3 Day Itinerary in Houston, TX {with kids!}

Houston, Texas is a big city with a ton of different things to do. When visiting, you can choose from cultural, historic and outdoor activities to name a few.  I recently visited and when it came to figuring out our 3 day itinerary, I had a hard time. But being that I was traveling with the kids, it was simple to plan out some "must-sees" while we were there.

The Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau hosted our stay and provided us with the Houston CityPass to get around.  Their website was a great starting place, as they have suggested itineraries, restaurants, shopping and more.

Here is our 3 Day Itinerary in Houston with the Kids

Day 1

We arrived in the afternoon and once settled into our hotel, we were ready to start exploring.  We stayed downtown at the Embassy Suites  which was a great, central location for the attractions we wanted to see.  The hotel itself was perfect for a family with 2 queen beds and a fold out couch.  We enjoyed their amazing full breakfast each morning and the happy hour snacks in the afternoon.

Discovery Green: That afternoon, we walked over to Discovery Green to check out their splash pad, model boats, and playground.  On some evenings, they host free concerts, movies on the lawn, yoga classes and more.  And in winter, they offer ice skating.  It's a fun green space smack dab in the middle of downtown and worth spending an afternoon or evening here.  They do have 2 restaurants, but we were excited to head to the Aquarium for dinner.

Discovery Green
1500 McKinney, Houston, TX 

Downtown Aquarium: Dinner at an Aquarium? Yes! The aquarium is a bit small, but does have a stingray tank where you can pet & feed the stingrays.  My kids found the real fun to be the rides outdoors, including the shark train - where you ride through a tank filled with sharks.  The Downtown Aquarium is also home to a seafood restaurant where the main attraction is the 150,000 gallon tank of beautiful fish.  My kids could barely take their eyes off it to eat their meal.

Downtown Aquarium
410 Bagby St, Houston, TX

Day 2

Space Center Houston: History & Science collide at Space Center Houston and it is definitely a must-do when visiting Houston. We had been here a few summers ago (see our 10 Tips to visit here), but we were happy to go back, as they have rotating, hands-on exhibits the my kids really enjoy.  We spent the entire morning here at the Mission to Mars (rotating exhibit being changed now), learning how to live on the Space Station, and taking a walk through history on the tram tour to Mission Control. Recently, they added the Space Shuttle Independence replica to the top of the actual Space Shuttle Aircraft they house in front of the building. You can easily spend an entire day here, but we found it was nice to choose what we all wanted to see and we were finished by lunch time.

Space Center Houston
1601 NASA Pkwy, Houston, TX

Kemah Boardwalk: We spent the afternoon at Kemah Boardwalk, a 35-acre park with amusement rides, restaurants, & shopping. With the CityPass, you can get an all-day pass to ride most of the rides, including the Aviator, Pharaoh's Fury, and the Boardwalk Bullet.  Lines were short (due to it being midweek and August), so my kids rode ride after ride and really enjoyed themselves.  We got some great pictures! The boardwalk offers themed-restaurants including Landry's, Bubba Gump Shrimp & Saltgrass Steakhouse - you can easily do lunch or dinner here.  I liked the fact that we were right on Galveston Bay and were able to watch boats come in and out of the bay and catch a cool, salty breeze.

Kemah Boardwalk 
215 Kipp Ave, Kemah, TX

Jus' Mac for Dinner: This Houston favorite has been on my list to try for years, so despite it being all the way back north of downtown, we hunted it down.  And I'm so glad we did. Jus' Mac is gourmet macaroni and cheese - and not anything like what mom makes. There are a ton of creative varieties you can try from buffalo chicken, to cheeseburger to BBQ brisket. It is rich and delicious and a totally fun restaurant to take the kids to. It was very affordable and we left so very full.  Jus' Mac has 3 locations in town.

Jus' Mac 
2617 Yale Street, Houston, TX
106 Westheimer, Houston, TX
16525 Lexington Blvd, Sugarland, TX- 

Day 3

Children's Museum of Houston: One of my favorite children's museums I have ever been to, the Children's Museum of Houston is FANTASTIC.  Each of my 3 kids - 13, 11, and 5 - love this museum for different reasons.  The 5 year old is easy - so many hands on exhibits from making levers and launching balls, to climbing the multi-storied PowerPlay to making water flow outside at FlowWorks. My 11 year old son loves to go downstairs and create planes to make them fly or cars out of LEGOs to race - he could spend all day at Invention Convention.  Lastly, my 13 year old likes to go make as much money as she can at Kidtropolis - the shining star of the museum. Kids get to perform various jobs, earn money, deposit money, and then spend money.  It is one of the most popular exhibits, so they give everyone passes for various times to go in.  This is another "Must-do" while in Houston - and is great for all ages.

