USA TODAY 7:46 a.m. ET March 2, 2017
Autoplay
Show Thumbnails
Show Captions
The 10.4-mile Seawall claims to be the worlds longest continuous sidewalk and is often packed with joggers, bicyclists, skaters and those who love to walk along the shoreline without sand crunching between their toes.(Photo: Galveston CVB)
Texas is known for a lot of things cowboys, barbecue and football, just to name a few but its 600 miles of sparkling coastline are often overlooked. That's a shame, because the Gulf Coast has a lot to offer its visitors. Birdwatchers and nature lovers flock to Galveston Island,a haven for migratory birds and wildlife such as raccoons, marsh rabbits and lumbering armadillos. The bar scene of South Padre Island draws the spring break crowd without fail, and active types will like that the beach there is prime for kiteboarders, windsurfers, parasailers and jet skiers. Families love walking along the Seawall for a visit to the Texas State Aquarium. Whether you're a beachcomber, birdwatcher, spring breaker or adventurer, everything's bigger in Texas.
Experience Galveston Island
With 32 miles of smooth-sand shoreline on the Gulf of Mexico, Galveston Island's beaches range from bustling summertime hotspots to secluded stretches off the beaten path featuring picnic areas, campsites and hiking trails. About an hour's drive from Houston, Galveston is a quick escape for city dwellers, who are lured not only by the island's beaches, but also by its assortment of restaurants and classic fish houses, resort hotels, antique stores, museums, downtown shopping and quiet neighborhoods dotted with Victorian homes.
Destruction from the Great Storm of 1900 led to the building of Galveston's protective and signature beachfront structure the 10.4-mile Seawall. It's claimed to be the world's longest continuous sidewalk and is often packed with joggers, bicyclists, skaters and those who love to walk along the shoreline without sand crunching between their toes.
On Galveston's eastern edge, adults flock to East Beach with its beach parties, festivals, live bands and even an annual sand castle competition. Nearby Stewart Beach is a good choice for families, hosting activities such as volleyball tournaments.
Experience North Padre Island
North Padre Island's popular Gulf of Mexico beaches on the barrier islands protecting the scenic shorefronts of Corpus Christi extend from the sandy shores of Port Aransas southward to the undisturbed dunes and grasslands of Padre Island National Seashore. This stretch is said to be the world's longest area of undeveloped barrier island beachfront. The fine-sand beaches are an added draw for visitors flocking to Corpus Christi's world-class attractions the Texas State Aquarium, the aircraft carrier USS Lexington Museum, and the Museum of Science and History with the replica ships of Christopher Columbus. The area is also a haven for nature lovers and birdwatchers, as South Texas is a key stopping point for spring and fall migrations.
On the upper coast, Mustang Island State Park features 5 miles of shoreline adjacent to campgrounds with utility hookups and shower/restroom facilities. Teens and young adults flock to North Packery Beach with its volleyball courts and barbecues. It's also a hotspot for surfers, windsurfers and kiteboarding. South Packery Beach is more family-friendly and less crowded.
To the south is the 1-mile-long Seawall along Michael Ellis Beach, popular with shortboarders, while Padre Balli Park with Bob Hall Pier is more family-oriented. Amenities include campsites with cabanas and a bath house, while the pier is popular for fishing. White Cap Beach and Natural Beach are less crowded, with the latter more secluded and ideal for nature watching. At the southern edge is Padre Island National Seashore, with more than 130,000 acres of undeveloped grasslands skirting natural sandy beaches.
Experience South Padre Island
Some of Texas' most popular white-sand beaches and clearest surf thrill visitors who make it all the way down to South Padre Island, one of the nation's southernmost tourist draws. This barrier island is particularly well known for its young spring break crowds peaking in March, but the emerald- and aquamarine-hued beach waters also lure families and RVers year-round, particularly "snow bird" retirees in winter. Thirty-four miles long and a half-mile wide along the Gulf of Mexico, South Padre Island is a key destination for birders who flock to see herons, egrets and yellow-billed loons, to name a few of the area's more than 300 bird species during spring and fall migrations.
