The hub of the city! Downtown is big and offers a lot within its footprint. Check out some of the offerings below! https://downtownhouston.org/

Downtown Tunnels

Built to connect many of Houston's big business buildings with each other underground, this area is like an underground mall. Lots of shop and small restaurants are located here. FYI, this is only open during business hours Monday-Friday. https://downtownhouston.org/experience/downtown-tunnels

Market Square Park

Right next to Hotel ICON, this small park has local markets, outdoor movies and various other community events throughout the year. It also has a food stand, Niko Nikos, which has great Greek food! https://downtownhouston.org/go/market-square-park

Discovery Green

Near the Convention Center, this park houses art installations, interactive exhibits, and various year round activities, from kayaking on the lake to a roller rink! In this area are some really nice hotels (Hilton Americas and Marriott Marquis), the latter of which had a rooftop lazy river in the shape of Texas! This is a fun area to walk around. https://www.discoverygreen.com/

Buffalo Bayou Park

This MASSIVE park starts right at the edge of downtown. 160 acres, this park encompasses everything from long walking/biking trails, pedestrian bridges that look towards the skyline of Houston, a big dog park with a swimming hole, and one of the more "unique" things, a bat colony bridge (the Waugh Drive Bridge)! This is free to view nightly, depending on the season and if the bats fly. There is also an old underground cistern near downtown that is now used for art installations, and is open for tours. https://buffalobayou.org/location/buffalo-bayou-park/

https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/species/bats/bat-watching-sites/waugh-drive-bridge.phtml

https://buffalobayou.org/location/the-cistern/

Glenwood Cemetery

Although this doesn't sound like a fun place to visit, this is a big historical cemetery that houses some famous people's graves - including Howard Hughes. https://www.glenwoodcemetery.org/

Beer Can House

Right down the road from Jessie and Chris's house is another unique find! A local man in 1968 started transforming his house, covering it in beer cans!

https://www.full.orangeshow.org/beer-can-house

Downtown Aquarium

On the edge of downtown, this aquarium has lots of exhibits and displays, including a white tiger habitat! There's also some small amusement rides, along with a restaurant where you can dine next to the giant tanks of fish. https://www.aquariumrestaurants.com/downtownaquariumhouston/

House of Blues

Houston has a location from this national chain. There's a restaurant here, along with a big music hall that hosts a variety of acts throughout the year. https://www.houseofblues.com/houston

Theatre District

Houston is home to wonderful live entertainment. Everything from Broadway shows (Hobby Center), Opera, Ballet (both at the Wortham Center), plays (Alley Theatre), symphony (Jones Hall), there's something for everyone in this downtown district. Chris and Jessie are subscribers to many of these theatres! https://www.visithoustontexas.com/theater/

Minute Maid Park/Houston Astros Baseball

This is Jessie's dad's favorite place in Houston, maybe even within the whole United States. He likes it MUCH better than Yankee Stadium ;) :D

Whatever your home team is, Minute Maid park is cool to see. Even if the Astros aren't in town the weekend of the wedding, its still worth seeing! For those big lovers of baseball, different types of tours are held. https://www.mlb.com/astros/ballpark/tours/tour-options

Toyota Center

This is where the Houston Rockets play (basketball), and where most major concert tours perform. There's usually something going on, check out the calendar for more info! https://www.toyotacenter.com/events

Shell Energy Stadium

Home of the Houston Dynamo, our major league men's soccer team. These games are a lot of fun to go to, a ton of spirit is always going on! The Houston Dash also play here, the women's soccer team. This is one of the few open air stadiums Houston has for professional sports. https://www.houstondynamofc.com/