Texas - I know little about it, apart from Host Mach lives there!

[English Tim]

My DW and I will be sailing into Galveston next Fall and have seen very little of the USA apart from New York and Florida. We won't have much time available, but can anyone suggest what we might do with 2-3 days in Texas?

[SailorSusan]

My DW and I will be sailing into Galveston next Fall and have seen very little of the USA apart from New York and Florida. We won't have much time available, but can anyone suggest what we might do with 2-3 days in Texas?

 

Come to Austin!:)

[firefly333]

There is a beach in Galveston. Are you beach people? Galveston is a destination city for fishing and water when I was younger. We would rent a beach house for the weekend, a group of us.

 

It will be hot, primo beach season in Sept, unless you hit a storm. Take a walk on the seawall at night, eat some fish, go into town, the strand historical area. Take in Moody Gardens which I hear is great if it rains. I would stay in Galveston, not Houston myself.

[English Tim]

We're coming in November. Is that not what you folks understand as Fall?

 

Is there really not much more to see than at Galveston?

[DFW Airwolf]

Since you have to go thru Houston/Clear Lake to get to Galveston. I would definetly suggest going by NASA and checking it out. They have a Great Tour & Visitors center. Not as Free or as cheap as it used to be, but definetly worth seeing.

 

Also Ride the Ferry in Galveston. You can see some interesting sights from it. Look for the Cement Ship wreck, Seawolf park & the Coast Guard Base. Also your Cruise ship will be sailing thru there so you can say you were there beforehand. Also bring bread if you want to feed the Seagulls off the back of the ferry.

 

Depending on when you are cruising, you may get to enjoy some great events on the Strand. Dickens on the Strand is probably the coolest thing around.

 

Just check out http://www.Galveston.com

[firefly333]

We're coming in November. Is that not what you folks understand as Fall?

 

Is there really not much more to see than at Galveston?

 

You could drive all over Houston and see a few things, but Moody Gardens is as special as anything in Houston. Take in a football game..you said you will have 2 or 3 days only in Texas.

 

Did you even look to see what Moody Gardens was.. it takes a full day by itself. http://www.moodygardens.com/

 

Yes, it will be fall, so the weather probably will be perfect for a beach day. Summer here is beastly hot... not beach weather to me if the sand is burning my feet and its over 100 degrees.

 

My friend found so many things to do in Galveston when she came early. She took a historic old home tour and found all kinds of things she was interested in.

 

Houston will be all spread out, and you will spend all your time getting from one place to another and spinning your wheels a lot. Rush hour is fun too in Houston, remember its one of the U.S.'s largest cities.

 

If you said you will be here for a few weeks, then include Houston ..but you said 2 or 3 days. Look at the concert schedules for Houston if you want to do something in Houston.

[DryCreek]

With two or three days to spend in Texas, you can really have a good time - but you won't even be able to scratch the surface of what Texas really is.

 

Start here for information on Galveston:

 

http://www.galveston.com/default.asp

 

And this link will give you some ideas about what to do in and near Houston:

 

http://www.houstonpage.com/

 

For glitz and some fun (albeit a bit pricey) you can take in Kemah Boardwalk.

 

You must be coming in on the repositioning cruise of the Carnival Magic? It sounds like you will be having an awesome holiday! Do you have your international driver license? If so, you can rent a car and just drive out west of Houston and just take in the open countryside. If you really feel like seeing a traditional Texas town, about three hours from Galveston is Brenham. One of the attractions there is the Bluebell Creamery. Best ice cream in the world (and yes, I have had true Italian gelato in Sicily and Rome). Two things I remember most about visiting countries where they drive on the opposite side that I was used to:

1 - you are always looking the wrong way when you step into traffic while crossing the street.

2 - if you drive, when you turn the corner you are always head-on to the traffic!

So, take care while visiting Texas, we want you in good shape so that you will come back when you can spend more time with us.

 

Check here for a catalog they will mail you - it gives you tons of tourist options!

http://www.traveltex.com/

 

Hope this helps! In fact, we will be heading down to Galveston in the morning; we are booked for a 5 day Western Caribbean leaving Saturday.

