shuttle don't plan on taking advantage of Platinum/Diamond/FTTF priority boarding. Most shuttles will drop everyone off long after boarding has already started.

The last time we sailed out of Galveston, we deiced to stay at Moody Gardens in Galveston. They allow you to park your car there and offer to shuttle you to the Terminal. The only problem was both the Carnival Magic and RCL Voyager were there at the same time and there were too many cruisers at the hotel for the shuttle to accommodate. On top of that, the shuttle didn't start running until 12pm.

We were still in the hotel lobby at 1:30pm when we decided to call a cab. The only problem with that was the cab would pick up the first person they saw regardless of what we were told on the phone. At 2pm we gave up and just drove to the terminal and I paid the outrageous rate for parking.

On our last cruise on the Legend(in Seattle), I didn't what to deal with that again so I did my research and decided to use Uber, I loved it and decided I'd use it from now on. The only problem with that is Galveston and passed ordinances that caused both Uber and Lift to pull out. UGG

After doing more research I discovered another ride hailing service that operates primarily in some Texas citied(including Houston and Galveston) called GetMe(https://www.getme.com). While I haven't used it yet, I do have the app on my phone and will probably give them a try the next time I'm down there. They may even be an option getting from one of the Houston Airport to the terminal.

I'll be honest, I really like Uber for stuff like this and when the news came out that Galveston ran both Uber and Lift out, I seriously considered going a bit further and giving my Cruise business to New Orleans and making that my new home port.

I highly recommend ladybird limousine. Excellent service and prices.

Daughter used Enterprise car hire from IAH to Galveston two day rental and one way drop off $280 for SUV. Dropped Sunday morning but bit of panic to get taxi to ship as hadn't booked...told 1.5 hr wait. Managed to get John's Pink Taxi ...short wait 15-20 mins.

We had Alamo rental car that had to be returned to airport.so Saturdy before cruise took it back and used Dwayne Johnson's Txairport Transfers to return to Galveston...very reliable, punctual, polite, amenable.Cost $135 for 2 adults...but meant we wasted a whole morning.

Returning from Liberty of Seas, we all used John's Pink Taxi. Daughter had arranged with him when he dropped them off. Communications were fantastic. John was waiting when we exited immigration. He gave us a tour of NASA en route to IAH, provided information as we drove, was passionate about Galveston, and dropped us off at two different terminals. All for the princely sum of $160 (plus tip) for 4 adults and one child. John was a delight. I would not hesitate to recommend him and his wife Tate at Pink Taxis , Galveston

I highly recommend ladybird limousine. Excellent service and prices.

Ditto to this! We are using them tomorrow and after having had some flight drama today, my husband said "They are awesome; I would give them high marks +!" They have been wonderful in accommodating last minute necessary changes & offering the most efficient solution. So now I will tell people if your family is flying in separate (from different airports/states) hire a private shuttle. If we had booked another, we would have had to completely change all of our plans or used taxi all the way to port for our last family member.

Here is some information that I have rounded up for out of town cruiser's that need help with transportation to the Cruise Port.

Some of these options are cheap enough that you don't need to worry about which airport you fly into. Also note that people have told me that they have flown into HOUSTON the night before and then used these services on the day of the cruise to save over often high Galveston Hotel rates.

AIRPORT TRANSFER INFO for GALVESTON

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Thought that I would help out those that are traveling from out of the area. Next week I will do the Parking Options.

Port of Galveston Transportation

So you are flying into Houston Hobby or Bush Intercontinental and you want to get from there to either the ship or a hotel. You will also probably need a return trip as well. Your options are:

• Limo (Private Car Service, various levels)

• Shared Car or Shuttle Service (various levels)

• Cruise Line Transfers

• Taxi

• Car Rental

Houston Hobby-HOU is on the South Side of Houston (42.1 m), normally a 50-55 minute drive from the cruise terminals.

Houston Intercontinental (Bush)-IAH is on the North Side of Houston (70.1 m), normally an 80 minute ride from the cruise terminals, but this varies substantially on time and day. Plan your time accordingly.

Taxi fare round-trip from the airport to the Galveston cruise terminal can cost upwards of $250-300 from Bush Intercontinental Airport and $150-200 from Hobby Airport. (Rates vary depending on traffic.) That’s on the expensive side, but remember that usually up to four or five passengers can ride for that price. That makes the cost cheaper per person than the cruise line shuttles. Plus, with a taxi you don’t have to reserve ahead and you can leave whenever you are ready, instead of waiting on a shuttle to fill up.

