Just wondering if anyone has been to Houston and has any tips/advice on good hotels or areas to stay in. Will be there a couple of nights and will have a car so driving somewhere isn't a problem.
Hi, been to Houston, its nothing special really (but that's only my opinion). I went into the city a couple of times and ventured into a few bars which were ok but again nothing special. All I can recall is the huge amount of traffic, the VAST number of car sales plots which spread as far as the eye could see.
I was visiting a friends ranch, very humid and sunny which I did like, then next day it would be pouring down with rain lol. Very friendly people, went to a Rodeo which I hated found it cruel and one thing I did find slightly uncomfortable was the religion being hammered into you and racism. Personally I would not go back, it did open my eyes to the non tourist part of the USA
I am sure you will find it different and love it :-)
Thanks, we're travelling to other parts of Texas so only there a couple of days. Don't really know much about it so it's good to hear others opinions.
Any other suggestions for staying/travelling in Texas would be great - not imperative to stay in Houston just thought it would be easier as that's where we fly into then picking up the car, so if anyone knows amazing places within a few hours drive, I'm open to suggestions :-)
Maybe go to the Montrose district in Houston , a great historical and culturally diverse neighborhood to stroll and people watch.
Austin is a quite liberal city and has lots of arts and music scene.
If you go to Dallas, venture on down to Fort Worth for some good Texas bbq. The mexican food in Texas is quite good and nothing you'd find in your parts. (or in my parts for that matter lol)
NASA Space Centre is really interesting, but you would need to allow several hours.
Galveston (about an hour south) has an old quarter along the seafront where they have preserved all the ornate historic houses, bit like New Orleans. Fabulous seafood restaurants in old wooden buildings all along the water's edge and lots of small craft shops/ boutiques.
Houston has a massive upmarket shopping mall called the Galleria which has over 4000 retailers, Houston claims its the best shopping mall in the world ! I remember lots of marble and glass architecture (and great air conditioning:p) but can't rememberindividual stores, however there's everything from arty gift shops to international designer stores.
Be sure and have a meal at an authentic Texas BBQ place! Loads of really good ones in Houston, when you get there locals will advise.
I absolutely loved Texas, it was like a complete parody of every stereotype you imagine it to be, it was pure 'Dallas' lol:D Everything is larger than life, more showy, more blingy. Cowboy hats the size of car tyres and trucks with cow's horns and spotlights on the roofs. Sadly we only had 4 days there but I would definitely go back as we were based in Houston and didn't have time to go to San Antonio or Dallas etc.
The humidity is incredible though, expect very hot during the day and thunderstorms at night.
NASA's Johnson Space Center (Mission Control) has a visitor area called Space Center Houston http://www.spacecenter.org
I've no experience of it, but when I visited the Kennedy Space Center in Florida it was excellent, although that was many years ago now.
A drive down to the coast might be worth considering, maybe I-45 to Galveston, then the coast road southwest and Tx288 back to Houston.
I'm looking at a hotel near The Galleria shopping centre - not too expensive, but if anyone knows of a "better" area to stay, please let me know (nothing set in stone yet).
Galveston sounds great - had a look at that, nice to have a bit of seaside every now and then Will definitely be able to do that. Probably looking at going to Austin also.
Thanks for all the suggestions and tips - looking forward to my Texas BBQ!!!
If you're on a budget then it might be worth considering Super 8. They're motels, so they normally don't have an onsite restaurant. However, they're often located along roads with various restaurants of all kinds.
Even less expensive are Motel 6. They're relatively fundamental but IMHO ideal for overnight stops where you just want a clean room and a comfortable bed.
Agree Galveston is great I actually enjoyed that, the food was great, ships and a bit of music too
Fab - maybe worth staying in Galveston? Or not? We're in Texas for a few days and we don't need to stay in Houston apart from the last night when we have to be at the airport quite early the next day.
agree they might be a wee bit too far and I'm sure I'll love Texas enough to come back (never really heard anyone say anything bad!). The Big Bend National Park looks amazing.
Thanks also for the motel info, we stayed in a few cheapy hotels last time we were in America (don't think either were the chains you'd mentioned but similar) and they're actually fine for just needing a bed for the night - we're not planning on spending loads of time in the hotel just wanted one that was reasonable in a safe location.