Children's Museum of Houston 
1500 Binz Ave Houston, TX 77004

Natachee's Supper 'n Punch: There is a great list of kid-friendly restaurants in Houston to try, but if I can recommend a fun one with a great kid's menu, it's Natachee's Supper 'n Punch. It's very close to the museum district, and worth stopping for the eclectic decor. They serve great comfort food - burgers, meatloaf, sandwiches, veggies - but our favorite was the kids meals served in lunch boxes!

Natachee's Supper 'n Punch 
3622 Main Street, Houston, TX

Houston Museum of Natural Science: We found one of the BEST dinosaur exhibits at the Houston Museum of Natural Science - the Hall of Palentology has over 450 fossils and fossil replicas.  This grand museum is also home to a butterfly exhibit, a sparkling hall of gems & minerals, and a planetarium.  There were a great deal of exhibits that sparked my kids minds and we really enjoyed the docents taking time to explain some of the exhibits with us. If you have the CityPass, this museum is worth stopping it for just a few hours.

Houston Museum of Natural Science
5555 Herman Park Dr., Houston, TX

The Chocolate Bar: We couldn't hit the road for home without a quick stop at the Chocolate Bar - a sugar-lover's dream store.  Along with some of the most unique-shaped chocolate bars, you can custom-make your own chocolate bark. They serve the most amazing chocolate cake and even make their own ice cream.  It's a fun, sweet afternoon stop.

The Chocolate Bar
2521 University Blvd, Houston, TX
1835 West Alabama, Houston, TX

So, yes there is a ton more to do in Houston - I haven't even scratched the surface. I would recommend a 3-day weekend trip with the family to Houston.  Grab a CityPass that includes all the big attractions we went to - it's a GREAT savings - and pick a few unique restaurants to try along the way.  We really enjoyed our 3 day trip and hope to go back to try a completely different itinerary next time!

Tell me in the comments, what's your favorite thing to do in Houston? What did we miss?

Disclosure: We were invited to visit Houston by the Houston CVB and were provided with CityPasses and hotel stays.  I was not compensated for my article.  All opinions are my own. 

Other great articles on Houston:
Houston Zoo
Kemah Boardwalk
Houston Museum of Natural Science 
Children's Museum of Houston
Things to Do in Houston
Top 5 Things to Do in Houston

5 Things to Love at La Torretta Lake Resort & Spa ~ Lake Conroe, Texas

Texas is full of incredible resorts, all of them promising "family fun".  La Torretta Lake Resort & Spa in Montgomery, Texas can actually deliver true family fun.  This resort offers lots of fun for all ages and makes for a great escape for a few days.

5 Things to Love About La Torretta Resort & Spa

The Quiet

On the shores of Lake Conroe, La Torretta is one of the quietest resorts I have ever stayed at.  Lake Conroe is about an hour north of Houston and although the shores are dotted with homes, it was peaceful and calm the whole time we were there.  It was surprising to see the resort high rise sitting on the shores of the lake, as we could see it miles away.

The rooms at La Torretta are set up in a suite-style with a separate living area and bedroom and have a gorgeous balcony to sit out on in the mornings with coffee or at night with a glass of wine. 

Aqua Park
The Aqua Park is the primary reason to bring the entire family to La Torretta.  Five pools, water slides, water playscape, and a winding lazy-river can entertain all ages.  We spent close to 5 hours at the aqua park because we hopped from pool to pool.

There is a baby pool for little guys that has a wonderful cover that keeps it shaded all day long.

The water playscape features 2 little slides, lots of water sprays, and a big bucket that drops water intermittently.

For bigger kids, there is a much larger pool that features 2 long slides.

We spent a long time going round and round the lazy river.  I loved relaxing, floating, and laughing with my kids.

And there is an adults-only infinity pool that overlooks the entire Aqua-Park.  It was nice having so much to do in one enclosed park.  We also had lunch poolside. It made for a really relaxing day.

Family Fun Activities
La Torretta Lake Resort had a schedule of fun activities for children posted when we checked in.  We were looking forward to the Fastest Slide contest and the Lucky Duck event at the pool the day we were there, but they never happened.  We were there on a Tuesday, so I'm guessing these events happen on busier days.  Having fun activities help keep the older kids entertained, so I was happy to see the resort plans them.

