The Bryan is an absolute must…read more.. Go! Historic Orphanage building purchased and restored by JP Bryan a Houston Oil Man for a place to exhibit his vast collection of western memorabilia. One of the best overall projects of this type I've every experienced. If you like history Go. If you love Texas Go. If you like real estate go. There's almost no one who wouldn't appreciate the 1+1=3 qualities of this place. Originally built before the historic Hurricane of 1900 that wiped out a large percentage of Galveston. Orphaned children actually rode out that storm in this building that was significantly damaged. Repaired and operated as an orphanage until 1984 when it was closed, then used as a private residence. Sitting vacant for many years it was restored to perfection in 2013 and operating as a museum in 2015. Besides stunning, sombreros,fire arms,saddles,documents and fine art,each room has a kiosk that tells you what the room was used for when it was an orphanage. To top it all off,exit through the world class gift shop. I did and purchased two future gifts! Again,a very strong.... Go!

This has cowboy, Texas, and island history, plus the building served as an orphanage in the past…read morewith the basement recreating that period. It is highly recommended.

Fun tour through the history of piracy. There are videos available through QR codes if you don't…read morewant to read the descriptions. (It can get challenging if multiple parties are hearing different descriptions close to each other. Fire the cannon! A fun outing.

If you are visiting Galveston and want to have a spectacular time with your family, you should not…read moremiss visiting the pirate museum and the haunted house. Don't forget to request to play in the amazing Escape Room. Come with your family and enjoy.

It's beautiful and easy to visualize life in the 1900's. View the video of the 1900 Hurricane ay…read moreRosenberg Library then come and tour the Moody Mansion! There is so much to see and if you have an imagination, thinking what it was like to be this rich and living with such opulence especially after the city was destroyed by the hurricane.

Bobbie was incredibly helpful. We learned a lot from her. The audio tour didn't work.in a rare turn…read moreof events., we met the curator. There was so much history and information, it was overwhelming. We even got to see the cars and all.

It's the famous pier with great views of the Galveston Channel, Battleship Texas, and the…read morewaterfront. You'll see all kinds of seabirds sunbathing on rocks, as well as dolphins frolicking around the ships. They also have dolphin and scenic boat tours that leave from here as well. There are many photo opportunities including the whimsical "High Tide" sculpture by Charles Parks. It's very uplifting. This is also where you can find the 1877 Tall Ship Elissa Museum and the Ocean Star Oil Drilling Rig Museum. Many people stay at the Harbor House Hotel on the waterfront so that they can walk to the Strand Historic District. There are many good restaurants on the pier including Katie's Seafood House where you'll see the mosquito fleet of shrimp boats. We mainly enjoyed watching the wildlife while walking along the pier. It was a cool & breezy day. It was fun seeing the birds carrying around their fresh catch of the day. I totally recommend stopping here at some point while you're in town. It's a great start or end to a day of touring Galveston.

Very cool and a safe space for a stroll There are some restaurants and a hotel near by. There is a…read morecool public art piece here. A young man reaching upward toward a flock of seagulls. By artist: Charles Parks. Not much to see here honestly.

We were visiting from out of state and were looking for something to fill the time before dinner…read more So happy we found this naval museum! It was small but was great! Friendly staff at the ticket office. My daughter loved the scavenger hunt for facts and got a prize at the end. Tons of knowledge about the history of the submarine and ship. My husband who is a Marine veteran also enjoyed it. Highly recommend if you're missing Galveston! Heads up: You will have to pay for parking to get into the overall lot even if you're just visiting the museum, but they also had a neat park in the area that my daughter loved!

While visiting family in Lumberton, we went to Galveston for a day on our way to Houston. We…read morevisited the Galveston Naval Museum. Upon arrival, we had to pay-to-park, which I thought was weird, especially since you've got to pay an entrance fee, as well! On the flip side, it wasn't very busy that day, so wasn't difficult to find parking! It was very interesting to explore the WWII USS Cavalla Submarine & the Destroyer escort USS Stewart. With few visitors on site while we were, we made it through both vessels quickly, even taking numerous photos! A couple of notable issues include the fact that the museum was undergoing renovation and the only restrooms were 'FRU-FRY' port-o-lets at the absolute end of the tour, adjacent to the gift store. The gift store was a small one-room (10x10) air-conditioned building, (picture a portable storage unit) that had very few mediocre Knick-knacks to choose from (stickers, toys, post cards (who collects post cards anymore???) The choices in the gift store insinuate that children would enjoy the museum. The current generation of individuals is most definitely NOT interested in military armamentarium.

Great little museum in the heart of Texas city. On Friday…read moreat 3 pm, not a single person but us. It felt good, we had enough time to go through and spend some time in kids area too. Little gift shop with reasonably priced cute souvenirs is available as well. It was very interesting to learn more about the history of the famous town and informative for kids and adults. I would definitely recommend. Train display was closed, open on Saturdays. Parking around the corner, since there was none in front of the entrance.

Quiet little gem residing in Texas city. Lots of history…read moreinside and there is a train exhibit on the second floor. We love to check out museums in the cities we visit. Each one is unique. Given we live here in Texas City we get to go every time they change things up.