Comments
I was visiting a friends ranch, very humid and sunny which I did like, then next day it would be pouring down with rain lol. Very friendly people, went to a Rodeo which I hated found it cruel and one thing I did find slightly uncomfortable was the religion being hammered into you and racism. Personally I would not go back, it did open my eyes to the non tourist part of the USA
I am sure you will find it different and love it :-)
Any other suggestions for staying/travelling in Texas would be great - not imperative to stay in Houston just thought it would be easier as that's where we fly into then picking up the car, so if anyone knows amazing places within a few hours drive, I'm open to suggestions :-)
Austin is a quite liberal city and has lots of arts and music scene.
If you go to Dallas, venture on down to Fort Worth for some good Texas bbq. The mexican food in Texas is quite good and nothing you'd find in your parts. (or in my parts for that matter lol)
and of course there is San Antonio..
Galveston (about an hour south) has an old quarter along the seafront where they have preserved all the ornate historic houses, bit like New Orleans. Fabulous seafood restaurants in old wooden buildings all along the water's edge and lots of small craft shops/ boutiques.
Houston has a massive upmarket shopping mall called the Galleria which has over 4000 retailers, Houston claims its the best shopping mall in the world ! I remember lots of marble and glass architecture (and great air conditioning:p) but can't rememberindividual stores, however there's everything from arty gift shops to international designer stores.
Be sure and have a meal at an authentic Texas BBQ place! Loads of really good ones in Houston, when you get there locals will advise.
I absolutely loved Texas, it was like a complete parody of every stereotype you imagine it to be, it was pure 'Dallas' lol:D Everything is larger than life, more showy, more blingy. Cowboy hats the size of car tyres and trucks with cow's horns and spotlights on the roofs. Sadly we only had 4 days there but I would definitely go back as we were based in Houston and didn't have time to go to San Antonio or Dallas etc.
The humidity is incredible though, expect very hot during the day and thunderstorms at night.
Have a great trip:D
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houston
NASA's Johnson Space Center (Mission Control) has a visitor area called Space Center Houston
http://www.spacecenter.org
I've no experience of it, but when I visited the Kennedy Space Center in Florida it was excellent, although that was many years ago now.
A drive down to the coast might be worth considering, maybe I-45 to Galveston, then the coast road southwest and Tx288 back to Houston.
I'm looking at a hotel near The Galleria shopping centre - not too expensive, but if anyone knows of a "better" area to stay, please let me know (nothing set in stone yet).
Galveston sounds great - had a look at that, nice to have a bit of seaside every now and then
Thanks for all the suggestions and tips - looking forward to my Texas BBQ!!!
Even less expensive are Motel 6. They're relatively fundamental but IMHO ideal for overnight stops where you just want a clean room and a comfortable bed.
http://www.super8.com
http://www.motel6.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alamo_Mission_in_San_Antonio
Big Bend National Park (600 miles each way from Houston). This is a huge park, larger than the state of Rhode Island. It contains an entire mountain range.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Bend_National_Park
http://www.nps.gov/bibe/index.htm
Palo Duro Canyon State Park, south of Amarillo in the Texas panhandle (630 miles each way from Houston). It's not very well known but it's the second largest canyon in the USA, after the Grand Canyon of course.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palo_Duro_Canyon
http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/state-parks/palo-duro-canyon
Fab - maybe worth staying in Galveston? Or not? We're in Texas for a few days and we don't need to stay in Houston apart from the last night when we have to be at the airport quite early the next day.
That actually looks really interesting, I'll add it to the list of possibilities
agree they might be a wee bit too far and I'm sure I'll love Texas enough to come back (never really heard anyone say anything bad!). The Big Bend National Park looks amazing.
Thanks also for the motel info, we stayed in a few cheapy hotels last time we were in America (don't think either were the chains you'd mentioned but similar) and they're actually fine for just needing a bed for the night - we're not planning on spending loads of time in the hotel just wanted one that was reasonable in a safe location.
Thanks again for everyone's help and suggestions!
yeah, we're travelling from New Orleans - got three days there prior to going to Texas
do you have a hotel you usually stay in?