All Things Galveston (Updated parking - 4/7)

[mareed]

Originally Posted by nunzia

I saw early in this thread an 8 night including WDW listed in May..was this cancelled? When I started looking, the Apr 26 departure is the last for that particular cruise.
Also, is there a way to avoid Houston driving in from the west on I-10? I think I see a bypass kind of thing but need a better map to be sure.
There don't seem to be many trip reports for anyone that has taken the 8 night..am I missing them?

The May 10th 8 night cruise is still there right now, and it's the last one. The second cruise of this itinerary is in progress right now and returns Sat, so there's only one that's been completed (Jan 18-26), so that's likely why you don't see many trip reports.

[slatterie]

Originally Posted by txSleepingBeauty

I'd add at least 2 hours if you hit Houston at rush hour. an hour to get from The Woodlands down to the city and at least another hour to get from downtown to Galveston. No tolls, unless you take the beltway which wouldn't be any faster at rushhour. If you're feeling brave and are willing to find the entrance you can use the HOV lane from downtown to Dixie Farm Road.

That is what i was afraid of...much like Dallas. Sigh..Oh well part of the "adventure" I guess. Thanks for the info.

Yes DH is aware of Bucee's and its a mandatory stop on our trip.

[nunzia]

Originally Posted by cw21726

If you're coming in on a Saturday don't sweat I-10. It's 45 S that gets a little iffy and there's no viable way around that. If you take Beltway 8 you'll hit like 4 toll booths and it'll take longer than just going into downtown and catching 45s.

Check with TranStar for road closures just in case. http://traffic.houstontranstar.org/roadclosures/

We are coming in on a Thursday..cruise leaves Friday. Drove through Houston once a million years ago and it seemed pretty frantic even then.

[nunzia]

Originally Posted by mareed

The May 10th 8 night cruise is still there right now, and it's the last one. The second cruise of this itinerary is in progress right now and returns Sat, so there's only one that's been completed (Jan 18-26), so that's likely why you don't see many trip reports.

Well, for heaven's sake..there it is! I don't know how I missed it before..

[courtnvm]

Nunzia, we are doing the same. We are driving in on a Thursday from Austin for our Friday cruise, but we can't decide what time to leave. If we plan on a 4 hour drive (with a stop at the new Buccee's in Bastrop), then it's my opinion that we leave by noon, to avoid traffic in Houston. I'm having trouble convincing both my husband and my girlfriend's husband. The guys think that us girls just want to start our vacation that much earlier. If it were up to me, we would be out of here at 8am and we would hit every outlet center between here and there!!

[queenofeverything]

On a Friday, traffic is always bad in Houston. If you can hit town late morning (10ish) and head south then, that is probably the least traffic. Because it is Friday and alot of people work short days, rush hour starts about noon!

[m4travel]

Originally Posted by mareed

The May 10th 8 night cruise is still there right now, and it's the last one. The second cruise of this itinerary is in progress right now and returns Sat, so there's only one that's been completed (Jan 18-26), so that's likely why you don't see many trip reports.

The Wonder is in port in Key West right now. Here's a link to the webcam:
http:// www.KeyWestHarborWebcam.com

Soon, soon (May 10th for us).

[mareed]

Originally Posted by queenofeverything

On a Friday, traffic is always bad in Houston. If you can hit town late morning (10ish) and head south then, that is probably the least traffic. Because it is Friday and alot of people work short days, rush hour starts about noon!

As a local, I agree that rush hour starts earlier on Friday.

[Beach Mouse]

Originally Posted by nunzia

There don't seem to be many trip reports for anyone that has taken the 8 night..am I missing them?

I was on the Jan 18 cruise on the Magic. We had a great time. I am new to DIS so I have not made any reports specifically on it. Not sure where.
It was my first cruise but not the rest if my family. They all said that the bar has been set to high for me.
Only negatives (due to us not ship)
Kids were slow to warm up to the club/lab the first day. They only wanted to go swimming. Then they made friends and I was scheduling with their parents on when the kids could meet next.
Key west is only half a day. So we took the train ride hoping to see more. We did but it was quick and ate up a lot of time. You are delayed getting off the boat because you meet on ship to go as group and once the ride was over we had 1.5 hours left. Just decide if you want quantity or quality time looking around.

As for everything else, we had a great time. All the CMs were wonderful, food, shows... I am ready to go again.

Let me know if you have specific questions.

[Gina]

Hi all, OP here! Just wanted to see if there was any specific info anyone would like added to the first page, or needs research on. It seems in talking to non-locals that the biggest issue with sailing out of Galveston is transportation from the airports, but I have no clue about any of that. If anyone has used a specific company and can recommend them, please let us know the name and cost and I will add the recommendation to the first post!

