Why Seabrook should be your family’s next Southeast Texas getaway
Just 40 minutes from Houston’s city center, Seabrook, Texas has been touted as one of the state’s best places to live. A vibrant coastal community, it sits on the west side of Galveston Bay and offers numerous ways to spend a day, including shopping, dining and outdoor recreation galore. It’s also home to some of the Houston area’s most popular destinations: the Kemah Boardwalk and NASA’s Johnson Space Center, plus numerous other recreational opportunities such as biking, fishing boating and hiking.
Officially established in the early 1900s, Seabrook has a resort vibe and is a fishing and shrimping port. It’s well known for its yacht clubs and marinas and its year-round festivals and events, from Mardi Gras parties to regattas. Locals choose to live here because of the outdoorsy, small-town lifestyle Seabrook offers within proximity to the big city.
If you’re ready to get a taste of the Seabrook life with a “baycation,” read on to discover the best ways to spend a day (or even a weekend) in Seabrook.
Where to stay in Seabrook, Texas
Seabrook is home to numerous resorts, hotels and other accommodation options. Those into the bed and breakfast experience will love Beacon Hill Bed and Breakfast or Pelican’s Nest Bed & Breakfast. The Old Parsonage Guest House and The Galloping Seahorse offer entire cabins that guests can rent out.
Upscale hotel accommodations include the Hilton NASA Clear Lake and the Boardwalk Inn. There are also numerous mid-range and budget options including the Springhill Suites by Marriott, Hampton Inn & Suites Clear Lake NASA, Best Western Seabrook Suites and the Kemah Edgewater Hotel.
Where to eat in Seabrook, Texas
Thanks in large part to Seabrook being a fishing community, there’s no shortage of delicious places to eat. You’ll find everything from fine dining with a waterfront view to more casual eateries. There are also several outdoor markets where you can source fresh jumbo shrimp, blue crab and fish to prepare at home. Pro tip: Locals love Emery’s Seafood or Rose’s Seafood for all their crab and crawfish boil needs.
For Thai food, try Merlion Thai Restaurant &Lounge, or if pizza is what you’re craving, Midnite Slice is open weekends until 2 a.m. Seabrook Waffle Company offers Instagram-worthy sweet and savory waffles, and the Pelican Grill, featured on the Food Network’s “Restaurant Impossible,” is a local favorite for breakfast benedicts and more. And if you’d like to visit the next town over, head to the acclaimed Pier 6 Seafood & Oyster House.
Can’t-miss festivals in Seabrook, Texas
Seabrook is home to numerous festivals and events that draw thousands of visitors to the area every season. There’s something for everyone and an event happening almost every weekend. Here are some of our favorites:
Yachty Gras
In late January and early February, America’s largest Mardi Gras boat parade happens in Seabrook. Enthusiastic “krewes” on lavishly decorated vessels pass the Kemah Boardwalk and throw beads to revelers.
Seabrook Lucky Trails
This event, held each March, is a weekend-long series of races including quarter, half and full marathons, a 5K and a 1K for kids. Held on the Seabrook nature trails, runners traverse a habitat of fresh and salt marshes on the Galveston Bay that are home to wildlife and bird sanctuaries.
“Keels & Wheels” Concours d’Elegance
On the first weekend in May, the country’s largest collection of classic vintage cars and wooden boats congregate in Seabrook at the Lakewood Yacht Club.
Gulf Coast Film Fest
This three-day film festival showcases the work of independent filmmakers.
Seabrook Saltwater Derby
Grab your fishing pole and hit the water for a fishing fundraiser that benefits the Seabrook Association’s Scholarship Fund and Shriners Children’s Hospital.
Harvest Moon Regatta
Lakewood Yacht Club is also behind the year’s most popular regatta, an annual October event since 1987. The race starts in Galveston and ends with a party in Port Aransas.
Celebration Seabrook
Locals love this fall celebration that combines a music festival with food trucks, wine and craft beer, arts and crafts and other vendors in a marketplace setting, as well as a kid zone full of fun activities.
Can’t-miss attractions in and around Seabrook, Texas
Kemah Boardwalk
Like its sister property, the Galveston Historic Pleasure Pier, the Kemah Boardwalk is owned and operated by Landry’s, Inc. with some crossover between the offerings. The Kemah Boardwalk offers several kid-friendly rides alongside even more white-knuckle thrill rides such as the Boardwalk Bullet, a 96-foot tall wooden roller coaster.
To experience another type of thrill, Kemah hosts a Stingray Reef and Rainforest exhibit full of critters you can touch and feed. There are mid-way games (think skee-ball and whac-a-mole) and an arcade, a playground and a splash pad, plus more than 10 restaurants, including Bubba Gump’s, Landry’s Seafood House, Joe’s Crab Shack, Saltgrass Steakhouse and the Aquarium Restaurant.
Space Center Houston
Just across Clear Lake from Seabrook, the Space Center Houston gives visitors an “out of this world” experience tracing mankind’s adventures in space. As the gateway to the ‘Space City,” where astronauts train and take flight, it is the city’s first Smithsonian affiliate museum, featuring more than 400 exhibits and activities. Spanning some 250,000 square feet, the Space Center has welcomed more than 11 million visitors since its opening in 1992.
Among the top attractions that leave guests star-struck are IMAX films, exhibits of retired space suits, close-up views of several rockets and spacecraft, hands-on activities like touching a moon rock and even a VIP tour of NASA training facilities and breakfast with an astronaut. You can even arrange to camp overnight. The Space Center also features numerous traveling exhibits and special events, so be sure to check its website before your visit.
Beaches to visit in Seabrook, Texas
With an average temperature range of 62 to 92 degrees Fahrenheit, Seabrook is pleasant for outdoor activities any time of year. Even though it’s between a bay and a lake, Seabrook does have a couple of beaches. On Galveston Bay, Sylvan Beach Park, in nearby La Porte includes a fishing pier, skate park, playground, picnic area and volleyball court. Farther north, El Jardin Beach Park has a picturesque beach with picnic tables, fishing and a bayou.
Trails to hit in Seabrook, Texas
Believe it or not, Seabrook is also home to one of the Houston area’s most
popular trail systems. The interconnected trails cover almost 14 miles, have over 100 benches and wind along the Galveston Bay shoreline, making them the perfect place for runners, walkers and cyclists. There are 159 species of birds living in the area’s hidden lagoons and marshlands, including white and brown pelicans, ospreys, cormorants, heron and egrets. Although the trails are popular with birders, there are hundreds of other animals that call the area home, including whitetail deer, armadillos, alligators, butterflies, turtles and an occasional dolphin at Pine Gully Park.
After you hike the trails, hit Pine Gully Park, a popular spot for fishing and boating, for a dip in the lake.
