My husband and I are nerds. There, I said it, we are NERDY! Revenge Of The Nerds is actually one of our favorite movies so don’t even try to come at me lol. So it was a no brainer that one thing we splurged on during our road trip was NASA. Space Center Houston has been a place we’ve wanted to visit for quite some time and we were finally able to go last fall!
Tickets
We ended up just getting basic general admission tickets but if we go back we will spend extra to get the Space Expert Tour! But the general admission comes with a campus tour and a full day in the museum.
Once you have your ticket you will need to reserve a time slot. We of course did the earliest possible time so that we could have the entire day to explore. I believe this is temporary during COVID but still make sure to check the available times before booking.
The Tour
Once you arrive to the museum they will have you download their app. In the app you can look up a map of the museum and even do scavenger hunts to make it a little more fun!
But the main reason you need the app is to schedule your tour. The museum itself is amazing but you definitely want to see where the magic actually happens.
The Tram Tour will take you to Rocket Park, Astronaut Training, and Mission Control Center! You guys, we got to see REAL ASTRONAUTS! Like real people training to go to space. How cool is that?!
The Museum
After our tram tour we headed back to the main plaza to explore the museum. There are five main sections inside and one outdoor exhibit. The exhibits are: Mission to Mars, Astronaut Gallery, International Space Station, Starship Gallery, Mission Briefing Center, and Independence Plaza outside.
As two grown adults, we spent probably 3 or 4 hours just walking around the museum soaking everything in. There are plenty of kids activities as well so you could definitely take the whole family. We love space and spent a lot of time just reading the information but also had way to much fun climbing inside of the shuttle replica!
This museum is equal parts entertaining and educational. If you love space as much as we do, you will love this museum. And one thing we learned was that you really need to visit all the NASA museums to get the full picture! Many exhibits talked about how additional artifacts could be seen at the Kennedy Space Center in Orlando.
So obviously that is next on our list and I will update you after we have visited there as well!
The Gift Shop/ Cafeteria
I am including this because you need to be prepared to spend money at this museum, unless you have phenomenal self control lol.
First of all, pack a lunch because the food in the cafeteria is like buying food at Disneyland or a baseball game. You pay $12 for a small thing of chips & nacho cheese. Ya feel me? That being said, we ate lunch here and paid the amusement park prices.
The gift shop is what really got us though. I wanted to buy everything. NASA sells high quality merchandise! It isn’t cheap but honestly I thought it was reasonable for gift shop products. We ended up leaving with sweatshirts, a blanket, a lab coat, and stickers.
Final Thoughts
This is one of my all time favorite museums we have ever been to! I loved everything about it. The exhibits, the entertainment, the tram tour, and the gift shop! I will go back again and again because I feel like you can always learn something new!
If you are in the Houston area you need to race to Space Center Houston ASAP. And if you are planning a trip here, make sure to add this to your itinerary!
