Galaxy from Galveston

[jperkin1]

trcori-

 

If you are arriving at midnight, you should have no problem with traffic at that hour. Also on Saturday morning the traffic is not too bad either. There are a few hotels right outside the airport. I can't come up with the particulars right now (even though I just came from there today!). They seem nice enough, but I've not stayed in them as I live in Houston, so no need to. You would be safe either way to leave Friday night or Saturday a.m. The middle of the day, the heavier the traffic. I-45 south will take you right to Galveston. Here's a site that might help you with IAH hotels:

 

http://www.houston.com/hotels/bushairport.html

[mostofus]

Isn't it Mardi Gras this weekend too ini Galveston??? That would create some traffic!

[trcori]

looks like Mardi Gras is in February ...

http://www.mardigrasgalveston.com/

so that won't affect my sailing or the folks going 4/13

 

thanks btw for the area info, I have been surfing for months but mostly about the ports and the night-before arrival didn't solidify till this week.

[canderson]

Don't make any cracks like "for some reason, the locals don't seem to manage rain very well" until you've experienced a Houston "rain event". It will give you a whole new appreciation of high ground.

Alas, it was the locals that advised me of this as I left the airport. There hadn't been much rain at all (nothing that would qualify as "an event"), and while I-45 was wet, it wasn't even raining at the time -- and with the accidents in town, it took us about 2-1/4 hours to get from IAH to the island.

 

Oddly, the biggest "rain event" I've ever encountered was in Las Vegas. Assuming, I suppose, that it wouldn't be worth the cost of the infrastructure to actually deal with the rare true "rain" they get, they don't bother with what other cities would consider normal attempts to move the water. "Storm drain? Whazzat? That's why we have streets".

 

It's an odd thing to see knee deep water rushing out of a parking garage and out into the street (happened at the of the Imperial Palace, right on the Strip). Unfortunately, the trade show was at capacity plus, and they'd set up tents for many of the exhibitors in the "parking lot" outside of the convention center. High tide indeed. What a mess!

[canderson]

We will arrive around midnight the night before the cruise.

Can either get the rent-a-car then (Enterprise is not open that late so it's Hertz or nothing, so far as I can tell) and go to a hotel near Houston airport to sleep, or drive to a hotel in/near Galveston to sleep. We're on West Coast time so it won't really be an issue of the lateness (and two of the three of us are night owls). Will there be bad traffic on Sat. morning that will make us wish we had driven to Galveston that night, or does it not matter? How is the hotel district near IAH anyway? thanks for any advice -- TR (4/1/06 Galaxy)

At that hour, you might as well hole up by the airport. There were any number of hotels in the area, although having never stayed there, I can't recommend one. You won't be missing anything in Galveston by the time you'd get there at 2am. Find a hotel that will pick you up and drop you back at the airport the next morning to get your rental. The airport tax isn't so much that'd it be worth the hassle of finding an Enterprise in town.

 

Saturday morning looked like a breeze. Granted, we were going north (it was disembarkation day) but we didn't see much traffic heading the other way towards the ship. If you're up and out bright and early, you should be in great shape.

[nightnurse]

Thanks for all the good information, everyone! What would we do without these boards?!! Can anyone tell me which airlines fly into Hobby airport? Continental only seems to go to IAH, from Seattle anyway. Looks like it's a lot easier to get to Galveston from Hobby airport.

[Texed]

Here's a better way to get to Galveston during prime time from IAH. Take Will Clayton to US59. US 59 South to 610 loop. Go 610 east over the ship channel bridge. Take loop 610 west to I-45 South. Go south on I-45. You're on your way to Galveston, and you miss downtown.:D I do it almost every day.

[canderson]

Thanks for all the good information, everyone! What would we do without these boards?!! Can anyone tell me which airlines fly into Hobby airport? Continental only seems to go to IAH, from Seattle anyway. Looks like it's a lot easier to get to Galveston from Hobby airport.

Air Tran, Delta, American, and Southwest come to mind. However, you may not find that many direct flights.

[DeepWaterMariner]

We don't need rain to cause accidents in Houston. They happen with alarming regularity on perfectly dry roads. BTW, a "rain event" in there parts is on the order of many inches of rain in a relatively short time...think 6 to 10 inches in an afternoon. The truely mega version of these were experienced with tropical depressions Claudette and Alison...you may remember pictures of trailers (as in tractor trailers) floating on a freeway.

