Houston we have a problem......we didn't budget enough time for our amazing visit to NASA in Houston, Texas. We allotted 3 hours but think you could spend about 5 hours here.
We had a BLAST at NASA. Growing up I always wanted to go to Space Camp so when we took a Texas road trip I knew we had to visit NASA about 45 minutes outside of Houston. We purchased tickets ahead of time online and I encourage everyone to get them ahead.
Download the Space Center Houston app before you go and when you get inside the main building, book a tour out to the rockets using the app. Watch your phone for an alert for your tram time and then go back to the area by the cafeteria to board the tram. Make sure to use the bathroom before you board.
You take the tram (handicap accessible) out to Rocket Park, Mission Control and the astronaut training facility. There are two tours, a red and blue. One takes you to just Rocket Park and one takes you to see Rocket Park, Christopher C. Kraft Mission Control and the astronaut training facility. You have to choose which one when you use on the app when you book.
There are benches here for you to wait or go walk around until it is your time. Make sure you watch your phone for the alert not to miss it.
This is the part we missed because we did not have enough time for it and hope to return to see it.
If you get hungry while here, do not worry they have real food to eat, not like they eat in space. They have a large cafe to eat at and they had a food truck outside to get food. There are also vending machines with food here. There are restrooms located in the front on the left. For convenience we ate here to save time.
You walk around the space center by yourself, so you can go at your own pace.
They have benches located around for those who need to rest and felt it was very handicap friendly.
They have a movie when you first walk in on the right that continuously plays for roughly 15 minutes. Make sure to walk out the other side to see another section of the museum that will end near the kids area which is located to the right of the movie theater. It has many interactive exhibits.
We loved the live science show they had that lasted about 30 minutes.
There is a small gift shop by the cafe/trams and a large one by the exit. My son loves to buy the space ice cream.
For those with family members with sensory issues they offer sensory friendly events.
They sometimes offer a breakfast with an astronaut for an extra ticket price. We did this at Kennedy Space Center in Florida and loved it! We were in a big room and they had buffet food (ours was a lunch) and the astronaut told us of his adventures and what it is like to be an astronaut. He showed us pictures on a big screen and we got to take pictures with him after. This is great for children and the they can ask them questions they have. Our meal as pre Covid and I believe now you are given a autographed picture of the astronaut. This really made our visit extra special.
There are other restaurants in the area off the main road if you want to eat there before or after your visit.
To see the other cities we went to on this Texas road trip, check out these posts:
Check back every Tuesday for a new fun place to take a family vacation!
Check here for other vacations we have taken.
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