Driving from Ontario to Galveston

[dpostman]

Wow, that's awesome! We're actively recruiting for one family of friends to come with us on a sailing during fall 2017 (TBD once itineraries are released). We expect they'll be converted to cruising :) But I cannot imagine getting such a large group of people together, 8-10 families? We don't know that many cruisers amongst our families and friends.

 

We had been talking about this particular cruise since last summer, and even if several of our friends said they were "Interested" none were actually ready to commit with a down payment. Well, on Cyber Monday, I said the hell with it, WE are going no matter what, and I booked our 2 rooms that day. Then I started talking to our friends about it again, and even if there seemed to be more interest, still no one would plonker down a deposit.

 

So here is the trick: On our New-years eve party, when most adults were feeling jolly, I pulled out my tablet and started showing pictures and youtube videos about the Anthem, and no sooner than a few of there kids would walk by and see this and then... VOILA, we had 5 semi drunk sets of parents all willing to jump on board, and once the kids were left thinking they were going on a cruise, there was no going back. Since then, we had 3 more families join in with deposits and 2 more have said they were seriously thinking of joining in. So, that is the trick, get them all drinking, get the kids in on it and excited, then the parents "Feel" obliged ;)

 

dp

[jmckay331]

I just had a thought also which you might consider, mega bus operates all over us and is another cheap option. I took it from San Antonio to grapevine (just outside Dallas) for about $25 it's a 4 1/2 hour drive but that was definitely better than the $150 flight. I would think that might be an option if you don't want to fly it just doesn't give you the option of just stopping anywhere along the road to sightsee and you would have to change buses in various cities along the way. Website is megabus.com. [emoji4]

[dpostman]

Sorry for my english, I'm from the french part of Canada

Josée

 

Pas de problèmes , Moi aussi ;)

 

dp

[mailmama]

Route we take out of Nashville is all interstate. I-65 South to I59, to I20 to I55 in Jackson,MS then I 10west. Our son lives in north Texas so we can go either souther route as above or through Memphis into Arkansas. Don't know where you are in Ontario, but Memphis direction might be closer for you. Right now, Arkansas had lots of road construction going on. (2 years or so….they never finish, just keep redoing the same stretch we think;) )

[Kingofwylietx]

I can comment on your I-45 and I-30 legs, as I drive it for work travel.

 

I-30 is in good condition from Dallas to Little Rock.

 

I-45 from Dallas to Galveston is in great condition. However, at the border of Texas and Arkansas is Texarkana. To save 2.5 hrs of drive time, you would take 59 South from Texarkana to Houston, then I-45 from Houston to Galveston.

[foxgoodrich]

Ontario is huge! So I don't know where you're coming from exactly and I don't know what routes you're considering, but I can tell you a little bit about I-35 and I-45. We have driven to Galveston from Oklahoma City many times (yeah, we've also driven to Florida…DH is a road warrior and we enjoy a road trip.)

 

For us it's 8-9 hours from OKC to Galveston. There is a construction zone on I-35 in southern OK, but it normally moves pretty well except during bad weather. The biggest issue on I-35 is what you find in the Dallas area - there can be bad traffic depending on the time of day (early morning, late afternoon are the worst.) Once you get on I-45 it's pretty easy. I-35 doesn't look like your shortest route to me, though - you'd probably be heading southwest on I-30 and connecting to I-45 in Dallas.

 

A couple of tips…we don't drive all the way to Galveston the night before. We stay in Houston or Baytown, then drive the last hour the morning of the cruise. Most Galveston hotels require a minimum 2 night stay, and they are expensive. We've found the best hotel rates around Hobby airport in Houston, so we usually stay there. There's also a very reasonable Hampton Inn in Baytown, but Baytown is a little bit out of the way. And Texas City, which is only about 20-30 min from Galveston, has some lodging choices too, although we've found them more expensive than the Hobby area in Houston. We usually leave our hotel about 9:15-9:30, then we drive that last hour to Galveston, park the car, and board the ship by 11:00.

 

We use EZ Cruise parking. It's just across the street from the terminal in Galveston and they have a shuttle from parking to the pier. Cost is $65 if you reserve/pay online ahead of time. Here's the site:

http://ezcruiseparking.com

We haven't ever used the port parking in Galveston, so I have no info on that.

