Albuquerque NM to Galvenston Beach TX

[Airstruck]

Hello all!


Any words of wisdom as we plan a trip from the Albuquerque area to Galveston Beach TX?

Routes, places to stay?

Any rally information would be great as well!

Thanks!

[n2916s]

The Tumble In RV Park in Marfa is a fine stop and often replete with classic trailers. Marfa is a nice break as well, kind of half cowboy and half hipster.

Mike

[Ampman]

Palo Duro Canyon State Park is great for hiking and the temperatures are great this time of year.
Iconic Cadillac Ranch just west of Amarillo is interesting. Plenty of state parks on the way to the Texas coast.
Road from Carlsbad to Ft. Stockton is/was very rough from all the heavy oil field traffic if you go that route.

[cwf]

Avoid interstate 35... In fact, all of them you can... My personal choice. The Toll Road from i35 north of Georgetown, Texas, goes to the East, by the Circuit of the Americas racetrack and bypasses Austin maelstrom.

When you get to Hwy 183 head South..it turns toward the coast. Just inside city limits of Lockhart you will find Kreuze's on your right side, before an overpass. Nice parking, good BBQ... If you cross the overpass, leave the AS in a parking lot and stroll to Black's BBQ. I like it better, but can't get to it with our 34' on the narrow streets.

At Luling, (old oil town.&. Watermelon festival) where 183 & 510 merge, at the RR tracks. Be in left lane then turn to the left as you cross the RR tracks...

Keep going to "Gonzalez" where the "Come and Take it!" Phrase was spoken into history... And adorned a flag (Would not be smiled upon in our current rule)... During the first military engagement of the Texas Revolution on 2OCT1835. Texas eventually won independence and is the only independent REPUBLIC in cahoots with the other 49 states which is why the Texas ans US flag fly at same height. There is an RV park "Independence Park and RV Park" if you want to check historical sites.

You will find a "Bucees" fuel and food" stop on South side where you cross I10... There is an old truck stop on North which has less traffic.. Cannot recall the name now..

Palmetto State Park is nice and just minutes South of I10...

You can go East on I10 where 183/510 intersect and pick up historical and infamous "Hwy 90" through Waelder, Flatonia, Schulenburg (home of "The Painted Churches check out Schulenburgchamber.org for details. Also Schulenburgrvpark.com There is a "Model Airplane Museum" that is a must see if you have time. Also two vineyards nearby.. "Majek Vineyard and Winery" and "Morovia Vineyard and Winery". Both have good reviews. Might also check out Sengelmannshall.com yes.. Kinda great German folks round them parts. Stay on Hwy 90 to Columbus. Take 71 South to Alt90 at Eagle Lake. Go left (East) on Hwy35 to Bay City then Angleton then Alvin where you pick up Hwy6 where you turn right to Galveston.

The other option is to go Toll road to Hwy290 which takes you to Houston then down to Galveston... I dont go thru Houston even in my car unless it between 9PM and 4AM...of course you can Hwy6 South as you near Houston which goes to Galveston... Your choice... If in a hurry take second option of Toll road-Hwy290-Hwy6-Galveston. But you miss some open areas of Texas you may like...

[ole81]

Do you have reservations in Galveston?
We highly recommend Dellanera RV Park. It is city owned and right on top of the dunes.
We are parked there now and enjoying the sights and sounds of the surf and pelicans diving into the water.
Come join us!!!!

[TheGlen]

We were in the gulf area of Texas 2 years ago. We highly recommend reservations as we had some trouble finding places to park. If you have time, take a southern route and go to Big Bend National Park - it was wonderful.
Enjoy

[coachvic]

Originally Posted by Airstruck

Hello all!


Any words of wisdom as we plan a trip from the Albuquerque area to Galveston Beach TX?

Routes, places to stay?

Any rally information would be great as well!

Thanks!

