Half-Day to Full-Day Trips from Houston

The driving time to these destinations are up to or about one hour.

DEWBERRY FARM – SEASONAL

FM 362 & Morrison Road, Brookshire, 281-934-3276
Open to the public on weekends from September 27 through November 9 for the Fall 2014 season. Other times of the year, only group field trips are accommodated. In addition to the 8-acre corn maze, families can enjoy the pumpkin patch, pony rides, train rides, even tractor-pulled wagon rides. Children can visit the Barnyard Babies – baby goats, baby rabbits and baby chickens. Other animals in the barnyard include guineas, turkeys and a miniature donkey. Kids can learn about chickens and roosters and white eggs and brown eggs at The Cackle Palace. Families can also catch pig races during the weekends.   CLICK HERE FOR MORE DEWBERRY FARM DETAILS AND PHOTOS. 

BLESSINGTON FARMS – SEASONAL

510 Chisolm Trail, Simonton, 832-444-8717
For the Fall 2014 Season, the farm is open on Saturdays from September 27 through November 8. Families can enjoy the pumpkin patch and fall festivities. Pick your perfect pumpkin from the more than 20 varieties of Texas-grown pumpkins offered at Blessington Farms. Kids’ activities include barrel rides, hay rides, pedal cars and sand mountain. Animal encounters feature endangered and rare breeds of livestock and heritage chickens and turkeys. In the spring, guests can pick blackberries, blueberries and strawberries. Call ahead on the morning of your visit – the farm sometimes stays closed because of weather and other conditions. Weather decisions are made by 8 a.m. each day.

FROBERG’S FARM – SEASONAL

11875 CR 190, Alvin, 281-585-3531
Froberg’s Farm is open on weekends only from September 27 to November 2 this Fall 2014. Families can wander around the corn maze and enjoy a hayride. Other activities include a planting booth, plastic duck races, bean bag toss and face painting. Strawberry Picking season is around March through May. Families can grab a bucket and go! Owner Joann Froberg tells ParentsPost.com “Call the day you want to come, we can tell you whether there are a lot of berries, dry or wet fields. We open at 9 a.m., but we start answering phones at 7:30 a.m. Pick only the red ones, not the green ones.” The farm’s store, which is open all year carries the other fruits and vegetables grown on the property.

MOORHEAD’S BLUEBERRY FARM – SEASONAL

19531 Moorhead Road, Conroe, 281-572-1265
Blueberry Picking Season typically runs from late May through mid-July. Moorhead Blueberry Farm does not use pesticides on its blueberries or bushes. The property is 20 acres and grows more than 20 varieties of blueberries including Tifblue, Becky Blue, Brightwell, Climax and Garden Blue. The farm recommends arriving early in the morning, or early in the evening, to avoid the heat.

GALVESTON ISLAND HISTORIC PLEASURE PIER

2501 Seawall Boulevard, 855-789-7437
This amusement park is on a pier over the Gulf of Mexico that’s 120 feet wide and 1,130 feet long. Families can enjoy 16 rides ranging from the carousel and the tea cups to the rollercoaster and the ferris wheel. There are bumper cars for kids only, and there are bumper cars for adults. Children and parents can also play classic theme park games – throw darts at balloons, toss rings at bottlenecks, or whack away at the Whac-A-Mole. Parking is available along the seawall, and a 450-space lot across the street.

BAYOU WILDLIFE PARK

5050 FM 517 Rd, Alvin, 281-337-6376
Families can go on safari on specially built trams at this 80-acre private animal preserve. Wildlife guides accompany each group, and children can feed some of the 500 animals and burns that run free on the property. The tours pass alligator ponds and monkey islands. Endangered species in the park include the white rhino, the bactrian camel and the ring tail lemur. Pony rides and a petting zoo are also available.

MOODY GARDENS

1 Hope Boulevard, Galveston, 409-744-4673
Open daily. Families can choose between three pyramids: the Rainforest Pyramid, the Aquarium Pyramid, and the Discovery Pyramid. The Rainforest Pyramid houses more than 1,000 species of exotic plants and animals. Its colorful inhabitants include macaws, monkeys, alligators, a green anaconda, a rainbow boa and cobalt blue tarantula. The Aquarium Pyramid has more than 10,000 marine animals. The blue glass building is divided into four regions: the Caribbean, South Atlantic, North Pacific and South Pacific regions. Children can enjoy the tide pools, touch tanks, and underwater classrooms. Private penguin encounters can be scheduled for extra fees. The Discovery Pyramid houses traveling exhibits and the Ridefilm Theater. Right now, it’s featuring The Bodies Revealed Exhibition through September 2012. When you’re ready for outdoor fun, you can ride the Colonel Paddlewheel Boat.

SPACE CENTER HOUSTON

1601 Nasa Parkway, 281-244-2100
Children can pretend they’re in orbit at Kids Space Place. They can explore what it’s like in a space shuttle or on the space station. The Feel of Space presentation can be amusing. Children are shown how astronauts do everyday things like showering, cooking and sleeping, while floating weightless in outer space. Other attractions include: the Starship Gallery, Astronaut Gallery and Space Center Theater. On Fridays, astronauts who have travelled to outer space, make special presentations at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. at the Blast Off Theater. Families can even dine with the featured astronaut by making reservations for Lunch with an Astronaut at noon. The NASA Tram Tour takes you behind the scenes at the Johnson Space Center where astronauts train and robotic technologies are developed. Visitors can also walk through the Historic Apollo Mission Control Center and Rocket Park.

SEA CENTER TEXAS

300 Medical Drive, Lake Jackson, 979-292-0100
This aquarium, fish hatchery and 75-acre nature center is operated by the Texas Parks & Wildlife. Kids can dip their fingers and touch marine animals including blue crabs, stone crabs, snails and anemones. One unique feature of this touch pool is the Lightning Whelk, the state shell of Texas. The hatchery produces juvenile red drum and spotted speckled trout that are stocked in Texas bays. Families can make advanced reservations for hatchery tours. In addition to observing marine life, families can walk across the wetlands that attract hummingbirds, frogs and dragonflies. A boardwalk allows access over a freshwater marsh and a saltwater marsh.

KEMAH BOARDWALK

215 Kipp Avenue, Kemah, 281-535-8100
Open daily. This amusement park’s best feature is its location. It’s right on Galveston Bay. The waterfront property features 13 rides. Toddlers may enjoy the train and double-decker carousel. Children are allowed on more rides as they meet minimum height requirements. For taller toddlers, there is a kid-size ferris wheel and an airplane family ride. Beyond, there are the classics: a 65-foot Ferris Wheel, a 140-foot drop tower called the Drop Zone, and the Boardwalk Bullet Rollercoaster which goes as fast as 50 miles per hour. There are ten restaurants on the complex.

OLD MacDONALD’s FARM

3203 FM 1960 Road East, Humble, 281-446-4001
Families can visit 12 petting zoo barns. Kids are allowed to touch the farm animals that include goats, sheep, cows and pigs. Other exotic animals include llamas, emus and a wallaby. Pony rides, a train ride, playgrounds and a swimming pool are also available.