Houston/Galveston area

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Martian

Martian

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Dec 4, 2021
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Independent Republic of Horry
Hi all. We have a trip to a campground near Waco TX for the eclipse next April all locked up and are starting to plan the return trip. One idea was to go to Galveston and use it as a base for local exploring and also a trip to the Houston space center. The big question may be whether Houston is suffering the same crime woes as a lot of other big cities?
We left Long Island NY ten years ago when it got to be a place where if you defended yourself against a criminal and they got hurt it was your big problem. Think the place that covered for the Oak Island Killer until upper police staff were removed by the FBI.
We tend to avoid cities but some things just will not come to us so we have to go to them with a little research. The last time I was in Houston was round 35 years ago so that is not a valid reference point.
Any good info will be greatly appreciated.
 
Crime is up in the Houston area, at one time it was contained in the city center (mostly on the east side inside the I-610 loop), that is no longer the case, until covid hit my mother in law lived in a gated apartment complex near I-10 on the west side of Houston near Katy, and crime even inside the gated apartment complex was starting to be a real problem when she moved back to Louisiana. Prior to living in Katy in the early 2000's she lived in a gated apartment complex on the west side of Houston off Westheimer inside beltway 8, which has now turned into an unsafe place to live, controlled by gangs, etc.

Having said that Galveston can make a good base for exploration, with the understanding that downtown Houston is over an hours drive away, longer at rush hour. A lot depends on where and what you want to see in Houston. For the most part I would tend to say if you stay outside the boundary of beltway 8 when picking an RV park you will tend to be in relatively safe areas, at least on the north, west, and south sides of Houston, there really is no good part of east Houston, Baytown is not bad, but not somewhere I would suggest staying, east of that is wetlands and nothing for miles.

You will see BIG changes to Houston compared to 35 years ago, when the metro area population was only 2.75 million, compared to today at just under 7 million, Houston is a sprawling sill growing city, going east/west on I-10 it is continuous cityscape from the Trinity river on the east side, almost to Seally on the west side, a distance of about 70 miles.
 
Thank you Isaac-1. The main objective in Houston is the Space Center especially now that they have the asteroid samples. The drive from Galveston is not a problem as it is a wonderful way to explore.
 
Martian said:
The big question may be whether Houston is suffering the same crime woes as a lot of other big cities?
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Like most cities, you are quite safe as long as you use good sense about where you go and when. If you look for trouble you can probably find it, but if you use good judgment and visit the tourist areas you are very unlikely to have problems.
Martian said:
The main objective in Houston is the Space Center especially now that they have the asteroid samples.
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The Space Center Houston is about 25 miles south of the downtown part of Houston and in League City area. It is worth a visit but realize that it is a tourist attraction and NASA's Johnson Space Center is about 1/2 mile away and also worth a visit. I would suggest that you look at the RV parks in League City as the best base to visit the space center. Gslveston Island is about 40 miles away and you could drive from there and stay in an RV park or the state park there if you don't mind the drive.
 
My take is Galveston is a destination in its own right, there is Moody Gardens, the Strand district, the beach front area, as well as a number of good dining options, plus a few lesser attractions such as the oil rig museum, ...

While near the space center you may also consider going to the Kemah Boardwalk, it is only a few miles out of the way depending on the route you take, this is tourist spot, just across the bridge from Kemah in Seabrook is Tookies, (green and yellow building near the base of the bridge on the Seabrook side on a triangular shaped lot east of the bridge) for some of the best burgers in the Houston area Burgers, Cheese Burgers, Burger Restaurant, Shakes | Tookies Burgers My personal favorite is the Squealer it is a beef patty with bacon bits blended in
 
Thanks Kirk. That puts some more light on it. The reasoning behind Galveston is to get there in one jump from our previous location and do the travel to Houston without the trailer. Always nice to have a home base for a few days.
 
Are you considering any particular rv park in Galveston, also will you be approaching from the east (using the ferry), from the north via I-45, or the west across the San Luis pass toll bridge?
 
As was noted above, if your primary goal is NASA and such, you will never be in Houston "proper". NASA is south of Houston. Now that does not absolve it of any crime, but you should be fine at NASA. We have been a few times, and never had any issues. Parking is easy and I've not heard of any real problems there. Otherwise, yes, the other places mentioned above are also worth a visit if you have the time.

Enjoy!
 
Thanks again Isaac-1. We had those spots in Galveston in our sights and also the railroad museum. We are originally from seaside communities so most places with sand, shells and the smell of salt water entice us. Great burgers is just more icing!
 
Isaac-1 said:
Are you considering any particular rv park in Galveston, also will you be approaching from the east (using the ferry), from the north via I-45, or the west across the San Luis pass toll bridge?
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Looking at Blue Water RV Resort which is actually in Freeport. Our approach will be from the North West coming from south of Waco. Probably take 8 around Houston to 6 headed for Galveston which will bring us over the I45 bridge. Any insight on that route is welcome.
 
It looks like Galveston Island State Park has recovered from the hurricane a decade or so ago and rebuilt its campgrounds. It is right on the beach and in a fairly quiet area unless you want full hookups.
 
As much as my various trip planners did not like the 77/36 route, it looks like a nice leisurely run. Never know what you will see or experience on the lesser roads. We got invited into a parade in a small town on the Delmarva when we were passing thru and they told us to join the parade because we would have to wait if we didn't. They threw streamers over the trailer and off we went! Wonderful time.
 
True, we got stuck behind a Saturday morning bicycle race in Winfield, Kansas last May. As to those planning apps they all seem to want to put you on the biggest highway and on the quickest route, even when the less traveled alternative route only adds 5 minutes. Texas also tends to have fairly good state highways unlike the states that surround it.

p.s. I usually use google street view to scout out these secondary highways see how wide the shoulders are, pavement condition, etc.
 
We stay between Galveston & Freeport at Blue Water RV park .Its west of the toll bridge & may be further from Houston than you want.
 
Be aware it can take a long time to drive the length of Galveston from the San Luis toll bridge to I-45 as the speed limit most of the way is 45 mph or less with a number of traffic lights along the route.
 
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