 

I can't remember WHEN you're talking about cruising from Galveston. Too bad it's not NOW…gas was $1.39/gallon last week here in OKC.

Judy

[foxgoodrich]

I forgot to mention…flying in for a Galveston cruise can be a little complicated. It's not nearly as easy as flying to a Florida port. You have to fly to Houston, then get ground transportation to Galveston. So that ground transport will add to the per person cost of flying to get to this port, plus it adds a hassle factor to flying in. Just F.Y.I….

Judy

[LaShelle2]

Have you considered cruising form the northern states? Perhaps New York, Boston, New Jersey? Some very nice new ships are sailing from those places.

 

How much is the airfare for the dates you would like to sail? Have you checked?

[dpostman]

I just checked for flights to Huston in October just for the fun of it. It was $850 CAD PP + Baggage fees. That was for Coach and had 2 stops.

 

Last April, our 2 tickets to FLL cost us $966 CAD PP + Baggage. That was for a 4 nighter on Liberty during Easter Break. The flights cost way more than the cruise.

 

But, flying from a US airport would cost substantially less. If time permits it.

dp

Edited February 1, 2016 by dpostman

[CaliopeQ]

We are driving from Ontario this coming week to Texas. I can let you know how we make out upon our return :)

[jamesr3939]

First, let me address cruising out of Galveston. We just did our second, and last, from there in December (NYE). The first was in March 2013 (spring break). Galveston city is just OK as far as things to do and ambience, it's no New Orleans. As previously stated it's not easy to fly into. You either do Bush or Hobby and they are 45 - 65 away and depending on traffic you can double that figure.

 

Both cruises we pretty much lost two days of "fun in the sun" due to weather. Both trips we had rain, wind, and cold weather the first day and last day.

 

The most recent trip we drove from California to visit family near Austin for Christmas and then drove down day prior to cruise. It was a Saturday so we breezed down to Galveston. We parked directly across the street from the terminal and were in the car on the road by 8:20 AM debarkation day.

 

If it wasn't for the chance of not having deck time the first and last day I might consider doing Galveston again, but otherwise we aren't doing it.

 

If I was driving from ONT I would look at anything along the eastern seaboard.

[moopetguy]

So here is the trick

 

That's quite clever...will have to remember that one :D

 

mega bus operates all over us and is another cheap option...you would have to change buses in various cities along the way.

 

Thanks for the Megabus idea -- however, I think that similar to the train idea, the transfers would not go very smoothly for my family with the little one and a bunch of luggage in tow. If for no other reason, she is a runner...she literally has to be tethered to us to prevent her from running across a parking lot, road, etc. :eek: Difficult to wrangle her while also managing several large and small pieces of luggage.

[moopetguy]

Have you considered cruising form the northern states? Perhaps New York, Boston, New Jersey? Some very nice new ships are sailing from those places.

 

How much is the airfare for the dates you would like to sail? Have you checked?

 

Yes, my original post mentioned why I am inquiring about Galveston at this point in time. I'd love to try Anthem out of Bayonne (I've driven there before, fine by me) but her sailings are currently more than I'm willing to pay. :(

 

I don't have a specific sail date in mind, just looking at fall 2016 -- and Google Flights doesn't leave me feeling chuffed about airfare costs for 3.

 

We are driving from Ontario this coming week to Texas. I can let you know how we make out upon our return :)

 

Cool!! Thanks!! :)

[moopetguy]

Both cruises we pretty much lost two days of "fun in the sun" due to weather. Both trips we had rain, wind, and cold weather the first day and last day.

 

If I was driving from ONT I would look at anything along the eastern seaboard.

 

Thanks for sharing your experience. I hadn't checked Galveston's weather norms at different times of the year as of yet.

 

However, the northeastern ports will suffer similarly during the winter -- Grandeur and Anthem were recently both delayed a day in returning due to Jonas. I was on Grandeur a week prior to that and missed the big storm, but the first day and last day were unpleasant outside (not poolside weather for sure!).

 

That really only leaves the ports in FL...? Which of course I'm familiar with, but pricing on those is also not sufficiently attractive to me at this point in time. *sigh*

[Galveston Cruiser]

Galveston, like any place has weather. No one can get around that, but typically the weather is warm here - 70's yesterday, cold front coming in today so it will be a freezing 50+:rolleyes:

 

There is much to do on the island, lots of history, great restaurants and easy to get around by car.

