Long lay over in Houston....anything to do?

Question

I have a 9 hour lay over in houston in october. Is there anything I can do around the city to kill sometime?

Answer 1

Do go to the Galleria, even if you do not like shopping. Its pretty cool there, but its far as well from IAH.

Do go to galveston, though the water is REALLY gross. But its a pretty sight, as long as you dont go in the water.

Do not go to NASA, trust me, it is incredibly boring.

and if you get seriously bored, just pig out at any of the diverse resturants. Houston has amazing food choices, from mexican, italian, chinese, indian, thai- anything, you name it!

have fun :D

Answer 2

Not really. Pretty boring to me.

Answer 3

It depends what airport the layover is at and if you are flying domestically.

EDIT:  Well, I know that 9 hours seems like a long time, but in Houston with the traffic and considering the fact that IAH is a good piece from anything you would want to see, then I would opt for...

Jimmy G's - Cajun Sytle Seafood Restaurant - close to the airport for a nice lunch, just take a cab.

Jimmy G's

307 N Sam Houston Pkwy.

Houston, TX 77060

Phone: [phone]

Here's the website link to check out the menu:

http://www.jimmyg.com/

Since your flight is in October, I would add on a hike at the Mercer Arboretum.

Here's an excerpt from Wikipedia describing the 300 acres of gardens:

"Today's gardens include Azalea Berms, Bald Cypress Pond, Bamboo Garden (with more than 30 species of spreading and clump-forming bamboo), Daylily Garden, Endangered Species Garden, Fern Garden, Ginger Garden, Hawthorn Loop, Herb Garden, Hickory Bog, Iris Garden, Lily Pond, Maple Collection, Post Oak Uplands, Prehistoric Garden, Rock Garden, Salvia Collection, Shade Bog Garden and Boardwalk, Tropical Garden, Vine Garden, and a Woodland Pond and Bridge, as well as picnic tables and more than 3 miles (4.8 km) of walking paths."

You could even buy a sandwich at the airport and take it to the arboretum for an alfresco lunch.  Just take a cab to and from the arboretum.  It is very close to the airport.

Mercer Arboretum and Botanical Gardens

22306 Aldine Westfield Rd

Humble, TX 77338-1071

Phone: [phone]

Hours: Mon-Sat 8am-7pm, Sun 10am-7pm

This is a gorgeous place!

Here's the link:

http://www.hcp4.net/mercer/

Enjoy your 9 hours in Houston!

Answer 4

I agree with the taking a bus and seeing museums thing.  That sounds like fun.  If you don't want to pay a lot of money getting into museums, you can go to the free ones.  Most of them are close together, and there is a lot of good restaurants around that area as well.

http://www.houstonmuseumdistrict.org/def...

It really depends on what you like to do.

Answer 5

dang you can't get a more direct flight?  

i would get lunch and hang out at the galleria. make sure you account for horrendous rush hour for your return.

Answer 6

I've never done this, but you can take a bus (102 Bush IAH) from the airport to downtown.  Then take the metro rail or a taxi to the museum district.  Go to www.ridemetro.org for more info.  Check houstonpress.com for info on all the eateries.  Plus they list things going on around town.  In October if it's a weekend there will be festivals to go to.  

There's nothing nice near the Airport, but downtown Houston has a lot to offer if you are willing to do the research.    

Galleria is a huge, gorgeous mall and it has art galleries, ice skating  and eateries. Buses go there, just be careful of the time.  Enjoy our city, and do be careful.  

If your budget allows, your best bet is to rent a car with a gps. Allow an hour for the drive to downtown, the museum district, or the Galleria.  Do get back an hour early, because it gets pretty crowded at the airport.      

Answer 7

9 hours....

Well you have to be back for your flight at least an hour ahead of take off, and you have all the security BS to go through at the airport...even allowing for plenty of time for the drive back, you still have some time to kill.

As was said before, IAH is pretty far out from Houston Proper...it will cost you a pretty good chunk of change to get a cab down into town.  It might actually be cheaper to rent a car. Just make sure you get the ones with the GPS option.

Public Transportation isn't really an operative concept in Houston, least not yet.

I did some googleing and found this about taxi rates

Effective July 17, 2006, the City of Houston regulated taxi meter rate is $2.50 for the first 2/11 mile, and $0.17 for each additional 1/11 mile ($4 for the first mile and $1.87 for every mile thereafter). People 60 and older receive a 10% discount on fares. Waiting is calculated on the taxi meter at $0.33 per minute ($20.00 Per Hour). There is an additional $1 surcharge on all trips which commence between the hours of 8:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.  

Bottom line, could cost you $50 each way to drive into town.

Within downtown it is flat rate of $6. http://www.houstontx.gov/downtowncab/ind...

Then again...if you get lost (and it can be easy to get lost in Houston) you could easily miss your flight if you don't get back in time. I'd opt for a car with GPS and study a map before you come.

Google says it is 18 miles down to the Museum Distirct from IAH. I'd say that's a 45 min to an hour drive.  If you want to go that far, you can see a lot of interesting things. The Musuem district near Herman Park is the best part of the city.  In October it might even be cool enough you could walk. The Fine Arts Museum, the Science Museum and the Contemporary Arts Museum are all right next to each other.  You could just park the car and walk from museum to museum.

http://www.hmns.org/

http://www.mfah.org/home.asp?par1=1&par2...

http://www.houstonmuseumdistrict.org/def...

And we have oodles of great resturants down here. Sadly not a lot of them are in the Museum district. Montrose is just north of there, it's the g*y area of Houston and it has some good resturants. Also the Rice village is close, http://www.ricevillageonline.com/ it is to the west of the museum distrcit. It has GREAT resturants, but it can be hard to find a place to park.

The trick will be getting back to IAH, turning in your car, getting through the BS of airport security, and making your plane. Leave PLENTY of time for the drive back...sometimes traffic can really get backed up if there is a bad accident. I'd say figure out how much time you think you will need then double that.

Don't try to see NASA.  For one thing it is too far... way down in Clear Lake...that's a two hour drive, each way. (IF you did opt for this, make sure to eat at TOOKIES when you are down there) and through the worst of the traffc...could be dicey. Secondly, Space Center houston is very expensive and quite overpriced. Its not worth the money in my opinion, and I am a huge fan of the space program.

PS I used to live in Tampa..LOVE it.  If you get a chance while you are there check out Fort DeSoto Park.  It is a little county park with a beach but it doesn't have any bars, T-shirt shops, or anything  just a long beautiful beach that ISN'T full of tourists.. It is a very locals sort of place.  http://www.pinellascounty.org/park/05_Ft...

Answer 8

Go to a bar nearby or restaurant. See if there are any good shops.

Answer 9

Oh so do I in December. grrrrrrr...

Answer 10

IAH is not really near Houston proper. You'll actually be near Humble. Deerbrook Mall is very close, and there are a handful of restaurants on FM 1960 which runs beside the mall.

If you are wanting to get a cab and go into Houston, check out the Galleria; it's HUGE!  

Answer 11

Bring a book or two, stay at the airport, eat there. In all my travels, no matter how long the layover, I've NEVER left an airport. It is way too much of a hassle.

Bush Intercontinental is nearly 30 miles from downtown Houston. It isn't worth the time nor the expense.