Where to Stay in Galveston?

We are sailing on the Conquest on August 20th. We fly in the day before and are wondering which hotels are good and which ones to stay away from. Also, what is the best way to get from the airport to the hotel (ie: Taxi, shuttle, rent a car).:)

Hi and welcome to CC!:D

You might check out the hotel threads on CC about this. I know I found some great Galveston information a few weeks ago over there. I've stayed in Galveston several times and one of the easiest places to stay before a cruise is the Harbor House. It's next door to the terminal and they will keep your car for a fee. You can go to galveston.com to book with them. Warning: call the hotel a few days before your visit to double check your reservation. I did this and they claimed I made three reservations for the same day when I didn't!

When we fly in, I've used Galveston Limo's (actually a shuttle service) for transportation. In December, it was $50.00 per person round trip. You can also find their information on galveston.com

Good luck!

Thank you so much. I will take your advise.

Here's a link to the hotel section. Usually lots of good info here. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=92

I personally like Hilton & would definetly stay away from Flagship Hotel. Flagship was a dump several years ago & recently got in trouble for scamming FEMA & hurricane victims. :rolleyes:

Good luck finding a room. Aug is peak season in Galveston so many places may be soldout or overpriced.

Harbor House & Tremont are closest to the pier. Many others located on Seawall Blvd offer free shuttle from hotel to the pier.

I personally like Holiday Inn on the Beach. They kept our car for free and took us to the port as well as picked us back up for free. I have read other comments that other people were not as lucky as we were about staying there but we thought it was wonderful. The view was beautiful.

We just loved the Tremont House in Historic Galveston. It was only a few blocks from the water/pier area. Basically the only hotel in the downtown historic area.

Last year we stayed at The Holiday Inn on the Beach, and while it was a nice place, they had a live band playing in their club on that Saturday night, and the "thump" from the bass kept us awake til they quit playing at 2am (and it was in a separate building from the hotel part and still was that loud)! We were so tired the next day when getting ready to go.

Next January we are staying at the new Holiday Inn Sunspree (also on Seawall Blvd.) I think it will be 1 year old this summer. They also let you leave your car there and take you to the ship. They are more on the eastern end of the island, closer to the ship terminal. I hope they don't have a live band that night! :eek:

You might consider staying just off the island where the hotels are cheaper and availability might be better.

I live just an hour from Galveston and prefer staying on West Beach (on the beach, not across the street) over the seawall or strand area. This would only work for you if you plan on renting a car though. You could rent a beach house or stay in one of the condo areas (possibly Seascape, but I cannot recommend them as I haven't stayed there in over 5 years).

There are 16-20 miles of beaches west of the main island and restaurants, etc down that way.

If I chose to stay in town, then my choice would be the Harbor House on the pier or a Bed & Breakfast called "Inn on the Strand" on the strand.

Also Stay away from La Quinta at 1400 Seawall Blvd! Terrible!!!

Me and my DW are trying out the New Holiday Inn Sunspree Resort on Seawall Blvd.Rate's are pretty much close to the other higher end hotel's we have also stayed ay some of the other's that is off the seawall Blvd.

You get what you pay for!;) We get free Parking,they have on premise Security,and free shuttle service to the pier!

A real good Restaurant is Landry's! We tried Guido's but their food has dropped off, also the wharf Restaurant at the pier is good too!

Take the DOT Ferry to Bolivar Island and enjoy that part too if you have time,we go down two day's early so we can enjoy the Island and other out of the way thing's!:D We have been on Seven Cruises out of Galveston and have never gotten to all the thing's we want to do! So Just do some checking as other Posters's have stated! Enjoy and Happy Cruising!

Sincerely!

Robert:cool:

We are sailing 8/27/06 and are staying at the Hotel Galvez, and renting a car thru Enterprise $37.61 for 1 day rental and $40 drop off fee (still cheaper than anything else I've seen) and you get the car till you go to the port!!! Ps they have a shuttle service from the drop off to the pier!! Plus renting to return to (IAH) is only $34.42. Hope this helps!!!

We are sailing 8/27/06 and are staying at the Hotel Galvez, and renting a car thru Enterprise $37.61 for 1 day rental and $40 drop off fee (still cheaper than anything else I've seen) and you get the car till you go to the port!!! Ps they have a shuttle service from the drop off to the pier!! Plus renting to return to (IAH) is only $34.42. Hope this helps!!!

Hello Enchantress!

Why don't you drive down if you live in Burleson? It's a 5 hour drive!I live in Fort Worth,Tx. and alway's drive down to Galveston, we stay in a hotel do you just fly directly and not stay a night or two? Pardon me for asking don't want to seem like I'm trying to be personal just a Question! And maybe some good info to pass on the way me and my DW do it just to help out!

