Houston info needed

[MSPCUBS]

I will be leaving on a NCL cruise from Houston in June. Could someone please give me info about where the pier is, parking availability and cost, hotels near the pier,and whether you can leave your car at a hotel. Thanks

[natalunia]

I remember a past thread about the Port of Houston on the Carnival boards a few months ago, but I've been searching for it for the past 10 minutes with no luck....

I can tell you the port where the cruise ships dock, (Port of Houston is VERY large) is actually in Laporte, TX. This is on the southeast side of Houston, and is not actually Houston. It is not pretty (think of the scenery in the movie Urban Cowboy... lots of refineries), definitely not originally built with tourists in mind.

From what I have been told (as I live 1 hour away, but have never cruised out of Houston) there is parking there at the pier. It is fenced, lighted, and patroled.

There are 2 airports in Houston. Bush (IAH) and Hobby (HOU). Hobby is closer by just a few miles, so go with whatever has the best airfare.

I believe in the post on the Carnival board I have read before, that there are about 3 hotels in Laporte that allow parking for cruisers. I want to say one was a Laquinta, and the other a Days Inn. I would check into that further though, before you start making reservations. I know one of them they said was next door to a McDonalds.

If you are there the night before and want to check out the good things Houston has to offer (Laporte is not one of them. [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img] ) I would suggest going down to Kemah. There are several restaurants, a boardwalk, a ferris wheel and some shops. Also, NASA Johnson Space Center is very close.

I hope this helps a little. If I run across the thread I was thinking of, I will come post the link.

Natalie

Superstar Leo to Alaska 5/22/04
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[natalunia]

I forgot to say, the port where the cruise ships come is the Barbours Cut Terminal.

Natalie

Superstar Leo to Alaska 5/22/04
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[joycemh]

I just pulled up the info. on the port. Just look up portofhouston.com/cruiseinfo. It gives driving directions from various places, and also a link to hotels near the terminal. Also parking info. and procedures.

Joyce

[sammymd]

MSPCUBS,
I just got back from this cruise Sat.
There are no motels or hotels really close
to the terminal. We used express disembarkation.
We carried our luggage to our car, which was
parked 30 yards from the terminal,very close.
That is the best thing I can say about the Houston
terminal. Having cruised from Tampa, Seattle,
and NY, the Houston terminal was really poor.
There are not nearly enough seats for all
the passengers. To board the ship you have
to walk about 1/2 mile on a boardwalk, and
it was pouring rain, so we all got soaked.
The staff in the terminal were really nice,
but I think Houston and NCL need to get together
and pick a better place for their port.
I love my home state,and this is a poor way to showcase it,
making visitors drive on narrow roads through refinerys
belching smoke, and stacks of railroad cars.

By the way, the cruise was great!
Sammy

[bohunk]

As a Houston area resident, I can tell you that the terminal is not in a great part of town. To tell the truth, I'm not sure why they put a cruise ship terminal in there. Galveston is a much better choice. I would stay downtown or near downtown. It's not all that far down to the Ship Channel from there, and there's more to do. Check out the nightlife on Main Street downtown (that's where all the Super Bowl parties were). Kemah's also a good choice.

[TxShipShape]

Looked up some info on that a couple of days ago fo rsome friends. found [url="http://www.greatports.com/houston/portinfo.htm"]this site to be the best[/url] Click on the map which takes you to Yahoo maps. on the right side of the screen you can use smartview to see where the close hotels are.

[mlrdking]

We just returned from a week on the Norwegian Sea. This was our second time to make this cruise. Both times we drove to La Porte and stayed in a hotel the night before.
I would recommend the Comfort Suites in La Porte. It is newer than the Laquinta and offers a full breakfast for about $80 including taxes. We booked it through Travelocity. The staff is very friendly and helpful. You can also leave your car in the hotel lot while you are gone. There is a shuttle that will take you to the pier for $5 pp. And pick you up when you return and take you back to the hotel. Parking at the pier is $60 for the week. There were 5 or 6 of us that left our cars at the hotel.
La Porte is NOT A BAD part of town. There are ship terminals and refineries, but it is not a dangerous place.
I would also recommend Kemah as a place to go to eat and hangout the night before you leave.

[brn2crz]

Also look for a room at the Kemah Boardwalk Inn.It is pricey,(very) but if you really want to check out the Boardwalkand extend your trip,it is alot of fun.You can leave your car,and they have a shuttle.[url="http://www.kemahboardwalk.com"]www.kemahboardwalk.com[/url]You will need to call the hotel direct,and ask for the cruise package.
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