The resort is almost completely surrounded by the lake, part of which is a quiet cove to rent paddle boards for Stand Up Paddleboarding.  You can rent them by the hour for as little as $20.  Many families were taking advantage of the calm waters to try this fun activity out.

My little man loves miniature golf, and truth be told, this mom is not the biggest fan. But I did as any mom would, I put my purse down and played a full 18 holes.  The mini-golf course has seen better days, but it did include challenging bumps, water tricks, and more to keep it fun.  Towards the end of the course, there are bigger challenges to the game - ever had to spin around 5 times and hit a ball? Totally hysterical to watch your 13 year old attempt this:



Time to Relax
I thought I had relaxed by the pool - going around the lazy river 20 times in a float is perfectly mind-numbing.  But until my masseuse rubbed those knots out of my shoulders, I was not fully relaxed.  I love it when a family resort has a spa.  La Torretta has a wonderful, full service spa that offers massages, facials, pedicures, and more. It was a heavenly 2 hours that I spent in their quiet spa relaxing.

Date Night for Mom & Dad
If you can find a little time for a date night for mom & dad while on vacation, it's a bonus. La Torretta features the wonderful Lakeside Restaurant for a evening meal.  We visited as a family, which was very common, but it makes for a great date night as well.  We enjoyed a wonderful steak meal and a glass of wine, which gave us another chance to relax together.

If you are looking for a different resort to skip away to for a few days, La Torretta Lake Resort provides lots of family fun & relaxation.

I was impressed with some of the weekend specials and promotions they have going on - especially this one where the more you stay, the more you save.

Disclosure: La Torretta Lake Resort invited me & my family to stay for 2 days.  I was not paid for this article.  All opinions are my own.

Best Holiday Light Displays in Houston, TX ~ 2013

Bundle up the family and pile in the car!  Here is your list of the BEST Holiday Lights in Houston for 2013:

Drive-Thru/Walk-thru Displays:

Dickinson Festival of Lights: Guests are invited to walk thru the trail nightly beginning at 6:00 pm and lasting until 9:00 pm thru January 1. (free)

Paul Hopkins Park, Dickinson, TX

The Woodlands Winter Wonderland:  Walk-thru displays, Ice skating rink,   Nightly dusk - 11:00 pm through January 20. (free)

Lake Robbins & Six Pines Drive, The Woodlands, TX

Festival of Lights Moody Gardens: Walk-thru display, ice skating, ice slide and snow tubing. Nightly 6 pm - 10 pm through January 4. ($6.95)

Moody Gardens, Galveston, TX

Christmas Ranch:  Nightly 6:00 pm - 10:00 pm thru December 31.

14651 FM1725 Rd, Cleveland, TX

Home Displays:

Nite of Lites:  Nightly Dusk - 10:00 pm (11:00 pm weekends) thru December 29.

Prestonwood Forest Neighborhood

Dodd Family Holidays:  Nightly 6 pm - 10 pm (Sun-Thurs); 6 pm - 12 am (Fri-Sat)

62 W. Knightsbridge Dr, The Woodlands, TX

Johnson's Christmas Corner:  Santa visits on Saturdays from 7 pm - 9 pm. Nightly thru December 31.

14811 Cypress Meadow Drive, Cypress, TX

Dearing Dazzle: Nightly beginning December 14 - December 28 from 6 pm - 10 pm.

2401 East Village Green Circle, Conroe, TX

Christmas Katy:  Nightly 6 pm - 10 pm (Sun - Thurs) and 6 pm - 11 pm (Fri-Sat)  thru January 1.

24603 Stoughton Court, Katy, TX

Christmas in Cypress: Nightly from 6:00 pm - 10:00 pm (11 pm weekends) thru January 1.

15911 Lavender Run, Cypress, TX

Wow! There is a ton to see! Can you make it to them all?

If you have any Holiday Light Displays to add to our list, please feel free to leave them in the comments or email me.

Top 5 Things to do in Houston

There are so many fun things to do with kids in Houston!   It is the home of the Johnson Space Center and very close to the beach.  So I thought it would be fun to ask my children, from their perspective, what they liked best to do in Houston.

I asked my 12 and 10 year old their favorites and why, and this is what they said:

1. SpaceCenter Houston - Though my kids did not grow up in the era of "Houston, we have a problem." or the Challenger disaster, they were so very interested in the history of space exploration and really enjoyed SpaceCenter Houston.  Along with tours of Johnson Space Center, there are plenty of hands on exhibits and movies to see that really teach the kids all about NASA and space exploration.

