When most of the world thinks of Texas, the first things that come to mind are ten-gallon hats, cowboys driving herds across the plains, and wild outlaws making a run for the border. What they may not know is that Houston Texas has the second-largest theater district in the nation, and supports an amazing variety of visual and performing arts. For this reason, it is one of the top vacation spots in the USA for anyone who loves the arts!

We begin with a trip to the theater, which isn’t hard to find; over 17 square blocks in the downtown area are dedicated to the performing arts alone, including the Bayou Place entertainment complex. Make sure to pick up a map when you walk in, or you might be in there for weeks… the complex spans over 130,000 square feet! This area contains the 9 performing arts organizations that call Houston home, as well as numerous bars, nightclubs, coffeehouses and restaurants. For comparison, only four other cities in the US have permanent professional resident companies in all of the major performing arts disciplines; small wonder that over two million people per year visit the district!

If theater isn’t your thing, there’s a still lot of fun to be had. The music scene in Houston is amazing. The Houston Grand Opera, for example, has won a Grammy, a Tony, and an Emmy; likewise the Houston Symphony Orchestra and the Houston Ballet have both established names for themselves in their disciplines and won many awards for excellence. Not a big fan of the classical stuff? Houston’s still got what you need. The list of live music venues is endless, featuring top acts from the Rock/Alternative, Blues, and Country music scenes.

Once you’ve spent a couple of lifetimes exhausting the city’s rich musical and artistic resources, it’s time to get a little more technical. Did you know that “Houston” was the first word spoken on the moon? NASA’s Johnson Space Center employs over 15,000 civil servants and contractors. Of these, only 110 are actually astronauts, which gives one a little insight into how much work goes into a single launch! For the kids, the Johnson Space Center offers something for everyone from Kindergarten to Grade 12, including Day Camps where the kids learn things such as how astronauts survive in outer space and how to build a rocket.

A little more down to earth is the Houston Museum of Natural Science, which takes us from the modern space age back through history to the time when Dinosaurs ruled the earth, and everything in between! The museum houses an IMAX theater where the family can enjoy stunning films and photography. Then, stop in at the Insect Zoo to really gross out the adults and entertain the little ones, or the Cockrell Butterfly center, where you can see over 50 of the worlds largest and prettiest butterfly species. Don’t worry, they’re not on pins in a display case… these ones are alive!

With such cultural and scientific diversity, it is not hard to see why so many visitors to this fine city choose to stay. Those who do leave, however, will generally agree: Houston is one of the top vacation spots in the USA!