Has anyone had trouble getting from IAH hotel to Galveston port the morning of cruise?

[lucy2mb]

 

We decided to stay at an IAH hotel the night before our Vista cruise in April where we can have free airport shuttle to hotel.  I have read that the traffic can be bad going from there to Galveston the morning of our cruise.   If we schedule an early shuttle, will we be able to get to the port in time?

Thank you for your help!

[RocketMan275]

2 hours ago, lucy2mb said:

 

We decided to stay at an IAH hotel the night before our Vista cruise in April where we can have free airport shuttle to hotel.  I have read that the traffic can be bad going from there to Galveston the morning of our cruise.   If we schedule an early shuttle, will we be able to get to the port in time?

Thank you for your help!

Why not schedule a transfer from Carnival?  That will ensure you do not miss the boat.

We stayed at the Marriott which is in the IAH, had breakfast there, and had a nice bus ride to the port.

When we went down for breakfast, we left our bags in the room as instructed.  When we came back, the bags were gone.  They were loaded on a truck to the port.

Nice thing about the Marriott is the airport tram stops at the baggage claim and then stops at the Marriott.  No need for a shuttle and the tram is free.  Comes by about every five minutes.

[lucy2mb]

17 hours ago, RocketMan275 said:

Why not schedule a transfer from Carnival?  That will ensure you do not miss the boat.

We stayed at the Marriott which is in the IAH, had breakfast there, and had a nice bus ride to the port.

When we went down for breakfast, we left our bags in the room as instructed.  When we came back, the bags were gone.  They were loaded on a truck to the port.

Nice thing about the Marriott is the airport tram stops at the baggage claim and then stops at the Marriott.  No need for a shuttle and the tram is free.  Comes by about every five minutes.

I will consider that.   I was just trying to save us some money because there are 6 in our family and I know it is about $25 more per person with Carnival than regular shuttles. Do you think it is safe to use regular shuttle and leave IAH by 9:00 or 10:00?   Thanks for your help!

[RocketMan275]

48 minutes ago, lucy2mb said:

I will consider that.   I was just trying to save us some money because there are 6 in our family and I know it is about $25 more per person with Carnival than regular shuttles. Do you think it is safe to use regular shuttle and leave IAH by 9:00 or 10:00?   Thanks for your help!

 

I can't advise you on  that.  We've never taken anything other than a cruise  line shuttle to the port.

Have you considered continuing on to Galveston the night before your cruise instead of staying near IAH?

 

Our next cruise from Galveston is in 2024.  We intend to fly into IAH, shuttle to galveston that night and then have a very easy embarkation the next day.

 

Here's some links that might help.

 

https://portskipper.com/port-of-galveston/transportation/

 

https://www.cruzely.com/how-to-get-from-the-houston-airport-to-the-galveston-cruise-port/

 

Here's a link to some Galveston hotels.

https://www.saintgregtravel.com/category/port-of-departure/galveston/

 

It is our intent to stay at the Harbor House.

Next door to some good seafood.

Free continental breakfast.

You can walk to the carnival port.

[lucy2mb]

13 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

I can't advise you on  that.  We've never taken anything other than a cruise  line shuttle to the port.

Have you considered continuing on to Galveston the night before your cruise instead of staying near IAH?

 

Our next cruise from Galveston is in 2024.  We intend to fly into IAH, shuttle to galveston that night and then have a very easy embarkation the next day.

 

Here's some links that to help.

a https://portskipper.com/port-of-galveston/transportation/

 

https://www.cruzely.com/how-to-get-from-the-houston-airport-to-the-galveston-cruise-port/

 

Here's a link to some Galveston hotels.

https://www.saintgregtravel.com/category/port-of-departure/galveston/

 

It is our intent to stay at the Harbor House.

Next door to some good seafood.

Free continental breakfast.

You can walk to the carnival port.

I looked at hotels in Galveston and area but hotels were more expensive that IAH hotels.  We have to book 2 hotels rooms for our family and after paying for hotel close to port and then pay for transportation to port, we would be paying more than getting Carnival transportation.  It would be nice to stay within walking distance of the port but those rooms  at the Harbor House would cost us too much.  Will discuss with my husband about Carnival transportation and other options.  Thank you again for your help!

[txmommy2]

You need to allow 2 hours under normal conditions to travel from IAH to Galveston. I understand things add up but I would recommend staying at a budget hotel in Galveston the night before and then just getting 2 Ubers or Lyfts to the port.

[lucy2mb]

1 minute ago, txmommy2 said:

You need to allow 2 hours under normal conditions to travel from IAH to Galveston. I understand things add up but I would recommend staying at a budget hotel in Galveston the night before and then just getting 2 Ubers or Lyfts to the port.

Not familiar with Galveston at all.  Do you think it matters which part of Galveston we stay at.  I will check out the hotels there.  

[txmommy2]

I think overall Galveston is safe. We usually stay somewhere on the sea wall but April is a beautiful time to be on the island and prices reflect it. Anything not located on the sea wall will be less expensive. You can definitely stick with your original plan but if you do, I would recommend heading to Galveston early to allow time for any road closures, traffic, weather, etc. 

[lucy2mb]

2 minutes ago, txmommy2 said:

I think overall Galveston is safe. We usually stay somewhere on the sea wall but April is a beautiful time to be on the island and prices reflect it. Anything not located on the sea wall will be less expensive. You can definitely stick with your original plan but if you do, I would recommend heading to Galveston early to allow time for any road closures, traffic, weather, etc. 

• Haven't looked at a lot of hotels yet, but found Home2Suites in Texas City that is less than staying in Galveston.  Would it be reasonable rates to take the two Lyfts  from there to port or should we still stay in Galveston.  

