Houston travel guide
Where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Things to do in Houston, planned over three days
Best time to visit Houston
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Spring is the best window: highs in the 70s to low 80s, lowest humidity, azaleas and patio season, but busiest and priciest.
Summer is punishing: highs 93 to 98F with oppressive humidity, afternoon downpours, and life before 11am and after 7pm.
Hurricane season runs June to November, peaking August to September; book refundable rates and watch the forecast.
Fall is the second best window and locals favourite: heat breaks, 70s to 80s, football season and the best value stretch.
Winter is mild, cheap and underrated: highs in the 60s, occasional cold fronts, easiest hotel rates and restaurant tables.
What's on
- Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo (RodeoHouston) about three weeks in March
Largest rodeo in the world at NRG Park with nightly stadium concerts and the Bar-B-Que Contest the weekend before.
- Art Car Parade usually April
Hundreds of artist transformed cars roll past big free downtown crowds; the Orange Show flagship weekend.
- Bayou City Art Festival (spring edition) late March
250 to 300 juried artists in an open-air downtown setting in the spring good weather window.
- Bayou City Art Festival (fall edition) mid-October
The autumn edition in Memorial Park, with juried artists, live music and food in cooler weather.
- Texas Renaissance Festival weekends Oct-Nov
One of the largest Renaissance faires in the US, about 50 minutes northwest in Todd Mission.
- Houston Restaurant Weeks Aug-early Sep
Prix fixe menus at hundreds of restaurants, the cheapest way into the city's best dining rooms, with part of each bill going to charity.
Worth the trip for
Best things to do in Houston
Space Center Houston
NASA Johnson Space Center visitor centre with tram tours to Rocket Park and Historic Mission Control.
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
Huge art museum across three buildings with tunnels, a sculpture garden and major touring exhibitions.
Houston Museum of Natural Science
Natural science museum with fossil hall, gems, Egypt hall, planetarium and the Cockrell Butterfly Center.
The Menil Collection
Free Renzo Piano museum campus in a leafy neighbourhood, with Twombly and Flavin spaces nearby.
Rothko Chapel
Interfaith sanctuary holding 14 monumental Rothko canvases, a short walk from the Menil.
Buffalo Bayou Park
Bayou trails and skyline lawns above ground, plus the columned underground Cistern reservoir tours.
POST Houston
Former post office turned food hall and cultural hub with a five acre rooftop park and skyline views.
Houston Zoo
55 acre zoo inside Hermann Park, paired with gardens, pedal boats and Miller Outdoor Theatre.
Where to stay in Houston
Museum District / Montrose
first trip, all-round base
Leafy inside the Loop base holding the major museums, Hermann Park and many of the best restaurants and bars.
Downtown
sports, theatre and a no-car short trip
Dense full-service hotels near Daikin Park and the Theater District, quieter at night outside event pockets.
Uptown / Galleria
luxury hotels and shopping
Polished Post Oak hotel stack and the Galleria mall, but the worst traffic in the city and no rail.
The Heights
boutique, neighbourhood-feel base with a car
Historic cafe and bungalow streets and new boutique hotels, about 15 minutes by car to the museums.
Texas Medical Center / NRG area
medical centre trips, Texans games and the Rodeo
Functional base served by the Red Line for the Medical Center and NRG, not a leisure base otherwise.
Think twice about
- Greenspoint / the I-45 North corridor
Long-standing local reputation for violent and property crime around its apartment and motel stock, far north of everything.
- Sunnyside
Consistently appears at the top of Houston high crime neighbourhood lists and is not a visitor lodging area.
- Bissonnet St corridor around US-59
Locally notorious for street prostitution and trafficking activity; not a visitor lodging area.
- Unvetted rentals in the Third Ward
Higher violent crime rates and fast changing blocks; visit its institutions in daylight rather than gambling on an unvetted rental.
Best restaurants in Houston
Truth BBQ
The city's top barbecue right now, peppery tallow brisket with scratch sides and towering cakes.
CorkScrew BBQ
Starred barbecue in Old Town Spring, worth the drive for brisket, ribs and pulled pork.
The Original Ninfa's on Navigation
1973 Tex-Mex original credited with fajitas, order tacos al carbon, queso and a margarita.
Aga's Restaurant & Catering
Vast family run Indo-Pak hall famous for goat chops, kebabs, biryanis and curries to share.
Nancy's Hustle
Small dark EaDo room for Nancy cakes, lamb, natural wine and a standout cheeseburger.
Katami
Chef Horiuchi's precise sushi room with premium flown in fish, wagyu and a deep sake list.
