Out of Houston Cruising

[miss meow]

Hi debbeck

 

Thanks so much for this info, very helpful. I have been trying to figure out the transportation between Hobby and Bayport too so your post is great.

 

I think we may end up just doing the Princess shuttle and work on their schedule. We don't mind sitting on a bus and waiting for it to fill up enough.

 

ML

 

We are cruising in October - flying into Bush two days early. Have read a lot of wonderful things about Galveston Express...I've gone ahead and made our reservations - $25 pp each way between IAH and Galveston, $20 for seniors (55 and over). So far they have been great, making suggestions regarding our rental car, etc.

[Linda the Book Lover]

Hi to all of you that are like me.....frustrated by the cost and availability of transportation in the Seabrook port area. I am reading that Princess is moving out of this port after Spring 2016 so maybe there is a reluctance to build the services at this time. DH and I are on the Dec. 6th Princess so I have been doing some research about transportation. I have looked into Super Shuttle. Their prices are better than taxis but I didn't find much flexibility for drop off areas close to the port. I wasn't sure if they would take you to a particular hotel based on the choice options on line. The cost for a ride from the airport was $77 for 2 people (one way). Taxis were much higher but offer more flexibility. Here are prices you can expect for taxi services to or from each airport:

 

Houston Hobby:

 

http://www.taxifarefinder.com/main.php?city=Houston&from=Bayport+Cruise+Terminal%2C+Samoth%2C+Seabrook%2C+TX%2C+United+States&to=Hobby+Airport%2C+Airport+Boulevard%2C+Houston%2C+TX%2C+United+States&fromCoord=29.610532,-94.99265300000002&toCoord=29.654107,-95.276614

 

George Bush International:

 

http://www.taxifarefinder.com/main.php?city=Houston&from=Bayport+Cruise+Terminal%2C+Samoth%2C+Seabrook%2C+TX%2C+United+States&to=George+Bush+Intercontinental+Airport%2C+North+Terminal+Road%2C+Houston%2C+TX%2C+United+States&fromCoord=29.610532,-94.99265300000002&toCoord=29.99022,-95.33678299999997

 

We considered renting a car but there are problems there. Enterprise has an office in Saybrook, the port area, but it is closed on Sundays completely and closes at noon on Saturdays. If you rent a car at a local office, there is an additional $100 charge for leaving the vehicle at the airport. So if you rent a car when you arrive at one of the airports, you'll have to return it to the airport or pay a hefty charge.

 

The cruise lines have the best deal but you are reliant on their time schedules. They offer very fair prices on the transfers and guarantee you on time arrival and departure. The Princess fare is $24 per person each way at this time. DH and I are arriving the day before our cruise and they only pick up and transfer passengers on the day of the cruise so we are stuck at a hotel at the airport unless we find alternate transportation. We are still researching options.....

 

Good luck to all. I hope this helps a little. I would be interested in other folks adventures.

 

Thanks for the taxi link.

[bunzini]

We are on the December 6th sailing as well. We are flying in to Bush on the 4th and plan to stay at Springhill Suites NASA/Seabrook. I still need to figure out how to get to the hotel, then to NASA the next day, and finally to the port. I assume taxi would work from hotel to port and hotel to NASA? I didn't know this would be so costly. Any thoughts appreciated!

[vplsh]

We're flying into Hobby on Dec. 26 for our cruise on the 27th. We were going to stay at the Springhill Seabrook/NASA but having to take taxis all over was a big cost. We decided to stay at the Springhill Hobby Airport and rent a car ($30/day!) so we can drive around for the day. We'll return the car to the airport on Sunday and take a cab or Uber to the port the next morning.

[bunzini]

We're flying into Hobby on Dec. 26 for our cruise on the 27th. We were going to stay at the Springhill Seabrook/NASA but having to take taxis all over was a big cost. We decided to stay at the Springhill Hobby Airport and rent a car ($30/day!) so we can drive around for the day. We'll return the car to the airport on Sunday and take a cab or Uber to the port the next morning.

We are flying into Bush. I guess we could look into renting a car, but that would mean changing hotels. I need to do more research.

[Huck]

Would anyone know the cost of parking at the Bayport Terminal?

[KatyX]

Their website says: 7 day cruises:* $80.00 per week / $75.00 per week if prepaid.

[jewopaho]

It's long and boring, then after sailing, you're in the channel for what seems like forever. The port facility is nice enough, although there is seemingly nothing near it except for miles and miles of oil fields, machinery, refining facilities and rail cars as far as you can see in any direction. Kinda makes you want to get an electric car! Ground fog causes lots of delays in and out in the cooler months.

The other issue (and it's critical to some) is the two-hours it takes to get to the Gulf of Mexico through the Ship Channel, and the return trip at the end of the cruise. There is no gambling, no liquor and no shopping in either direction ... really ticks some people off, judging from comments on other threads.

 

Seemingly backing up a previous poster, there do not appear to be any cruises departing Houston after April 2016, so for all of you who like sailing Princess from Texas get your fill before then!

Yep ... both Princess and NCL will be leaving Houston at the end of the 2016 Caribbean season. The two-year experiment by the Port of Houston Authority turned out to be a total bust ... they paid each cruise line the equivalent of $80,000 per sailing, and neither Princess nor NCL cleared enough of a profit to make it worth their while to stay. There are lots of contributing factors, not the least of which is the proximity to Galveston, which is thriving. All that Houston managed to do is over-saturate the market. We sailed once from there ... much prefer Galveston.

[bunzini]

So we are flying in to Bush and staying at SpringHill Suites NASA precruise. I just called the hotel and they indicated that they were within walking distance to the space center. Is that true? Also, I still need to find a way to get from the airport to Springhill Suites. Any ideas? The receptionist indicated that it is about an hour to the airport. Any help is appreciated.

[KatyX]

Well, I took a look at their website and it says they're three miles from NASA so I'm not sure who told you they were within walking distance. You really should call the hotel to confirm everything and you can ask them if they recommend a shuttle that will take you directly to the hotel.

[bunzini]

Well, I took a look at their website and it says they're three miles from NASA so I'm not sure who told you they were within walking distance. You really should call the hotel to confirm everything and you can ask them if they recommend a shuttle that will take you directly to the hotel.

 

I did call the hotel and they were really no help. Maybe I will try talking to someone different tomorrow.

[KatyX]

Go to the Super shuttle page to get a rate and then go to Uber for their price. I saw a TripAdvisor comment that they paid $60 for the Super Shuttle to your hotel but I'm not sure if that was for a single or a double fare.