My husband and I will be staying at the Marriott at Bush airport and will have one full day to do something before we fly home. I think we can take a bus downtown, is that a good idea? We would appreciate any suggestions of a way to spend the day without a rental car. Thanks.

This is a very challenging post. I lived in Houston for 30 yrs and go back often to visit family and freinds and also for work (where I stay downtown). Spending a day near the airport in Houston without a car does not bring to mind alot of fun activity. Downtown Houston has seen some revitalization in recent years, but I personally would not recommend spending a day downtown. As far as tourist attractions, NASA Space Center is good but you can't get there without a car. I can't really think of anything I'd do without a car- Houston and its sights are so very spread out.
If you decide to spring for a car, post again.

We opened the new "light rail" (which is just a streetcar) a month ago, so after you take the bus to Downtown, you can ride it down to the Astrodome/Reliant Stadium area, through the Medical Center. Not much to see, but something to do.

You can also take regular buses between Downtown and the "uptown" Galleria area, where there is a large mall, etc... Bus #82, frequent.

And there's actually buses from Downtown to NASA. #246 have mid-day service, and the last stop is Space Center Houston. ~ Every hour.

Houston Metro's PDF files are here: Click on "Gulf Corridor" for schedules Downtown-NASA.

Sorry, forgot the link:

http://www.hou-metro.harris.tx.us/se...blicguides.asp

Thanks for the replies. We will be going to NASA the day before we arrive in Houston. Maybe going to Galleria and walking around would be something to do for a couple of hours.

As noted, downtown Houston doesn't offer a whole lot, but there is a terrific museum district. And you can take in a good lunch in the nearby Montrose area, too. The bus is an excruciating ride, and you will then have to transfer to get to your destination. You would do much better to cab it or just rent a car for the day. Just follow 59 south into town, reverse on your return.

Good suggestions by Seamus. The Museum District is accessible by the new Light Rail, and the Museum of Fine Arts is pretty decent (don't expect it to be the Met, of course).

If you're into arts, you should visit the Menil Collection. It's one of the leading small private-collection museums in the U.S. Highly recommended. It's on West Alabama, not far from Montrose. Bus #78 takes you there directly, or you can walk a few short blocks from Westheimer, where you can take the much more frequent #82 that runs between Downtown and Galleria, as I noted a few posts up.

In downtown, the JP Morgan Chase tower (originally Texas Commerce Bank) has a "sky lobby" on the 60th floor, which should give you a decent view. The Wells Fargo tower (originally Allied Bank, then First Interstae) also has one on its 58th. Both are free and open to public, I believe.

The Hyatt Regency in downtown has a revolving restaurant ("Spindle Top"), but it's only open for dinner, according to its website. That's another place you can get a good view of the city.

There are a number of other museums/spots of interest in the museum district. There is a natural science museum which has a butterly building among other things. the contemporary arts museum can be interesting. there is also the Rothko chapel (with paintings by mark rothko)and a fresco museum, both a block away from the Menil Collection.

Rice University is in the area (off Main Street) and is quite pretty.

Is there anything to do in the area of the airport?

Not far north of the airport, there's a town called Spring with lots of antique and crafts store. It's closer than going to downtown, but I really have no idea how to get there other than by car. Not sure if taxis want to go up there, or the cost.

Otherwise, there's really nothing but cookie-cutter shopping centers and strip-malls that's the same all over the country within miles of IAH.

And inside the airport, you can ride the "tunnel train" between the terminals and the Marriott all day long.

Spring sounds fun, I'll have to see if we can find a way to get there. Or maybe we will decide to keep our rental car another day.

well since you said you'll have a rental car, just keep it another day, it's not that expensive and will save you alot of hassle. I live in Houston, and our public transportation system isn't as well developed as NYC or Chicago. It will be better once the metrorail is extended up to Bush airport (in several years I bet).
When are you coming to Houston? That may play a part in what you should do -- indoors or out. Others have given some good suggestions for both (i.e., Spring would be outdoors, walking from shop to shop; Galleria, museums are indoors/ air conditioned, except for walking from museum to museum. You probably know our summers are extremely hot & humid. It it's cool enough, Hermann Park (walking distance from the museum district) is nice for walking around. The Heights is another nice area for walking & window shopping -- south of Bush airport, northwest of downtown. Check out houston.citysearch.com for more ideas.
What do you mean by "we will be going to NASA the day before we arrive in Houston" -- are you talking about the space center in FL? or do you not consider ourJohnson Space Center to be "in" Houston because it's outside the city limits? To us it's still Houston

crek00: Ok, since you've decided you need to keep the car another day (you really should in Houston) I would second the idea of Spring.
Thre really isn't anything by the airport, except Greenspoint mall, and you can't walk to that from the hotels.
To the Houstonites who responded- I didn't know that the light rail had opened, that's great! Major progress for Houston.

Quote emd:
<I didn't know that the light rail had opened, that's great! Major progress for Houston.>

I would not congratulate Houston that quickly. They have more accidents with the Light Rail than any other cities. The 12th accident (since 10/03) just happened last night... and counting!

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/news/021604_local_rail.html

That's too bad. After living there for 30 yrs and dealing w/the traffic and no mass transportation except buses w/sprawling routes, it was exciting to hear that finally something come to fruition. So many plans that never materialized over the years.

The Houston Light Rail is a big joke, in my opinion. First, few people go between Astrodome, Medical Center and Downtown. The rail does not serve the vast majority of Houstonians.

Second, it's poorly designed. Many people thought they would be like overhead monorails when they voted for it years ago, but it's actually a modern street car that goes on regular streets, crossing all the regular roadways. So, it's not fast, and not exciting.

Third, while the trains have their own lanes in the Downtown area, suddenly cars occupy the train lanes when turning left in Medical Center. A local TV station documented numerous malfunctioning lights, train drivers running lights, confused drivers, etc... In short, it's a big mess.

And I've warned my family and relatives not to drive near the train tracks. Take a different street. Avoid left turns from the main lanes near rail tracks. The vast majority of accidents occur when the trains hit left-turning cars.

What Houston needs is a good commuter rail system, or more efficient Park&Ride bus network. Only those can take people out of their cars - for trips from the suburbs to Downtown, Medical Center or the Galleria Area. The Light Rail is a showcase of politicians, but has no benefits to most people.