Corpus Christi, Texas
Located in South Texas along the Coastal bend is a great place to visit with many attractions and museums. Its a smaller city with a population just over 300,000 but it has attractions that are just as good as any larger city in the US. The cities nickname is the “Sparkling City by the Sea” and with some of the nicest beaches in Texas near by the nickname is quite true. While most people in Texas know of the the beaches and attractions such as the Texas State Aquarium and the USS Lexington there is much more to do in Corpus Christi. We have been to Corpus Christi a few different times and the most recent being June of 2020.
Getting there and transportation
There are a couple ways to get to Corpus Christi but the most common if you live in Texas especially in Houston will be to take the 3.5 hour drive down to the city. Corpus Christi has a small but nice international airport close by the city that is served by United (Bush Intercontinental Houston), American (DFW International) and Southwest Airlines (Houston-Hobby). You can find some cheap airfare at times sometimes as low at $49 one way with Southwest Airlines. The Corpus Christi International Airport is small and easy to get in and out of. If you fly in you will need to get a rental car since you will need to drive to most of the sites.
Texas State Aquarium
Located in the historic North Beach area across the Harbor Bridge is the Texas State Aquarium. Its a nice aquarium that features exhibits on aquatic life of the Texas Gulf Coast, the Caribbean and dolphins. There are some outdoor exhibits that include otters, birds like a Bald Eagle, a Dolphin show arena and a bird show arena. You can also take a walk on a boardwalk over the bay. Here you can see all the sharks, colorful tropical fish and animals you could want to see. Depending on how quickly you want through the exhibits it will probably take a couple hours to finish going through the aquarium. In the Caribbean exhibit there is a rainforest with animals you can walk through that is very nice as well. There is ample parking around the aquarium for $5. The next attraction is within walking distance of the Texas State aquarium.
USS Lexington Museum
Also located in the North Beach area and a short walk or drive from the Texas State Aquarium is the USS Lexington Museum. The USS Lexington CV-16 is an Essex Class Aircraft carrier that fought in World War II and served as a training Carrier for over 30 years. It is named after the Revolutionary War Battle and after one of the first US Aircraft Carriers that was sunk in the Battle of the Coral Sea. After a long and historic career it is now a first class museum. You start out in the hanger deck where there are 5 different self guided tours of the ship you can take. On the hanger deck there many exhibits and a few planes like a SBD Dauntless Dive Bomber and an F-14 Tomcat. You can visit the flight deck and see many other aircraft and while you are there you can visit the bridge. You can visit all directions of the ship in the other tour that are available. In the foc’sle you can see the front of the ship and see a great exhibit on the attack on Pearl Harbor and some of the places that the movie Pearl Harbor was filmed at. In the tours you will see things like the Captains quarters, the flight ready rooms, the Combat Information Center, the engine room, the mess hall, medical center and so much more. Throughout the museum there are exhibits with model planes and ships and exhibits on Navy life and other historic ships like the USS Houston. There is also an exhibit on the Texas Navy during its time as its own Nation. There is also a 3D theater and a new Escape room on board the ship. If you have never toured a Navy ship there are many stairs and passageways and it can get hot in the summer. This museum will take you half a day or longer depending on how quickly you take the tours. Its a must see stop if you are in Corpus Christi!
Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History
Located near downtown Corpus Christi in an area filled with museums and the arts is a hidden gem called the Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History. As the name suggests its a combination of a history and museum about all different kinds of sciences. In the history portion of the museum there are many exhibits about the history of Corpus Christi, the Coastal Bend and history in general. There is a large exhibit about the Spanish and especially a ship wreck that occurred along the Texas coast. They have many artifacts from the ship wreck and a replica of the ship you can walk on. There is an exhibit on Native Americans, a late 1800s general store where a reenactor took us through the goods he was selling in the 1890s, a wonderful domed building imported from Spain, an exhibit on La Salle’s French expedition in the area, Aztec history, Corpus Christi history and much more. There was a temporary American Civil War Exhibit on the Civil War in South Texas while we were there that was nice. In the Science section of the museum they have a dinosaur, rocks and gems, energy, and a animal life exhibits. There is a huge interactive science area sponsored by HEB that allows kids to learn about all aspects of science. The neat area for me was they have a small planetarium dome in the interactive area that runs continuously. Its a great museum and can take a few hours to tour. Its located just South of the Harbor bridge and parking is free!