 

A weekend or the middle of the night is not necessarily a cinch on avoiding traffic. There times are used for road construction projects so they won't tie up weekday traffic. I'm not aware of any problem like that on the routes from IAH to Galveston. On a weekend day I would take Will Clayton to US 59 south to I 45 south. It is the most direct and shouldn't be a problem on a weekend (or even midday during the week).

[CHS]

Hi we will aslo be on the Galaxy April 13th. We are staying at the Holiday Inn On the Beach in Galveston on the 12th. I think there are several of us from the Roll Call Boards that will be staying there. Also we will be using Galveston Limo Service from Houston Hobby. They will pick us up at the airport and take us to Hotel in Galveston and then on the 13th the hotel has transportation to take us to the port to sail out. Then on arrival back to the port on the 24th the limo service will pick us up and take us back to Houston Hobby. Hey sign up for the Cruise Critic Party that the ship has and come join us on the Galaxy Roll Call Board.

 

Look forward to meeting you and your family

 

Fran / CHS on the boards :)

[nightnurse]

We are staying in Galveston for two nights previous, don't know where yet. We are from the Vancouver,B.C. area so this is a part of the world we haven't been to yet and we would like to look around. Maybe we can double up with another couple or two for the limo ride back, and share the fare! I've just signed up for the CC party. I'm Jackie btw, and I don't work nights anymore! (but am still a nurse!) My husband is Finn, & we're looking forward to meeting you all too!

[cookie1961]

Hi Earl,

 

I tried to make some calls today to find out who I could speak to about the transfer difficulties we encountered. Here is what I have come up with: Celebrity has a "Customer Correspondence Department", however, they do not have a direct phone line. I was transferred to Customer Service, and they spoke to people within that department, while you wait on the line. According the the rep. I spoke with, they have many emails to respond to and I should hear back from them in about a week's time. The email I provided before is the right email address.

 

I will keep you posted :)

 

Teri

[tjebme]

we just returned from a Princess cruise to Galveston. We used Texas cruise ship shuttle service. It cost $175 for 10 people and he was nice enough to stop at 2 different hotels to pick us all up. He has a lot of info about the Houston/Galveston area and will drive you around in Galveston to show you everything. On the return, 4 of us took a taxi to Hobby airport ($85) while 6 of us used that same shuttle back to IAH for $150. I've heard good things about Galveston Limo, but I think they are set up to take many different parties, so you might end up making more than just your stop. Last year we rented a car from Enterprise and drove down on Sat. AM. It is a pretty easy drive esp. if it's Sat. AM and not Fri night. We just had too many people in our group to make that a feasible alternative this time.

Tracy

[Arubalisa]

The Galaxy is a fine ship and in good shape. If you are picky, picky, picky and are looking for a brand new, glitzy, brightly dazzling ship, this is NOT the ship for you! I hope to have my many many photos posted soon. If only work would allow :rolleyes:

 

For a stay in Galveston, I would highly recommend a stay at the Hotel Galvez. The weather during our stay was in the 40's, windy and rainy, but it was still quite beautiful. Nice public spaces even for hanging out and a decent restaurant. Some complain the rooms are too small. We are a family of three and it was just fine.

 

Booking the resort through Celebrity, we knew we would have the cheapest category room. We are Wyndham by Request members and much to my surprise, dh emailed them with a request for an oceanfront room. Upon arrival, my parents who also booked through Celebrity and are not by Request members, had a room overlooking the parking lot. Exactly what they expected. Wyndham Hotel Galvez did honor my dh's request. Also as a by Request member we received free WI-FI access.

[TEXASMUNK]

You might try:

 

Southwest, make a connection nin either PHX or LAS to Hobby.

 

The you could use a local limo service from the Hobby area to the port. It is only a 35-45 minute ride in the morning. There are a ton of hotels/motels in the Hobby area. Your choice, based on preference and price.

[DeepWaterMariner]

One thing to consider with Galveston Limo...as someone mentioned, they pick up several parties, so you may end up waiting awhile while everyone gets through debarkation. We were off early when we used them and we sat waiting for another couple. Debarkation was going slowly that morning due to some special circumstances and the other couple could see our van from the promonade deck but were still several luggage tag colors away from getting off the ship. Fortunately the driver was able to learn there would be a delay via cell phone and took us to our destination (within a half hour of the pier) and came back for the other couple.

[canderson]

Hi Earl,

 

I tried to make some calls today to find out who I could speak to about the transfer difficulties we encountered. Here is what I have come up with: Celebrity has a "Customer Correspondence Department", however, they do not have a direct phone line. I was transferred to Customer Service, and they spoke to people within that department, while you wait on the line. According the the rep. I spoke with, they have many emails to respond to and I should hear back from them in about a week's time. The email I provided before is the right email address.

