5 Free or Cheap Family Activities in Houston Texas at Christmas
Christmas is great time to visit Houston, Texas. The weather was great, not sunbathing warm but definitely not cold either. We spent almost every day wearing T shirts and shorts. We travelled in December 2024.
Brazos Bend State Park
This was a wonderful first activity in Houston. The prices are very reasonable at US$7 per person 13 years and over, under 13 years are free.
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| Marshland at Brazos Bend State Park, Houston, Texas |
There are many walks to check out and we even spotted an alligator in the wild, in winter. We also saw turtles and many birds. There is a playground, campsites...if you are game enough to camp in snake and alligator territory you are braver than me!
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| Alligator at Brazos Bend State Park, Houston, Texas |
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| Picnic Area at Brazos Bend State Park, Houston, Texas |
The highlight for us was the incredible Nature Center! Its an unassuming small building but the staff make it amazing. For a start there is a tank with the cutest little baby alligators. They are so adorable when they are little!
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| Baby alligator at Brazos Bend State Park, Houston, Texas |
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| Baby Alligator Swimming at Brazos Bend State Park, Houston, Texas |
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| Petting Baby Alligators at Brazos Bend State Park, Houston, Texas |
Hands down the highlight for me was getting to pet these little guys! They make the cutest sounds! I'm not generally one for reptiles, I don't dislike them but I'm hardly a fan either, but these little ones won me over. The teens were also obsessed.
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| Nature Center at Brazos Bend State Park, Houston, Texas |
There are a few exhibits and you can even learn the difference between alligators and crocodiles. The teenagers let one of the rangers know that they loved snakes and that we don't have any in New Zealand. Not even in the zoo, we just don't let them into the country. Excluding sea snakes that make their way here I guess a bit hard to contain those.
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| Milk Snake at Nature Center Brazos Bend State Park |
The ranger clearly loves snakes and was amazing! She got several out of their enclosures for us and told us all about them. The snake above is a Milk Snake which looks very similar to a Texas Coral Snake. The Milk snake is not dangerous but the Coral snake most definitely is. We learned a little rhyme to tell them apart, "Red next to black-friend of Jack; red next to yellow will kill a fellow."
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| Hognose Snake at Nature Center, Brazos Bend State Park |
If the cuteness of the little Hognose snake above is not your cup of tea, then there are also plenty of not so friendly looking snakes for you too. Not surprisingly she did not get any of those out of their enclosures...thankfully!
Total Cost: US$7 per person 13 years and over
Christmas Light Walk - Candy Cane Lane
We happened to be staying in Missouri City are near Sugarland. I'm sure there will be Christmas lights in many other areas too. It seems to depend on the housing development and in some neighborhoods all the houses take part. In New Zealand we have Christmas lights but nothing on this scale. You are never too old to check out the Christmas lights on Christmas Eve.
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| Christmas Light, Candy Cane Lane, Houston, Texas |
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| Christmas Light, Candy Cane Lane, Houston, Texas |
It was really nice mix of over the top with everything lit up, to more understated designs. Some had classic cars as props, or Santa's Workshop themes, while had others a ton of inflatable Christmas ornaments.
Total Cost: FREE!
Galveston
Galveston Port Bolivar Ferry
The first thing we did in Galveston was ride the ferry. This is totally free and you can go in a vehicle or as foot passengers. According to the Texas Department of Transportation, it is approximately an 18 minute ride. The Galveston-Port Bolivar Ferry website has all the information you could need. I'll let the photos speak for themselves!
Galveston Beach
You can't go to Galveston and not check out the beach! Lovely soft sand and not quite as blue as New Zealand sea water, but for this part of the world it is pretty nice. The colours in the sky nearing dusk just got better and better.
We took a nice evening stroll along the beach and found there are lots of these rock structures jutting out into the sea. They are called Rock Groins and have been here since 1936. I found a cool YouTube video on The Galveston Rock Groins if you are interested in knowing more.
There was so much more to see and do here. We had a delicious buffet lunch at Mario's Ristorante the link is for the google maps location, I could not find a website for them.
Total Cost: FREE!
Window Shopping
I know, I know it never ends up totally free but window shopping is loads of fun here. If you have any outdoorsy people, fishermen or hunters in the family then Bass Pro is the place to go. Even I, who is none of those things really enjoyed looking around.
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| Bass Pro Houston Texas |
I have never heard of a Gun Library but they had one. They also have a gift shop within the store, plenty of stuffed animals to see, the taxidermy kind, and a large fish tank. Still on a similar theme just a little more country Boot Barn was also a hit.
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| Boot Barn Houston Texas |
The Boot Barn's range of boots was unimaginable for us. I'm sure there are even more elsewhere but woah that is a ton of boots! You can get them in snake skin, alligator skin, leather and who knows what else. They also had a good range of clothing and accessories. We brought a few gifts and a pair of jeans for the teen.
Total Cost: FREE! Provided you manage to just look and not buy anything...good luck with that!
El Bolillo & Markets
I unfortunately did not take any photos of El Bolillo, a Mexican Bakery or the Markets across the street. The weather did not play ball and there was a torrential downpour. There are more El Bolillo stores around Houston but my family assures me that this is the best one. It did not disappoint! So many delicious treats arranged around the outside edge of the store. You take a large silver platter and load up what you would like to buy. When you have made all your selections you take your tray to the counter in the center and pay.
The markets were colourful and covered, thank fully! I did not know what most of the things were and if like me you don't speak Spanish you had better get your translate app ready. A very affordable outing with some very delicious treats. We bought a selection of four pastries and cream buns for only about US$6.
Total Cost: NZ$10.43 (US$6.05 / €5.63)
TIP: Go to a Buc-ees!!!
Another post coming soon with some paid activities for you to check out!