2. Kemah Boardwalk- Very close to SpaceCenter is the Kemah Boardwalk.  It was a great place to go to after a full day.  We walked around, played games, rode fun rides, and had dinner.  If you don't have time to go to the beach while in Houston, this is a great place to go, situated right on the bay - we saw fish, jellyfish, boats, and more.

3. Houston Zoo- The Houston Zoo is very shaded and a great place to go anytime of year - don't let a summer month stop you.  It has some really great animal encounters (the day was packed with them) and we really enjoyed some of the unique ways to see the animals (my kids loved the fish tunnel).  They also have a great splash pad and a wonderful Children's area.  Don't forget to ride the train that sits right outside the zoo.

4. Houston Children's Museum - The Houston Children's Museum is one of our favorite children's museums we have visited.  Hands-on fun at Kidtropolis and Invention Convention kept us busy for hours.  We also really enjoyed getting wet at the outside FLOW exhibit.  You could spend all day here and still not see it all.

5. Houston Museum of Natural Science- Now normally my kids wouldn't think that a science museum would be amazing - but they thought the Houston Museum of Natural Science was.  They really loved the dinosaur exhibit - there were rooms and rooms of full-scale dinos to see.  They were also fascinated by the Hall of Gems.  And the museum has a planetarium and an IMAX theater as well. 

For a complete listing of fun things to do in Houston, click here.

Other Top 5 Things to Do Lists in Great Texas Cities:

Austin

Dallas

Fort Worth

Grapevine

New Braunfels

San Antonio 

Things to do in Houston, Texas

This city is so much more than big oil corporations and Rodeos......Houston has many many cool things to do.

Here are the Top Things to Do in Houston, Texas with Families:

Historical Sites:

Battleship Texas

San Jacinto Monument & Museum of History

Museums:

Children's Museum of Houston

Downtown Aquarium

The Health Museum

Houston Museum of Natural Science

Space Center Houston

Outdoors:

Hermann Park Railroad

Houston Arboretum & Nature Center

Houston Zoo

Kemah Boardwalk

SplashTown

Culture:

Art Car Museum

The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

Must Try Food Experiences:

The Chocolate Bar

Jus' Mac

Resorts to Stay at:

Omni Houston - Kid's Fantasy Suite

The Woodlands Resort

Outside the City:

Blue Bell Creameries

George Ranch Historical Park

Moody Gardens

Washington on the Brazos

Kemah Boardwalk ~ Kemah, TX

Houston doesn’t lack in fun attractions for the whole family – in fact they have some very unique places to visit.  The Kemah Boardwalk, about 20 minutes south of downtown Houston, is a great place to spend the afternoon or evening with the entire family.

Reminiscent of an Atlantic boardwalk, Kemah Boardwalk has amusement rides, carnival games, beach shops, and great restaurants.  We visited on a a weekday summer evening and found the crowds to be light, with small waits at the restaurants.

Upon first site, my kids were attracted to the rides.  There are rides for all ages.  My 3 year old enjoyed the Double-decker Carousel, the train, and some of the other “kiddie” rides, while the older ones braved the Drop Zone and the Boardwalk Bullet – the wooden roller coaster.  Each ride can be ridden with a single purchase ticket or you can buy an all-day pass.  The pass seems to make the most sense, but it doesn’t include the midway games.

Another fun attraction at Kemah Boardwalk is the Boardwalk Beast.  This high-speed boat ride gives thrill-goers a fun look at Galveston Bay in a unique way.  It is a pretty pricy tour, but looked like a ton of fun.

We really enjoyed just walking up and down the boardwalk – we saw jellyfish and seagulls. We could smell the salty-air.  It was the closest we got to the “beach” without going down to Galveston.

But what fascinated my kids the most?  We happened upon a Kemah Boardwalk employee tossing a pizza crust he found on the ground into the water.  The fish went crazy over it – thousands of them jumping out of the water to get to it – and it was gone in a matter of seconds.  My kids thought it was great.

And we didn’t pay a dime for that entertainment.

Overall, would I recommend Kemah Boardwalk for the family?  Yes.  It was a unique atmosphere and something fun to do for the evening.  It was July and very hot in Houston, but being by the water that evening, it was very pleasant.  Put it on your Houston to do list.