Also know that, for some unknown reason, parking costs have suddenly jumped a LOT. Demand, greed, I have no idea. All I know is, I had a truly awesome experience with Discount Cruise Parking just last month, but somehow the cost went from $40 for 8 nights then (pre-booked + had a $5 code), to double that now. INSANE. And a quick check shows most of the other lots to have hiked also. EZ Cruise and Lighthouse show $55 for 6-7 nights prebooked at the moment, and I'm going to email Jason and make sure the DISNEY code is still valid.

Thanks for helping keep this thread going so future cruisers can hopefully find the info they need!


-gina-

[wallawallakids]

Originally Posted by Gina

Hi all, OP here! Just wanted to see if there was any specific info anyone would like added to the first page, or needs research on. It seems in talking to non-locals that the biggest issue with sailing out of Galveston is transportation from the airports, but I have no clue about any of that. If anyone has used a specific company and can recommend them, please let us know the name and cost and I will add the recommendation to the first post!

Also know that, for some unknown reason, parking costs have suddenly jumped a LOT. Demand, greed, I have no idea. All I know is, I had a truly awesome experience with Discount Cruise Parking just last month, but somehow the cost went from $40 for 8 nights then (pre-booked + had a $5 code), to double that now. INSANE. And a quick check shows most of the other lots to have hiked also. EZ Cruise and Lighthouse show $55 for 6-7 nights prebooked at the moment, and I'm going to email Jason and make sure the DISNEY code is still valid.

Thanks for helping keep this thread going so future cruisers can hopefully find the info they need!


-gina-

I have noticed that the limo/car costs from the airport to Galveston have also gone up in price from when we first started pricing it out in December. :

[lovetotraveltx]

Originally Posted by Gina

Hi all, OP here! Just wanted to see if there was any specific info anyone would like added to the first page, or needs research on. It seems in talking to non-locals that the biggest issue with sailing out of Galveston is transportation from the airports, but I have no clue about any of that. If anyone has used a specific company and can recommend them, please let us know the name and cost and I will add the recommendation to the first post!

Also know that, for some unknown reason, parking costs have suddenly jumped a LOT. Demand, greed, I have no idea. All I know is, I had a truly awesome experience with Discount Cruise Parking just last month, but somehow the cost went from $40 for 8 nights then (pre-booked + had a $5 code), to double that now. INSANE. And a quick check shows most of the other lots to have hiked also. EZ Cruise and Lighthouse show $55 for 6-7 nights prebooked at the moment, and I'm going to email Jason and make sure the DISNEY code is still valid.

Thanks for helping keep this thread going so future cruisers can hopefully find the info they need!


-gina-

I live local and have a limo company that would do it. they have town cars, limos or 1 Navigator. I'll PM you!

[Luv2Diz]

Originally Posted by Gina

Hi all, OP here! Just wanted to see if there was any specific info anyone would like added to the first page, or needs research on. It seems in talking to non-locals that the biggest issue with sailing out of Galveston is transportation from the airports, but I have no clue about any of that. If anyone has used a specific company and can recommend them, please let us know the name and cost and I will add the recommendation to the first post!

-gina-

Just booked a May cruise last week. I had our TA ask Disney about shuttles from the airports. She was told that Disney will run shuttles out of Hobby until May 15th. They will only be offered out of George Bush after that. Cost is $30 per person each way from both airports.

[AntonioOtero]

I really thought long and hard over the transportation to port situation. I live 8 hours drive from the port and have decided to fly. The reason to fly was because I found it difficult to prebook parking at the terminal. Also, hotels were expensive, and seemed to be booked. I am not sure if the booking problems were unique to me, but that was my experience with the handful of vendors I tried.

So, after looking into Southwest, I decided that with the baggage allowance and the nonstop service, to book air transportation. The cost was a little more, but all in all, it is faster and more convenient.

Now, on to tranfers to port. Limos, taxi, and super shuttle were all quite comperable in price. My concern was that my DS3 would require a car seat that I was not traveling with. Along with the added 15% tip with private car or limo. So, at $90 total each way, I decided on disney transportation.

I am sure there are other ways to get there, but this is what I chose for my family. Ongoing, the port of Galveston would be well invested in providing a viable transportation option for cruisers.

[Ichiban]

I do not recommend using Lady Bird Limousine. Her prices were reasonable, but she was late both times picking us up - an hour late in one case - and didn't seem to be familiar with which ships were at each terminal.