Trip planner- As a life long resident of Texas and RV owner: I would agree with not driving on I 35 near Austin or north toward Dallas ( bad traffic ). Texas is a big state- if you are near San Angelo- the Lowake Steakhouse is a must. Lowake is 20 miles from San Angelo and it is out of the way. Lowake is very small town. Steak for two will feed four easily. Onion rings are super. Place looks old but food is great. If I was going to RV trip. I would advise not missing Garner State Park. Located between Uvalde (30 miles) and Con can ( 7 miles ) and Sabinal (30 miles ). Garner has many RV spots with electricity and water. The Frio river is clear and cold. Garner has a Pavilion with an outdoor dance during the summer with a jute box. It is crowded during the summer with families. I have gone there for 50 years. From Garner - You can drive to Sabinal and pickup I 10 to travel thru San Antonio towards Luling-Gonzales exit at Bucees. Luling does have a great Bar-B-que at the City Market on I 183 but the best is 16 miles north on I 183 in Lockhart at the Chissom Trail ( on the Left with large Parking Lot ). If you have made it this far. I would continue on toward Austin (25 miles) on I 183 to McKinny Falls state park. It is on the left before Austin airport. It is the best little know RV state park in Texas. Lots of RV spots in the woods. Some wildlife like deer in the park. Hook ups with water and electricity. Then I would head back down thru Luling- Gonzales on I 183 toward Corpus Christi and Port Aransas. Stopping in Sinton to eat the home made buffet at Butter Churn. The beaches are better at the Padre Island area than Galveston and the are more RV spots. Some areas will let you camp on the beach. Don't worry about the Ferry ride at Port A- it is only 5 minutes at the most. Better beaches plus miss the Houston traffic. Hope this helps. I live in Gonzales, Texas.

[BentMetal]

Hey there Albuquerque. I've been wanting to make that trip. Hmmm. I might be able to do it in early June. But it's gonna be so hot.

[ddbisho]

One option I suggest as you approach the Houston/Galveston area is to access Galveston from the West along the coastline. Go through Lake Jackson and hit the coast at Freeport/Surfside Beach. Then drive NE towards Galveston on Hwy. 3005. It is a beautiful, undisturbed drive......MUCH more enjoyable vs coming into Galveston from the North on I-45. 3005 is a very quiet, 2-lane highway and will be much less stressful pulling a trailer vs driving on I-45.

Plus there are campgrounds along the remote areas of 3005, which is likely where you will want to end up staying.

[ddbisho]

I would also agree with coachvic that you consider (if your plans allow) traveling further down the coastline than Galveston. The ocean water is not clear around the Galveston area and things get much prettier the further south you go along the Gulf Coast. S. Padre Island is the best in the area regarding water clarity and sand color.

[rbs]

we are winding our way home from AZ and currently at Mustang Island SP. We stayed at Galveston SP on the way out, and we like this area better. TX 90 is a pretty good road, although not quite as nice as last year, but still smooth enough to pull the Airstream on. We are planning on a stop in Marfa next year, neat place.

[InterBlog]

Galveston County resident here. Whatever else you do, avoid the Gulf Freeway. It's under massive, disorganized construction between south Beltway 8 and just north of League City. That stretch is only about six miles long, but delays of over an hour are routine. Two weeks ago I had an effective delay of three hours. I kept running errands while waiting for a jack-knifed big rig with a car trapped beneath it to clear... obviously I should have taken an alternate route but there are no good ones, and if the Gulf Freeway gets bad, all the secondary roads gridlock. Three weeks ago, my husband and I went from our home in League City to Amarillo and back, diverting here and there along the way. The trip was 1,395 miles and by far the worst road of the entire trip was the Gulf Freeway just north of our own city.

Any route that involves State Highway (SH) 35 is good. A few posters suggested routes coming up the coast to Galveston rather than through Houston. SH 35 is well-maintained over most of its length. Even Bluewater Highway would be better if you were forced to come through greater Houston (due south on SH 288 through Freeport then SH 332 then 257 which transitions to FM 3005).