[English Tim]

Have a great cruise and thanks for the info, DryCreek

[ssb]

With a couple of days only

There is plenty to do in Galveston/Kemah/Nasa area

Special events in Galveston in fall:

Dickens on Strand (1st weekend in Dec)

Lone Star Biker Rally

Art Walk

Loft Tour

Octoberfest

Greek Festival

Artists Festival

Wild Game BBQ Cookoff

Others (see galveston.com for your dates)

and more:

nasa space center

kemah board walk

galveston:

1894 grand opera house (a must see tour)

ghost tours

old town galveston - on strand and post office streets(lots of shops and ice cream, old army surplus store, fine restaurants)

many live theater venues

museums

antiques and art Galleries

horse drawn carriage rides

galveston historical foundation properties

moody gardens (lots to do) (Imax Theater with lots of educational films)

schlitterbahn water park

airplane museum

restored tall ship schooner Elisa (wonderful)

1900 storm and pirate jean laffite documentary films at port

walks and shelling on the beach

shopping

dolphin watch and port tour

turtle rescue farm behind San Luis Resort

carved damaged trees from storm tour

kite flying on beach

free ferry ride

maritime museum

sea wolf park – wwII submarine and destroyer

many historical and Victorian homes

bishops palace (wonderful)

moody mansion (wonderful)

ashton villa (wonderful)

oil drilling rig museum

large souvenir shop over gulf water

duck tour (amphibious boat)

With more time …..extend days to San Antonio/New Braunfels/Gruene area

 

riverwalk in SA

gruene/New Braunfels

[oldmedic]

Since you have to go thru Houston/Clear Lake to get to Galveston. I would definetly suggest going by NASA and checking it out. They have a Great Tour & Visitors center. Not as Free or as cheap as it used to be, but definetly worth seeing.

 

Also Ride the Ferry in Galveston. You can see some interesting sights from it. Look for the Cement Ship wreck, Seawolf park & the Coast Guard Base. Also your Cruise ship will be sailing thru there so you can say you were there beforehand. Also bring bread if you want to feed the Seagulls off the back of the ferry.

 

Depending on when you are cruising, you may get to enjoy some great events on the Strand. Dickens on the Strand is probably the coolest thing around.

 

Just check out http://www.Galveston.com

 

I believe Dickens on the Strand is always the first weekend of

December... We always go and always have a blast... one of the few times each year when I can wear my kilt and not be the only one there in a kilt...:D:D

[LNLisa]

FYI--> A new barbeque restaurant, Spring Creek, has opened a location on I-45 at FM 646 (which is en route to Galveston from either airport).

 

If you will be here at the beginning of November, Quilt Festival is Nov. 3-6th. That's an amazing event.

 

In December, there are several lights displays including one in Dickinson (on the way to Galveston) and one at Moody Gardens (in Galveston). Also, it is fun to go and see the ginormous Christmas Tree in the Galleria Mall.

 

Anytime, the one place we always take visitors is Brazos Bend State Park. As long as it isn't too cold, you'll always see lots of alligators and other wildlife. It is a beautiful park.

 

Good Luck and have fun!

[firefly333]

FYI--> A new barbeque restaurant, Spring Creek, has opened a location on I-45 at FM 646 (which is en route to Galveston from either airport).

 

If you will be here at the beginning of November, Quilt Festival is Nov. 3-6th. That's an amazing event.

 

In December, there are several lights displays including one in Dickinson (on the way to Galveston) and one at Moody Gardens (in Galveston). Also, it is fun to go and see the ginormous Christmas Tree in the Galleria Mall.

 

Anytime, the one place we always take visitors is Brazos Bend State Park. As long as it isn't too cold, you'll always see lots of alligators and other wildlife. It is a beautiful park.

 

Good Luck and have fun!

 

We have a spring creek here, its just another BBQ chain to me. We get coupons monthly 2 for 1 to eat in there.

 

Brazos River, I canoed (and lived to tell about it, not for the tame).

 

I still dont see how the OP can see very many places in 2 to 3 days.

[LNLisa]

We have a spring creek here, its just another BBQ chain to me. We get coupons monthly 2 for 1 to eat in there.

 

Brazos River, I canoed (and lived to tell about it, not for the tame).

 

I still don't see how the OP can see very many places in 2 to 3 days.

 

Spring Creek--> the BBQ is good, if not the best. However, there aren't that many BBQ restaurants along south I-45. For lack of other choices that I'd actually recommend, Spring Creek is a good choice.

