J.A.S.O.N. Posted August 15, 2005 Share Posted August 15, 2005 I read an article lately that stated Galveston currently comes in last in Texas' coastal cities as far as drawing tourist. With all the development going on in Galveston, do any of you guys think Galveston (in the near future) could possibly surpass Corpus & South Padre in this respect.(short of miracle, that the water turns blue)Galveston has Texas' top cruise portNew residential projects are announced every weekSchlitterbahn is comingTwo new convention centersWhat other amenities would the island city have to obtain in order to obtain the #1 spot, or could it never? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirzania Posted August 15, 2005 Share Posted August 15, 2005 Galveston has Texas' top cruise port <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Isn't Galveston the only city in Texas with a port that cruiseliners come in to? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjb434 Posted August 15, 2005 Share Posted August 15, 2005 The Port of Houston is Building one right now to relieve Galveston's cruise terminal.I think you have to realized that South Padre and Chorpus are swamped with out of state visitors in numbers much larger than Galveston during the spring break times. This I think pushese these area above Galveston. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houston19514 Posted August 15, 2005 Share Posted August 15, 2005 Isn't Galveston the only city in Texas with a port that cruiseliners come in to? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> No. Houston has a port that cruiseliners come in to also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted August 15, 2005 Share Posted August 15, 2005 The Port of Houston is Building one right now to relieve Galveston's cruise terminal.I think you have to realized that South Padre and Chorpus are swamped with out of state visitors in numbers much larger than Galveston during the spring break times. This I think pushese these area above Galveston.<{POST_SNAPBACK}>It's not to relieve Galveston's port. It is to COMPETE with Galveston's port.I would certainly agree that Corpus and Padre probably get more overnight visitors than Galveston, but if day trippers are included, Galveston probably gets more tourists. Houston provides a lot of tourism to the island. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Posted August 15, 2005 Share Posted August 15, 2005 It's not to relieve Galveston's port. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The New Juniper Posted August 16, 2005 Share Posted August 16, 2005 Galveston does offer much more than other beach destinations in Texas. Problem is: It doesn't offer the beach that other beach destinations offer. Galveston is an interesting place to go that happens to have a C+ beach you can utilize. Padre is an A+ beach, and happens to also have some peripheral activities associated with it.Drawing tourists is all about the quality of the coast line. Galveston, due to its proximity to the Mississippi River, has a poor coast line.What saves it, obviously, is that it is located 45 minutes from the 4th largest city in the country. I love Galveston, but I think few could argue that it competes on any level for beach enjoyment with Corpus or Padre. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjb434 Posted August 16, 2005 Share Posted August 16, 2005 I've been to the Strand several times. Outside of the architecture of the old buildings, the place doesn't really grab me. It's the same stores I see in Houston and the same beach souvenir shops. There are few gems such as that fudge place. Can't think of the name.This doesn't mean I think the Strand is horrible, It's just not my cup of tea. I usually enjoy it by being with friends who are enjoying the place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted August 16, 2005 Share Posted August 16, 2005 Well, the Strand IS a tourist area, after all. A lot of those shops will bore a regular visitor. Shops with a little more weight to them, such as art or antiques, might encourage more regular visitors, but tourists seem to demand the same crap in town after town. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.A.S.O.N. Posted August 16, 2005 Author Share Posted August 16, 2005 I believe Chico's, Van Heusen, & Bass are the only 3 retailers on the Strand that you can find in Houston, the rest are locally owned and operated. I know of 3 regular antique shops and one nautical antique shop on the Stand and Post Office (a street over).You guys should check out some of the new shops that have popped up in the last few months. Check out www.thestrand.com or www.twistedparrot.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidtownCoog Posted August 16, 2005 Share Posted August 16, 2005 Are the anitque shops gone, or are y'all talking out your collective arses? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.A.S.O.N. Posted August 16, 2005 Author Share Posted August 16, 2005 Are the anitque shops gone, or are y'all talking out your collective arses?<{POST_SNAPBACK}>I know what I am talking about. The largest is on the Strand directly next door to La King's candy shop. There are a couple on Post Office and the nautical antique shop is on Mechanic I believe, which is in the general area. There are more in the vicinity also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidtownCoog Posted August 16, 2005 Share Posted August 16, 2005 That's what I thought. I used to frequent them back in the day.Red's post read as if they were gone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.A.S.O.N. Posted August 16, 2005 Author Share Posted August 16, 2005 There is also the Galveston Arts Center, http://www.galvestonartscenter.org/ There was an exhibit that I fell in love with by David Bates called "The Gulf Coast", which featured almost entirely scenes from Galveston... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted August 16, 2005 Share Posted August 16, 2005 That's what I thought. I used to frequent them back in the day.Red's post read as if they were gone.<{POST_SNAPBACK}>Coog, sorry if my post gave the wrong impression. I love the nautical antique shop, BTW...and now, back to your regularly scheduled program. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpringTX Posted August 16, 2005 Share Posted August 16, 2005 South Padre has an advantage in that it's a NATIONAL vacation destination. I just saw South Padre on a list on MSN of the top 10 beaches in the country last week. When they make these lists, they obviously don't feel right about making all 10 of the top 10 beaches in Florida, which is what is deserved, so they look around and sprinkle in a few from other places like Texas, who happens to have 1 semi-decent beach. And even though South Padre is nowhere near as nice as any of the beaches in Florida, it's the best beach within 1000 miles or so (actually 894 miles to Pensacola).But I don't quite agree with the rating that South Padre is an A+ beach. I do agree with the rating that Galveston is a C+ beach. I would call South Padre more of an A- beach at best. I could easily see South Padre being rated a B+.One of South Padre's biggest advantages over Galveston is its newness. It's just cleaner, shinier, and...well...newer. Galveston's wonderful architectural and historical heritage comes at a price: it's old. A lot of people like new, shiny things.A couple decades from now, South Padre is going to start looking really dated. And then Galveston will start to regain a lot of ground, especially because Galveston keeps reinvesting in itself and revitalizing itself.Regarding the cruise ship business, the Port of Houston did hardly any cruise ship business at all, last time I checked. I think they stopped for a while and are now just starting back up again. So my impression is that Galveston is basically the "800 pound gorilla" when it comes to the cruise ship business.Galveston is "propped up" by its proximity to Houston as The New Juniper pointed out. But that proximity to Houston is also a great bonus because of day trippers and investment dollars.Schlitterbahn seemed to be an advantage that South Padre had over Galveston. Now Galveston has evened that score. Galveston also has the #1 rated hotel on the Texas coast (the San Luis). If South Padre underestimates Galveston, they're going to pay dearly for it. Galveston is for real. Galveston ain't goin' away. It's prospects are bright and it's on the move. I don't want to predict it surpassing South Padre any time soon, but I think that's very much in the cards, if all goes well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pineda Posted August 16, 2005 Share Posted August 16, 2005 GALVESTON DEVELOPER BREATHES SIGH OF RELIEFGALVESTON (galvnews.com) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjb434 Posted August 17, 2005 Share Posted August 17, 2005 Good news. It seems the developers have a itch saying the potential in Galveston is being realized. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pineda Posted August 17, 2005 Share Posted August 17, 2005 www.galvnews.com Good website to keep up-to-date on news in Galveston area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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