Veronica Arriaga, of Angleton, Texas, a passenger from the disabled Carnival Triumph cruise ship, holds a sign referring to the red biohazard bags used as toilets, after arriving by bus at the Hilton Riverside Hotel in New Orleans, Friday, Feb. 15, 2013. (AP) - Passengers finally escaped the disabled Carnival cruise ship Triumph and were on the move Friday: some checked into hotels while others hopped on buses or jumped on charter flights home after five numbing days at sea on a cruise liner paralyzed by an engine-room fire. The vacation ship carrying some 4,200 people docked late Thursday in Mobile to raucous cheers from passengers weary of overflowing toilets, food shortages and foul odors. "Sweet Home Alabama!" read one of the homemade signs passengers affixed alongside the 14-story ship as many celebrated along deck rails lining several levels of the stricken ship. The ship's horn blasted several times as four tugboats helped it to shore at about 9:15 p.m. "It was horrible, just horrible" said Maria Hernandez, 28, of Angleton, Texas, tears welling in her eyes as she talked about waking up to smoke in her lower-level room Sunday from the engine-room fire and the days of heat and stench that followed. It took about four hours for all passengers to disembark. Carnival spokesman Vance Gulliksen said passengers had three options: take a bus straight to Galveston, Texas, to retrieve cars parked at the ship's departure port, take a bus to New Orleans to stay at a hotel before a charter flight home or have family or friends pick them up in Mobile. As if the passengers hadn't endured enough, one of the buses broke down during the two-hour ride to New Orleans. Carnival spokesman Vance Gulliksen said the passengers got on another bus and made it safely to New Orleans. Gulliksen said up to 20 charter flights would leave New Orleans later Friday to take guests who stayed in hotels there to their final destinations. Nearly 2,000 passengers arrived at a New Orleans Hilton in the wee hours, and by dawn many were headed out again to fly to Houston. They then had to get a connecting flight home or chartered bus back to their cars in Galveston. "It just feels so good to be on land again and to feel like I have options," said Tracey Farmer of Tulsa, Okla. I'm just ready to see my family. It's been harder on them than us I think because they've been so worried about us. It's been extremely stressful for them. Buses arrived at the Port of Galveston on Friday morning after an eight-hour drive from Mobile. Port of Galveston police said they expected as many as 800 people by bus. Some people faced a long drive home once they arrived in Galveston. "It's going to be a very long day," said Dwayne McAbee, who had a six- to seven-hour drive from Galveston to his home in Fort Worth, Texas. In Mobile, tugs pulled the ship away from the dock Friday, moving it down a waterway in the direction of a shipyard where city officials said it will be repaired. Gulliksen said the damage assessment was ongoing and the company did yet have a timetable for the repairs. Several cranes were stationed alongside the ship and smoke could be seen spewing from its generators. Only hours earlier, weary passengers streamed down the gangplank, some in wheelchair. For 24-year-old Brittany Ferguson, of Texas, the worst part was not knowing how long they would be at sea. "I'm feeling awesome just to see land and buildings," said Ferguson, who was in a white robe to keep her warm during cold nights. Some danced. A line of taxis waited for people, and motorists on Interstate 10 stopped to watch the exodus of passengers. It took six grueling hours navigating the 30-mile ship channel. At nearly 900 feet in length, it was the largest cruise ship ever to dock at Mobile. A team of six investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board was in Mobile to look into what caused the engine room fire, NTSB spokesman Keith Holloway said Friday. The NTSB was working with the U.S. Coast Guard and the Bahamas Maritime Authority, which will serve as the primary investigative agency. The Bahamian government was taking the lead because the Triumph is a Bahamian-flagged vessel and it was in international waters at the time of the fire, Holloway said. Still, the NTSB could take information from the probe and use it to make recommendations for improving cruise ship safety, he said. Carnival CEO Gerry Cahill apologized at a news conference and later on the public address system as people disembarked. Passengers were supposed to get a full refund and discounts on future cruises, and Carnival said it would give an additional $500 in compensation. So if anyone wants my free cruise, look me up," said Kendall Jenkins, 24, of Houston. Bounding off the ship in bathrobes, she and her friend Brittany Ferguson immediately kissed the pavement at the Port of Mobile in Alabama. Associated Press writers Danny Robbins in Dallas; Mike Graczyk in Houston; Ramit Plushnick-Masti in Houston; Stacey Plaisance in New Orleans; Bob Johnson in Montgomery, Ala.; and Melissa Nelson-Gabriel in Mobile, Ala.; contributed to this report.