Photo: Jammed inside the Galveston Cruise terminal
I returned from my first cruise last Thursday - convinced that Galveston needs to update its cruise terminal or let the ships go to Houston's new Bayport cruise terminal.
Why? Because the Galveston facility is too small to handle the traffic - as you can see from the photo. When we returned Thursday we were six hours late due to fog - the folk waiting to board the ship had no where to park (our shipload had not yet cleared the parking lot) or to wait. Houston's new Bayport terminal is a much nicer facility.
So I spent my 50-something birthday drifting at sea, in the fog. Ummmmm. lol.
I would recommend Carnival clean up the Ecstasy's engine stack - it left a black smoke trail that spoiled the view of the crystal blue skies over the Gulf of Mexico. I have attached a short video showing the black smoke pouring from its stack at one point during the cruise.
Other than that, I'm ready for another cruise out of Houston!
2 comments:
Bayport is a very nice facility; however. the parking woud have been worse there. They have only ONE parking lot. At least Galveston has the two port parking lots AND two full time private lots specializing in cruise parking. I want to see cruise ships in Bayport, it's very nice, but the weakest point is the parking.
Cleaning the stack would have no effect on the color of smoke from the stack. The Ecstasy has an environmental officer and good record concerning emissions.
A late ship will cause some problems wherever it ports. Photos of the interior of the terminal are rare as they are illegal. Guess someone missed the signs.
Glad you enjoyed the cruise. Try the Carnival Conquest or better yet, The Voyager of the Seas. Both fantastic ships with a lot more facilities and 'FUN' than the Ecstasy.
Good point on Bayport needing a second parking lot. I did hear the carnival rep on the cruise indicate that another couple ships for our area is possible - we could end up with 4 instead of 2. That would be great - but I'd still like to see upgrades at both the Houston and Galveston facilities. The building would stimulate our economy and create some 21st century jobs. THANKS for the comment.
Post a Comment