I also agree that there are better destinations than Galveston if the beach is your goal (if you have friends or family there, obviously that's a different consideration). City of Galveston is worth seeing if you are interested in history and architecture and there's a little bit (not much) of good art, shopping and food, but the beaches are mediocre. Goose Island State Park just east of Rockport is about 2 hours southwest of Galveston and is very nice, with the water being much cleaner.

Also as noted by others, reservations are a must. Galveston Island State Park books months in advance on weekends, as do most state parks. According to recent news reports, the Texas state park system had 8.2 million visitors last year. Each park has probably a few dozen camp sites. That's some pretty harsh math even if most of the visitors are day travelers rather than people hoping to score a camp site or hook-up.

[Airstruck]

We stopped off at Marfa last fall coming out of Big Bend. So nice! The lady at the museum had many stories to tell. Stop in and she will share information on the area as she has lived there all her life and the tales about the Marfa lights were the best.

[Airstruck]

Thanks! We do want to explore the Galveston area, for no particular reason. We just had never been and thought it would be a good stopping place on our way to New Orleans Jazz Fest. Any other suggestions you have area appreciated. We do have reservations for 2 nights on the beach side at State Park. Hopefully the weather holds up!

[Airstruck]

We really enjoyed our fall trip to Big Bend and now fully appreciate the sheer size of Texas!
Thanks!

[Airstruck]

We did stay at the Tumble Inn, great park! Thanks!

[ole81]

If you have plenty of time, you might consider a few days at Brazos Bend State Park.
http://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/brazos-bend
Beautiful treed settings, large lakes with about three thousand gators to see. Also, it has The 36-inch Gueymard Research Telescope is one of the largest telescopes in the US that is regularly available for public viewing.

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by Airstruck

Thanks! We do want to explore the Galveston area, for no particular reason. We just had never been and thought it would be a good stopping place on our way to New Orleans Jazz Fest. Any other suggestions you have area appreciated. We do have reservations for 2 nights on the beach side at State Park. Hopefully the weather holds up!

If you are going to Galveston, then the beach side of the state park is your best choice for where to stay, hands down. I was there in February and loved it to the point where I hope to snag another reservation on some weekday when I can take a day off work (it's only 30 miles from our home but we get out whenever we can). Blog post on our stay:

GALVESTON ISLAND STATE PARK

Downtown Galveston is worth exploring if you like history. Bishop's Palace is definitely worth seeing. Also if you like art, the Rene Wiley gallery is wonderful (but of course, art is very much to personal taste). My two favorite eateries are Sunflower Bakery and Mosquito Cafe, which are almost adjacent to each other. Neither specializes in the seafood for which Galveston is well-known; I'm not sure where the best seafood would be, but in general I'd probably advise steering clear of the restaurants next to the cruise ship terminal. And if you enjoy shopping, it's worth wandering through The Strand.

If you are proceeding to New Orleans, it would be really, really, REALLY convenient for you to get across the Bolivar Ferry, rather than having to travel back up to IH-10 by way of the traffic nightmare that is Houston. I don't yet know the limits of what rigs can be accommodated on that ferry. I researched it a couple of months ago, and TxDOT told me to phone the ferry people and talk to them directly about my situation, which I never got around to. This Air forums thread discusses that topic and there are trailer threads on ferry travel potential as well.

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by ole81

If you have plenty of time, you might consider a few days at Brazos Bend State Park.
http://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/brazos-bend
Beautiful treed settings, large lakes with about three thousand gators to see. Also, it has The 36-inch Gueymard Research Telescope is one of the largest telescopes in the US that is regularly available for public viewing.

Agreed - but with a couple of six-legged caveats. I had a one-night camp-out there six days ago and I really enjoyed it, but if folks are sensitive to insects, it might not be the optimal choice right at this moment. Blog post describing why:

BRAZOS BEND STATE PARK

[subfan1]

I tagged this thread because we're planning this trip from So Calif to New Orleans. Sadly without our trailer. We need to cover a lot of miles per day.