My second year on Shiprocked, I definitely need a vacation!…read more What an amazing way to spend a week. I was excited to finally get to see Papa Roach and I attended both of their shows. About the ships- Last year was aboard the Pearl, this year the Victory. I prefer the deck stage as well as the theater of the Victory over the Pearl. I liked the dining room of the Pearl better. I missed the bowling alley! Our steward was horrible this year. I had to dry off using one of the towel animals! But getting to decorate our cabin door was so fun. Getting on the Victory was quick and everyone at the terminal was great. Getting off the ship was easy also. Last year getting on the Pearl took a very long time. The muster drill this year took way too long. Drink prices on the Victory were very good. About Shiprocked staff- I'm honestly not sure how these guys pull this off. I have ZERO complaints about the security staff, the process (prebooking, setting up payment, addressing issues). The guys in charge answer every question asked in a timely fashion. They are also open to discussion and if there is something that cannot be changed, they explain why. Who cannot appreciate this?? The security guys are great. I made a wrong turn and instead of rudely raising his voice, because I'm sure people push the limits, I got a, "Hey darling you need to go that way." About Shiprocked artists- these guys and gals are awesome! I'm sure traveling the world gets tiresome and the logistics of performing on a ship have to be difficult. But the artists seem to have a really great time. It's great that they are interacting with all the fans. Already put our deposit down for 2018!

Another great year for Shiprocked in 2017. Each year has its own personality, but in the end, it's…read moreabout 3000 rockers just having a good time on a 4-day cruise letting their hair down! The 2017 Band lineup was strong, but took a hit when two bands could not make it (Shaman's Harvest and From Ashes to New). Both notified fans well in advance, and additional bands were added but several folks lamented the loss. These things happen in show business, nothing can be done. To me, Papa Roach was the show stealer (although Breaking Benjamin was the headliner and also very entertaining). Other bands of note: Avatar (man their fans come out), Alter Bridge (GREAT GUITAR), Dead Deads (two years in a row of rocking), and the Stowaways. The Stowaways are pieces of bands that get together for a couple of 2 hour sets and do not disappoint. Members of Unloco, Aranda, POD, Buckcherry, and many many more were there. My favorite Stowaway was Geoff Tate formerly of Queensryche (and yes, he did several of their songs including Jet City Woman and Another Rainy Night, the latter in an intimate acoustic set in the Atrium). The 2017 Deck stage on the Victory was far superior to the previous two years on the Pearl. It was more vertical/up (instead of long ways out). Everyone had a great view. I did NOT like the theater as much; the acoustics didn't seem as good in the upper level (where we had to sit as we were not VIPs). Service on the victory was outstanding, as was the bar staff. Embarkation was way easier on the Victory vs. the Pearl, however the muster drill took a VERY long time (over 30 minutes) I'm told due to passengers not following directions. The Meet and Greets are a very unique aspect of this cruise/festival. No additional charge, you get a professional photo with all the bands in the session (posted online after the cruise ends). The lines are long (1.5 hours usually), but that's just part of it. Be patient and you won't be disappointed. The bands are great in shaking fans hand and enjoying the experience. In that regard, you see the bands all over the ship, most of the time they love just hanging out and having a drink and chatting. Just don't interrupt their meals or gambling, that's their vacation time. Finally, the Shiprocked promoters do an amazing job of organizing. Everything was near flawless. The first concert was an hour or two late due to embarkation logistics, literally nothing they could do (it takes a while to get all the people, equipment, etc. on the ship AND set up for a concert within hours. No doubt this is an annual must attend and we have already prebooked for next year. I hear it will well out in days!

We have been coming to this museum for at least 8yrs. It's definitely a gem and one of the few…read moreindoor places to bring kids to. The space has a lot of open-ended activities to do and will rotate play to keep kids engaged. The space is small, which makes it easier to monitor your child(ren), but has something in every corner for kids to do. As parents, we even get involved in playing with our kids. The camps are great, two of our boys attend regularly, they offer family free nights, and they have some really great events like DaVinci Day. They really do try to meet the needs of families and engage with our community. On a separate note, as a mom of three neurodivergent kids who range in abilities, I appreciate that the staff is welcoming, inclusive, and doesn't judge the boys or us when someone is behaving in a typical way. They embrace who they are as people and don't shy away from engaging with them. If you live in Galveston and haven't made it in, you should. If you're visiting Galveston and want something to entertain your kids, definitely come in.

Nothing dampens my vacation to the beach like a week of rain and no sun but that's what happened…read more So we were on the hunt for something fun to do with five children under 4! Fortunately we came across this sweet little place on the island. Small and quaint but full of rooms of imagination and learning. Each of the kids had different personalities and within seconds we found a spot for each of them. It may have been a toss up as to whether adults or kids had the most fun. There is only one doorway to come in and out of so we felt pretty safe that we wouldn't lose any too quickly lol. Every time we thought we had seen it all, there were more rooms to discover. Kids were fully entertained and happy to be out of the airbnb. There were enough activities for ages up to 8 I would say. There was also an art studio. Supplies were rough. Very used so a donation might improve that activity. Restrooms clean but small. So was parking. We had to park on adjacent street when we were there. Takeaway-when it rains, make a trip here you won't regret it. I believe it was $10 per head. Oh and be sure to do a little jig with Mr Skeleton while you're there.