Long beach hotel pre-cruise

[deena26]

I'll be taking my 2nd cruise months from now and I want a clean safe hotel to stay at in a good area. I've been reading reviews and some of the best ones are in horrible areas. If I stay at a $200 a night place plus $140 for parking that is wayyy more than I want to spend. I wanted to try a park and cruise but I keep beeing freaked out by the neighborhoods that people post about. Any Ideas?? The Hilton only has park and cruise available through this month at this time. Thanks, any suggestions would be appreciated ~Dina~

[Vettebuf]

I used Priceline and the 3 1/2 star category because all of the hotels were acceptable to me: Westin, Hyatt Regency, Renaissance, and Hilton and I didn't have to be concerned about parking. We got the Westin for $60 plus ~$15 for taxes and fees. Loved it. Right across the street from the convention center. Free transportation down to the waterside and downtown area. Ate at a nice restaurant there. Took a taxi to the port the next morning.

[ladyd11933]

We also used Priceline and recieved the Westin...probably had the nicest staff I have ever met at a hotel.

[viaggi_per_mare]

I'll be taking my 2nd cruise months from now and I want a clean safe hotel to stay at in a good area. I've been reading reviews and some of the best ones are in horrible areas. If I stay at a $200 a night place plus $140 for parking that is wayyy more than I want to spend. I wanted to try a park and cruise but I keep beeing freaked out by the neighborhoods that people post about. Any Ideas?? The Hilton only has park and cruise available through this month at this time. Thanks, any suggestions would be appreciated ~Dina~

 

We stayed at the Hotel Queen Mary and it was so good, we stayed there after the cruise as well. Ask for A deck or M deck and get a 2 port hole room. It is right next to the cruise dock and the porter from Queen Mary walked our stuff right over to check in. also the free bus stops there and take you to Walmart and everywhere across the bridge. we walked all over and felt completely safe.

Email me and I'll link to to pictures and video of the hotel.

[riffatsea]

We booked the Maya Doubletree for our park n cruise before our Splendor cruise was cancelled.

They are about a 15min. walk from the Queen Mary and also have a free shuttle to the port.

IF you go to the western departures board on this site you will get some more ideas.

Someone just wrote that if you CALL the Doubletree and tell them you are on Carnival they have a lower rate than the park n cruise on their web site. I do NOT know if this is true!!

[DAllenTCY]

I enjoyed the Hyatt Regency.....you can watch the ship dock from your window.

David

[deborahjo]

We also enjoyed the Queen Mary. Was really neat walking around the ship seeing different things. Also we had a great view of the Splendor coming into port.

[mom2boys97]

We stayed at the Hilton using the Carnival Corp Rate and it included parking and i felt very safe... We went to a resturant nearby and it was great.. The hotel also offered free shuttle to and from the port... and i think we only paid like 100 total for parking and room and shuttle, internet and 2 free drinks from the bar...

[deena26]

I was strongly considering the queen mary- they have really good reviews and really bad one's too. I think it might be a great area and alot of fun- just bummed about the hotel price plus the parking price- still debating it but i love to see what everyone thought or what great deals they got. I really thought the Hilton would be good, but they aren't offering anything as of yet. Thanks & I'll keep reading the posts!!

[Skywench]

When we sailed on the Splendor back in October, we stayed at the Westin. I got a free night with my Starwood points. Nice hotel.

[deena26]

I've been researching my options to death and I think I have decided on the Hoilday Inn long beach by the airport. This will be part of our vacation experience & is very important to me. Has anyone stayed there? They will take us to and from the cruise port (6 miles away) feed us breakfast and let us park there for 7 night for under $190- have found actually very few reviews for this hotel location- I just dont want to be in a sketchy area & i want a decent enough hotel- seems to have lots of amenities and be in a good area. I realllly wanted to do the Queen Mary but that, plus parking would cost a bit more. I would love to hear from anyone that stayed at that hotel. I was ready to book so many times before but I would see horrible things about the area on Trip Advisor, or they wouldn't offer the park & cruise deal, etc. I'm trying to prepay for every little thing I can think of and save save save for the ship itself!!

[surfer_00]

i have posted a thread on "west coast departures" about a 99$ park and cruise rate at hotel maya, only 15min from queen mary and embarkation. just mention carnival cruise rate. or you can book online, the promo code is listed in the thread! best of luck!

[Lydia B.]

