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Houston’s Essential Sights, From Spaceflight to Skyline
17 placesHouston
Travel from the Apollo-era wonders at Space Center Houston through the Museum District and leafy parks to Uptown landmarks and downtown’s public spaces. This route combines Houston’s signature science, art, wildlife, architecture, shopping and bayou scenery.
- Pop culture
- Music
- Art
- Architecture
- Science & Tech
- Nature
- Local culture
- History
- Social Justice
- Food traditions
- Sports
- Religion
Places in this guide
- 1
Space Center HoustonWorld's only walk-in Space Shuttle replica 🚀 - 2
Rothko ChapelWorld's first broadly ecumenical center 🕊️ - 3
Museum of Fine Arts HoustonSecond only to the Met in size - 4
Houston Museum of Natural ScienceMost-visited U.S. museum outside NYC and D.C. - 5
Hermann Park🏥 The park founder's unexpected inspiration - 6
Houston Zoo🦇 The first vampire bat colony - 7
Gerald D. Hines Waterwall Park👑 Corporate art collection's crown jewel - 8
Galleria HoustonTexas's largest mall 🛍️ - 9
Houston Arboretum and Nature CenterGoats replaced buffalo to restore this prairie 🐐 - 10Cockrell Butterfly CenterCash for cockroaches program 🪳
- 11
Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo GroundsCity that fled two storms - 12
Bayou Bend Collection and GardensThe armchair that started a collection - 13
Buffalo Bayou ParkBuilt for the flood 🌊 - 14
Discovery GreenThe art of underwater paint 🎨 - 15
Houston Theater DistrictGrand opera, ballet, and symphony in one district 🎭 - 16
The Menil CollectionCivil rights, art, and a broken obelisk ✊ - 17
National Museum of Funeral HistoryCountry's largest collection of funeral service artifacts ⚰️