 

No, it's not New Orleans, safer (I have lived in both places).

One can do as much or as little as one desires. We definitely have to pace ourselves as there are events/shows, festivals every weekend.

 

I am amazed by the number of people that complain about the distance to airports - this is an Island! Airports were built near large cities not for the convenience of cruisers. We consider transportation to a port part of traveling.

[TruckerDave]

Route we take out of Nashville is all interstate. I-65 South to I59, to I20 to I55 in Jackson,MS then I 10west. Our son lives in north Texas so we can go either souther route as above or through Memphis into Arkansas. Don't know where you are in Ontario, but Memphis direction might be closer for you. Right now, Arkansas had lots of road construction going on. (2 years or so….they never finish, just keep redoing the same stretch we think;) )

 

You are adding extra miles going all the way down to LA on I55 then going across 10 to TX

[TruckerDave]

I can comment on your I-45 and I-30 legs, as I drive it for work travel.

 

I-30 is in good condition from Dallas to Little Rock.

 

I-45 from Dallas to Galveston is in great condition. However, at the border of Texas and Arkansas is Texarkana. To save 2.5 hrs of drive time, you would take 59 South from Texarkana to Houston, then I-45 from Houston to Galveston.

 

There is NO way I would go all the way to Dallas then down 45. and now that they have finished I49 all the way from Shreveport to Texarkana stay off US59 to avoid all the little towns and stop lights.

 

I do the Houston to Texarkana (then east) on a regular basis. :D

[TruckerDave]

from the original post. Assuming you are staring near Buffalo (using the I79-I77-I95 route which you mentioned. though I would make some changes to that next time to save time a hassle. grab us19 though West Virginia to save about 50 miles then make you way over to I75 to avoid the I95 zoo. but that is another story.)

 

I would take I90 west to just outside Cleveland then take I271 south to I71. Go south though Cincy to Louisville then I65 south to Elizabethtown and grab the Wester Kentucky parkway west. This turns into I69 and take it all the way to Dyersberg TN then it becomes I155. Take that to I55 south to I40 in West Memphis AR (Where i am sitting while typing this). Go west on I40 to Little Rock to I440 (towards Dallas) then onto I30 west. Take that to Texarkana and jump on I49 south to Shreveport. Then get on I220 west to I20 west until you get to US79 south (exit 3). Then take US79 south to Carthage Tx and hop on US59 south to Houston. Where you get on I45 south to Galveston.

[moopetguy]

from the original post. Assuming you are staring near Buffalo (using the I79-I77-I95 route which you mentioned. though I would make some changes to that next time to save time a hassle. grab us19 though West Virginia to save about 50 miles then make you way over to I75 to avoid the I95 zoo. but that is another story.)

 

I would take I90 west to just outside Cleveland then take I271 south to I71. Go south though Cincy to Louisville then I65 south to Elizabethtown and grab the Wester Kentucky parkway west. This turns into I69 and take it all the way to Dyersberg TN then it becomes I155. Take that to I55 south to I40 in West Memphis AR (Where i am sitting while typing this). Go west on I40 to Little Rock to I440 (towards Dallas) then onto I30 west. Take that to Texarkana and jump on I49 south to Shreveport. Then get on I220 west to I20 west until you get to US79 south (exit 3). Then take US79 south to Carthage Tx and hop on US59 south to Houston. Where you get on I45 south to Galveston.

 

Sorry, I glossed over the route details for when I drove to Ft. Lauderdale. I did take US-19 between I-79 and I-77. I did my homework in advance and found out that Summersville in particular is a strict speed enforcement zone, so I stuck right to the limit with my cruise control...but never saw a marked police car on all of US-19!

 

I'm going to need to take a close look at a map sometime later to understand your suggested route to Galveston...the number of exits and changes in highways is making my head spin as I've no familiarity with anything beyond I-90 (so yeah, that's where you lost me) :D But thanks, worth looking into.

