Betsy

We are thinking of visiting relatives in Tomball, Tx, either in early August or mid-October. Any suggestions for a decent beach stop for a couple of nights? What about Rockport? Looking for clean beach, swimming in either the beach or nice pool. Kid-friendly! Nice hotel or condo okay. We could go to Galveston but I'm looking for other ideas. Thanks!

Statia

South Padre is supposed to be nice, but that might be too far out of the way. Galveston is your closest bet (other than lakes), but I don't blame you for not wanting to do the beach there.

Maybe someone else might have another suggestion.

What

Best beach near Houston:

Miami beach

All of Texas' beaches are terrible and not worth the time or effort to try and see.

texasgirl

I am not sure where Tomball is, but Port Aransas, near Rockport, is very kid-friendly, has a nice wide beach (brown sand though) and water you can swim in. lots of condos there. Rockport also has a lot of condos and is growing pretty fast; i always think of it as better for retirees and fishing but not sure that's accurate. South Padre is a pretty long drive from everywhere else in Texas.

Don't go to Galveston if you want to get in the water; it's got some interesting historic parts of town but the beach is not very nice.

roy

your kids will not be able to tell the difference in galveston or rockport.Rockport is at leat 4 hours away.I would try the san luis in galveston great hotel,great pool and right acroos from the beach.

Bubba

Not ALL the beaches in Texas are trashy, just MOST of them. South Padre Island is actually quite nice - sandy white beaches, clear water. The rest are pretty much the same - brown water, brown sand, drunken rednecks/trailer trash all over the place. From Tomball, your best bet is probably Galveston. The Hotel Galvez or the San Luis top the list - both have nice pools.

sn

South Padre is a good 7 hours from Houston...Galveston is not so bad. The Galvez is beautiful and has an incredible pool, tropical environment/fruity drinks, etc. Besides, the history and shopping are great.

Flipper

How about a lake? Lake Conroe is not far from Tomball.

Betsy

Thanks for all the suggestions. If we don't go to the beach, what are the best hotel swimming pools in southeast Texas? Any ideas?

Debbie13207

It depends on who all is going. Port A and especially Rockport are great for kids. Rockport is geared more for young and old and would be boring to teens. It's very quaint and clean. Port A is good for all ages but more "fun" and more crowded. Galveston is probably best for all around fun with lots more to do - but you won't necessarily get the lazy, quaint feeling like you would in the other spots. I live near Tomball (outside Houston) myself and am planning a spring break trip to Galveston just because there's such a huge variety of places to go and things to do that I normally don't do on day-trips or short weekends. Good luck.

GoPlaces

I agree withe the beach opinions. I was in Galveston last year, the beaches are best for collecting shellsn. Hotel Galvez is a great place to stay with a real nice pool.

emd

uh, this question was asked in 2002. I think Betsy has probably come and gone.

emd

although that being said, Pasadena TX has a great beach, and I hear that they even have cruise ships going in and out of there now.

stewcarol

Good point, emd, regarding Betsy having come and gone. But thanks for keeping this alive since we are currently considering Galveston as a place to warm up this April!

emd

ok, well, you should know i was kidding about Pasadena then. don't go there. it's the ship channel port area, no beach.