This is my third cruise on the Carnival Conquest. My friend who went with me has never cruised before.
Embarkation and debarkation went smoothly, no complaints. I always park at the Port of Galveston. It is so convenient and have never had to wait long for a shuttle going or coming. On debarkation, we got a luggage handler with a cart to get us to customs and with him, we got through a lot faster!
We spent the night at the Holiday Inn on the Beach; I've also stayed at the Holiday Inn Sunspree Resort. I like the "Beach" better. Both are decent hotels to spend the night in before a cruise. No complaints whatsoever. We stayed on the 5th floor. I "believe" the 5th floor and above are newly renovated. The hotel suggested the Fisherman's Wharf for great seafood, the food was "excellent".
I've stayed in three different cabins on the Carnival Conquest; all had balconies; the last room I stayed in had a lot of noise above us. That is my only complaint. I love being on the 8th floor, mid ship, but if you don't want to have to deal with the noise from the restaurant above, you may want to do the seventh floor.