[dee030701]

Hi...we just drove from Chicago to Texas. Our destination was South Padre Island but we decided to add a cruise on the front end. It was an easy drive with inexpensive moderate hotels on the route (Hampton Inns), first night between Memphis and Little Rock and the second outside of Houston. We really only had one week to cruise and Liberty had just gone into drydock so we ended up on NCL out of Houston, so I can't comment on Galveston. But I can endorse the drive as long as you have the time, no bad construction areas or anything to avoid.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[moopetguy]

Hi...we just drove from Chicago to Texas. Our destination was South Padre Island but we decided to add a cruise on the front end. It was an easy drive with inexpensive moderate hotels on the route (Hampton Inns), first night between Memphis and Little Rock and the second outside of Houston. We really only had one week to cruise and Liberty had just gone into drydock so we ended up on NCL out of Houston, so I can't comment on Galveston. But I can endorse the drive as long as you have the time, no bad construction areas or anything to avoid.

 

I assume you took I-55 and I-57 southbound since you mentioned stopping between Memphis and Little Rock (presumably along I-40). And then the rest of the way would have been I-30, US-59, I-69 to Houston?

 

That's a large part of one route I could take, if I took I-70W towards St. Louis before exiting to I-57S. Thanks for your input on this route!

[dee030701]

Yes, that is the route we took! Glad to have helped a little.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Pops, Esq.]

I didn't catch WHERE in Ontario you will be coming from, but you mention flying out of Buffalo, so I am going to assume Toronto area?

 

Anyway. Back when my kids were young, we regularly made the trip from the Pittsburgh area to Dallas. Not exactly the same path, but add about 4 hours on each end and its close. Of the possible routes you could take, one is similar.

 

I would call it a looong two day (one night) trip and a pretty long three day (two night) trip.

 

I didn't mind the trip, but it's long. We usually looked to stopping between Cincinnati/Covington and Nashville (not exactly between geographically, but between and is choosing which one to choose) or possibly Bowling Green, Kentucky (There is a Corvette museum in Bowling Green -- at least there used to be one). Advantages of Cincinnati is you get out of the car a little earlier. Advantages of Nashville are more things to do, but you pull in so late, there's not much you feel like doing.

 

I'd probably prefer waking up in Nashville if I was making this trip in two days....

 

But, building off a previous response, that basically ended in Nashville, I can take you in from there.

 

About three-four hours past Nashville, you find Memphis. If you time things right, you try to hit Memphis at lunch or dinner time. Take your pick, but eat BBQ. If you don't time things right, get your BBQ to go.

 

Right past Memphis, you hit Arkansas. Roads is Arkansas are better than those in Louisiana. I will leave it at that. Not much to see in Arkansas (the trees are beautiful, don't get me wrong, but very monotonous while driving). Radio stations are scarce, so satellite radio is a plus. Little Rock is not much of a diversion, although you can stop and eat or find a brief walk to stretch the legs in downtown at what I think they call Riverside...an area downtown with some things to see.

 

After Little Rock, you can head south through east Texas or keep moving west to Dallas, The trip through east Texas is off interstate, but much more scenic. Most of the way will be four-lane divided highway, so it competes with the Dallas route. But, you are talking small towns along the way.

 

You could stay in the Lufkin-area the night pre-cruise, but that leaves you a couple of hours to port the next day.

 

If you go through Dallas, Dallas traffic can be a handful coming in from I-30. You will skirt the metro area if you take 635 around the south, but if the timing is right, just head through downtown. Why come all this way to not take a look at downtown?

 

You COULD stay in Dallas overnight. But, that leaves you four and a half to five hours the next day.

 

South of Dallas is interstate. Nothing but interstate. Traffic and interstate. I-45 takes you east of Austin, so there's just not much to see. Now that I think about it, I might prefer the east Texas route. At least during the daytime. I would probably stick with the interstates at night.

 

Having made the similar trip, I can't imagine that I wouldn't find a flight that would be worthwhile. You are talking at a minimum, two nights in a hotel on the way down and one or two going back. The distance makes little side trips pretty difficult. But, as I said, I made similar car trips when the kids were little, so I can't argue too much with the decision to drive.

 

If I were planning, I'd plan on pushing it on the way down, overnighting in Nashville and Houston. Then, on the way back, I'd consider driving to Dallas for the night, or maybe even taking a little side trip and stop in Hot Springs, Arkansas (Dallas plus 4 hours) for a night, with a second night on the road Maybe in Cincinnati (I'd stay across the river in Covington, KY) or perhaps even Columbus.