March
Mediterranean crossroads tasting menu in a serene lounge then dining room progression.
Casaema
Mexico City inspired bakery cafe for conchas, pan dulce, pambazos and chilaquiles at brunch.
Outdoor things to do in Houston
Memorial Park Golf Course
PGA Tour Houston Open course redesigned by Tom Doak, championship golf at public prices.
Wildcat Golf Club
Two 18 hole courses, the hillier Highlands and the water heavy Lakes, with skyline views and rental clubs.
Hermann Park Golf Course
Budget, no fuss golf inside Hermann Park by the zoo.
Buffalo Bayou Paddling Trail
Cycle bayou trails or paddle the designated paddling trail on the downtown to Memorial stretch.
Memorial Park
Huge urban park for running and bike trails, plus the shaded Houston Arboretum nature trails.
Brazos Bend State Park
Wetland and forest park with wild alligators on the banks, birdlife and flat lake loop trails.
Galveston Island
Gulf beach and history day trip with the Strand, Bishop's Palace, Moody Gardens and the free Bolivar Ferry.
Sam Houston National Forest
Pine forest north of the city with Lone Star Hiking Trail sections and Lake Conroe boating.
Best hotels in Houston
Hotel ZaZa Houston Museum District
Flamboyant hotel across from MFAH with themed suites, a lively pool scene and Monarch restaurant.
Hotel Saint Augustine
Bunkhouse boutique steps from the Menil, low rise garden courtyard buildings and the Perseid restaurant.
La Colombe d'Or
1923 mansion turned tiny luxury hotel with a serious art collection and the Tonight & Tomorrow restaurant.
HI Houston - The Morty Rich Hostel
Hostelling International budget base in Montrose with dorms, private rooms, kitchen, pool and free parking.
The Lancaster
Historic 1926 Theater District boutique across from Jones Hall, filled with Texas art.
Four Seasons Hotel Houston
Reliable luxury downtown hotel with a big pool deck and Toro Toro, walkable to Daikin Park.
Marriott Marquis Houston
Convention scale downtown hotel with a Texas shaped rooftop lazy river and pool deck.
The Post Oak Hotel
Houston's most decorated hotel, the Uptown luxury splurge by the Galleria.
Is Houston expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | $130 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | $240 a person |
| Splurge | $480 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Space Center Houston: a few days ahead
- Buffalo Bayou Park: a few days ahead
- Houston Zoo: a few days ahead
- Trellis Spa at The Houstonian: a few days ahead
- Twilight Epiphany Skyspace: a few days ahead
- Memorial Park Golf Course: a few days ahead
- Nancy's Hustle: weeks ahead
- Katami: weeks ahead
- Space Center Houston: buy timed tickets days ahead, arrive at opening and secure tram passes first.
- March, Katami, Nancy's Hustle and Jun need two to four weeks for weekend dinners.
- Cistern tours are reservation only and small, book days ahead.
- Rodeo hotels and tickets in March go months ahead.
- Truth BBQ and CorkScrew BBQ take early arrival, not bookings.
Is Houston safe?
- Car break-ins are the main visitor risk; leave nothing visible and use garages over surface lots at night.
- Heat and humidity are the top danger; plan water, shade and indoor middays in summer.
- Never drive through water over a roadway during Houston flooding; wait for streets to drain.
- At Brazos Bend and on bayou trails keep distance from alligators and snakes and wear insect repellent; never swim in bayous.
Houston travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Downtown Aquarium is small, pricey and restaurant led; the zoo and natural science museum do the job better.
- Kemah Boardwalk is chain restaurants and carnival rides, a pass-through, not a destination.
- The Galleria is a large mall, not a sightseeing stop; the Waterwall is a five minute photo.
- Check CityPASS maths against buying Space Center, HMNS, zoo and MFAH direct, as it bundles the Aquarium.
- Downtown hotel lobby NASA tours at a big markup only add the bus; drive and buy direct if you have a car.
Getting around Houston: public transport and more
- Rent a car or budget seriously for rideshare; NASA, Asiatown and day trips are long drives apart.
- The METRORail Red Line links the Medical Center, Museum District, Midtown, Downtown and NRG Stadium.
- Avoid cross-town drives at rush hour; do long drives mid-morning or early afternoon.
- Hobby airport is about 20 minutes from downtown; Bush Intercontinental is 35 to 60 minutes north.
Who Houston suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | Great |
| Families | Great |
| Bachelorette parties | Good |
Make Houston your trip
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