Need Houston suggestions
 

Looking at next Christmas and New Year for a family vacation. (4 adults) Want to see all the sights and have a little over a week. Maybe see a Rockets game, Space Center, the whole show. What's a good area to stay in Houston for 4 adults with an exploring nature?

Best place in my opinion is the Rice University area. Definitely go to a Rockets game. You might want to break up the trip and spend a day or two in San Antonio. You could catch a Spurs game, hang out at the Riverwalk, and see the Alamo and the Missions. Better yet, go to Austin! Sorry, not a huge fan of Houston, but the Rice University area is very nice.

Rice Village or the Galleria. There's lots of things to do around those area.

I would stay in the Rice Village area or the area around the Galleria. The San Jacinto Monument and the Battleship Texas (http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/f...itor.phtml#dir) are nice to visit. Also the Monument Inn Seafood restaurant right at the end of the road there by the ferry is good (http://www.monumentinn.com). If you plan ahead of time you can sign up for a boat tour of the Houston Ship Channel(http://www.portofhouston.com/samhou/samhou.html). The Kemah Boardwalk makes a fun time with restaurants and amusement park rides- http://www.kemahboardwalk.com. You could combine the trip to the Space Center with Kemah. Galveston itself has a lot to see and do too (http://www.galveston.com/default.asp). Besides the Rockets, you might want to go see a hockey game with the Houston Aeros.

Staying in the Rice Village or Galleria area puts you in a central location with a lot of great restaurant choices and everything is close within the loop to reach. Driving out of the city doesn't take too long and Houston is an easy city to get around in. Day trips out to Galveston, LaPorte/Deer Park, or Kemah are easy to do.

I have spent most of my life in Houston, and although I enjoy going to Austin and San Antonio, I can find a lot to do in the Houston area.

Several people have mentioned the Galleria area which will be beautifully decorated around Christmas and New Year but just be aware that traffic will be bad....very bad. The area is congested on a good day but it is a good area to stay and has wonderful restaurants. As long as you are aware that it will be slow going right there in the area, it's a great choice. Enjoy!!