[moopetguy]

I didn't catch WHERE in Ontario you will be coming from, but you mention flying out of Buffalo, so I am going to assume Toronto area?

 

Anyway. Back when my kids were young, we regularly made the trip from the Pittsburgh area to Dallas. Not exactly the same path, but add about 4 hours on each end and its close. Of the possible routes you could take, one is similar.

 

I would call it a looong two day (one night) trip and a pretty long three day (two night) trip.

 

I didn't mind the trip, but it's long. We usually looked to stopping between Cincinnati/Covington and Nashville (not exactly between geographically, but between and is choosing which one to choose) or possibly Bowling Green, Kentucky (There is a Corvette museum in Bowling Green -- at least there used to be one). Advantages of Cincinnati is you get out of the car a little earlier. Advantages of Nashville are more things to do, but you pull in so late, there's not much you feel like doing.

 

I'd probably prefer waking up in Nashville if I was making this trip in two days....

 

But, building off a previous response, that basically ended in Nashville, I can take you in from there.

 

About three-four hours past Nashville, you find Memphis. If you time things right, you try to hit Memphis at lunch or dinner time. Take your pick, but eat BBQ. If you don't time things right, get your BBQ to go.

 

Right past Memphis, you hit Arkansas. Roads is Arkansas are better than those in Louisiana. I will leave it at that. Not much to see in Arkansas (the trees are beautiful, don't get me wrong, but very monotonous while driving). Radio stations are scarce, so satellite radio is a plus. Little Rock is not much of a diversion, although you can stop and eat or find a brief walk to stretch the legs in downtown at what I think they call Riverside...an area downtown with some things to see.

 

After Little Rock, you can head south through east Texas or keep moving west to Dallas, The trip through east Texas is off interstate, but much more scenic. Most of the way will be four-lane divided highway, so it competes with the Dallas route. But, you are talking small towns along the way.

 

You could stay in the Lufkin-area the night pre-cruise, but that leaves you a couple of hours to port the next day.

 

If you go through Dallas, Dallas traffic can be a handful coming in from I-30. You will skirt the metro area if you take 635 around the south, but if the timing is right, just head through downtown. Why come all this way to not take a look at downtown?

 

You COULD stay in Dallas overnight. But, that leaves you four and a half to five hours the next day.

 

South of Dallas is interstate. Nothing but interstate. Traffic and interstate. I-45 takes you east of Austin, so there's just not much to see. Now that I think about it, I might prefer the east Texas route. At least during the daytime. I would probably stick with the interstates at night.

 

Having made the similar trip, I can't imagine that I wouldn't find a flight that would be worthwhile. You are talking at a minimum, two nights in a hotel on the way down and one or two going back. The distance makes little side trips pretty difficult. But, as I said, I made similar car trips when the kids were little, so I can't argue too much with the decision to drive.

 

If I were planning, I'd plan on pushing it on the way down, overnighting in Nashville and Houston. Then, on the way back, I'd consider driving to Dallas for the night, or maybe even taking a little side trip and stop in Hot Springs, Arkansas (Dallas plus 4 hours) for a night, with a second night on the road Maybe in Cincinnati (I'd stay across the river in Covington, KY) or perhaps even Columbus.

 

Thank you very much for that level of detail! However, I am not sure I will want to divert over to Dallas upon crossing into TX. If I actually do this, I would rather just take the east TX route along US-59 to Houston.

 

I'm unlikely to spread the drive over three days. I did two long days of driving to Ft. Lauderdale and I know Galveston is a bit further, but I can drive a little bit longer on the first two days and/or leave up to 2 hours of driving time on the third morning to arrive at the cruise terminal.

[DaKa2002]

Not sure of the time of year you are cruising; I may have missed it in the various posts. However, I would recommend the trip. We make regular trips from the DFW area of Texas to Georgetown (near Toronto) and also to Ottawa. Due to lots of construction with road closures in the DFW area (both I-35E and I-35W), I would recommend a "dive" south as far as New Orleans and then west on I-10 to finish the trip to Galveston (as one alternative).

By the way, there is construction all over the US highways, and Interstates. Even some of the back roads! We have coined a new phrase - one cannot escape death, taxes, and construction!

Also - you are not alone in tracking vehicle expenses. We trace car, van, and truck expenses - gas, tires, maintenance, etc. We know what our land traveling costs us...