Houston Delays?

[EndersFoul]

Hoping for some guidance here. I've seen numerous posts about weather delays from Houston sailings. The DH and I are on an early January sail, our flight gets in at 11am the morning of departure and leaves around 4pm the day of return. I'm wondering when the delays are typically, is it airline and cruise? and if this seems like enough time? We booked flexible fare so we can change the flights if needed.

 

Thanks!!

[JF - retired RRT]

Might be a good idea to buy Princess transfers. I think that guarantees they will wait for you (not sure, never done it).

 

We have gone out of Houston 3 times (1 plus a B2B). Love the port, really sorry they are pulling out.:(

 

We had one fog delay on our first cruise. The captain announced there was fog coming in on our return to port. He put the pedal to the metal, skipped our last port and got us back before the fog.:D

 

Princess gave us OBC to compensate that was actually more than we had when we left. I loved that cruise:D:D

 

The ports we stop at on the 7 day itinerary are some of our favorites.

[EndersFoul]

Might be a good idea to buy Princess transfers. I think that guarantees they will wait for you (not sure, never done it).

 

We have gone out of Houston 3 times (1 plus a B2B). Love the port, really sorry they are pulling out.:(

 

We had one fog delay on our first cruise. The captain announced there was fog coming in on our return to port. He put the pedal to the metal, skipped our last port and got us back before the fog.:D

 

Princess gave us OBC to compensate that was actually more than we had when we left. I loved that cruise:D:D

 

The ports we stop at on the 7 day itinerary are some of our favorites.

 

 

Thanks! We have the transfers. It sounds like the delay is the boat getting back? Not airlines being delayed getting in/out?

[luvseaside]

There are numerous threads on this board about how dicey it can be to fly in the morning of the cruise. Especially if there's a possibility of being affected by winter travel issues (ice, snow etc). I wouldn't do it myself. I'd fly in the night before. Also, it can be a 30-45 min ride to port, so it was smart to get transfers. We didn't going to ship, but we bought them going back to airport while on board.

 

But mostly the delays discussed regarding cruising out of Houston have to do with the fog in the cruise port that can roll in almost instantly. We cruised out of there in early Feb. 2014 and were stuck in port overnight before we could leave. The departure day was a bit hazy and cool, but we boarded feeling good about the weather. Walked out of muster drill and couldn't see out the windows, the fog rolled in that quickly! We knew at that point, we weren't leaving any time soon. And yes, it can affect coming back into the port.

 

Not trying to be negative, but I would really recommend having flexible travel plans (refundable, changeable fares). I like to prepare for worst, hope for the best!

[JF - retired RRT]

Thanks! We have the transfers. It sounds like the delay is the boat getting back? Not airlines being delayed getting in/out?

Don't know...we always drive. For us, the drive is part of the vacation.:D

[Mekamax]

The delays are with the cruise. We have been delayed coming into port by a couple hours - get in and off ship by 11am though instead of 7am. Then they delay boarding till around 3pm and leave at 8pm. We got fogged into port and stayed overnight which was actually fine. Everyone onboard was cool and we left the next day around noon. We made all our ports too! Captain was awesome!! I got some great pictures of the fog. Really cool to watch it roll in and out. Sometimes couldn't see past the rail of the ship. When at sea and fogged out the fog horns are going - really cool! :) Your flights sound fine for the cruise. We do NOT usually fly in the day of a cruise only because planes themselves can have problems or delays or even be delayed at a Northern state before picking you up and so you are late. Since many planes originate in Chicago or NY this can be an issue in the winter. BUT you can get travel insurance to cover both I think.

[caribill]

The airline delays in Houston are no better or worse than most other airports. However, as someone pointed out, there is always some risk in flying in the morning of a cruise. Your biggest risk is snow at your home airport.

 

Taking Princess xfers from a Houston airport to the cruise is usually the least cost alternative for two people.

 

Your return flight at 4 PM should be OK. The ship could be five hours late reaching the port and you would still make your flight.

 

I do not know which airport you are using, but HOU is 30 minutes closer to the port than IAH.

Edited September 12, 2015 by caribill

[riclop]

They can have big delays in Jan-march.

[Cindy]

I've cruised out of Galveston 12 times, in November, December, March, and April. In those cruises, I've had one short (about an hour) delay in returning due to fog.

 

The riskiest month seems to be February...some years the fog is persistent and some years we get very little. It's up to Mother Nature!

[satxdiver]

If you are sailing in early January, there most likely will not be a problem. The fog issue, which not only shuts down the port but also airports particularly HOU which is not far away, is more of a problem in the spring. Spring down here starts the middle of February or sometimes earlier. When cold fronts (called northers) hit the warm humid gulf air we get fog. Glad to hear that you have bought transfers from Princess as you may need them. While HOU is not far away, IAH on the far northern part of Houston can take some time to travel. I would be more concerned coming out of the northern east coast area in the winter. I used to travel a lot to DC.

