Houston Museums & exhibitions

Explore Space Center Houston with its 400 space artifacts as well as permanent and traveling exhibits. Discover attractions and theaters related to the exciting future and remarkable past of America’s human space-flight program, all for one admission price. See the world’s largest collection of moon rocks and lunar samples for public view. Go behind-the-scenes to see NASA Johnson Space Center (based on availability). Learn about the world-renowned home of NASA Mission Control, International Space Station Mission Control, and astronaut training. Experience the newest permanent exhibit, the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, displayed outside the center. Walk around and underneath the first-stage booster spanning more than 156 feet long. See the only Falcon 9 on public display outside of SpaceX’s headquarters which is the same type of rocket that launched NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft on May 30 for the Demo-2 mission. It marked the first time since 2011 that astronauts have launched from American soil.

See the historical highlights and cultural delights of Houston on this panoramic bus tour. Enjoy unobstructed views from your seat and listen to informative commentary from your guide. Cruise past important landmarks like the historic City Hall, Market Square, Heritage Society, and Graffiti Park. Start your sightseeing tour at a cowboy-themed Visitors Center with Texan heritage artifacts and photo opportunities. Sit at the coffee shop or shop for souvenirs before boarding the bus. Head to the Toyota Center, home of the professional NBA basketball team the Houston Rockets. See the beautiful urban park of Discovery Green located in the heart of the Convention Center area. Next up is Houston Graffiti Park filled with vibrant street art and wall murals. See the latest street mural exhibition organized by Street Art for Mankind non-profit.  Discover Minute Maid Park, the home of the 2022 World Series champions, the Houston Astros. Move to Market Square Park in the city's Downtown Historic District to see the Old Union train station building. Finally, admire the last original buildings of the Downtown's Main Street Square. Marvel at the Art Deco architecture of the Houston City Hall building in front of Hermann Square. See the slow-moving Buffalo Bayou River, where in 1836 John and Augustus Allen founded Houston. Next, continue to Tranquility Park which was built to commemorate the Apollo 11 moon landing in July 1969. Spot the Downtown Aquarium, the Sam Houston Park dedicated to the buildings and culture of the city's past, and the Heritage Society museum and park.

Immerse yourself in the vastness of space at the Burke Baker Planetarium in the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Enjoy the upgraded planetarium which features the world's leading digital planetarium software and projection system. Let this digital projection system allow you to step off world and into the wider universe. Explore planets and asteroid fields. See projections of planets, stars, and entire galaxies. Expand your knowledge of the universe with different dome shows like "Lamps of Atlantis", "Are We Really Alone?", "Black Holes", "Starry Night Express", "Dark Side of the Moon", and "Passport to the Universe." The last show of the day is at 5 PM.

Embark on a journey through centuries of creativity and imagination with entry tickets to The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. Located on 14 acres in the Museum District, near Downtown and the Texas Medical Center, the Museum houses nearly 80,000 artworks from 5,000 years and six continents. Enjoy a self-guided tour of the galleries and special exhibitions – all under one inclusive ticket. Let your imagination soar with exhibitions showcasing renowned artworks and awe-inspiring installations. Three special exhibitions are now open and included in the ticket: Floating World: A.A. Murakami through September 21, 2025 Visitors to this immersive exhibition, the first U.S. museum show from Tokyo/London-based artist duo A.A.Murakami, encounter immense bubble-like clouds that gracefully float and dissolve into mist; swirling fog rings that radiate from a central tower; and dozens of plasma krypton “lightning” tubes that flicker and click while evoking a field of crickets. A groundbreaking fusion of the technical and the natural, Floating World transports you to an ethereal world of singular experience and scientific spectacle From India to the World: Textiles from the Parpia Collection through September 14, 2025 From India to the World highlights this long and dynamic history of exchange. Spanning the 17th to the early 20th century, this exhibition offers a rich cross-section of India’s textile traditions, from intricate court silks to boldly patterned cottons, dazzling tie-dyes, and masterfully woven ikats. These works reflect the exceptional craftsmanship and deep regional knowledge of Indian artisans. Tamara de Lempicka through July 6, 2025 This exhibition also offers the first in-depth study of Lempicka’s drawings and compositional studies, revealing the creative process behind her iconic paintings. In addition, the display is augmented by exceptional examples from the MFAH’s Art Deco collection of costumes and design, as well as signature photographs from the era. Inside three unique buildings, witness art from the Americas, including contemporary Latin American art, plus European and Modern art, as well as work from the Middle East, Asia, and Africa. Gain access to an urban sculpture garden and the MFA Shop. Enjoy lunch at the casual Café Leonelli, or make reservations to dine at the celebrated restaurant Le Jardinier on the campus.