Art Museum of South Texas
Located a short walk away right next to the bay you will find the Art Museum of South Texas. At this museum that has a nice interesting architecture building you will find many different forms of art. From sculpture, to paintings and glass work you can see it here. This is a mostly modern art museum so do not necessarily expect classic style art but some art that is different. They also have a large wall that they project current art that featured at the time we visited people’s Coronavirus art. There is a cafe (closed when we visited) and a nice outdoor patio to visit that has nice views of the bay and downtown Corpus Christi. The museum is free for all of the summer of 2020 and if you have a NARM membership it is free as well. Parking is also free at this museum. It will take an hour or so to go through.
Texas State Museum of Asian Cultures
Not far from the Art and History museums you will find the unique Texas State Museum of Asian Cultures. In the museum you will find art from many different Asian countries such as Japan, China, The Philippines, South Korea, India and others. They have paintings, swords, dolls, statues, decorative boxes and quite a few other unique artifacts from Asian culture. It gives you a chance to also learn about the stories and practices in the Asian countries. The museum is somewhat small but is well worth the visit if you are in the area. It will take an hour or less to visit the entire museum. Parking is also free at this museum.
South Texas Botanical Gardens
A little drive South of the city in a more rural part of the area you will find The South Texas Botanical Gardens. Its a sprawling complex of greenhouses full or orchids and other beautiful plants, outdoor gardens, birds such as parrots and a reptile house. There are quite a few trails including a marshland walk along a small lake. There is a nice gazebo and a butterfly habitat full of flowers. It was nice walking along and see the colorful birds and seeing all the plants. It was a relaxing walk (outside of mosquitoes near the marshland) going by the varied landscapes. They have a desert landscape as well you can walk through. For kids there is a nice playground like a tree house. One word of warning during the summer it is very hot so bring plenty of water. At the moment masks are required to visit the Botanical Gardens. It will take an hour or so to walk through the gardens.
North Padre Island National Seashore
Just to the South of Corpus Christi in a mostly deserted barrier Island called North Padre Island. The far northern part of the island has a few hotels, restaurants and some shops but after you reach the National Seashore you find a rare undeveloped barrier island. After the Malaquite Beach visitors Center that has shower and National Park facilities the island is in its natural state. After the visitors center the paved road ends and you can drive along the beach for 60 miles until the end of the island. There are no facilities down the 60 miles and once you get to the end of the island you have to drive back as there is no bridge to South Padre Island. You also have to have 4 wheel drive to drive the unpaved portion of the island. From the Malaquite Beach visitors center you can park and walk down a long portion of the beach. After you walk past the main area that has some picnic tables the beach is deserted. Just recently Donna and I were all alone for quite a ways on the beach. We saw many birds, crabs, fish jumping out of the water and thousands of butterflies moving south along the beach. The tide was extremely high to where the beach was underwater completely for part of the time. This was due to Tropical Storm Cristobal. Its amazing how a weak tropical storm hundreds of miles away has enough power to flood the beach near Corpus Christi. The National Park Service closed the entrance to the beach road and we heard of people stuck far down the island. Its why if you chose to drive down the beach road you need to pay attention to the changing conditions. We have not made the drive but would like to someday. The Seashore is also now as a place for sea turtle nests and they release sea turtles into the wild from the seashore. There is also a nature trail that takes you into the interior of the island near the park entrance. This is a great place to get away from the stresses of modern life and see nature and another great place to visit in the area. There is a small fee to enter the park.
Tips for Corpus Christi
There is a lot to do in Corpus Christi but you can see a lot of it in a weekend trip as we have done depending on how fast you want to tour. While the beaches are nice and I highly recommend you spend some time on the beach go venture out to some of the great museums that Corpus Christi has to offer. Many of the museums are more affordable than you will find in larger cities and are great for families as well. There are many other places to visit that we have not been to just yet in Corpus Christi such as the Selena museum and we have not been to the first Whataburger that was built in Corpus Christi. As with any place in Texas you need to be prepared for hot weather, and in the summer as be prepared for possible Hurricanes and bad weather all year round. Don’t be discouraged visiting but in Texas things can change quickly. If you don’t want to drive flying in can be affordable depending the timeframe. We have flown in the past two times we have visited.