[Galveston Cruiser]

26 minutes ago, lucy2mb said:

Not familiar with Galveston at all.  Do you think it matters which part of Galveston we stay at.  I will check out the hotels there.  

The island is not that large;  32 miles long and 2 miles at its widest.  The majority of lodging is on Seawall Blvd. with scattered on Hwy 45 once on the island.  Two hotels downtown:  The Tremont and Harbor House.  See visitgalveston.com

[lucy2mb]

1 hour ago, Galveston Cruiser said:

The island is not that large;  32 miles long and 2 miles at its widest.  The majority of lodging is on Seawall Blvd. with scattered on Hwy 45 once on the island.  Two hotels downtown:  The Tremont and Harbor House.  See visitgalveston.com

Thank you for your help!

[RocketMan275]

2 hours ago, lucy2mb said:

Not familiar with Galveston at all.  Do you think it matters which part of Galveston we stay at.  I will check out the hotels there.  

You can use google maps to find hotels on Galveston.

There is a tab at the top for hotels.

You can input your dates to see availability and rates.

https://www.google.com/maps/search/Hotels/@29.2339571,-95.0144287,11z/data=!3m1!4b1

also a tab for restaurants.

you can also search for the cruise ports.

[DannyMac]

On 1/8/2023 at 4:26 PM, lucy2mb said:

 

We decided to stay at an IAH hotel the night before our Vista cruise in April where we can have free airport shuttle to hotel.  I have read that the traffic can be bad going from there to Galveston the morning of our cruise.   If we schedule an early shuttle, will we be able to get to the port in time?

Thank you for your help!

You don't indicate what day you will board the ship, Saturday/Sunday? Saturday traffic on I-45S gets busy as the day progresses, Sundays are not too bad. It is about an hour and a half drive from IAH to Galveston. I-45S is routed elevated through downtown Houston and can be a problem if traffic is heavy or there is a wreck. Once through that area 45S is clear all the way. There is some construction between the Clear Lake area but nothing that would cause a delay. If you can leave for Galveston by 9:00am you should get there with plenty of time to spare. 

Edited January 12, 2023 by DannyMac

[lucy2mb]

On 1/12/2023 at 4:36 PM, DannyMac said:

You don't indicate what day you will board the ship, Saturday/Sunday? Saturday traffic on I-45S gets busy as the day progresses, Sundays are not too bad. It is about an hour and a half drive from IAH to Galveston. I-45S is routed elevated through downtown Houston and can be a problem if traffic is heavy or there is a wreck. Once through that area 45S is clear all the way. There is some construction between the Clear Lake area but nothing that would cause a delay. If you can leave for Galveston by 9:00am you should get there with plenty of time to spare. 

Thank you!  We will be leaving around 8:30 or 9:00 on a Saturday morning.  Looks like most shuttles would have a fee if we need to cancel.  Someone said Uber is not allowed in the port area but others say they have used Uber and Lyft.  We would need 2 cars for the 6 or 7 of us and afraid we would get separated if we take two vehicles.  I know that cruise line charges $100 per person, so I would rather use company that would not cost that much per person and not have cancellation fee if cancelling a few days before the cruise.  Any suggestion would be appreciated.

[jbrinkm]

If it is two families, this won't work, but if you just have a big family, you could try the Best Western Plus Galveston Suites. The 2 queen suite also has a sofa bed so theoretically could hold 6 (preferably if two were on the smaller side...). We booked here for a very reasonable price in April and it includes a breakfast. We'll still need a taxi or rideshare to the port in the morning, but waking up with a view of the ocean will make me feel like vacation has already started!

[DannyMac]

On 1/16/2023 at 2:07 PM, lucy2mb said:

Thank you!  We will be leaving around 8:30 or 9:00 on a Saturday morning.  Looks like most shuttles would have a fee if we need to cancel.  Someone said Uber is not allowed in the port area but others say they have used Uber and Lyft.  We would need 2 cars for the 6 or 7 of us and afraid we would get separated if we take two vehicles.  I know that cruise line charges $100 per person, so I would rather use company that would not cost that much per person and not have cancellation fee if cancelling a few days before the cruise.  Any suggestion would be appreciated.

I'm not able to help you with transportation company's. I live 40 minutes from Galveston and have no need for them.

[Lane Hog]

On 1/9/2023 at 11:49 AM, lucy2mb said:

I will consider that.   I was just trying to save us some money because there are 6 in our family and I know it is about $25 more per person with Carnival than regular shuttles. Do you think it is safe to use regular shuttle and leave IAH by 9:00 or 10:00?   Thanks for your help!

If you have a large group, you might want to just schedule a limo vs. taking the cruise line's shuttle.  We paid $250 for a SUV vs. the $90 per person they wanted.  Even with tip, it was cheaper.

[lucy2mb]

On 1/19/2023 at 9:01 PM, Lane Hog said:

If you have a large group, you might want to just schedule a limo vs. taking the cruise line's shuttle.  We paid $250 for a SUV vs. the $90 per person they wanted.  Even with tip, it was cheaper.

 

On 1/19/2023 at 9:01 PM, Lane Hog said:

If you have a large group, you might want to just schedule a limo vs. taking the cruise line's shuttle.  We paid $250 for a SUV vs. the $90 per person they wanted.  Even with tip, it was cheaper.

Was the $250 one way from IAH hotel?  We will have 7 adults in our group.  Do you recommend a company to use that would carry 7 passengers and luggage?

[Lane Hog]

Four plus bags from IAH to the port and back in an Escalade was comfortable. 

 

5 was doable, 6-7 might be tight with luggage.

 

Info@limochampion.com  is who I use in Houston.  Email Gino and ask.

[dna1990]

We drive from NW Houston to Galveston last Sunday, it took only 70 minutes.  Decent weather and no accidents.  A 9am from IAH is perfectly fine.