Galveston, TX Family Vacation Guide
Living in Southwest Louisiana, a trip to Galveston, TX is an easy one. Growing up, both my husband Adam and I visited Galveston many times, and made lots of memories with our families. It’s a pretty quick trip for us, and feels very “beachy” to the kids. It hasn’t changed much in 20 years and I kinda like it that way!
In this blog post, I’m sharing what we did as a family and my recommendations. We only stayed 3 nights, so there were things we didn’t do/see, but I hope this helps if you are planning a trip to Galveston, TX.
Where did we stay?
We stayed at The Dawn Beach Condominiums. I totally recommend our specific unit as it was clean and organized. We felt very “at home” and it fit our family of 5 perfectly. I’m including a link to the VRBO listing where you can find more photos.
Where did we eat?
Salsa’s Mexican Restaurant Wherever we go, we always love to find great Mexican food. Salsa’s did not disappoint! The beef fajitas were the best I’ve ever had, honestly. The service was impeccable and the atmosphere was great too! 5/5 stars!
Miller’s Seawall Grill We enjoyed brunch at Miller’s on our second day in Galveston. We arrived around 9:00 am and there was a 30 minute wait. The menu has great options for breakfast/brunch with kids. I built my own omelette and the kids and Adam had pancakes with eggs and bacon. Everything was delicious! 5/5 stars!
Rainforest Cafe We can’t visit a city with a restaurant like this without going… if you have children you understand! Reservations run two weeks out in the summer and you can’t call ahead. However, you can drop by and add your name to the list. The wait was an hour and a half, so we picked up groceries at Kroger, and shopped for a few beach toys at Walmart while we waited. They texted when the table was ready, and we had 15 minutes to arrive. It worked out great! I had the shrimp Caesar salad and it deserves 20 stars! It’s the best I’ve had, and I still think about it all the time! Lol. 5/5 stars for food and experience!
Katie’s Seafood House This restaurant is located near Pier 21, in the historic port district (The Strand). There’s beautiful views and it’s an adorable place! We made a reservation online and avoided the wait altogether. Everything we had was delicious! Katie’s was the most recommended restaurant by my Instagram followers, and now I know why. 5/5 stars!
Dawn Donuts This little donut shop was near the condo and was a fun breakfast treat for the kiddos to have by the pool on our last morning. For what it’s worth, they rated their donut holes 5/5!
What did we do for fun?
Day 1– The first day we went to Schlitterbahn Waterpark and had a blast. I scored discounted tickets from Travel Zoo and spent $40/ticket compared to $60/ticket at the gate! In my opinion, $40 was fair because a few attractions were closed. We didn’t spend any money in the park, because ice chests (no glass or alcohol) are welcome! For a family of 5, this policy is such a blessing. We packed a nutritious lunch + snacks, waters, etc. and had plenty to eat for the five hours we were there. I recommend getting there at 11:00 am when they open, and “claiming” a shaded picnic table (there are lots) by putting your things on it. Wear swim shoes and get one of these necklaces to protect your phone. Also, we recently switched to this mineral sunscreen and it held up so well! We reapplied it once, and then kept this “after sun cream” in the ice chest and applied it afterward!
Day 2- The second day we were in Galveston, we went to Moody Gardens and explored the aquarium and rainforest pyramids. It was a perfect amount for us, and kept the interest of our kids (ages 3,6,9). It took us about 2 1/2 hours to explore it all. You can purchase individual attraction tickets online or at the door.
After our fun at Moody Gardens, we did some shopping at Murdoch’s Souvenir Shop. I can’t say enough about this adorable place! It’s Galveston’s oldest shop, originally built directly on the sand in the late 1800s. The store has been rebuilt several times over the years, and the new store is just lovely! My favorite part is the fact that every type of souvenir you could possibly think of, is all under one roof! We gave the kids each a budget and they took their time carefully deciding on treasures to choose. We easily spent an hour browsing, and the kids still talk about the “huge beach store”! It’s a must!
Day 3- The third day was a beach day for us and Penelope’s 6th birthday! We loaded the car with the few beach items we brought, and headed across the highway. We used the public street parking on the beach side of Seawall Blvd, which is reasonable at $2/hour, and very convenient (pay via debit card). We parked near a bathroom/spray off station to make cleanup easy before getting back in the car afterward.
After having lunch in the room, (I placed a grocery pickup order at he nearby Kroger), and we rested a little before heading out to Pier 21 to take a dolphin tour! We booked/paid for tickets online to reserve our boat through Galveston Water Adventures. We went on the 5:00 pm tour, and it cost around $70 for the five of us. The tour was one hour and we saw tons of dolphins!
After the dolphin tour, we walked to dinner near Pier 21 and then walked around The Strand, Historic Downtown Galveston. Much of the shops close at 5:00 pm, but we did get to visit the most adorable candy shop, La King’s Confectionery .
Day 4- Checkout time for our unit was 11:00 am, which gave us just enough time for donuts by the pool! It was tough to go home, but we vowed to be back soon!
If you’re planning a weekend in Galveston, TX, I hope you have as good a time as we did! If you have any questions, comment below!
Thanks for stopping by, Jamie xo
