12 day trips just a short drive from Houston
You can drive to all of the places in our guide within an hour and a half, making Houston a terrific hotspot for day trips to remember.
Texas is a perfect state for a road trip. It’s so enormous that you can head in just about any direction and wind up at a unique destination, whether a trendy tourist spot or a quaint little town. Houston serves as a great starting hub to explore many cool places, particularly in the eastern and central parts of the state.
With summer in full swing, we’re cruising around (and beyond) the city with a variety of day trips you can take from Houston.
For this guide, we’re aiming for drives that are 90 minutes or less, using distances starting from downtown Houston (specifically from Sam Houston Park). Pack up the car, and let’s roll!
1. Brazos Bend State Park
Distance: 42.5 miles/50 minutes
Brazos Bend State Park is the ideal day trip for when you want to get off the grid entirely. Your cell service will likely be spotty, but with 37 miles of trails in the park, you’ll have plenty to keep you entertained. You can hike and bike, fish, admire some alligators, and check out the wetland Creekfield Lake Nature Trail, which also includes touchable wildlife bronzes. If you make the visit on a Saturday, be sure to check out the George Observatory for Saturday Stargazing.
2. Galveston
Distance: 51 miles/1 hour
While the beach and boardwalk are classic staples of Galveston, you can explore the city without ever setting foot on a grain of sand. Galveston is home to several impressive attractions, including Moody Gardens, the Galveston Railroad Museum, the Texas Seaport Museum, and Schlitterbahn Waterpark. If you’d prefer not to drive on your day trip, the Galveston Express offers shuttle services between the island city and Houston. Each April, Galveston also hosts limited-edition rides on the ELISSA, one of just three tall ships of her kind in the entire world. Please do not make the same mistake I did when going on this excursion, and take some Dramamine to help with motion sickness.
3. Surfside Beach
Distance: 65 miles/1 hour, 10 minutes
I’ve tried surfing exactly one time in my life. While it wasn’t nearly as bad as the scene from “Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” my interactions with the ocean waves were awkward, at best. Luckily, despite its name, Surfside Beach offers several delightful activities besides surfing. Try your hand at a kayak or jet ski, or see if you can catch an impressive fish. Alternatively, avoid the water altogether and soak up the sun or search for over 600 shell species across 27 miles of lovely beach areas.
4. Lake Houston Wilderness Park
Distance: 32.5 miles/35 minutes
Sporting nearly 5,000 acres of lush forests, Lake Houston Wilderness Park is a lovely oasis just a few miles east of New Caney. Camping, hiking, and running are all available, and DIY enthusiasts can enjoy canoeing, kayaking, fishing, horseback riding, and birding. Stop by during migration season, and you just might spot one of these beauties flying overhead!
5. Brenham
Distance: 76 miles/1 hour, 20 minutes
Hop onto 290 W, and you’ll bump into Brenham, the Ice Cream Capital of Texas. The town is where Blue Bell Creameries got its start in 1907. Depending on when you visit, you might come across the German heritage-celebrating Maifest, an art walk, or a vintage car and truck show. Before heading out (or immediately upon arriving), swing by Mescalito Coffee for a variety of tasty coffee options and an everything bagel kolache stuffed with cream cheese, a treat I still have yet to find anywhere else.
6. IAH Plane Spotting Sites
Distance: 20 miles/35 minutes
Being a major city, Houston has plenty of flights coming in and out of George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH). Settling into a good spot and watching the action is one of the better free day trips in Houston. The international spotting place designated on Google Maps (at 1160 Lee Road) in Humble is a good option for catching planes. DHL Cargo at 18705 Lee Road and the US CBP parking lot at 19581 Lee Road are also great spots. Should you need to refuel your car, head to the Chevron gas station at the corner of Richey Road and Aldine Westfield. That station also happens to have a great view of one of the airport’s runways!
7. Kemah Boardwalk
Distance: 34 miles/40 minutes
Nestled alongside Galveston Bay, Kemah Boardwalk is packed with a dozen amusement rides, several midway and arcade games, and other merriments like dancing water fountains, a zipline, and a reef where guests can touch and feed live stingrays. That would scare me as a child who played a little too much “Super Mario 64”—the game’s worst level had a part where you had to swim behind a stingray—but as an adult, it’s a terrific prospect. Walking along the boardwalk is free; everything is pay-as-you-go, or you can buy an all-day ride pass.
8. Space Center Houston
Distance: 27 miles/45 minutes
Yes, Space Center Houston is technically in Houston proper, so this might not be much of a drive for some residents. Still, it’s very easy to spend an entire day learning about the vast expanses of the world and our galaxy. Immersive educational activities are the norm here, and the Space Center regularly hosts events. Space Center U teaches eager astronauts about intergalactic travel, guest speakers regularly float on through, visitors can hop inside a replica shuttle, and families can even participate in the occasional overnight stay. Take a tram tour and get behind-the-scenes views of unique NASA elements like Mission Control and training facilities.
9. San Jacinto Museum and Battlefield
Distance: 23 miles/35 minutes
Houstonians happen to be a quick jaunt away from where Texas gained its independence from Mexico. The San Jacinto Monument is the most eye-catching part of the San Jacinto Museum and Battlefield, standing 567.31 feet high. That makes it the tallest war memorial in the world. The Lone Star at the top of the monument is 34 feet tall and weighs a massive 220 tons. And yes, you can climb up the monument (via an elevator, of course) and get a 360 view of the landscape around you. The rest of the museum is worth exploring, too, with thorough examinations of the battlefield, people, and weapons. San Jacinto Day celebrations include live reenactments of the battle.
10. Old Town Spring
Distance: 24 miles/40 minutes
Old Town Spring is a shopper’s delight, with more than 100 family-owned storefronts lining the streets of the historic area. And you can find just about anything your heart desires, from furniture to jewelry, quirky gifts to bowling supplies. Retail therapy isn’t the only game in town, however. The restaurants are abundant and varied for every craving, and visiting groups can book activities like an escape room, ghost tour, or quilting class. Want even more to do? Old Town Spring is just a few miles from both Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Splashtown and the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands, which hosts hundreds of diverse arts shows and concerts every year.
11. Blue Heron Farm
Distance: 52 miles/1 hour, 15 minutes
Blue Heron Farm got its start when two city slickers turned farmers, Christian and Lisa Seger, bought 10.5 acres of land in Field Store. Approaching 20 years in business, Blue Heron Farm has continued pushing for better fertility, water usage, and carbon sequestration, all while maintaining organic and humane farming practices. In 2023, the farm got an upgrade, introducing a beer garden to sell drinks and food from the farm, such as goat cheese and yogurt. Buy some suds to pet goats for free, or chip in $5 to give them all the good scritches.
12. Arts and Crafts Tour
Distance: Variable
This day trip is more like a scavenger hunt that ends with you taking home things you made yourself. Houston and its surrounding areas are full of cool arts and crafts stores that combine great memories with cool souvenirs. Indulge in more than 1,200 different glass art projects at {the shard yard}, dump paint on a figurine and sip on your favorite beverage at Fête 832, and create a ceramic souvenir—from mugs to dinosaurs—at The Mad Potter. Your finished results may not be nearly as stunning as a professional with thousands of hours of experience, but pouring your heart and soul into a project makes it all the more rewarding.
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