All Things Galveston (Updated - 5/21/14)

[Atomic]

As far as location, both of are good choices. I've never been inside either.

Adjacent to lots of restaurants & activities. Close to Walmart for last minute supplies & Spec's on 61st street, great liquor store.

Moody Gardens Rain Forest & aquarium pyramids are worth the effort, in my opinion. A 1st rate aircraft museum near by too.

Riding the ferry across the bay is fun, we do it for grins, but you won't see anything that can't be see from the Magic. The lines can be a real bear if you drive on. Parking & walking is the best bet. UNLESS you want to drive to Fort Travis, I haven't been in years, but it was really cool & free.

 

[Gina]

Holiday Inn Resort...free parking and shuttle. A friend of mine stayed last month and said it was great. We are staying 20-22.

Hi, quick question: Do you mean the Holiday Inn - On the Beach, or the Holiday Inn Sunspree Resort? So I can link the correct one. Thanks!

 

[Pocahantas]

Someone posted on our cruise meet thread this week that Galveston Park N' Cruise cancelled their reservation that was booked months before. They were told that they were not taking reservations for certain Disney cruises. I don't understand why they would do this if they already have a paying customer.

I just tried booking Galveston Park N' Cruise for our March 23rd cruise on the Disney Magic and it says they are sold out but when I changed to the RCCL Mariner sailing on March 24th it was available

 

[RodNicPena]

Hi, quick question: Do you mean the Holiday Inn - On the Beach, or the Holiday Inn Sunspree Resort? So I can link the correct one. Thanks!

On the Beach...5002 Seawall

 

[RodNicPena]

The Hilton on Seawall Blvd. has both free parking for the duration of the cruise and free shuttle to/from the cruise terminal. Lastminutetravel has good rates for the hilton, which is one of the mystery hotels.

Are you sure about this? I could have sworn I called Hilton and they declined offering shuttle service even though their site offers it.

 

[RodNicPena]

I called Enterprise and reserved a 2-day, one-way rental from Houston Hobby to Galveston for May. There is no drop fee, and the total charge for 2 days will be $120.99 for an economy car.

Maybe because I'm coming from DFW or did talk to the right person? Anyhoo he told me even though I could very possibly being driving the exact car back they would charge me a 1way drop fee BOTH WAYS! Starting at $500 on a rental made my V8 not looks so bad after all.

 

[cruisecrasher]

Someone posted on our cruise meet thread this week that Galveston Park N' Cruise cancelled their reservation that was booked months before. They were told that they were not taking reservations for certain Disney cruises. I don't understand why they would do this if they already have a paying customer.

Maybe they got paid out by another cruise line?

 

[Chee Chick]

I would guess that's because of all the sudden itinerary changes.

It was for the 2012 Thanksgiving cruise which did not have an itinerary change.

I just tried booking Galveston Park N' Cruise for our March 23rd cruise on the Disney Magic and it says they are sold out but when I changed to the RCCL Mariner sailing on March 24th it was available

I went back to the website and checked CCL and RCCL ships and it shows those are indeed available during the Thanksgiving week.

Maybe it has something to do with how the departure days line up and they can maximize their profits. The other lines depart on the Sunday while DCL departs on Saturday.

 

[NancyIL]

Maybe because I'm coming from DFW or did talk to the right person? Anyhoo he told me even though I could very possibly being driving the exact car back they would charge me a 1way drop fee BOTH WAYS! Starting at $500 on a rental made my V8 not looks so bad after all.

Dallas to Galveston is considerably farther than Houston to Galveston, so that is probably the reason for the one-way fee.

 

[mikehn]

Are you sure about this? I could have sworn I called Hilton and they declined offering shuttle service even though their site offers it.

I stayed there in April - free parking, free shuttle. Maybe that has changed now.

 

[mikehn]

I called Enterprise and reserved a 2-day, one-way rental from Houston Hobby to Galveston for May. There is no drop fee, and the total charge for 2 days will be $120.99 for an economy car.

Be real careful with Enterprise. The Enterprise drop off in Galveston is only open until noon on Saturday and it is closed on Sunday.

 

[kristinfly2]

Does anyone know how hard it is to get to the cruise terminal then to the enterprise office? Then DH has to take a taxi back to the terminal! I know it's bike weekend when we are there so we have to add extra time, but I was wondering how much. Thank you!