Most of South Padre's hotels, resorts, restaurants and lively bars lie within the city limits a crisscross of streets ringed by beaches on the gulf side and by wetlands along Laguna Madre Bay. City beach access is off Gulf Boulevard, with small parking lots accommodating 10 to 20 vehicles at most of the 25 or so access streets.
In January and February, events kick up for the so-called "Winter Texans" mostly retirees and seniors who escape colder northern climates. They stay in hotels, resorts and condos, and area beaches and parks offer hundreds of RV hookup spots for those traveling in motorhomes. Activities catering to this group include festivals, concerts, plays and more.
See more of the USA's best beaches:
Autoplay
Show Thumbnails
Show Captions
Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/2lCKlWT
See original here:
Photo tour: The best beaches in Texas - USA TODAY
- Seabean Symposium-Live Blogging - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Alvaro Jaramillo Talks Gulls at 2010 Space Coast Birding Festival - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Fall Sunset on Anna Maria - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Fort Myers Beach Photos Revisited - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Reinier Munguia Keynote at Space Coast Birding & Wildlife Festival - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Wilderness Matters - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Raptor Project Brings Winged Predators to Space Coast Birding Festival - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Sandscupting Festival on Fort Myers Beach - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- David Allen Sibley to Deliver Keynote at Space Coast Birding & Wildlife Festival 2010 - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Kevin Mims & Paddle Florida on the Suwannee River - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Zipolite Beach, Oaxaca, Mexico, Central America - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Port Charlotte Beach Park, Port Charlotte, Florida - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- The Kent in South Beach, Miami – Budget Beach Hotel in Florida - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Key West, Florida Dog Beach – Where Pooches Can Play - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- The Startling White Sand of Hyams Beach, New South Wales, Australia - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Palm Island Beach, Cape Haze, Florida - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- A Surfer’s Paradise at Punta Morena Beach, Cozumel - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Sand the Color of Olives: Papakolea Beach, Hawaii - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Hilton Sandestin Beach Golf Resort & Spa in Destin, Florida - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Visiting Indialantic Beach? Check out the Crowne Plaza Melbourne Beach - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Say Good-bye to Manatee County Public Beach Pier - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Eco-tourism Field Trips at the Space Coast Birding & Wildlife Festival - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Birding at Sea: Pelagic Birding Aboard the Pastime Princess - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Space Coast Birding & Wildlife Festival Video Clip - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Gulfster’s Surf Trip to Puerto Rico - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Holiday Candlelight Tour of Homes, St. Petersburg, FL - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Kevin Mims: An Outdoorsman to Follow - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- How Big is This Wave? - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Birders: Making a List and Checking it Forever - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Hunting Island State Park – Dog Friendly Beach in Beaufort, SC - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Beach Hotels in Ocean Park, Washington - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- San Diego, CA – Ocean Beach Dog Beach - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Best Beaches for Collecting Sea Glass - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Swimwear in 2010 combines key trends - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- S-Turns Beach