PLEASE consider staying on the Queen Mary, I swear it was a wonderful experience. Yes she is a bit worn, but you truly learn a lot about the way cruising used to be. There is a cool tour of the ship, I believe it is called the Legends and Ghosts tour (this is where you learn so much about WWII and how the Queen was a troop transport ship and how she had a really horrible accident, ok almost a spoiler alert there) and you get a discount as you would be a guest. You can also tour a Russian Submarine. If you are departing on a Sunday you could partake of the Champagne Brunch with is fantastic and the dining room is in wonderful condition, all art deco...yep it is around $35 but worth it. After brunch you simply roll your luggage over to the next pier and stop onto your Carnival Cruise. I had a great Carnival cruise, but truly staying on the Queen was the highlight of the week. So rethink you choices!! Have fun, Lydia of Ohio

[mjl1960]

We are staying at the Queen Mary...just have to walk across the parking lot and we are there for the cruise...plus we are doing the champaign brunch (to kill time of course) that morning. They have a package deal that is pretty cool.

 

We stayed at a hotel near LAX and took the shuttle over the morning of the cruise the last time....and that will be the last time. Hotel was overpriced, the restaurant was overpriced and was NOT good, and there was the constant noise of the airport. Queen Mary is costing a little more, but the conditions will be much better.

[lccruiser]

Do thye still have the pre-register at the Queen Mary?

[SadieN]

This recent thread has lots of hotel info for Long Beach.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1370379

 

lccruiser- they still do pre-reg at the Queen Mary.

[amy_gerber1]

We are staying at the Queen Mary as well. I grew up in Long Beach so Im pretty familiar with the area. Nothing is wrong with the area around the port. They recently did a massive overhaul of the downtown area and its great.

 

The Queen Mary does offer parking while you cruise, it can be part of the package of staying there and parking. Also for the kids they have some great tours of the Queen Mary. They have a behind the scenes tour, a haunted history tour. Downtown has the Long Beach Aquarium, tons of restaurants all with a view of the ocean, the Queen Mary which is fabulous at night as well. The Queen Mary also has a huge sunday morning brunch.

 

What seems like forever now, I had my high school prom on the Queen Mary so Im a little biased. I guess I also like the idea that my husband and will not have to rush in the morning to get to the port because its just a 5 min walk from one boat to the other.

 

Whatever you choose you should have a great time!!

[riclop]

The Maya which is now owned a doubletree property is 99.00 and free parking with a free shuttle to and from the port. Mention carnival.Its right by the port and the queen mary. I just booked 2 different days for our 2 cruises.

[cabeaglemom]

We stayed at the Hotel Queen Mary and it was so good, we stayed there after the cruise as well. Ask for A deck or M deck and get a 2 port hole room. It is right next to the cruise dock and the porter from Queen Mary walked our stuff right over to check in. also the free bus stops there and take you to Walmart and everywhere across the bridge. we walked all over and felt completely safe.

Email me and I'll link to to pictures and video of the hotel.

 

We stayed there also. Our room had two portholes and a king bed. Cost for the room & parking during our cruise was $185, including tax. We would stay there again.

[Langley Cruisers]

This thread is a few months old but this info may help someone. This is re-posted from member Bruin_Steve, who lives in the area. Following his advice, we stayed at the Renaissance in Long Beach which was fabulous. Here is what he says:

 

"Okay...I guess it's time for me to explain Long Beach again to our visitors from out of the area...

 

Long Beach is not just some sleepy little harbor town...It is a BIG City with a population of over half a million...It only seems dwarfed in that it sits next to the way bigger Los Angeles and is enveloped as part of the greater Los Angeles Megalopolis...On its own, Long Beach is the sixth largest city in California and 36th largest in the US...

 

BUT, when you talk "Long Beach" you are talking about a city that covers an area of almost 70 square miles...

 

So, as with all large cities, it has many distinct and different neighborhoods...Some are upscale and attractive, others are sort of run-down and slummy...Some areas are largely industrial (Aside from the massive harbor, Long Beach has a major oil and gas industry, Aircraft industry and warehousing and distribution), other areas are largely residential...Long Beach has a major university--Cal State Long Beach--with almost 40,000 students...

 

So, when you google "Long Beach hotels", you get a wide variety of results...

 

However, those could be ANYWHERE in Long Beach...and you really don't want to stay "anywhere" in Long Beach...You could end up in a really unattractive area...or far from the pier ...and far from restaurants, tourist attractions and all of those things that make Long Beach an attractive destination...

 

Some hotels are where they are for different reasons...Some are around the airport to serve those flying in and out...Some are near the University to service guests visiting the university...A lot of hotels are there to serve people doing business with the various local industries...Some hotels cater to truckers and freeway traffic needing a place to stop for the night...Some cater to a transient population and unseemly sorts with questionable agendas...And some, of course, cater to the first class tourism, convention business and cruise passengers...

 

All of these hotels could be in different parts of town for different reasons...Some might be reasonable hotels--but NOT what you should want as a tourist and cruiser...

 

The Guesthouse is NOT a great location for the cruise traveler...It is clear over on the other side of town--near the University. Nothing wrong with the neighborhood, just not a tourist destination area...If you were visiting kids at the University or had some other business with the University, I'd say go there...BUT you are about 10 miles across city streets to the Carnival Pier, the Queen Mary, the Aquarium and most of the touristy places in Long Beach...

