Category: Texas Round-Up Day 5

Space Center Houston

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Since amusement parks in the United States are usually not open on Easter Monday, I had to discard my original tour planning right at the beginning of the tour and re-schedule it. Between the weekend in San Antonio and the next amusement park of the tour there should be two days off, whereby I declared one of them as a pure road trip day – after all, there was still a distance of about 1000km ahead of me.

After the night on Galveston Island with the best view on the Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier – which is not so historical – I started to focus on the attractions of the nearby city of Houston. On this occasion I decided to go for the offer which is part of the Houston CityPass.

The first stop of the day was the Space Center Houston. The official visitor center of the NASA Johnson Space Center offers an authentic look behind the scenes of space travel. Several guided tours are offered, including a look at the NASA campus and key historical sites. In addition, the Space Center offers a huge museum and numerous exhibitions – for example, a Saturn V rocket can be admired in its full length in Rocket Park.

However, things only become really interesting with the Level 9 VIP Tour, where you can get an insight into the daily business of NASA. But the extra charge for the five-hour tour is really something special, which is why only space enthusiasts should treat themselves to this package. Friends of science museums will be well entertained by the overall offer of the Space Center Houston.

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Texas / Texas Round-Up Day 5

The Aquarium in Houston

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Downtown Aquarium Houston

The second stop on my Houston CityPass day was the Downtown Aquarium – a leisure facility operated by Landry’s Inc. consisting of a small amusement park, restaurants and an aquarium. The Downtown Aquarium is a direct offshoot of the restaurant chain Aquarium, offering an exhibition reminiscent of a Sea Life Centre. This exhibition is included in the CityPass, a wristband for the rides is available separately.

The Exhibition

Opened in 2003, the Downtown Aquarium is located on the grounds of Fire Station No. 1 and the Central Waterworks Building and makes clever use of them. The upper floor of the former fire station houses the Aquarium Restaurant, the Bar Dive Lounge and the Ballroom Nautilus, while the lower floor houses an interactive touch basin and the actual exhibition. This is – very similar to the large aquariums of the English competitor – quite rapidly passed through, while offering a very high-quality and excellent presentation. Families with smaller children will certainly be able to spend a longer time in this aquarium. The only point of criticism are the white tigers which can be found in an aquarium rather untypically and which were held here without access to sunlight (since the end of this year there is an outside enclosure).

Shark Voyage and the rides

Outside, in addition to the colorful Aquatic Carousel, the two children’s free-fall towers Lighthouse Dive and Frog Hopper, and the Ferris wheel Diving Bell – which is a great eye-catcher (especially at night) for those just coming in from the north on Interstate 45 to Houston – is the Shark Voyage, Chance Rides’ first fully electric park train. Since 2018, it has been making its rounds. The ride itself is much older, but that doesn’t make it any less special. The real highlight of the park railway is its route through the Waterworks Building, which has an underwater tunnel in a huge shark tank. Here, the train stops for a few minutes, so that one can watch the sharks to the right, to the left and above oneself. The C.P. Huntington train therefore features a panoramic roof.

The ride on the park train Shark Voyage is the reason why I went to the Downtown Aquarium Houston at all. I think the idea is great, but I think it is a pity that the trip is not included in the visit to the exhibition; after all, it is the highlight of the establishment. In general, I really liked the offer of the Downtown Aquarium, so that a visit is not only recommended to aquarists with small children.

Pictures Downtown Aquarium Houston

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Downtown Aquarium Houston / Texas Round-Up Day 5

Houston Museum of Natural Science

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After my visit to the Downtown Aquarium Houston, I headed towards Hermann Park, where most of the attractions included in the Houston CityPass are located. Since I wanted to go further to the Kemah Boardwalk and many attractions would close their doors soon, I limited myself to the Houston Museum of Natural Science.

That was the right thing to do, because you can easily spend a very long period of time at this place. The Museum of Natural Science is without question one of the most breathtaking museums I have visited so far. This is mainly due to the Morian Hall of Paleontology, which contains over 450 fossils, including skeletons of the Tyrannosaurus Rex and other large dinosaurs.

Equally interesting is the Hall of Ancient Egypt, which houses numerous exhibits from ancient Egypt, or the Farish Hall of Texas Wildlife, where over 250 native species of animals are displayed to visitors.

In the Wiess Energy Hall 3.0, visitors can expect a very impressive and mostly interactive insight into energy production. In addition to two simulators there is a short film by Kurzgesagt to be admired.

All in all, I could hardly stop being amazed at the Houston Museum of Natural Science, making it one of the highlights of my trip. At least it shaped this day, which is why I would highly recommend a visit to everyone.

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Texas / Texas Round-Up Day 5