This was our second cruise with the Carnival, the first on the Conquest. I had considered various options for our vacation, but settled on cruising again because it seemed to be the most relaxing way to spend a week when nearly everything is done for you, especially we live in Houston, going to port is just a leisurely drive away.

Last year we parked at Port of Galveston's parking facility; this time I decided to try EZ Parking instead since I read so much about it on this board. Around 10:00 AM, my brother-in-law and his wife joined us Sunday morning, and the four of us took off for Galveston.

By 11:15 AM we arrived at EZ Parking, but once we parked we waited for our shuttle, and we waited, and waited.... There was a little drizzle earlier, and we had to dodge puddles of water on the pavement. A small tent/waiting area in the middle of the lot had about 15 people in it already. Finally 2 vans pulled into the lot and we breathed a sigh of relief. Read more