[Retiring cajun]

we booked a flight to Houston thru EZair end of January. nonstop on day of cruise. rethinking this decision. think we will go night before. any recommendations on hotels??? we have princess transfers.

[satxdiver]

we booked a flight to Houston thru EZair end of January. nonstop on day of cruise. rethinking this decision. think we will go night before. any recommendations on hotels??? we have princess transfers.

 

If you have a Princess transfer, you will need to stay near the airport. Most will pick you up and take you back to the terminal the next day. Most of the big name hotels are there. The Marriott is located on the airport and you can walk from the terminal to the hotel through a tunnel. I have stayed there back when I was working. Flight crews stay there. I have also stayed at the La Quinta.

[Retiring cajun]

satxdiver,

thanks for hotel info. since we have transfer with Princess, will they pick us up from hotel? & we need to get ourselves from airport to hotel near airport? do these hotels have shuttles from airport?

[azbirdmom]

satxdiver,

thanks for hotel info. since we have transfer with Princess, will they pick us up from hotel? & we need to get ourselves from airport to hotel near airport? do these hotels have shuttles from airport?

 

We have stayed at the IAH Marriott the last year two years, booked as part of a Princess hotel package. I don't see that option on the Princess website this year though and they only show the Ritz. It might be worth asking your travel agent about it. If you stay at the Marriott on your own, you can easily get back to the baggage area of the airport where Princess originates its transfers. As satxdiver mentioned, it's an easy walk back there, or you can take the free "train" which would take a few minutes. If you stay near IAH, check to see which ones offer free airport shuttles.

[Retiring cajun]

azbirdmom, thx for info. do you think it's cheaper to rent room thru Princess? I'm looking online and hotel prices are very reasonable in Houston. we could certainly use hotel shuttle to get back to airport for princess transfer.

[Retiring cajun]

axbirdmom, just spoke to Princess.. they still offer the IAH Marriott pkg. as well as four seasons. we'll take Marriott. includes our transfers too! very reasonable price. $178 for room and transfers for two going and returning. feels good to have this done :)

[PenguinLife]

For hotels near IAH I suggest the Holiday Inn at the intersection of Beltway 8 / Sam Houston parkway and JFK, it is an older Holiday Inn, but fairly large and has a decent steak house restaurant. For the last 12+ years I have been going there about every 2-3 years for a certification update class that is held in one of their meeting rooms.

[azbirdmom]

azbirdmom, thx for info. do you think it's cheaper to rent room thru Princess? I'm looking online and hotel prices are very reasonable in Houston. we could certainly use hotel shuttle to get back to airport for princess transfer.

 

The deal at the Marriott for us was better than what we could have gotten on our own + transfers the last two years. Most of the time we do book our own hotel / transfers but Princess did have good pricing both times I did the research. If you have found something near the airport with a free shuttle though, go for it. There seems to be a lot of choices from what I recall.

[donswife]

I would be too worried about January weather to take a chance on flying in the same day, unless it is the first flight of the day from a southern city.

[Retiring cajun]

We booked hotel pkg. airport Marriott Good price with transfer :)

[Steelers0854]

When we went in March of this year the ship was 4-5 hours late coming in due to the fog and we were fogged in until I believe 10-11am the next morning. And even then it was still pretty foggy.

[azbirdmom]

We booked hotel pkg. airport Marriott Good price with transfer :)

 

Good to know that is still an option. I didn't see it on the Princess website.

[satxdiver]

When we went in March of this year the ship was 4-5 hours late coming in due to the fog and we were fogged in until I believe 10-11am the next morning. And even then it was still pretty foggy.

 

We were on that cruise in March. The fog rolled in during the mandatory briefing and the port closed before the ship could cast off. We did not leave port until the next day around lunch time. We were down talking to the future cruise person when the ship started to move. I later learned that the Emerald was the only ship to leave (or even enter) the Port of Houston that day. It still was very foggy and the fog horn was going as we sailed away. I was at a talk by a ship bridge officer and he said that they pestered the harbor master so much that he thought they finally relented just to get rid of us! The ship guidance system uses state of the art computer GPS positioning and there was no real danger in our leaving in the fog according to the officer.

[satxdiver]

I used to fly all over the US for business every week. I have had flights canceled at Hobby (HOU) due to fog and flights diverted that were supposed to land there. That airport on the south side of Houston is close to Bayport. I never had that problem at IAH on the far north side. Southwest uses HOU while the rest of the airlines predominately use IAH. Something to consider when coming to Houston by air.

[caribill]

I used to fly all over the US for business every week. I have had flights canceled at Hobby (HOU) due to fog and flights diverted that were supposed to land there. That airport on the south side of Houston is close to Bayport. I never had that problem at IAH on the far north side. Southwest uses HOU while the rest of the airlines predominately use IAH. Something to consider when coming to Houston by air.

 

Bayport is about 20 miles from HOU and when there is fog along the ship channel it is rare there is also fog at HOU.

 

Yes, there are times (very few a year) when there are fog problems at HOU, but usually when there is fog over a wide area, not when there is fog along the waterway that is the Houston ship channel.