Houston

Best things to do in Houston

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   1. A day trip to Galveston

   • A full day
   • Check entry rules before you go
   • Families
   • Couples

   A resort city and port on the Gulf Coast of Texas, on Galveston Island at the southern end of the Greater Houston area. It has Seawall Boulevard, home to the longest continuous sidewalk in the United States, and Moody Gardens.

   Check the official website for opening times and ticket details before you go.

   18,003 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Galveston, Texas
   • Wikipedia, Bayshore Boulevard

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   2. Space Center Houston and Johnson Space Center

   • Half a day to a full day
   • Tickets needed
   • Families
   • Rainy day

   Space Center Houston is a science museum and the official visitor center of NASA's Johnson Space Center, home of Mission Control and astronaut training. It is a Smithsonian Affiliate, and tours reach some NASA grounds and buildings.

   Tour access to NASA buildings is arranged by the visitor center; check what is open on the day.

   9,581 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Space Center Houston
   • Wikipedia, Johnson Space Center

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   3. Rothko Chapel

   • About an hour
   • Check entry rules before you go
   • Couples
   • Adults
   • Rainy day

   A non-denominational chapel founded by John and Dominique de Menil. Its walls carry fourteen Mark Rothko paintings in dark hues, inside an octagonal building. It sits in the Montrose neighbourhood, next to the Menil Collection campus.

   Check the official website for opening times and ticket details before you go.

   4,837 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Rothko Chapel

4. 

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   4. San Jacinto Monument

   • 1 to 2 hours
   • Check entry rules before you go
   • Families
   • Active

   An Art Deco column about 173 m (567 ft) tall on the Houston Ship Channel, topped with a 34-foot Lone Star. It marks the site of the Battle of San Jacinto, the decisive battle of the Texas Revolution.

   Check the official website for opening times and ticket details before you go.

   3,708 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, San Jacinto Monument
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   5. Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo

   • A day or an evening
   • Tickets needed
   • Annual event; check dates
   • Families
   • Couples

   The largest livestock exhibition and rodeo in the world, held at the stadium complex in Houston since 2003. It began as a way to promote Texas agriculture and has grown into one of the biggest cultural events in the United States.

   Dates and tickets vary each year; check the official site. We have not confirmed the 2027 dates.

   2,258 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo

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   6. Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

   • 2 to 3 hours
   • Check entry rules before you go
   • Couples
   • Rainy day
   • Adults

   An art museum in the Museum District whose permanent collection covers more than 5,000 years of history, with nearly 80,000 works from six continents.

   Check the official website for opening times and ticket details before you go.

   2,068 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

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   7. Menil Collection

   • 1 to 2 hours
   • Check entry rules before you go
   • Couples
   • Rainy day
   • Adults

   The museum for the private art collection of John and Dominique de Menil: paintings, sculpture, prints, drawings, photographs and rare books. Wikipedia says it is ranked with the great private US museums such as the Frick.

   Check the official website for opening times and ticket details before you go.

   1,619 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Menil Collection

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   8. Houston Museum of Natural Science

   • Half a day
   • Tickets needed
   • Families
   • Rainy day

   A natural history museum on the northern edge of Hermann Park, with four floors of halls, the Burke Baker Planetarium, the Cockrell Butterfly Center and a giant-screen theatre. It had about 1.5 million visitors in 2024.

   Check the official website for opening times and ticket details before you go.

   1,331 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Houston Museum of Natural Science

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   9. Moody Gardens

   • Half a day to a full day
   • Check entry rules before you go
   • Families

   A non-profit attraction in Galveston, established in 1986 by The Moody Foundation. It sits in the same day-trip area as Galveston's seafront.

   We have only confirmed the basics for this attraction; check the official site for what is on and ticket prices.

   1,253 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Moody Gardens

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    10. Houston Zoo

    • Half a day
    • Tickets needed
    • Families

    A 55-acre zoo inside Hermann Park, open since 1922. By 2024 it held 575 species and had 2 million visitors in a year.

    Check the official website for opening times and ticket details before you go.

    1,138 readers a month

    Sources

    • Wikipedia, Houston Zoo

Just missed the list: Hermann Park (11th; a 445-acre park with the zoo and a reflection pool); USS Texas (12th by readers; a dreadnought battleship turned museum ship)