in Rodanthe, Outer Banks of North Carolina, Wiped Out By Nor’easter - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- In Awe at the Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium in Okinawa, Japan - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Summertime in the Outer Banks, North Carolina - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Panama City Beach May Not Welcome Spring Breakers in 2010 - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Bahia Honda Beach near Key West, Florida - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- U.S. Supreme Court Hears Case Regarding Florida Beach Ownership - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Historic Sites of Canaveral National Seashore - December 19th, 2009 [December 19th, 2009]
- Myrtle Beach Building Boardwak Along Beachfront, Adding Amenities - December 19th, 2009 [December 19th, 2009]
- Barrier Island Center Upcoming Events 2010 – Melbourne Beach, Florida - December 19th, 2009 [December 19th, 2009]
- Florida Wildflowers & Plants – Space Coast Birding Festival Field Trip - December 20th, 2009 [December 20th, 2009]
- Jellyfish in Long Beach Aquarium - December 20th, 2009 [December 20th, 2009]
- Heron Island in Great Barrier Reef under new management - December 21st, 2009 [December 21st, 2009]
- Sunset on Longboat Key - December 23rd, 2009 [December 23rd, 2009]
- Pishing With Pete at the Space Coast Birding Festival - December 23rd, 2009 [December 23rd, 2009]
- Summer is Over, but it Lives on My Hard Drive - December 25th, 2009 [December 25th, 2009]
- 800 Pound Beachball to Drop Over Panama City Beach, Florida on New Year’s Eve - December 27th, 2009 [December 27th, 2009]
- Birding by Ear and Habitat with Paddy Cunningham-Pascatore - December 27th, 2009 [December 27th, 2009]
- Prevention of Overfishing of Coral Reefs Reduces Occurrence of Coral Diseases - December 28th, 2009 [December 28th, 2009]
- Florida Screech Owls Encouraged by Nest Boxes - December 28th, 2009 [December 28th, 2009]
- Cayo Costa Photo Memories - December 28th, 2009 [December 28th, 2009]
- Family Activities at the Space Coast Birding & Wildlife Festival - December 31st, 2009 [December 31st, 2009]
- BeachHunter’s Top 10 Beach Photos in 2009 - January 2nd, 2010 [January 2nd, 2010]
- Viera Wetlands is a Premier Birding Destination in Brevard County - January 2nd, 2010 [January 2nd, 2010]
- Here are a Few More Florida Summer Beach Memories. - January 3rd, 2010 [January 3rd, 2010]
- Lake Morat Puts the Beach in Swiss Beaches - January 6th, 2010 [January 6th, 2010]
- Smoking Banned at Beaches Around the Country - January 6th, 2010 [January 6th, 2010]
- Identifying Gulls – A Field Trip to Brevard County Landfill - January 6th, 2010 [January 6th, 2010]
- Victoria and Albert Museum in London Sponsors World Beach Project - January 7th, 2010 [January 7th, 2010]
- Does It Snow in Florida? - January 9th, 2010 [January 9th, 2010]
- Sun, sand and history found in Bodrum, Turkey - January 9th, 2010 [January 9th, 2010]
- Winter swimming rules at Den Haag’s beaches. - January 9th, 2010 [January 9th, 2010]
- Boats, Kayaks and Birds - January 10th, 2010 [January 10th, 2010]
- Snorkeling with Sea Turtles in Akumal, Mexico - January 11th, 2010 [January 11th, 2010]
- A Hidden Gem – San Agustinillo, Oaxaca, Mexico - January 12th, 2010 [January 12th, 2010]
- Penguins on the Beach at Betty’s Bay - January 12th, 2010 [January 12th, 2010]
- Robert Amoruso Photography Workshops at Space Coast Birding Festival - January 12th, 2010 [January 12th, 2010]
- Scuba Diving with Bull Sharks in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico - January 13th, 2010 [January 13th, 2010]
- California Beach Tradition Threatened - January 13th, 2010 [January 13th, 2010]
- Who’s Going to the 13th Annual Space Coast Birding & Wildlife Festival? - January 15th, 2010 [January 15th, 2010]
- Getting Away From It All in the Dry Tortugas - January 16th, 2010 [January 16th, 2010]
- History of the Bikini - January 19th, 2010 [January 19th, 2010]
- Conservation and the Economics of Birding - January 20th, 2010 [January 20th, 2010]
- Landlocked Swiss Hit the Beach at Lake Zurich - January 21st, 2010 [January 21st, 2010]
- Northern Ireland’s Blue Flag Beaches - January 22nd, 2010 [January 22nd, 2010]
- A beach of sorts in old Dun Laoghaire. - January 22nd, 2010 [January 22nd, 2010]
- Beach Sunrise Memories - January 22nd, 2010 [January 22nd, 2010]