Here are some other great places to visit in Houston:

Space Center Houston

Children's Museum of Houston

Houston Zoo

Houston Museum of Natural Science

Omni Kids Fantasy Suite

The Woodlands Resort

Texas Travel Facts for Kemah Boardwalk:

Location: 215 Kipp Ave, Kemah, Texas

Hours: Sunday - Wednesday: 10:30 am - 9:00 pm 

             Thursday - Saturday: 10:30 am - 10:00 pm         

Admission: Free - amusement rides/games individually priced          

Recommended Time: 2-3 hours 

Good to know:  stroller friendly; garage and lot parking for a fee; No outside food or drink allowed

Website:http://www.kemahboardwalk.com/

Houston Museum of Natural Science ~ Houston, TX

 Recently, I read that the Houston Museum of Natural Science is one the Top 10 most attended museums in the United States.  Really?  A museum filled with nature?  I was skeptical, but wanted to see what it was all about.  With the exception of the recently opened Perot Museum of Nature & Science in Dallas, the Houston Museum of Natural Science is one of the best natural science museums I have ever visited.

Located in Hermann Park near downtown Houston, you can easily spend hours here in amazement of the size of the dinosaurs, star-struck by the sparkling gems, and peering eye-to-eye with Texas wildlife.

Here are some of our favorites of the Houston Museum of Natural Science:

Morian Hall of Paleontology: We made a bee-line to this exhibit, as my son is very into dinosaurs right now.  The enormity of the exhibit is amazing. The hall is packed with life-sized fossils, dinosaur bones, and replicas.  And they are all set in different situations.  You shake your head in amazement when you see the Megalodon chasing the mammoth – the size comparison is unbelievable.  This exhibit is excellent.  We could have spent hours in here.

Farish Hall of Texas Wildlife: Featuring realistic displays of all animals unique to our great state, the kids really enjoyed seeing the mountain lions, the Gulf Coast birds, and southwest Texas reptiles.  You can walk completely around the displays, they are not your typical set-in-the-wall diorama displays.

African Wildlife Display: Similar to the Texas Wildlife, species from the African continent are on display.  You can compare your size to a gorilla like my daughter did.

Gems & Minerals and Gem Vault: This display is darkened to see the sparkling gems in all their glory.  It also offered a hushed and respectful tone that my kids appreciated.  They would whisper in excited tons to show me one gorgeous mineral after another. It was amazing for the kids to understand how all of these items of beauty were made in nature. The Gem Vault features some exquisite pieces of jewelry as well.

Strake Hall of Malacology: We learned that the study of mollusks is malacology and it is fascinating.  The day we visited, we lucked upon some museum employees that brought this study to life for us.  We learned how shells grow and what they use as defense mechanisms.  My kids were ready to pass this display by if it hadn’t been for the employees bringing it to life for us.

Welch Chemistry Hall: This display had lots of hands-on activities that my kids took their time with.  Here you can learn about the weights of different elements, different states of matter, polymers and more – all stuff I learned in college, but never in this fun way.

There is so much more to do at the Houston Museum of Natural Science, including a planetarium, Butterfly Center and IMAX theatre.  Plus they have several traveling exhibits they host through out the year.  Basically, this museum is not a one time thing.  I can see how each visit can be vastly different, based on what activities are available, where museum employees are displaying, and what interests you.

Don’t hesitate going with children! My 12 & 10 year old were fascinated through out and the 3 year old was happy viewing it all from a stroller and getting out to see what his older siblings were interested in.  All of us enjoyed our time there.

Here are some other great places to visit in Houston:

Space Center Houston

Children's Museum of Houston

Houston Zoo

Kemah Boardwalk

Omni Kids Fantasy Suite

The Woodlands Resort

Texas Travel Facts for the Houston Museum of Natural Science:

Location: 5555 Hermann Park Rd, Houston, Texas

Hours: Daily 9 am - 5 pm     

             Thursday: After 2 pm (Free Family Night)         

Admission: Adults (12-64): $15.00

                    Children (2-11): $10.00 (Children under 2 are free)             

Recommended Time: 2-3 hours 

Good to know: Admission is good for all day; really great cafe and gift shop; stroller friendly; garage parking for a fee; Additional activities are an additional fee - planetarium, Butterfly exhibit, etc.

Website:http://www.hmns.org

My family and I were invited to visit the museum and were provided admission. I was not financially compensated for this post.  All opinions of the Houston Museum of Natural Science are strictly my own based on my experience.