Houston Family Vacation: Space Center and Beach Memories

At the end of May, we took a family trip to Houston, Texas. Being a short ride from New Orleans, a Houston family vacation is the perfect weekend getaway!

Heading to the Johnson Space Center

At the end of May, we took a family trip to Houston, Texas. Our first stop was the Johnson Space Center, which is only about 30 minutes from downtown Houston. Our 5-year-old daughter is obsessed with all things space, so we knew she would love exploring the space center. We spent several hours taking in all of the exhibits, including the Rocket Park, the Astronaut Gallery, and the Independence Plaza display featuring a life-size shuttle stack. Our daughter was thrilled to see real rockets, climb through shuttle displays, and learn about astronauts. Her favorite part was touching an actual moon rock in the Lunar Vault! The Johnson Space Center was an ideal place to fuel our little one’s passion for space exploration.

Beaching It in Galveston

After the space center, we drove 50 miles to the island city of Galveston. The proximity makes it easy to visit both Houston and Galveston in one trip. Previously, we had been to Galveston for a comic expo and we had been wanting to go back. We spent a day exploring Galveston’s Juneteenth historical sites to learn about this important celebration of the end of slavery. Then it was off to the beach! Unfortunately, we realized we had forgotten our daughter’s swimsuit at home. But that didn’t stop her – she happily played in the sand and waves in her sundress. We stopped at Walmart after to pick up some dry clothes. Galveston, along with St. Augustine and Harpers Ferry are some of our favorite small cities in the U.S.

Wrapping Up with Buc-ee’s

No Texas road trip is complete without a stop at Buc-ee’s! On our drive back home, we made sure to swing by the iconic Buc-ee’s. Our daughter loves the beaver mascot and picks out toys and candy at every visit. With thousands of snack options, home goods, and family-friendly amenities, Buc-ee’s is the ideal place for a pitstop after a long day on the road.

Houston Family Vacation

Our weekend adventure to Houston and Galveston was full of space, history, beach, and road trip fun. We made memories to last a lifetime and enjoyed valuable family time together. I can’t wait to go back and explore more of what these beautiful Texas cities have to offer!