HEHEHE I am driving but my cousin who is flying in from California is needing the rental car cause our car is full of cruising people LOL 3 of us are driving down and meeting up with my cousin and her husband so we needed the extra room!!! :p

HEHEHE I am driving but my cousin who is flying in from California is needing the rental car cause our car is full of cruising people LOL 3 of us are driving down and meeting up with my cousin and her husband so we needed the extra room!!! :p

Mucho Apppreciated for your quick and courteous explanation;) Boy that sound's like my family of four daughter's and one Son Inlaw! Hey What Cruiseline are you going on? Also Eat at Landry's you will not be dissappointed!;)

Good Luck!

And may you have calm sea's and all the best to you and your Family1

Can you e-mail me and my DW on how everything went on your cruise we are going Oct.15.2006 on Rhapsody RCCL out of Galveston!

robdog82@msn.com

In March I went to texas (and the USA) for the first time from New Zealand.. sailed from Galveston on the Elation.. My gf and I stayed in at the mermaid and dolphin.. was a beautiful B&B .. i thoroughly recommend it... waaa I am so jealous I wish i was back there ... about to sail instead of sitting in my house while a storm is raging outside.. Hope You find something.... enjoy!!

 

Can you e-mail me and my DW on how everything went on your cruise we are going Oct.15.2006 on Rhapsody RCCL out of Galveston!

 

robdog82@msn.com

Looks like we will be in town at the same time, when the Saints & Sinners sail on Conquest. I also have some local friends sailing on Rhapsody. :D

While in Galveston pre-cruise, would you rather your accomodations be within easy walking distance of the beach or shopping? If shopping, a you'll want a B&B, Harbor House, or the Tremont House. If the beach, it'll be a place on Seawall Boulevard.

The choices on the Seawall are varied; from budget no name inns to luxury spots like the San Luis Resort, with the usual Comfort Inns, Best Westerns, La Quintas, Holiday Inns and the like in between. (I agree with the previous poster who advised against the Flagship.. Is seen much better days.) For great detailed hotel reviews, check out www.tripadvisor.com , in my experience a reliable source of travel related information.

By the way, I highly recommend a great burger place in Galveston on Seawall Boulevard called Spot.

Happy cruising! :)

We are sailing out of galvestin 7/23 and a word of warning all hotels require a 2 night stay on weekends all but maybe 3 and those ewww but i did find 1 its the q--lity inn and suites sorry cannot say but u get the point not bad king room with balcony under 100 u just grab a cab about 3 miles happy crusin. ps. they even offer free parking for the week not that u will need but others may see this that need :)

Motel 6 is under $70 but does not offer the parking nor a shuttle.

We are on a very tight budget and driving from Denver. We will need 2 motel rooms. Do you think we should search for our rooms in Houston ordo you think we can find as good of a deal in Galveston? [motel 6, or it's equivalent would not be a problem for us]

First off, this type of post belongs in the Port Forums - yes even if you are on a Carnival cruise!

I would not stay anywhere but the Harbor House. You get to watch the ship come in and dock in the morning, free continental breakfast, cheap or free parking depending upon your package. Watching the Conquest pull in from your room window - priceless!

We are on a very tight budget and driving from Denver. We will need 2 motel rooms. Do you think we should search for our rooms in Houston ordo you think we can find as good of a deal in Galveston? [motel 6, or it's equivalent would not be a problem for us]

Your choices would be far more numerous in Houston than Galveston and, yes, the prices would almost certainly be less. Another option is staying in Texas City which is between Houston and Galveston.

How many are in your party?

I personally like Holiday Inn on the Beach. They kept our car for free and took us to the port as well as picked us back up for free. I have read other comments that other people were not as lucky as we were about staying there but we thought it was wonderful. The view was beautiful.

When looking for a hotel, many folks opt for outside of Galveston due to price but there are some things that you should factor with the Galveston hotels. For example, we saved a bit of money by staying at the Holiday Inn on Seawall because it included breakfast, parking while we were on the cruise, and transportation to the port.

I'm sailing with a group of 6 in September and we got the family room at Commodore on the Beach ($99) (the room has 3 queen beds and a pull-out sofa), free cruise parking, and $25 roundtrip transportation to the dock (that's total, not per person). So, for us, this is a pretty good deal.

http://www.commodoreonthebeach.com/index.html

Another inexpensive place is Gaido's.

http://www.gaidosofgalveston.com/index.html

BTW, Gaido's is a FABULOUS place to eat at. We never miss having at least one meal there when we're in town.

TRACKER1:

Thanks , we will try Landry's and I will be posting a review when I return not to worry and hopefully lots of pics to!!!

We are sailing on the Carnival Conquest but hope to go on the Rhapsody in 07' maybe ;) make sure to let us know how it went!!!