Airport and Transfers

[BOLTFISH]

Our group has booked, but the current air prices offered through RCI are fairly steep. Just wondering what the feel in here is on booking air and transfers outside of RCI.

 

1. Is it best to book through RCI; Is there a guarantee that we will get on the ship if we book our air through them? What do most of you guys do?
   
2. Should we be overly concerned if we book our own air and travel on the day before?
   
3. If we were to travel the day before (booked on our own, but giving us some breathing room) does anyone know of a reasonably priced shuttle from Houston to the Galveston? We would probably get a hotel near the cruise terminal if we choose this option...
   

 

Thanks

[Ashland]

Sorry...but rarely is it a good idea to book air/transfers through RCI. You should be able to easily book your own air directly with the carrier and private transportation to the port.

[Fastback89]

I got involved with a similar situation, and was very unhappy with the results. I ended up getting a travel agent involved which helped out a lot..On my next cruise I will check out airfare and transfers at the time of booking the cruise.

[BOLTFISH]

Sorry...but rarely is it a good idea to book air/transfers through RCI. You should be able to easily book your own air directly with the carrier and private transportation to the port.

 

Is this based on the noteworthy markup?

[janrey1234]

Book yourself and look at this company http://galveston-shuttle.com/rates/

[BOLTFISH]

Book yourself and look at this company http://galveston-shuttle.com/rates/

 

Good stuff, thanks

Edited January 29, 2015 by BOLTFISH

[waterbug123]

the current air prices offered through RCI are fairly steep. Just wondering what the feel in here is on booking air and transfers outside of RCI.

 

1. Is it best to book through RCI; Is there a guarantee that we will get on the ship if we book our air through them? NO, there is no guarantee. What do most of you guys do? We book our own air.
   
2. Should we be overly concerned if we book our own air and travel on the day before? Concerned? Yes, there could easily be a delay of several hours for any number of factors. Less likely but still possible is that your flight will be canceled outright for whatever reason. Overly concerned? I guess that depends on a lot of factors, such as:
   How long before the ship sails is your plane scheduled to land? Do you have a connection to make and if so, how much time do you have? Where is your plane coming from (before you board it)? How many later flights are there in case you miss yours or don't make your connection? Do you have any status with the airline that will give you priority handling in the event of flight disruptions? Are you prepared to fly to the first port of call if necessary to catch up with the ship? etc. etc.
   
3. If we were to travel the day before (booked on our own, but giving us some breathing room) does anyone know of a reasonably priced shuttle from Houston to the Galveston? We would probably get a hotel near the cruise terminal if we choose this option...
   

 

Traveling the day the ship leaves always opens you up to additional risk so you need to consider your own risk tolerance when booking. A zillion people will tell you how they ALWAYS fly in the same day and have NEVER had an issue. That's great, but remember that their experience has absolutely no bearing on what may happen to YOU. Planes DO get delayed and flights DO get canceled, and just because someone else has never experienced that on a cruise-related flight, doesn't mean a thing. Personally, the only time I ever fly in the same day is if it's a short (3-4 night) cruise where it wouldn't be the end of the world if I happened to miss it. But that's just me. :)

[griffy116]

We've only used their Choice Air once in 17 cruises and that was the only time that there was a significant savings and it had enough flexibility in flight times. We prefer to book our own air. We ALWAYS go to the port city at least one day prior to the cruise. We also ALWAYS purchase travel insurance.

[BOLTFISH]

Okay... Choice Air is difficult to deal with. There is the language barrier that we get through, but the mark ups are notable and frustrating. We really like the idea of "assured arrival", but you really pay more for it. This being said, I have a few more questions.

 

Hotels in Galveston are booking up fairly quick. And those available are roughly $240 each night (including a port shuttle). Are there any hotels "near" Galveston that anyone can recommend that are (1) not over $200 each night and (2) provide a port shuttle or are not a $50 dollar per person cab ride away?

 

Basically we're looking for close to Galveston options that won't break the bank. Or should we get a hotel in Houston for the night and take a shuttle from our Hotel to the Cruise port on the morning of...?

 

Thanks in advance and thanks to those who replied earlier.

[Grandma Dazzles]

Okay... Choice Air is difficult to deal with. There is the language barrier that we get through, but the mark ups are notable and frustrating. We really like the idea of "assured arrival", but you really pay more for it. This being said, I have a few more questions.

