Houston Outdoor Activities
Houston Outdoor Activity Guide
Even though the weather in Houston can be “a bit warm”, the sometimes humid conditions don’t stop city residents from heading outdoors and enjoying all that the biggest city in Texas has to offer. So when the constant buzz of the air conditioner and summer reruns become too much to bare, check out these “cool” Houston concerts, parks, and other outdoor activities.
From country to rock to jazz to blues, Houston has plenty of outdoor concerts that fill the air with music. Head on over to the annual Free Press Summer Fest held every June in Eleanor Tinsley Park or show off one’s samba moves at the Caribbean American Heritage Festival (also in June) at Jones Plaza. Finally, the Miller Outdoor Theater features jazz, classical, theater, and ballet from March to October. And the price is definitely right (free).
The unusual Houston area landscape, which includes the waterfront, bayous, and rolling hills, creates some of the most interesting hiking, trail riding, and exploring in the state. Houston parks also offer world-class golfing, fishing, and even concerts such as the blues tribute festival at Sam Houston Park in downtown. For outdoor activities in Houston try Buffalo Bayou Park, a 12-mile stretch that offers some prime biking and running opportunities, or kayaking on one of the many picturesque Houston waterways.
Explore the unusual or seldom seen side of Houston with tours of the Port of Houston and Ship Canal (once the city’s lifeblood and still a significant industry), historical tours of the city’s past, walking tours, canoe tours, and even a few ghost tours that will teach something about the city one probably didn’t know.
Don’t let the Houston heat stop the fun. Explore the wide variety of outdoor activities in Houston that make the area the place to be.
Outdoor Activity Deals
Paintball Bonanza Houston
- Central Southwest
Guests can rove across five distinct fields with all-day admission, equipment rental, unlimited CO2 refills, and 200 paintballs.
Survival Game of Texas
- North Houston
Armed with 200 paintballs, players battle on 47 acres of fields, which include a jungle maze and three-story twin castles
Pro Edge Paintball
- Houston
Paintball-gun cleaning and repair, air-tank refill; 1,000 paintballs for each marker
Stone Moves Indoor Rock Climbing
- Houston
Climbers ascend bouldering and top-rope courses with gradual- to steep-angled walls to accommodate all skill levels
Indoor Tactical Sports
- Cornerstone Village North
The two-story battleground houses four fields where players 10 years old or older can wage recreational war with Reball paintball pellets
Recommended Outdoor Activities by Groupon Customers
Sam Houston Race Park's multifunctional grounds crawl with up to 30,000 spectators reveling amid horseraces, concerts, and private events. Quarter horses, thoroughbreds, and arabians kick up dust as jockeys maneuver them around the course, cheered on by race fans placing bets based on their stats, the weather, and the size of the horse's toupee. Spectators can also watch and wager on races outside the park's grounds, as monitors air simulcasts of the big races, including the Arlington Classic Stakes and Los Angeles Handicap. In two restaurants under the supervision of executive chef Hugo Gomez, the racetrack treats guests to panoramic views of the competition as they dine on seafood, gourmet pastas, and brunch fare. Guests may also entertain up to 100 friends, employees, or colleagues in luxury suites equipped with a private bar and an in-room centaur butler.
Mysterious fires. An old bank vault that can’t be destroyed. A deceased opera singer who refuses to draw the curtain on the living world. These are the stories that Houston Ghost Tour’s seasoned phantom chasers impart to mortals as they guide them to local nooks and crannies where spectral squatters may dwell. Guests on the Houston tour tiptoe through the ghostly grounds of Rice University and explore Hermann Park, where the songs from Miller Outdoor Theatre and animalistic shrieks from the Houston Zoo converge to form an eerie soundtrack for sleuthing. Travelers drink in local history during the Old Town Spring adventure, which teems with tales of Civil War battles, high-stakes gambling bets, and brothels filled with the ghosts of bats forever tangled up in lingerie. Along the way, guests can also glimpse the bullet holes of a bank robbed by Bonnie and Clyde. The Tomball tour explores a paranormal train depot and a cemetery that, like an igloo made of dry ice, is said to have vanished into thin air.
Ranked in Golfweek's Best Courses You Can Play in Indiana, the course at Prairie View Golf Club is situated on 206 acres of environmentally protected land along the White River with scenic prairieland and five lakes. The Robert Trent Jones, Jr. design features natural wetlands with a rushing stream that comes into play on four holes, forcing players to demonstrate deft control or gilled golf bags. On the front nine, the prairie setting invites harsh winds to blow across bentgrass fairways, often knocking shots off course. As players make the turn onto the back nine, they notice a marked difference in the environment, as open prairies give way to tall sycamore, oak, beech, and cottonwood trees lying just beyond the Kentucky bluegrass rough. Across the river lies Conner Prairie, a historical re-enactment village whose elegant, 1830s-era style was adopted for the design of the course's 15,000-square-foot clubhouse.
Course at a Glance:
- 18-hole, par 72 course
- Total length of 7,073 yards from the back tees
- Course rating of 74.5 from the back tees
- Course slope of 138 from the back tees
- Four sets of tees per hole