Savings are usually available if you purchase round trips, are a senior, etc. be sure to ask what you qualify for.

Below are some transfer operators and services:

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Cool Tours, LLC - Standard Limo Service (Private Rides). Galveston based. Also provide other Tours in Galveston.

409.539.5374

https://cooltoursgalveston.com/shuttle-cruise-package-from-hobby-airport-hou/

TRANSFERS TO/FROM LOCATIONS IN GALVESTON

Hobby Airport (HOU) One-Way Round-Trip

First Passenger $90 $180

Addtl Adults $15 $30

Addtl Seniors (55+) $13 $26

Addtl Children (3-12) $13 $26

Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) – Spring Special for bookings made between April 1 and June 1

One-Way Round-Trip

First Passenger $140 $280

Addtl Adults Reg $25 / Sale $15 Reg $50 / Sale $30

Addtl Seniors (55+) Reg $22 / Sale $13 Reg $44 / Sale $26

Addtl Children (3-12) Reg $22 / Sale $13 Reg $44 / Sale $26

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Super Shuttle

Super Shuttle serves both Hobby and Intercontinental Airports. Known for their shuttle service, they have also added SUV and Private Car Service. (I have been using their private sedan service in some locations around the country with great satisfaction. Note: Sedan service trunk sizes vary, so I recommend SUV service for more than 3 large suitcases or more than 2 people.)

HOBBY: http://www.supershuttle.com/Locations/HoustonHOU

BUSH IC: http://www.supershuttle.com/Locations/HoustonIAH

Galveston Limousine

SHARED Shuttle Service 409-744-5466,

Note that they offer both services, shared and private.

They have a schedule for their shared service and posted rates.

http://www.galvestonlimousineservice.com/

From Bush:

New Online Specials $25.00/pp One way, $50.00/pp Roundtrip

Age One Way Round Trip

Adult $55.00 $100.00

Sr. Citizen (65+) $45.00 $90.00

Departs Time Time Time Time

Galveston 8:00AM 10:00AM 1:30PM 3:30PM

IAH Bush 10:30AM 12:30PM 4:00PM 6:00PM

From Hobby:

New Online Specials $20.00/pp One way, $45.00/pp Roundtrip

Age One Way Round Trip

Adult $45.00 $80.00

Sr. Citizen (65+) $35.00 $70.00

Departs Time Time Time Time

Galveston 8:00AM 10:00AM 1:30PM 3:30PM

Hobby 11:30AM 1:30PM 5:00PM 7:00PM

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Galveston Express Shuttle

Galveston Express is becoming a favorite among cruisers for their excellent service and punctuality.

http://galvestonexpress.com/

(409)762-GEXP (4397)

One Way:

From Hobby $30.00

From IAH : $35.00

Roundtrip:

From Hobby $60.00

From IAH : $70.00

With an additional $5 discount for Seniors (55+) and Children (10 & Under) when purchasing a round-trip ticket.

Book Now

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This is the Galveston dot com page for airport transfers and a great source of Information.

http://www.galveston.com/airporttransfers/

Others:

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Galveston Shuttle,

http://galveston-shuttle.com/index.html

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Galveston Express Shuttle

http://galvestonexpress.com/

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Karr Limousine,

http://www.karrlimousine.com/ - My antivirus detected a threat from this website

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Action Limousine,

http://www.actionlimo.com/

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Elite Limousines,

http://www.elitelimohouston.com/GalvestonCruiseShuttle.htm

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Aim Limousine,

http://aimlimo.com/

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Lady Bird Limousine

http://www.ladybirdlimousine.com/galvestonfreeport-rates/

Need Additional Information -> Good Website:

http://www.galvestoncruisetips.com/how-to-get-to-the-galveston-port-without-a-car/

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Can any one recommend reliable in expensive transportation from Houston Hobby airport to Port of Galveston?

http://www.cruiseconnection.us is running a hobby summer special.

That is very helpful to have everything all in one post. Appreciate it!:)

Visit GalvestonTaxiKent on Facebook. Reliable service and gives great tours/stories during your ride.

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