I'm going to spew alot of information here so that other first timers thinking about going on this trip will be well informed. First I had never cruised before and i'm a bit of an analysis freak and try to get all of the information before I get there. Alot of this info was gathered from various sites, confirmed or denied on this trip, and outlined here.

First thing was that I booked through priceline cruises. I had spoken to Carnival when I was in the planning stages, but their prices were beat by Priceline during a small deal window I had. Otherwise, it was cheaper (on a normal day) to go through Carnival. I booked this as a family trip that was a summer trip that would be outside of hurricane season, so yes more of a spring trip, but we will not be taking a summer trip now. We were also cellebrating our 14th anniversary. I have 3 girls, ages 8, 9, and 12 that went with us. I booked 2 cabins, 1 was a balcony, and the other an inside to save costs. I was able to get 8301 and 8299 which is just across from each other so that the 3 kids could stay together and not be far. Booking that was not easy to do, but with 2 months time to sail, and agents that could read off available rooms while I looked at the floor plans, we were able to get it done without too much hassle.

With the tickets set, I planned the rest of the trip around this. First, parking at Galveston Park N Cruise was the way to go. $45 for indoor parking right across the street from the terminal can't be beat. Book it online and print your receipt. You won't be sorry. Read more