 

The Comfort Inn on Willow would not make my list of possible places to stay for ANY reason...just the wrong part of town...It is several miles north of where you'd want to be (and in Long Beach terms, "north" is not good)...It's just not a really attractive or convenient area...

 

Face it folks, you can find restaurants of some sort anywhere...and shopping centers, etc. But, friends, you are on vacation...you want to enjoy wherever you are at...You want to see the better side of your host city and come away somewhat impressed and pampered, right? You want to be somewhere where you can walk around safely at night? ...and where you would actually WANT to walk around, right?

 

So, here is the deal: STOP LOOKING FOR "bargains"...anywhere in the Los Angeles area...

 

If you find a really great price on a hotel, there's a good chance there's a very good reason...Laws of supply and demand, the better hotels in better locations tend to fill up and don't necessarily give you a bargain basement rate...HOWEVER, there can be deals out there...but look for that best deal on a GOOD hotel...in a GOOD location...

 

In Long Beach, that gives you a limited area...and you really don't want to be anywhere else...

 

Let me paint a picture...

 

The City of Long Beach has spent a good deal of money over the last couple of decades to really make a certain area into a tourist destination...They built a nice Convention Center and attract first class conventions, meetings and seminars on a regular basis...To attract tourism, they brought in the Queen Mary (a few decades ago now) and added a first class Aquarium...They brought in developers to develop first-class commercial/restaurant/entertainment complexes...They instituted a free local area shuttle system...and they brought in major hotel chains to build first class hotels to service the conventions and tourism...ALL of these tourist-related facilities are in a very centralized area...

 

STAY IN THAT AREA!

 

The Hyatt, Westin, Renaissance, Avia, Courtyard, Residence Inn, Maya, Hilton...There is your VERY SHORT LIST...Stay in one of these and enjoy your stay in Long Beach...You will be close to the Carnival Pier and to all of the Long Beach tourist attractions...You will have a wide choice of restaurants...You will have a free local shuttle...You can walk around the shopping and restaurant complexes, even at night...You may have views of the harbor and ocean...You will leave thinking "Hey, that Long Beach is a really nice town...loved it"...

 

Stay instead in some other area and you will think "Why am I staying in this pit with all this traffic noise and this view of the auto body repair shop and next to the loading docks for the supermarket...and, isn't that a Burger King down the block? Yummmmm...." and then..."Gee, how long is the danged taxi ride to the pier...and what do you mean we have to call and arrange a taxi?"

 

DO NOT DO THAT to yourself...

 

Why? To try to save a relatively few dollars?"

[amy_gerber1]

I strongly agree with the post after mine about Long Beach. You do need to be careful where you stay. If you are going to stay anywhere in Long Beach before the cruise You need to stay right near the port where they have done the upgrades of the area that I mentioned in my post. Outside of that area I do not really suggest Long Beach is large and there are parts of it that you just shouldnt be.

 

If you want a little bit further south but also near the beach is Seal Beach and Huntington Beach that are both good areas and have cool shops and nice places to eat.

 

Do not pick a hotel in Long Beach based on the price, pick a place based on location.

 

I grew up in the area, please take the advice under consideration!!!

[Cruisin' Chick]

I'm glad someone copied Steve's informative info. It seems that no matter how many times one of us natives (well, I grew up in the Valley, but that's still LA) says that if you find a really low rate on a hotel, be wary...there'll be some who will disregard our advice.

[Langley Cruisers]

I'm glad someone copied Steve's informative info. ..there'll be some who will disregard our advice.

 

:) I know, I feel that way too. Locals are the very best source of info on these boards and Steve's advice was spot-on. We stayed at the Marriott Renaissance on his Long Beach list and it was wonderful. Lots to do in the immediate area, and close to both piers (Carnival Pier in Long Beach, and San Pedro pier which was a little further away by cab, about $25 or $30, I think).

[17Mainiacs]

Has anyone stayed here before cruising? Price is very reasonable for 1 night and reviews are very good. Is it very far from Carnival terminal? We just need 1 night and will have to taxi, no shuttle service. All the other hotels near port are booked for April 2012 except Maya at $200 a night.

[DMRick]

We have reservations for both the Queen Mary (which my husband sailed on in the 50's) and the Maya. Both prices are about the same..$109 plus tax on Maya (ocean bay view with balcony) and $78 on Queen Mary plus tax (through Priceline..not bidding, just the regular price offered) each night. We thought we would want to stay on the QM, but the recent reviews, since someone else bought it are dismal. With my allergies, I'm not sure I can take the mustiness, and the thin walls make me think we won't sleep well. We are leaning towards canceling the QM and just going over for a self guided tour.

Try the Carnival/code pricing for the Maya..if available you should be able to get it for about $100.