Houston, Texas

Houston downtown highrise buildings

Lunch with a view downtown

Looking over the rooftops at Houston

The bar at Artista in the heart of Houston

The lobby of the Magnolia Hotel, a renovated landmark in Houston

Overall Impression This exciting twenty first century southern belle of the ball has come a long way since it emerged from the swamps on the edge of Buffalo Bayou a little more than a century ago. In addition to its legendary oil millionaires and astronauts, Houstonis home to one of the largest medical centers in the world, a thriving technology industry, and a vibrant art community. Now the fourth largest city in the US, it boasts the only city opera company to have won a Tony, two Grammys and two Emmy awards, a world-class symphony orchestra, the fifth largest ballet company in the country and a Museum District with 16 museums and a 445-acre park, complete with its own lake and outdoor theatre. Additionally a number of art galleries have opened in recent years in the Midtown area, along the route of the new Metro Rail. Because of its vast geographical size (approximately that of the state of Rhode Island) Houston’s doesn’t readily reveal its wealth of treasures; rather it entices the visitor to discover, one piece at a time, its remarkable urban mosaic.

Tourism challenges include occasional high levels of air pollution, especially during the summer; heavy traffic, limited public transportation, and large distances between points of interest. To make up for it, Houston has an impressive museum district, with some recently opened facilities featuring fine examples of modern architecture to house their extensive collections. There is also a very active theatre district with permanent professional resident companies in all the major performing arts disciplines: opera, music, ballet and theatre. Pluses for the visitor include a growing number of boutique and luxury oriented hotels, some up and coming gourmet restaurants, a top-notch spa, ample free or inexpensive off-street parking, unfailingly friendly service and gracious southern hospitality. We enjoyed Houstonwith its many urban friendly features for a short activity filled getaway.

Location SouthEastern Texas along the gulf coast, fifty miles from the Gulf of Mexico (U.S.A.)

Language Englishand Spanish

Currency U.S. dollar

Transportation Rental car, taxis and private tours. Car is recommended except within downtown.

Electrical current 110 Volts

How to get there Major U.S. and foreign airlines provide frequent service from Houston’s- two main airports: George Bush Intercontinental, William P. Hobby.

Tourism highlights Home to exceptional cultural attractions, and a light rail system being installed to interconnect them, Houstonis poised to be a great place to visit. There has been a significantinvestment in convention space, with over 50,000 hotelrooms and about two million square feet of convention space, doubling in the next year.

Traffic is a huge challenge. With a large population, spread out over 600 square miles, everybody drives to get around. During rush hours, the main interstate highways become giant traffic jams, so visitors are advised to plan accordingly.

The theater district has some great hangout spots and easy access to the theater and opera. Houstonis a multi-cultural city, with approximately equal populations of non-Hispanic Whites and Hispanics. Warm temperatures year round (highs in the 60's, even in January) make it a pleasant city to explore. Other noteworthy features include the recently opened HobbyCenterfor the performing arts, the Museumof Fine Arts’ new AudreyJonesBeckBuildingand the intriguing underground passage way that links it to the original building across a main thoroughfare, the CockrellButterflyCenterat the Museumof Natural Science.

Technology High speed Internet connectivity was excellent in the handful of hotels we stayed at.

Shopping TheGalleria is the flagship for shopping, with anchor stores like Nordstrom's, NiemanMarcus and more than fifty others. The Heights historical districts ishome to antiques and folk art in a wide range of prices. The Conroeoutlet center offers a mall atmosphere with access to numerous outlets in one-stop shopping. There are dozens of shopping centers of all sizes scattered throughout the city and many stand alone specialty stores as well.

Other Houston’stwo main annual spring events are The Rodeo, that opens usually on the last week-end of February with a Trail Ride across the down town area of the city and lasts three weeks; and the River Oaks Garden Club‘s Azalea Trail, which for two weekends in March offers the opportunity to view residential gardens of the posh River Oaks in all their blooming splendor.

Favorites: Rice Village, the only real shopping area in the city meant for pedestrians and a fun place for a Saturday morning stroll followed by a café-au-laitand croissant in one of the several bistros scattered among the funky boutiques; the Landmark Theatre on West Gray for the best selection of foreign and art movies in town in 1930’s atmosphere

Date of latest visit June2005

Would you visit this destination again? Yes

Josette King