8. The Houston Zoo spans 55-acres, home to over 4500 animals of over 900 species, this zoo is truly extraordinary Stop by the new African Forest exhibit, take a ride on the carousel, hear sea lions bark, and watch orangutans play. Adult admission is $12, seniors are $6.50 and child admission is $8.

9. The Menil Collection houses 1/5 of the Menil families collection at a time, showcasing a wide variety of art, free of charge.

10. The Chase Tower Observatory is a 75-story skyscraper rises 1,001 feet, making it the tallest building in Texas; the 60th floor observatory is open to the public, free of charge.

11. National Museum of Funeral History – This museum houses the country’s largest collection of funeral service artifacts and features renowned exhibits on one of man’s oldest cultural customs. Come discover the mourning rituals of ancient civilizations and explore the rich heritage of the industry which cares for the dead. See John Paul II’s bulletproof Popemobile and an exact reproduction of his triple-nested coffin. Also see a coffin embedded with hundreds of dollars of U.S. coins and currency, Snow White’s clear glass casket, and a coffin made of the same greenish glass used in old Coke bottles. The “casket for three” was made in the 1930s for a married couple who intended to kill themselves after their baby died, but never did. Also see the largest collection of custom-designed Ghanaian coffins outside of Africa. The official state funeral hearses of Presidents Ford and Reagan are also on display. We consider it to be one of the 27 Coolest Museums In America! Admission is $10 for adults, $7 for children, and $9 for seniors.

Shopping

Houston is ranked by Forbes as America’s #1 best city for shopping, with nearly 17,000 retail locations and an 8.25% sales tax rate.

The Galleria – It’s easy to fill your shopping bags at Texas-sized shopping emporium the Galleria in Houston. Three million square foot of space makes the Galleria to be the largest mall in the state of Texas. It comes anchored by Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, and two seperate Macy’s. There are 2 Macy’s outposts, along with snazzy retailers like Cartier, Gucci, Tiffany & Co and Louis Vuitton, Westin hotels, tasty restaurants like The Rainforest Cafe, The Cheesecake Factory and The Oceanaire Seafood Room, and even an ice-skating rink under the tall glass atriums. Their ice skating rink was actually the world’s first ever rink to be built inside a mall, which is pretty cool in and of itself. They also have a state of the art children’s play area, two swimming pools, a video arcade, three full-service national and international banks, two tailor shops, 12 beauty salons, and a post office. Yeah, a post office! It takes 1400 parking spaces throughout seven garages just to accommodate all these shoppers! It ranks at #8 on our list of America’s Largest Malls.

Transportation

Coming Soon!

Restaurants

Aquarium Restaurant is located inside the downtown aquarium mentioned  above. This ocean themed restaurant features a giant aquarium featuring sharks, sting rays, eels, and exotic fish in the center of the restaurant. Get aquarium themed merchandise at the shop.

CK’s Restaurant – This revolving restaurant is located atop the Houston Airport Marriott at George Bush Intercontinental. They specialize in steak, seafood and poultry. The trendy upscale, urban vibe meets a casual and family friendly environment for the perfect dining experience.

Spindeletop – The second Houston revolving restaurant is the original and it is actually located in the heart of downtown, rather than by the airport. This seafood restaurant opened in 1972 and rotates ever 45 minutes to give you the perfect 360-degree of the city. It’s rated 4.5 stars on popular review sites, confirming it’s all around greatness.

Rainforest Cafe – Step into this indoor jungle and discover one of the most realistic indoor rain forests ever created, complete with cascading waterfalls, lush vegetation, tropical rainstorms, beautiful aquariums, trumpeting elephants and wild animatronic gorillas, jaguars, and elephants. A “thunderstorm” goes off every now and then, where the ”animals” go wild and thunder and lightning appear to sound off in a dramatic yet exciting experience. The menu includes a wide variety of options, including pastas, seafood, salads, sandwiches and pizzas. Order their “volcano” sundae and they start yelling “volcano” and make quite a spectacle! Pick up a souvenir on the way out at their large, iconic gift shop.

The Cheesecake Factory – Since first opening in Beverly Hills in 1978, these restaurants have become well known for their fun atmosphere, huge portions and more than 200 menu selections to choose from. They offer 50 cheesecakes and specialty desserts, with some that are only offered seasonally. These include: Key lime cheesecake, Chocolate Chip Cookie – Dough cheesecake, pumpkin cheesecake (available from October – holidays), Pineapple Upside-Down Cheesecake, and after thanksgiving they even have a peppermint Bark Cheesecake!

Buca di Beppo – Owned by Planet Hollywood, Buca di Beppo specializes in immigrant Southern Italian food. Vintage photographs cover the walls, in fact each restaurant is said to have more than 2,500 pictures. The food is served family style, where each item is shared among the dinner party. A select number of locations have a lunch menu, with individual-sized portions. All restaurants have a Pope table, a large table in a room to itself, with a bust of the pope in the center. Most locations also have a room right across from the kitchen, where you can watch them cook – chefs even come over and talk to you and even let you sample dishes.

Hard Rock Cafe – Located in the glittery theater district, a 35-foot replica of the Stevie Ray Vaughan Gibson Firebird guitar lights the way to the most rockin’ place in the city.  A wide variety of entrees and a pretty cool atmosphere make this among Houston’s favorites.

Hotels