Galveston: what to see, where to stay and how to get around
In the 1880s Galveston was the richest city in Texas, the port through which the state's cotton went out to the world. The money built iron-fronted warehouses on the Strand and mansions a few blocks south on Broadway. This walk goes from the harbour streets to the big houses, about two and a half hours with the two house tours. It is flat and short on shade, so in summer start early or late.
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A short history of Galveston
Galveston, on a barrier island off the Texas coast, was the most important port in the state in the 19th century. On 19 June 1865 the emancipation of the slaves in Texas was proclaimed here, and that day, Juneteenth, has become a national holiday in the United States. On 8 September 1900 a hurricane struck the city, killing between 6,000 and 12,000 people, the deadliest natural disaster in the country's history. After the disaster a seawall was built and the level of the city was raised. Between 1907 and 1914 about 10,000 Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe entered through the port under the 'Galveston Movement', led by Rabbi Henry Cohen, which aimed to settle immigrants away from New York.
The ten best sights in Galveston
1The StrandVictorian iron-front blocks of shops and bars; the natural first walk the night before sailing
2Juneteenth MarkerThe corner where the end of slavery in Texas was announced in 1865 — the origin of a national holiday
3Texas Seaport Museum and ElissaClimb aboard an 1877 tall ship that still sails; the immigrant database is inside
4Ocean Star Offshore Drilling Rig MuseumA real retired oil rig moored by the piers; three decks of how offshore drilling works
5Galveston Railroad MuseumIn the old Santa Fe depot, a short walk from the cruise piers — good for a waiting hour
6The Grand 1894 Opera HouseConcerts and touring shows in a restored Victorian hall; check the programme for the night you are in town
7Rosenberg LibraryThe island's archive of the 1900 storm, with photos and letters; free to walk in
8Bishop's PalaceThe grandest house on Broadway; buy tickets ahead on cruise-change days
9Moody MansionHow a Galveston banking family lived; guided rooms with the original furniture
10St Mary's Cathedral BasilicaTexas's oldest cathedral, a few blocks from the Strand
Scan with your phone camera to open the map there
What is an audio walk?
Tours in Galveston →A guide in your headphones: open the walk on our site, walk from stop to stop, and at each one your phone tells its story. No guide, no group, and free. This is the first walk in Galveston:
Free walking tours in Galveston
Before the storm
In the 1880s Galveston was the richest city in Texas, the port through which the state's cotton went out to the world. The money built iron-fronted warehouses on the Strand and mansions a few blocks south on Broadway. This walk goes from the harbour streets to the big houses, about two and a half hours with the two house tours. It is flat and short on shade, so in summer start early or late.
- Juneteenth Marker · On 19 June 1865 Union general Gordon Granger, whose headquarters stood on this corner, issued General Order No. 3 telling Texans that all slaves were free — two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation. The date became Juneteenth, a federal holiday since 2021.
- The Strand · Its banks and cotton brokers earned the street the nickname 'Wall Street of the Southwest'. Many of the cast-iron fronts were shipped in prefabricated from foundries and bolted onto the brick.
- The Grand 1894 Opera House · It opened in January 1895, was badly damaged by the 1900 storm and rebuilt. Restored in the 1980s, it was later named the official opera house of Texas.
- Rosenberg Library · Henry Rosenberg, a Swiss-born merchant who became one of the island's richest men, left money for a free public library. It opened in 1904, and its archive holds a large collection of photographs and letters from the 1900 storm.
- Moody Mansion · The red-brick house was finished in 1895 for another family. W. L. Moody Jr. bought it in 1900, days after the storm, when owners were selling, and his family's banks, insurance and hotels went on to dominate the island.
- Bishop's Palace · Built between 1887 and 1892 for the lawyer and politician Walter Gresham, to designs by Nicholas Clayton, Galveston's leading architect. Its stone walls rode out the 1900 storm, and the Catholic diocese bought it in 1923 as the bishop's residence — hence the name.
The storm and the wall
On 8 September 1900 a hurricane drove the Gulf over the island, and between 6,000 and 8,000 people died in one night — still the deadliest natural disaster in American history. Galveston answered by building a wall against the sea and raising the ground of the whole city behind it. This route starts at two churches, one that survived and one that did not, and runs out to the Seawall and along the beach. Drive between the town and the Seawall, then walk the promenade; about three hours.
- St Mary's Cathedral Basilica · Built in 1847, it is the oldest cathedral in Texas and the mother church of the state's Catholics. It stood through the 1900 storm while much of the city around it was swept away.
- Sacred Heart Church · The first church on this site was destroyed by the 1900 storm. The parish rebuilt it in a Moorish style with a white dome, which stands out among the Victorian houses of the East End.
- The Original Seawall · The first stretch of the wall was built between 1902 and 1904, about 5 metres high. Behind it engineers pumped sand under the city and jacked up some 2,000 buildings, raising the ground by up to several metres near the wall.
- Gaido's · The Gaido family has served seafood on the island since 1911, and the restaurant on the Seawall is known by the giant crab on its roof. It is one of the few names on this coast that came through every hurricane since.
- Murdoch's · A bathhouse on stilts has stood on this spot over the beach since the early 1900s. It has been knocked down by hurricanes and rebuilt several times, most recently after Hurricane Ike in 2008.
- Pleasure Pier · A pleasure pier was first built here in the 1940s, and later carried a hotel that Hurricane Ike wrecked in 2008. The amusement pier that replaced it opened in 2012.
Ellis Island of the West
Before and after 1900, Galveston was a gateway for immigrants: Germans, Czechs, Italians and, between 1907 and 1914, some 10,000 Jews from Eastern Europe brought here on purpose instead of New York. The piers that received them are the same piers the cruise ships use today. This route stays by the water, then crosses the channel. Around three hours; the ferry is free and good for the end of the day.
