I am from Canada as you can see and have no choice of dates when I am coming. I will be in Galveston January 4 for a week and then San Antonio for a week. I have no idea what to bring in the way of clothes - summer, winter or in between. Can anybody help me?

On Jan. 6, San Antonio is supposed to have a high in the low 70s, and low about 50. I believe that is higher than normal. If we get a cold front, lows could be in the 30s with highs of 50 or so. You can check out the 10 day forecast for SA at www.weather.com

I'd say Galveston in January is usually in the 50s, but like fyb said, there's so much variability. It's best to just check weather.com right before you go. I live in Houston, and we can go from 80 down to 40 in a day - you just never know. Hope it's nice for you. You're usually safe to just bring a warm jacket with you - very rarely need coats, but it will be too cold to go in the water. Have fun.

Agree with the above comments that it can be all over the place. We've already had a couple of days this winter of going from the 80s to the 40s in 24 hours. But generally expect highs in the 60s-70s with lows in the 40s-50s, with the understanding that lows in the 30s and highs in the 50s aren't unheard of. I would add that though Galveston is usually warmer than SA, it can often feel colder because of the breezes off the Gulf.
Just layer and as volcanogirl says, bring a warm jacket.

In San Antonio, January can be one of the most beautiful months in terms of weather... but then does anyone remember the ice / snow storm that hit this past January?! What a mess--the weather, as everyone has said, is all over the place this time of year.

I would check weather.com, or, one of the local news sites such as www.ksat.com for weather info just prior to packing. Layers really do work best here.

Started off the day with a jacket and turtleneck...down to a long sleeved t-shirt!

Enjoy a nice trip!

Thanks for the info everybody. I had thought to layer, which is what I do here, but didn't want to bring a heavy jacket unless I needed one. Our weather network is telling us all our recent storms have been coming from your southwestern area. I'll try your links before I pack. Whatever the weather, I'm sure I will enjoy myself. I'll check in when I get back.

I do remember Ann Marie! I was considering a one way ticket back to FL and calling my DH and telling him to stay downtown and not attempt the drive back home! He listened as well as normal. LOL

Weather here varies more in a day than any place I have lived. While it will be 70 for a high the next two days, New Years Day will only have a high of 52, and if the wind kicks up as well, not unusual, that will feel very cold! Blue northers can drop the temps 20 degrees in an hour and they usually sweep through with accompanying wind.

The high today will be 60, but we are going to the football game this evening and I intend on wearing a parka...when the sun sets, it gets cold in a hurry. Of course this is highly individual. We moved here from FL and I still get much colder than the average person I think. I was in the drugstore yesterday in wool slacks, cotton long sleeve turtleneck and fleece vest and saw another gal in flip flops and sleeveless top! You, coming from Canada, might have dressed as she was. For me, it was bring-out-the-cold-weather-clothes time. I just checked...high was 65 yesterday. I'm a wimp!

You've all been great with the weather, now I have another question. I am being picked up at Geo. Bush Airport and we are driving to Galveston. Is there a best (fastest) route to take that doesn't cost an are and a leg in tolls? Thanks in advance

What time of the day and what day of the week? . . it makes a lot of difference

Friday around 2.m.

Well . . it's gonna be ugly any way you do it at that time on a workday. Lots of Houston businesses take Friday afternoon off so rush hour starts around 1M

The most direct way is to follow the I-45 signs at the airport and take I45 South all the way to Galveston.

An alternative is to take the "Sam Houston Toll Road" East all the way around to the south side of Houston and take I-45 south from there.

You are going to have a lot of traffic either way . . If you want to see "Beautifull Downtown Houston" take I-45 all the way . . it will take you right thru Houston. The Toll Road ( also called "The Beltway" will go around downtown.

There are several other routes, but those two will likely be the best at that time of day.

Thanks Rich. I was afraid that would be the case. I guess we will just have to bite the bullet and do the I-45 and see beautiful downtown Houston. I'll add that to my sightseeing itinerary.

Yep . . the good news is the the route is pretty well marked, and once you are on I-45 South, you don't get off until you run into the Gulf!

The car rental folks are pretty good at giving directions so ask them when you pick up your car.

The current forecast is for lows around 32 thru Thursday, but warming up to the 60's by Friday afternoon. ( but that can change in a minute! )

http://weather.yahoo.com/forecast/USTX0499.html

We're not renting a car Rich, my friend drove down 2 weeks ago to New Orleans and is coming over from there. No worry - I just downloaded a triptic from AAA (that's CAA to us) using your info. It looks pretty straight forward. I've been looking for long term weather and found one of ours The Weather Network - which gives us the weather for all north america. Looks like 60's for Friday and 70s for Saturday and Sunday. I can take that. Thanks again for your help.

You might want to tell your friend to take the Beltway ( also called Sam Houston Tollroad ) North from I-10. ( assuming he/she will be coming that way ) It will cost a buck or three, but will be much easier than any other route.

Everything I have said assumes you are landing at IAH ( George Bush Airport ) and not Hobby ( HOU ) ??

If using the tollway, bring a baggie of quarters. There are lanes for those with correct change and they generally move faster than the others.

You would have a good laugh if you saw how we Houstonians are laughing with the "deep freeze" coming tonight. It should be in the 20's for about 10 hours and you would think that a blizzard is coming our way!

I've not checked your other posts to see if you've inquired, but be sure to try out Boudreau's in San Antonio. It is one of my favorite restaurants!

I definitely wouldn't take the beltway (Sam Houston Tollway) from IAH, but I would take the Hardy Toll Road. If you take Hardy south out of the airport--it's marked--it will take you relatively traffic free from the airport to I-610 (where the Hardy ends). From 610, you should take I-45 South all the way to Galveston. The Hardy will cost a few dollars, but should save you 5-15 minutes, depending on traffic on 45. The person picking you up can take the Hardy--or the Sam Houston--depending on where in Houston your friend is coming from.

If you would like another route...take Hwy 59 out of the airport heading south through town and then take the I-45 south exit right past the baseball stadium. Hwy 59 is a much better highway with more lanes and usually less traffic and I-45 is just plain ugly north of town. (billboards, strip centers, car dealerships) Weather is looking good for this weekend. Hope you enjoy!

I hope we're not confusing you at this point with route suggestions.

Personally, I would follow the signs out of the airport for US-59, and take 59 south into downtown to hook up with I-45 south to Galveston. I agree with Seashell 100%. Google Maps agrees with both of us, too. Do directions from "IAH" to "Galveston, TX", and you will see the route we are suggesting. www.google.com/maps

If you were to take the Hardy Toll Road, I suggest going East on 610 to Hwy. 59 South, hooking up with I-45 just south of downtown. I believe the cash tolls would add up to $4.25.

In other words, I would avoid I-45 north of downtown at all costs.

Thanks once again for all your help. I've got the map and directions seashell and luv2. With that I'm a good navigator. I like your suggestion of the baggie of quarters moldy. I will have one of those too. With our dollar being higher than yours since last summer,nobody up here wants your change right now, so I've been collecting it. It all spends right?
I've been reading your posts for a couple of weeks now and Boudreau's has cropped up quite a few times, so I put it on my list. If anyone has suggestions for good seafood - not too expensive I would appreciate it. I'll be here until noon tomorrow.

Looks like I'm bringing the warm weather down with me mid 60's for Friday, and 72 for Saturday and Sunday.