Driving to Houston - need advice

I'm leaving for the Western Caribbean on the Dream on Sat, 2/25. Planning to drive down from Dallas on Fri, 2/24. Wanted the advice of anyone who's driven to and parked in Houston. Here are the two options.

- Option 1: Drive to Houston proper on Friday. Get a hotel from Hotwire/Priceline (looks like about $65 after taxes and booking fee for 3 1/2 star near the HOU airport). Drive to Port of Houston/Morgan's Point on Saturday. Pay $49 for parking at the pier. Total = $114

- Option 2: Drive to LaPorte area and get a hotel there ($80 + tax for Comfort Suites). Leave car there for "free" parking for the week. Take taxi to the pier (3 adults + 1 child = $20 ... times 2 for the round trip). Total = $120 + hotel taxes

Is my math right? It seems like I should definitely choose Option #1 for several reasons:

1. It's a little cheaper

2. It's more convenient - don't have to wait for a taxi when we get back on Sat, 3/4

3. Our car would be safer in the locked/guarded(?) pier parking vs. sitting in a hotel parking lot for a week

Can anyone give me a thumbs up or thumbs down on my plan?

Thanks!

-Andy

Andy: I have not left out of the Port of Houston, but have left out of the Port of Galveston twice. We drive from the Dallas area also. I always park my car at the port. You drop off your bags and family at the curb, park your car and ride the shuttle bus back. Your car is right there, it is in a secure area and you only have to move your bags once. When we get back I ride the shuttle to the car, bring it back to the curb then pick up the bags and the rest of my family. We haven't gone the night before, just driven down the day of. Its an easy drive.

Have fun on your cruise!

Andy...We sailed out of Houston on the Dream in Oct 05..Drove to La Porte on Friday, stayed in Comfort Inns..(then 56.00 for 3 of us)..all seniors...drove to the pier the next day (about 2 miles)...Parked in locked secure parking right at the ship (48.00).prepay....couldn't have been easier. When you get off ship, your car is right there, and there is no problem getting out of the lot....:)

We are going again in Nov, and will do the same thing....dinner the night before at Kemma (sp) about a 15 min drive away, and free breakfast at the Comfort Inn before you leave.....try it.....

till we all sail again....jus' me....jim....the velvet teddy bear :cool:

Thanks, crzn4fun. From North Fort Worth (where we live) it's about 300 miles. We have a 3 year-old so it'll probably take us 7-8 hours with all the stops (we went to San Antonio last year and that was about the schedule). Hence, the overnight stay. :)

Thanks again for the info.

-Andy

Thanks, Jim. (You posted while I replied to crzn4fun :)) Sounds like a plan!

-Andy

I fly in from SLC, so I can't help with the drive from Dallas. From our airport near IAH it was about a 35-40 minute drive. The parking lot at the pier is right next door to the pier -- no need to take a shuttle. Just drop your family and luggage off, circle back around to the parking lot, and it's a quick and very short walk back.

We had a rental car that we left parked in the Enterprise area at the parking lot, but it appeared to be a fairly safe parking lot. Don't think I'd be worried at all about leaving a car there for the week.

ajw101:

You can always check for a hotel in the Kemah or Seabrook area. It is about 11miles from the port and it is a nice area. We are going to take the kids to the port this Saturday so they can see the ship that we are going on. So I will look and see if I see anything else for you. We live about 35miles from the port so it will be a short drive for us. We are so ready for the cruise.

Ok I have to warn all that are going to be driving to the port. We took the kids to see the ship. Barbours cut Blvd is not one of the best roads it is very rough so watch your speed. In addition, you need to keep your eyes open for the sign’s to the ship we almost missed the turn. We got to the ship just before noon and the parking lot to park was almost empty but there was a long line to check in.

Thanks for the info, ute_fan and pateoreo1. I just booked my hotel room with Priceline. Got $34 + tax/fees = $46 for LaQuinta in Houston North ... :)

Two weeks to go!

-Andy

Ajw -- I'd gotten an excellent set of driving instructions last year before we went. Thanks again to jrchvatal for providing them. I've just copied this from his/her original post, which is located on http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=162280

ADDRESS & LOCATION:

The official address of the terminal is 820 North L, Morgan’s Point, TX, but this does not show up on Internet maps like Yahoo! and Map Quest. To see the actual location of the terminal, search for 1300 N Broadway St, La Porte, TX 77571. This will put you at the intersection of North L and N Broadway. Although the map shows that North L dead ends into N Broadway, it actually continues across N Broadway and dead ends at the terminal, which is right on the water (on the maps you’ll see a body of water labeled Barbours Cut).

DIRECTIONS:

Ask your hotel to direct you to the Sam Houston Tollway. You want to take the Tollway East. Continue around the Tollway quite a while and cross over the Toll Bridge ($2.00 toll). Once you've paid the toll, take the first exit off the Tollway to Deer Park/La Porte/Pasadena. Turn left at the 2nd red light, and feed onto Texas Highway 225. Continue on Texas Highway 225 East until you reach Texas Highway 146 South. From Texas Highway 146 South, take the first exit, Barbours Cut Boulevard, and turn left. Continue on Barbours Cut Boulevard to North Broadway (first stop sign). Turn left on North Broadway and travel to North L, which is located just before the railroad tracks. Turn right on North L. North L dead-ends into the cruise terminal. It is approximately 3 miles from Texas Highway 146 to the cruise terminal.

We drove right to the port by following his instructions. A couple of other posts have mentioned that it can be a little difficult to find the pier, but if you follow those directions you'll be in great shape.

Thanks for the very detailed directions! -Andy