Explore the wonders of space travel on an unforgettable tour that includes a mini-city tour around Houston and roundtrip transportation to the NASA/Johnson Space Center.  Enjoy interactive exhibits and activities, touch a moon rock, take a tram ride to the NASA control center and see the shuttle replica at the Independence Plaza. Begin your day of space exploration on land as you are taken a short city sightseeing tour around Houston where you can see some of its most important landmarks.  Afterward, drive 25 miles from the center of Houston to the Space Center Houston and experience America’s adventures in space first-hand. Space Center Houston is the visitor center for NASA's Johnson Space Center. It is a separate facility that features activities and exhibits designed jointly by NASA and Disney Imagineering. Get a chance to ride the half-hour tram tour that goes to the gigantic International Space Station Assembly Building and to the NASA control center. Both kids and adults will enjoy the interactive displays. Don’t miss the Starship Gallery Artifact Museum, where you can touch a moon rock or try out the simulator that lets you land the lunar orbiter.

Experience 5 must-see attractions and save up to 51% with Houston CityPASS® tickets. One simple purchase removes the stress of planning, so you can relax and enjoy your memories in the making. With 9 days to use your tickets, you’ll have plenty of time to explore the top sights. Houston CityPASS® tickets include one-time admission to 5 attractions. Includes: •Space Center Houston- General admission – Entry includes all exhibits, shows, and presentations in the center, plus tram tours to the Astronaut Training Facility Tour, George W.S. Abbey Rocket Park Tour, and the NASA Campus Tour (tours subject to availability) Plus choose 4 of the following: •Houston Zoo- General admission (not valid for Zoo Lights) •Downtown Aquarium- General Admission to Aquarium Adventure Exhibit (rides and games not included); rides may be temporarily unavailable •Houston Museum of Natural Science- General Admission •Kemah Boardwalk- All-Day Ride Pass (Stingray, Boardwalk Beast, and Iron Eagle not included) •Children’s Museum Houston- General admission. To enter the museum, your group must be accompanied by a child. •Museum of Fine Arts, Houston- ALL ACCESS ticket, including same-day admission to the Collection Galleries as well as most Special Exhibitions

Immerse yourself in the fascinating world of natural science with an entrance ticket to the Houston Museum of Natural Sciences, one of the United States most-visited museums. See spectacular mineral specimens, dinosaur skeletons, space-station models, and much more. Gaze at dozens of prehistoric beasts in the Morian Hall of Paleontology brought to life in lively displays that animate their struggle to survive. See a blue topaz crystal of more than 2,000 carats in the Cullen Hall of Gems and Minerals. Celebrate the diversity of America’s indigenous peoples in the John P. McGovern Hall of the Americas. Come face to face with wildlife ecology at the Frensley Graham Hall of African Wildlife, or learn about shell science and the study of mollusks at the Strake Hall of Malacology.

Visit the Cockrell Butterfly Center at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Walk through a living butterfly habitat, admire spectacular live and preserved specimens of some of the world’s largest and weirdest arthropods, and enjoy interactive games and quizzes. Upon arrival, enter a three-story glass structure built around a 50-foot (15-meter) waterfall. Once inside, discover a simulated tropical rainforest filled with exotic plants and hundreds of live butterflies imported from butterfly farms around the world. Marvel as these delicate creatures flutter through the vegetation, stop to sip nectar or fruit juices, and occasionally alight on lucky visitors. Feel the enchantment continue with astounding living insects, mounted specimens, larger-than-life models, and interactive games. Search for camouflaged creatures, meet a cricket weatherman, learn how insects are used to solve crimes, watch leaf cutter ants at work, see giant wasp nests, get a close-up look of some of Houston’s largest cockroaches, and more. Tucked underneath the waterfall and behind the cenote pool, discover how insects are particularly important to humans. Listen to interviews with real-life entomologists and take a peek into an entomologist’s lab, where you can look up close at insect specimens. The last entry of the day is at 5:30 PM.

Discover the secrets of one of Houston's most iconic and historical landmarks on a guided, walking tour. Hear about the origins of the Buffalo Bayou Park Cistern and admire the subterranean architecture as you experience a highly unusual space with vast columns and a 17-second echo. Check in at the Visitor Center of Buffalo Bayou Park, Houston's oasis of green in the middle of the city. Meet your guide at the entrance of the cistern, and discover how the structure was built in 1926 as the city's original drinking water reservoir. You'll be led into the cavernous cistern that has been repurposed as a subterranean public space. Marvel at an interior the size of 1.5 football fields and which, at one time, held 15 million gallons of drinking water. Unleash your inner child and play in the space. Trying calling out to hear the 17-second echo as the sound of your voice bounces off the walls and ceilings. Admire the architecture of monolithic concrete columns.

Step inside a six-acre entertainment complex that houses a 500,000-gallon aquatic wonderland and is home to over 300 aquatic species from around the globe. Take advantage of an all-day adventure pass that includes entry to the Aquarium Adventure Exhibit, Stingray Reef, and unlimited amusement rides. Marvel at the different fish and other types of marine life as you make your way through 8 different areas including the Louisiana swamp, an underwater shipwreck, tropical rainforest, a sunken temple, an offshore rig in the Gulf of Mexico, the education room, and the maharaja’s temple. Get up close and personal with the fascinating creatures of Stingray Reef, where you can touch and feed live stingrays. You can also enjoy unlimited rides that include the Aqua Wheel, Shark Voyage Train, Lighthouse Dive, Diving Bell Ferris Wheel, Aquatic Carousel, and Frog Hopper.