 

[NancyIL]

Be real careful with Enterprise. The Enterprise drop off in Galveston is only open until noon on Saturday and it is closed on Sunday.

Thanks. Our cruise departs on a Saturday, and I'm sure we will want to be at the cruise terminal before noon that day.

 

[dolphingirl47]

This is just my opinion on Moody Gardens, but if you have a nice zoo and aquarium in your city, skip Moody Gardens. The Discovery Pyramid is a total waste of space IMO. The aquarium is the best part but like I said, if you have one where you live no need to go to one here.

We visited the new Pleasure Pier over Fourth of July and it is fun. Small but fun. We don't have kids and spent less than 2 hours there. With kids it is probably a half day thing. There is a Bubba Gumps seafood restaurant there. We ate there only because family wanted to. Skip it and find a local seafood place instead.

We don't have either an aquarium or a zoo anywhere near so this will be a treat. We are planning to have dinner at Bubba Gump Shrimp Company.

Holiday Inn Resort...free parking and shuttle. A friend of mine stayed last month and said it was great. We are staying 20-22.

This is where we are booked at the moment, but the reviews about it being noisy scare me. Did your friend have any issues with noise?

Oh, and I just have to comment on the Moody Gardens thing... DS & I have passes to both and to Palm Beach at Moody Gardens (going tomorrow, in fact!) and we never, ever get tired of either place. Between the monkeys frolicking all around you in the incredible (and now 2-story) Rainforest pyramid, watching the penguins have fun in the Aquarium pyramid, all the science-y stuff in the Discovery pyramid that we love, the 3D IMAX theater, the 4D motion theater, riding the Colonel paddlewheel boat, or just walking the grounds outside and gawking at the azalea gardens and the view over the water, we just can't get enough. We never run out of things to do.

Thanks. I have to say the aquarium, the Rainforest Pyramid and the Paddlewheel Boat are all major draws for us.

Corinna

 

[RodNicPena]

We don't have either an aquarium or a zoo anywhere near so this will be a treat. We are planning to have dinner at Bubba Gump Shrimp Company.



This is where we are booked at the moment, but the reviews about it being noisy scare me. Did your friend have any issues with noise?



Thanks. I have to say the aquarium, the Rainforest Pyramid and the Paddlewheel Boat are all major draws for us.

Corinna

No complaints what so ever. They said it was a great stay and all rooms have a view

 

[dolphingirl47]

No complaints what so ever. They said it was a great stay and all rooms have a view

Thanks. This is putting my mind at rest a little.

Corinna

 

[tajz90]

We don't have either an aquarium or a zoo anywhere near so this will be a treat. We are planning to have dinner at Bubba Gump Shrimp Company.



Corinna

We love Bubbas. We plan vacations on Bubba locations (joke)

You'll enjoy it. Love that it's right on the water. Try the I'm Stuffed Shrimp.

 

[RodNicPena]

Thanks. This is putting my mind at rest a little.

Corinna

I can always let you know how my trip goes too

 

[eggroll]

Does anyone know how hard it is to get to the cruise terminal then to the enterprise office? Then DH has to take a taxi back to the terminal! I know it's bike weekend when we are there so we have to add extra time, but I was wondering how much. Thank you!

1-1.5 hour before your boarding time

 

[Atomic]

Does anyone know how hard it is to get to the cruise terminal then to the enterprise office? Then DH has to take a taxi back to the terminal! I know it's bike weekend when we are there so we have to add extra time, but I was wondering how much. Thank you!

Enterprise is right at 61st & I45/Broaday. Not far from the terminal, but...

Bike week is a traffic nightmare. I would budget more than an hour to get the 30 blocks. Try & arrange the cab to be at the Enterprise at a certain time?

What day/time is the departure?

Are you driving in that day?


PS- bike week or The Lone Star Rally, is lots of fun & brings a diverse crowd to the island, but we take our bicycles everywhere for the really busy days & stock up on all groceries, drinks & whatever else well before hand.

PPS-Last year it had 500,000 attendees. It used to take over the whole island, but the last few years has been concentrated downtown.

PPPS-The cruise terminal is downtown.

http://www.lonestarrally.com/