- Texas Seaport Museum and Elissa · Elissa is an iron barque built in Aberdeen, Scotland, in 1877, and she called at Galveston in the 1880s carrying cargo. Restored by the museum, she still goes to sea, and the museum keeps a database of immigrants who landed at the port.
- Ocean Star Offshore Drilling Rig Museum · The Gulf of Mexico is one of the great offshore oil fields, and this jack-up rig drilled wells there before it was retired and turned into a museum. Its legs rest on the harbour bottom just as they did at sea.
- Galveston Railroad Museum · It fills the 1932 Santa Fe station, where trains once met the ships. In the old waiting hall life-size plaster figures of passengers still stand with their luggage.
- Temple B'nai Israel · Founded in 1868, it is the oldest Reform congregation in Texas. Its rabbi Henry Cohen, who served from 1888 to 1949, met the ships of the Galveston Movement — the plan funded by Jacob Schiff to settle Jewish immigrants across the American West rather than in New York.
- Galveston–Port Bolivar Ferry · The Texas Department of Transportation runs the crossing for free, day and night. The ride is short, and bottlenose dolphins are often seen in the channel beside the boat.
- Seawolf Park · The submarine USS Cavalla sank the Japanese aircraft carrier Shokaku in June 1944, on her first war patrol. She now sits on the grass of Pelican Island, and you can climb down through her hatches.
Getting to Galveston and getting around
- Galveston Cruise Terminals · A cruise departure port: Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Disney and other lines sail from the piers along Harborside Drive, a few blocks from the Strand. Check which terminal your line uses; with bags it is a five-minute taxi from town, and most passengers fly into Houston, an hour or more away
- Galveston–Port Bolivar Ferry · Free state-run car ferry, around the clock; dolphins often follow it across the channel
Cheap eats in Galveston
Galveston eats from the Gulf: shrimp, oysters, red snapper and blue crab, fried in a po'boy or boiled with Cajun spice in the Louisiana way. The island's Italian families left muffulettas and red sauce, and Texas adds barbecue and Tex-Mex. On cruise days the Strand fills up at lunch, so eat early or walk a few blocks away from the piers.
- Star Drug Store · Lunch counter and soda fountain; a burger or a malt about $9-15
- Maceo Spice & Import · Old grocery with muffulettas and Italian sandwiches, about $10-16
- Shrimp n' Stuff · Fried shrimp po'boys at a counter, about $10-18
- Mosquito Cafe · East End breakfast and lunch, about $12-20
- Miller's Seawall Restaurant · Breakfast facing the Gulf before boarding, about $12-18
- Benno's Cajun Seafood · Cajun boiled seafood and gumbo on the Seawall, about $12-25
- Hey Mikey's Ice Cream · Ice cream on the Strand, a scoop about $5-7
Museums in Galveston
- Texas Seaport Museum and Elissa · An 1877 tall ship and the story of the immigrants' port
- Ocean Star Offshore Drilling Rig Museum · A real oil rig by the piers; about an hour
- Galveston Railroad Museum · Old carriages and a 1930s station hall, near the cruise piers
- The Bryan Museum · Texas and the American West, in the old orphans' home
- Ashton Villa · An 1859 brick house, one of the oldest on the island
Nature and day trips near Galveston
- Galveston Island State Park · Beach, marsh trails and birds; 20 minutes west
- East Beach · Wide sand at the island's eastern tip, by the jetty
- Fort Travis Seashore Park · Old coastal gun batteries on Bolivar, a short drive off the ferry
- Texas City Dike · A long levee into the bay, for fishing and sunset
- Stewart Beach · Lifeguards and showers, the beach nearest the port
Things to do in Galveston with kids
- Moody Gardens · Aquarium, rainforest and penguins in glass pyramids
- Pleasure Pier · Rides over the water; buy a wristband for unlimited goes
- Schlitterbahn Galveston · Water park; check the season before planning
- Seawolf Park · Climb through a submarine; fishing pier alongside
- Space Center Houston · Rockets and Mission Control, 45 minutes north
- Kemah Boardwalk · Rides and restaurants on the bay, 35 minutes north
Where to eat in Galveston
- Gaido's · Seafood institution on the Seawall; book on cruise nights
- Saltwater Grill · Fish and oysters near the Opera House; book on cruise nights
- Fisherman's Wharf · Seafood on the harbour with the cruise ships lit up beside you
- Galveston Island Brewing · Local beer in a garden, food trucks some nights
- Benno's Cajun Seafood · Boiled crawfish in season, casual and loud
Frequently asked questions about Galveston
What is there to see in Galveston?
The top sights in Galveston are The Strand, Juneteenth Marker and Texas Seaport Museum and Elissa. The full list on this page has 10 sights, each with a photo and a short note.
How many days do you need in Galveston?
Three to four days are enough to see the best of Galveston without rushing, including at least one walking tour.
Is there a free walking tour in Galveston?
Yes. sleepntrip has 3 free audio walks in Galveston, with no guide and no group: your phone tells the story at every stop. The first one: Before the storm.
How do you get to Galveston and get around?
The main ways are Galveston Cruise Terminals and Galveston–Port Bolivar Ferry. Full details are in the transport section on this page.
Where to stay in Galveston, and for how much?
sleepntrip shows only rooms in Galveston that meet nine conditions: a good location, high guest scores, cleanliness, and a price of up to $80 a night for two. Pick your dates and see what is free.
Looking for a hotel in Galveston for your dates?
Only rooms that meet nine conditions, up to $80 a night.