 

I will keep you posted :)

 

Teri

Thanks for the update. I went ahead and emailed a copy of the FAX, as I noted earlier, so we'll see what response it gets. So far, still no reply of any sort to my 12/19/05 FAX. I hope they're quicker on email.

[canderson]

The Galaxy is a fine ship and in good shape. If you are picky, picky, picky and are looking for a brand new, glitzy, brightly dazzling ship, this is NOT the ship for you! I hope to have my many many photos posted soon. If only work would allow :rolleyes:

So how did the new DH do with her chocolate chip cookies each afternoon? Was your butler Evo?

[Arubalisa]

So how did the new DH do with her chocolate chip cookies each afternoon? Was your butler Evo?

Oh boy, she made out just swell!! Ivo/Evo was our butler and such as sweetheart at that. My Mom had asked him for some goodies for our little party Christmas eve while the family was unwrapping Christmas gifts. He laid out a beautiful spread of goodies. Ivo doted on my grandmother as well.

 

He, our cabin steward, Franklin, his assistant, and our dining room waiter Renato and his assistant Renaldo just made the whole trip!

 

I'm working diligently every night until the wee hours whittling down the 1000 photos :eek: Just remember, once you pay for the digital camera, all the photos are "free" :D So I just have to make sure I get my money's worth :)

[kelmac]

Oh boy, she made out just swell!! Ivo/Evo was our butler and such as sweetheart at that. My Mom had asked him for some goodies for our little party Christmas eve while the family was unwrapping Christmas gifts. He laid out a beautiful spread of goodies. Ivo doted on my grandmother as well.

 

He, our cabin steward, Franklin, his assistant, and our dining room waiter Renato and his assistant Renaldo just made the whole trip!

 

I'm working diligently every night until the wee hours whittling down the 1000 photos :eek: Just remember, once you pay for the digital camera, all the photos are "free" :D So I just have to make sure I get my money's worth :)

 

Hi Lisa,

 

We were across the hall, and Franklin and his assistant were the very best!! They were so "stealthy" we never, not once, saw them in our cabin, yet everything was perfect. We've had some great cabin attendants on Celebrity, but these two guys were the best. No wonder they were in charge of the suites.

 

Enjoy!

Kel

[Arubalisa]

Hi Kel! Hope all is well with you! Those fantastic guys not only supplied a body pillow she requested, but even took good care of dd's baby teddys! They took such good care of them, we never knew where in the cabin they were going to hiding :D

 

[ylojerseygirl]

We used Texas Cruise Ship Shuttle to take us from IAH to the cruise ship terminal, he's a private operator, with a nice mini coach bus, the was early and met us at the airport and outside of the terminal, he was fast, knowledgable and best of all, AFFORDABLE. He even took us on a side trip/tour of Houston, and Galveston. HIGHLY RECOMENDED!

[DeepWaterMariner]

We returned this morning from 11 days on the Galaxy. I agree with Canderson on the need to replace most of the windows in the Stratesphere. It's a shame that a room with such a great view is under utilized due to bad glass. Otherwise the cruise was excellent. It was our first time on Galaxy and I loved its non-glitzy elegance. Lots of wood which gives it a rich feel. The service was terrific, the best we've had in the past few years of cruising. Disembarkation went very smoothly. We were through immigration and customs within 10 minutes of hitting the pier. One other ship was in port and there was very little congestion at the terminal. I retrieved my car and picked up my wife and luggage as easily as I've ever done it in Galveston.

[houstoncruisers2001]

Based upon our limited experience, I'd say you're OK to head straight on down I-45.

 

As a limo driver......the way I always go from IAH to Galveston is the following.

 

after leaving the terminal area....

 

take Will Clayton Blvd to Highway 59

take Highway 59 SOUTH to Houston

Exit I-45 SOUTH to Galveston (right after Minute Maid Park)

 

Someone asked about limo companies...I'll recommend three of them to you. Gulf Coast, Hallmark and the previously mentioned, Emerald. All three are based in Houston, all are family owned & operated companies and they we all do you right. Extreme Elegance, on the other hand, has had many complaints out here on these boards.

[Nancyquilts]

Galveston Limo is really a van (or a bus, coming back from the cruise), but is very reliable and has a regular schedule from both airports. We won't take the ship's transfers there any more. Nancy