 

Brazos River--> The river is very long as it goes from New Mexico to the Gulf of Mexico, but I wasn't referring to the river as a whole. I was referring to the park, Brazos Bend State Park. It is a beautiful park full of plants and wildlife native to this region of Texas. If I only had two or three days to spend in the Houston area, Brazos Bend would be near the top of my list of places to visit along with NASA and the historic Galveston area. Moody Gardens, though I enjoy it as a local, I would probably give a miss since it isn't that different from other public aquariums and nature centers even if it is a bit nicer. Really it just depends what the OP is interested in.

[Shekim]

Spring Creek--> the BBQ is good, if not the best. However, there aren't that many BBQ restaurants along south I-45. For lack of other choices that I'd actually recommend, Spring Creek is a good choice.

 

Brazos River--> The river is very long as it goes from New Mexico to the Gulf of Mexico, but I wasn't referring to the river as a whole. I was referring to the park, Brazos Bend State Park. It is a beautiful park full of plants and wildlife native to this region of Texas. If I only had two or three days to spend in the Houston area, Brazos Bend would be near the top of my list of places to visit along with NASA and the historic Galveston area. Moody Gardens, though I enjoy it as a local, I would probably give a miss since it isn't that different from other public aquariums and nature centers even if it is a bit nicer. Really it just depends what the OP is interested in.

Just watch out for the wildlife that sits on the banks of the Brazos Bend State Park ponds around there; they have really big teeth and move super fast!

[bigredaggiesmom]

If you have a car (rented or other wise) I would head to San Antonio. Stay in a hotel on the River Walk, you can walk the river walk or take a boat tour of it. Many, many nice places to eat and a nice place to sit and listen to Jazz if you like that kind of music. I can not remember the name but Mach told me about it and it was wonderful. Take a walk to see the Alamo the history is just amazing. There are a lot of shops also. Not too far from San Antonio is New Braunfels and Gruene, nice little towns to just wander around a look at the shops. Austin is just down 35 from there.

 

Galveston is a pretty town with plenty to do, but if you want to explore more of Texas San Antonio is a good choice.

[DebJ14]

With a couple of days only

There is plenty to do in Galveston/Kemah/Nasa area

Special events in Galveston in fall:

Dickens on Strand (1st weekend in Dec)

Lone Star Biker Rally

Art Walk

Loft Tour

Octoberfest

Greek Festival

Artists Festival

Wild Game BBQ Cookoff

Others (see galveston.com for your dates)

and more:

nasa space center

kemah board walk

galveston:

1894 grand opera house (a must see tour)

ghost tours

old town galveston - on strand and post office streets(lots of shops and ice cream, old army surplus store, fine restaurants)

many live theater venues

museums

antiques and art Galleries

horse drawn carriage rides

galveston historical foundation properties

moody gardens (lots to do) (Imax Theater with lots of educational films)

schlitterbahn water park

airplane museum

restored tall ship schooner Elisa (wonderful)

1900 storm and pirate jean laffite documentary films at port

walks and shelling on the beach

shopping

dolphin watch and port tour

turtle rescue farm behind San Luis Resort

carved damaged trees from storm tour

kite flying on beach

free ferry ride

maritime museum

sea wolf park – wwII submarine and destroyer

many historical and Victorian homes

bishops palace (wonderful)

moody mansion (wonderful)

ashton villa (wonderful)

oil drilling rig museum

large souvenir shop over gulf water

duck tour (amphibious boat)

With more time …..extend days to San Antonio/New Braunfels/Gruene area

 

riverwalk in SA

gruene/New Braunfels

 

Ditto to all of the above.

I am originally from PA and DH is from NJ. DH refused a transfer back to Philadelphia because we love TEXAS so much. Not only so much to do, but it is the people that make it so great. On many cruises the crew has told us that the people out of Galveston are the friendliest. We went on a cruise out on Florida and were appalled by the behavior of many of the Norheasterners. Texans are justifiably proud of Texas. Heck - it is the only state that was once a country and we fly our state flag at the same height as the US flag. (PS our kids have to Pledge Allegiance to the Texas flag evey day in school too!)

[UPCrawfish]

You can go to this link and get a load of maps - brochures - travel guides on Texas...

 

http://www.tourtexas.com/index.cfm