Houston or Galveston post cruise this December?

[slg]

On the Panama cruise ending in Galveston and looking for advice on where to stay? We have never been to Texas and want to stay for two or three days. We don’t want to rent a car and like no hassle holidays. Recommendations? Is it easy to get to the airport in Houston from Galveston on our own? Hotels with shuttles? Thanks in advance!

 

[disneyfaninaz]

There are shuttles that will take you from Galveston to either Houston Airport. We used Galveston Express.

 

[MEC004]

Super easy and only an hourish away to each airport (Hobby or IAH). I would recommend to go to NASA, The Strand/Elissa (Galveston), Houston Museum of Natural Science, and the Houston Zoo. They are great places to visit if you have never been around this part of Texas.

We are a commuter city and I would recommend using the shuttles depending on where you are staying in Galveston or Houston. You would need an Uber to get around to a lot of places because our bus system is lacking due to being so spread out (unless you stay in the inner loop).

 

[slg]

if I only have two or three days, is it better to stay in Houston or Galveston for a taste of Texas and nothing too stressful?

 

[CeCe0906]

Galveston, my grandparents lived there, so went often.

Historic buildings like Bishops Palace or Grand 1894 Opera House, Moody Gardens is fun, Pleasure pier, great seafood, the Strand area ( bars, restaurants, shops) is decked out for holidays and depending on when in December, Dickens on the Strand is a fun event. Railway museum, Naval Museum. Nothing is too far away, if you stay central can walk to alot, or if you need to Uber, it's not a far/expensive ride.

I wouldn't do Houston without a car. It does have some nice museum, restaurants, bars, etc. But it's basically a large sprawling urban city, lots of traffic and the opposite of laid back.

 

[auntlynne]

@CeCe0906 - large sprawling city is exactly what came to my mind, too.

 

[W4WaltDisney]

Check out the VRBOs in Galveston. There are beautiful beach properties as well as gorgeous historic houses.

 

[5Texans]

Galveston is more walkable, and definitely more laid back. There is a trolley that goes up and down the main strip. The beaches in Galveston are not great IMO, but there is some fun stuff to do including water parks, pools and seaside dining there that you could get around to easily. I would choose this. There is also a lot of fun history in Galveston.

I wouldn't try Houston without a car. There is a light rail that goes from Downtown, through the museum district, past the park and zoo and into the Medical district. But I think the little neighborhoods "Inside the loop" are more fun to hang out in. There are tons of great shops and international cuisine, but Houston is probably the least laid back place in Texas (They'd say Dallas YMMV)

 

[MEC004]

I would stay in Galveston for a few days then if that is all you have. You can stay on The Strand near the port and take the trolley or Uber for farther places. Great places to eat too! Houston and the surrounding area is one of the biggest melting pots in the world.

Also, the nicest beach in Galveston is the Galveston State Park. You will need to Uber to get there, but it’s really clean with nice activities.

 

[anricat]

if I only have two or three days, is it better to stay in Houston or Galveston for a taste of Texas and nothing too stressful?

It really depends on what you want to do. Houston has a lot to offer. We live in Austin and visit regularly. We just got back from a trip and we stayed in Webster. It's actually close the Space Center Houston (which is amazing) and it's about equidistant from Galveston so you could do some activities there and the center of Houston. There are some amazing museums in Houston. If you have younger kids, the Children's Museum is phenomenal. If you have slightly older kids, the Houston Museum of Natural Science is a day (or more, honestly) in and of itself. There's also a wonderful art museum and a Holocaust museum. Also near the Space Center is a good museum of flight if that's something you like. This was our second trip to the Space Center and our third or fourth time at the Natural Science museum. There's always something new to see. We also went to Kemah Boardwalk this time around which is an area of restaurants, carnival type rides, and midway games.

Galveston is a little more laid back, but there's plenty to do. The Moody Mansion is fun as is Moody Gardens or just walking on the Strand and the unique shops and businesses along there. It sort of depends on if you want the BIG city or something more low key and/or beach.

EDIT: Missed the part about not wanting a car. Texas is tricky without a car. Houston is 100% out in that case and even Galveston will be a little challenging without one. I'll leave the rest of my post up in case anyone else stumbles upon it wanting advance for Houston and will be getting a car.

 

[slg]

No kids. Thought we could just walk and take the trolly in Galveston, staying at the Harbor House.

 

[soniam]

I would say neither, but I live in Texas Galveston might work without a car. Houston is difficult without a car. There’s stuff to do in both. Galveston might get boring after a day or 2. If you like real beaches, avoid swimming in Galveston.

 

[MEC004]

No kids. Thought we could just walk and take the trolly in Galveston, staying at the Harbor House.

I have stayed at the Harbor House! Great location and easy accessible to lots of places on that side of the island. Definitely go to Pier 19 and learn about the 1900 Galveston Storm the hop on the Elissa. Take a carriage ride to learn about the history of the island. Moody Mansion and Bishops Palace are great tours as well. As you walk the strand look for plaques and info about where the water levels have been from past hurricanes. You can even see the concrete ship and the remnants of a fort used during the Civil War.

In one of my undergrad courses my focus was on the restoration of Galveston after the 1900 storm. My family immigrated there and survived the storm. While not the prettiest island the history makes up for it.

 

[slg]

We love architecture and history! Our favourite things to do is to go to museums. We were thinking of Moody House, Bishop Palace, the Opera House and Moody Gardens for fun. We have three days and think we can fill them. Looking at the trolly route, it seems we can get to Moody Gardens as well. We might go to the Amusement park on the Pier as well.

 

[sandiedvc]

May not be your cup of tea, but we enjoyed the Ocean Star oil rig museum.