Day Trips from Houston, Texas

Galveston Island is a 30-mile-long island located to the southeast of Houston in the Gulf of Mexico. The island has several beach parks that run along its shores and are open to the public.

• Access to the gulf lends itself to a number of activities such as boating, fishing, and water sports.
• The nucleus of tourist activity on Galveston is definitely Seawall Boulevard, where the beach meets a long pedestrian-friendly sidewalk lined with hotels, restaurants, and other attractions.
• The seawall is also the site of the Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier, an amusement park that stretches out into the gulf on a large pier.
• The drive from Houston takes about an hour.

Beaumont, TX is located on the coast in southeastern Texas, where it has a great deal to offer visitors. If you would like to learn more about the early days in Texas, before the Texas Oil Boom, you can visit the interesting Spindletop Gladys Boomtown Museum, which is a recreation of a typical Texas town prior to the discovery of oil.

There are also several opulent historic homes and churches to see. For something completely different you can get up-close and personal with an alligator or two at Gator Country, navigate the wild and wonderful Neches River on a Boat Tour or enjoy some inspirational art galleries and outdoor art installations.

The drive from Houston takes about 1 hour 15 minutes.

A visit to Brenham, Texas, provides a breath of fresh air after time in the big city of Houston. This small city is located in Washington County, which itself is found in a lush area with an abundance of bluebonnet fields. The area has a number of indoor and outdoor attractions.

A series of museums tell the story of old Texas, while the area’s wine trail winds among several regional vineyards. Brenham also boasts a number of outdoor park spaces and several spas for a relaxing day in this quaint town. And the local Blue Bell Ice Cream creamery is not to be missed, as tours here show off how Texas’s favorite ice cream is prepared.

Texas City is a small city located on the southeastern coast of Texas in Galveston County. Naturally, it offers an outlet to the Gulf of Mexico, and one of its most famous attractions is the Texas City Dike levee. This dike is the world’s longest man-made pier, which runs for more than five miles and has areas for fishing and picnicking along the water.

Texas City also celebrates its rich history with several museums, such as the Texas City Museum, and historic homes, such as the Davison Home and the Engineer’s Cottage, which provide memorials to the first Anglo-American settlements in the region.

Port Arthur is another small-sized city sitting along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. It has more than one Gulf coast beach, all of which provide homes to many species native to the region, including diverse bird, fish, and alligator populations.

Port Arthur’s outdoor areas offer opportunities for hiking, cycling, fishing, watersports, and even swamp and boat tours. The city also has many cultural attractions, which include the Museum of the Gulf Coast and the famous Faith Trail, along which several monuments to different religions are located. Keep reading for more road trips from Houston.

Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge is a unique wildlife conservation area that consists of 34,000 acres of prairie and coastal marsh territory along the coast of Texas. The refuge, which was established in 1963, is supported largely by volunteers, who protect the area’s diverse wildlife so that it can be enjoyed and appreciated by visitors.

Those who come to Anahuac will find such species as alligators, fulvous whistling ducks, seaside sparrows, and even bobcats, whose environment is cared for all year round. Popular activities here include birdwatching, paddling, hiking, and photography. Rangers are available to lead tours as well as environmental education classes and seminars.

4318 FM 1985, Anahuac, TX 77514, Phone: 409-267-3337

Village Creek State Park is a relaxing, family-friendly state park located just an hour-and-a-half outside Houston in Lumberton, Texas. The park lies alongside its namesake, Village Creek, which provides the ideal setting for a day out in the sun. The creek is equipped for swimming, hiking, geocaching, and canoeing, among other outdoor activities.

Fishing equipment can be rented for free here, and fishing is permitted along the creek without a license. The park has a mix of natural habitats, including wetlands, swamps, pinewood forests, and pine savannahs. With different species making their homes in each of these areas, the park is also an excellent spot for birdwatching and wildlife observation.

8854 Park Rd 74, Lumberton, TX 77657, Phone: 409-755-7322

Goose Island State Park is a Texas state park surrounded by the St. Charles and Aransas Bays on the Gulf coast of the state. Although it is encircled by water, the park’s authorities do not recommend swimming here. Still, there is plenty to enjoy, such as camping, hiking, and fishing for flounder, speckled trout, and red drum, among other varieties of fish.

Perhaps the most popular highlight of Goose Island State Park is the Big Tree, a beloved Southern live oak. With a circumference of 35 feet and a crown spreading 90 feet outward, the Big Tree is believed to be over 1,000 years old.

202 S. Palmetto St. Rockport, TX 78382, Phone: 361-729-2858

The USS Lexington is a combination ship-museum that shows off the USS Lexington, CV-16, a World War II-era US aircraft carrier. The museum of the “Blue Ghost”, as the Lexington is fondly referred to, was established in 1992 shortly after the ship’s decommissioning.

One of the museum’s stated goals is to educate the public about the role of naval aircraft in the defense of the country, and its many exhibits have a direct connection to this mission. In addition to touring the eleven decks of the Lexington itself, guests can try out flight simulators and virtual battle stations. An exhibit dedicated to Pearl Harbor adds a dose of history to the museum.

2914 N. Shoreline Blvd. Corpus Christi, TX 78403, Phone: 361-888-4873

The Texas State Aquarium in Corpus Christi is a private conservation organization and aquarium facility dedicated to protecting marine wildlife in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. The aquarium’s numerous exhibits feature dolphins, jellyfish, stingrays, crabs, urchins, and a host of fish. However, its displays are not limited exclusively to water dwellers.

The aquarium also provides a habitat for a number of local species of birds, otters, and alligators and turtles. Visitors can navigate the aquarium individually or take part in one of the facility’s daily interactive presentations. It also has a water park as well as a mock archaeological dig site for children to enjoy.

2710 N. Shoreline Blvd., Corpus Christi, TX 78402, Phone: 361-881-1200