Christmas getaway spots!!!!! (Houston, San Antonio, Austin: rentals, hotel, houseboat)

[ccoutofsc]

My family will be relocating to Georgetown before the end of the year. We are looking for places to go for a family trip during Christmas vacation. We want it to be within driving distance. We are a family of 7 with 5 kids ranging in ages 14 to 3. We want to have fun things to do that can also be educational if possible. We are making experiences rather than many toys for our kids so all suggestions would be great. Being new to Tx I figure there may be many things in the state we can do but we will also go to neighboring states if needed. Thanks for your help.

[Austin97]

rent a house in port Aransas for a few days - we like the village walk community. Can also do aquarium and uss lexington
drive to san antonio - can do fiesta texas, seaworld, alamo, riverwalk
drive to boerne or fredricksberg - stay overnight, cute town with shopping, visit enchanted rock
drive to lake travis - rent a house on the lake with a boat or a houseboat.

[Phisch]

Fredricksberg would be fun! They have the museum of the Pacific War, a pioneer museum and a wonderful Christmas display in the town square that is very fun. Nearby is Enchanted Rock (bring lots of water and you might have to help the 3 year old unless you go slow), the science museum and PEC lights display in Johnson City.

Or spend time in Austin? There are fun lights at Mozart's Cafe, the Blanton is free Thursdays (check in advance what they have displayed just in case), the Harry Ransom Center is free (see the first photo ever made and a complete Gutenberg bible), Bob Bullock museum for a great primer on Texas history. Plus the Trail of Lights at Zilker park should still be open.

[Moonlady]

Originally Posted by Austin97

rent a house in port Aransas for a few days - we like the village walk community. Can also do aquarium and uss lexington
drive to san antonio - can do fiesta texas, seaworld, alamo, riverwalk
drive to boerne or fredricksberg - stay overnight, cute town with shopping, visit enchanted rock
drive to lake travis - rent a house on the lake with a boat or a houseboat.

I would not recommend Port A - it has not yet recovered from the hurricane. Corpus would be a better option with the Aquarium and museums there.

San Antonio is a great place to go at Christmas. There is a lot to see and do not only on the Riverwalk but also around town. You can even take a detour back through Fredericksburg or Enchanted Rock on the way back.

[Trainwreck20]

Not sure how Port Aransas would be this year, seems like the infrastructure for tourism is still pretty much down.

On a similar note, though, I knew an (extended) family that would get together every year down in Surfside and rent several houses in a row on the beach. The family members came from various points around the country for a week (or 10 days?) kind of family reunion/Christmas vacation. I knew one of the people in the family and was invited over for a visit one year, since I was working at Dow Chemical right down the road. Anyway, it was a very laid back type thing, for sure - no big tourist things, but they played all sorts of games, had a sand castle building contest that was pretty extreme, and spent time with campfires on the beach, etc.

If you are looking for something a bit more planned, Galveston proper can be a good location. I think you would miss Dicken's on the Strand (early December, or maybe late November?), but it is worth a trip in of itself. The tall ship the 'Elissa' isn't super fancy, but still kind of neat, especially if your kids like getting into the history of things:
1877 Tall Ship ELISSA | Galveston Historical Foundation
There are a bunch of other little museums, as well.

NASA is just up the road and is very interesting for the more 'geek' crowd. I haven't been there in years, but they used to have some good tours/programs geared for various aged kids:
https://spacecenter.org/

It is rarely 'cold' in Galveston (although I was there when it snowed in 1987 or 1988, I forget), so you can rent bike-cabs and pedal around the city, and they might have the trolley up and running. There are a ton of restaurants, some cheesy/chain ones and some great local ones and a bunch in-between.

Moody Gardens should be good for your age kids, most likely. They have a pretty decent aquarium, and some kids love/other get bored in the rainforest exhibit (but there are monkeys!). IMax theather there, as well. I don't know if the water park would be open at that time of year. Looks like they have some special seasonal events, as well:
Moody Gardens Galveston Texas | Amusement Theme Parks | Houston Attractions | Family & Group Vacation Idea TX

Speaking of water parks, Schiltterbahn is closed for the winter, it looks like, but they do have 'events' there on occasion, I think. They had Christmas ice skating one year, I think:
https://www.schlitterbahn.com/galveston

Oh, and there is a beach, of course. Head to the west end and the state parks for more quiet (although it all should be quieter that time of year), or Steward Beach for the more developed stuff.

[katiev111]

Take your kids to Trail of lights in Austin. It's amazing, and it runs until the 23rd of december.

[Trainwreck20]

Originally Posted by katiev111

Take your kids to Trail of lights in Austin. It's amazing, and it runs until the 23rd of december.

I haven't been in years because the last time we went it was a traffic/logistical nightmare and our kids were too young to put up with the travel time/walking distances. If you pick a good time, though, or if they have improved the 'system', is might work okay.

[centralaustinite]

The best way to do trail of lights is to park downtown and take the shuttle, another alternative is to park at Austin High (for $ but it supports the school) and then walk across the pedestrian bridge, nights when AISD is still in session are lighter than once finals are over, and of course, fewer people on colder nights -- if we get any! Last year we went on the last night and I think it was 84 degrees.

We've gone to SPI after Christmas, plenty of rentals available. The weather can be great (80s) or not so great (40s) so it is hard to plan.

[cBach]

If you are here the first week of December (Dec 2-3), head to Natchitoches, LA (probably a 8 hour drive) for the Christmas festival. 100,000 people show up in a town of population 15,000. The festival takes over the town, there are food booths everywhere selling Natchitoches meat pies and all businesses light up. There is a fireworks festival over the river. I think it's probably the best Christmas celebration in the Gulf South to be honest.

The lights are on from November until January so anytime is a great time to visit during the Holiday season but if you visit Dec 2-3 you get the parades and the lights show which is comparable to Disney, see below.

https://www.holidaytrailoflights.com/natchitoches

"The Natchitoches Christmas Festival - ranked 3rd “Best Holiday Light Show” behind Rockefeller Center and Disney Land by Yahoo! Travel – celebrates its 90th year and is the granddaddy of all Louisiana festivals. Named a Southeast Tourism Society Top 20 Festival for 2016, visitors are awed by the more than 300,000 lights illuminating downtown Natchitoches and 100 lighted set pieces along Cane River creating a magical backdrop for the spectacular fireworks and entertainment. Enjoy gator on a stick, hot gumbo and of course Natchitoches meat pies from any of the dozen food vendors on hand."

[CarnivalGal]

Check out Galveston. They do Dickens on the Strand and Moody Gardens does a really cool Festival of Lights. During the day you ca check out Moody Gardens Aquarium and other attractions.

Moody Gardens has a nice hotel, but it will be pricey during the holiday festivities. But you can get great deals on VRBO during that time because it's technically the off-season.

Moody Gardens Galveston Texas | Amusement Theme Parks | Houston Attractions | Family & Group Vacation Idea TX

https://www.galveston.com/dickensonthestrand/