 

Hotels in Galveston are booking up fairly quick. And those available are roughly $240 each night (including a port shuttle). Are there any hotels "near" Galveston that anyone can recommend that are (1) not over $200 each night and (2) provide a port shuttle or are not a $50 dollar per person cab ride away?

 

Basically we're looking for close to Galveston options that won't break the bank. Or should we get a hotel in Houston for the night and take a shuttle from our Hotel to the Cruise port on the morning of...?

 

Thanks in advance and thanks to those who replied earlier.

 

Not sure where you are located, flying from, etc.

 

I am used to taking a cruise out of Florida - simple to fly to - ports in Fort Lauderdale and Miami very close to airport, hotels, etc. Port Canavaral further away, but doable.

 

However, sailed out of Galveston a couple of times and found it was more difficult to get to and from airport, etc. Flew into Houston and took the Galveston Limo shuttle to Galveston - everything worked well - no problem with the shuttle, etc., but it was much more expensive. Hotels in Galveston were also more expensive. It worked fine - just not your usual airport to port quick trip.

 

Quite honestly, know I should have known, but didn't! Did not realize that Galveston was an island - touristy, nice place, but not as easy to get to from the airport. Hopefully someone local can give you better advice regarding hotels - but the trip from Houston to Galveston is not a quick $20 cab ride.

[Starry Eyes]

Okay... Choice Air is difficult to deal with. There is the language barrier that we get through, but the mark ups are notable and frustrating. We really like the idea of "assured arrival", but you really pay more for it. This being said, I have a few more questions.

 

Hotels in Galveston are booking up fairly quick. And those available are roughly $240 each night (including a port shuttle). Are there any hotels "near" Galveston that anyone can recommend that are (1) not over $200 each night and (2) provide a port shuttle or are not a $50 dollar per person cab ride away?

 

Basically we're looking for close to Galveston options that won't break the bank. Or should we get a hotel in Houston for the night and take a shuttle from our Hotel to the Cruise port on the morning of...?

 

Thanks in advance and thanks to those who replied earlier.

 

Galveston can be a bit of a challenge for people flying in, as it is a substantial distance for either Houston airport. Our best flight were into IAH (Bush), which is the further of the two airports. I spent some time trying to find the best ground transit. Here is what we decided. flying in a day early, we rented a car from Avis, picking up at IAH and returning day of cruise to Avis in Texas City (about 15 miles from port). We drove to Texas City, checked into the Hampton Inn there, did some shopping locally (bottled water, wine) then drove to Galveston to enjoy Saturday evening on the island. after a comfortable sleep at Hampton, we did the car return paperwork at Avis Texas City (just across parking lot), while our luggage stayed in rental car trunk. an Avis driver got into the car with us and drove us to port ($50 per vehicle fee).

 

You might find Texas City hotels are cheaper than Galveston for your dates. it is worth checking.

 

for the return we used cruiseline transfer to IAH as we had an early flight. if we had had a later flight, we might have used Avis process in reverse.

[BOLTFISH]

?... drove to Texas City, checked into the Hampton Inn there, did some shopping locally (bottled water, wine) then drove to Galveston to enjoy Saturday evening on the island. after a comfortable sleep at Hampton, we did the car return paperwork at Avis Texas City (just across parking lot), while our luggage stayed in rental car trunk. an Avis driver got into the car with us and drove us to port ($50 per vehicle fee).

 

You might find Texas City hotels are cheaper than Galveston for your dates. it is worth checking.

 

for the return we used cruiseline transfer to IAH as we had an early flight. if we had had a later flight, we might have used Avis process in reverse.

 

Thanks for the info.... Texas city sounds like a doable option. prices there look much nicer. What would a cab ride from Texas city us back?

 

Thanks to PMcC as well.

[Starry Eyes]

Thanks for the info.... Texas city sounds like a doable option. prices there look much nicer. What would a cab ride from Texas city us back?

 

Thanks to PMcC as well.

I'm not sure about taxi cost; I was told availability can be dicy. That is why we had paid the rental car and Avis driver to take us to port.

 

If you'd like to cut costs, you could try coordinating to trip from Texas City Avis to port with other cruisers on your roll call. for example, three families from your roll call could each drop their passengers and luggage at the port in the morning. then the drivers could meet at Avis Texas City to return the rental cars at the same time; the three drivers could all ride in the same vehicle to port for $50 for all three. it is a bit of trouble, but it would cut costs.

 

Texas City is not fancy, but I felt safe and comfortable there for one night. Galveston hotels can get expensive at peak season.

Edited February 6, 2015 by Starry Eyes