Have you visited Kemah and its famous Boardwalk? Kemah is a great place to visit, with its colorful history and many attractions. The premier 30-acre Kemah Boardwalk, built along Galveston Bay and Clear Lake Shores, is perfect for families and couples.
Whether you’re looking for a thrilling amusement ride, a delicious meal, just some great shopping amid the beautiful Gulf Coast scenery, Kemah Boardwalk has you covered. And with its convenient location just minutes from Houston, Kemah Boardwalk is the perfect place to spend a day or a weekend.
Kemah is a popular destination for RV travelers and retirees as well. Many accommodations for those traveling in RVs with several RV parks are in the vicinity that features full hookups and other RV resort amenities. Also, the Kemah Boardwalk Marina offers boat slips and dry dock storage.
This is a great stop on your way to Galveston, whether for the afternoon, weekend, or week.
Amusement Rides
The amusement park rides make the Kemah Boardwalk a top-rated vacation destination for families during the summer and school breaks. Here you will find a full-fledged amusement park, including a heart-racing ride on the Boardwalk Bullet wooden roller coaster to a gentle double-decker carousel ride.
My favorite is the train ride, an 1863 C.P. Huntington train replica. The train ride weaves through the entirety of the park and is fun for adults and children.
I have not “yet” experienced a ride on the Beast Speedboat, a boat ride out on Galveston Bay. Guests board the boat from the Boardwalk and speed off for a thrilling speed ride that lasts 25 minutes! Kemah Boardwalk’s Beast is, of course, one of the most popular attractions.
The Stingray Reef & Rainforest Exhibit, although not a ride, is an aquatic zoo that contains live stingrays guests can feed and touch. This Rainforest exhibit has many other animals on display and is also a perfect kids’ birthday party destination.
Midway games, an arcade, a playground, and dancing water fountains are other attractions to experience at the Kemah Boardwalk. Fantastic party packages are available here also.
Restaurants
Steve and I have had great meals at all of the restaurants at the Kemah Boardwalk over the years. We have always had terrific food, service, and beautiful experiences, but recently visited a couple of our favorites.
T-Bone Tom’s
If you’re looking for a really good meal at a reasonable price, I recommend checking out T-bone Tom’s restaurant, just blocks from the Boardwalk, and a popular spot near the Kemah Boardwalk for over 45 years.
Excellent world-class Texas barbeque, delicious chicken fried steak, and spicy blackened catfish are served here. Menu items chopped beef, sliced brisket, and in-house-made sausage was featured on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives in 2009. This same sausage is still made in-house and served today.
T-Bone Tom’s is an institution for Kemah residents and tourists alike and has a terrific and friendly staff. We were fortunate to enjoy our meal under the pleasant and capable care of T-Bone Tom’s Alyssa – a rockstar in our opinion.
Flying Dutchman
If you want a great seafood meal while on Kemah Boardwalk, you have more than a few restaurants to choose from. On this particular visit, I returned to one of my very favorites, The Flying Dutchman, and its extensive seafood menu, including fresh oysters, fried, blackened, and grilled seafood.
For my mid-afternoon visit, I selected an icy cold beer and two appetizers to snack on while I sat outside in the sunshine by the water. It was a lovely leisurely enjoyed meal – all by myself! A fishing boat was right in front of me, catching fish after fish. Lots of fun to watch.
This family-friendly seafood restaurant offers an extensive menu that includes a wide variety of seafood items, including shrimp, redfish, snapper, salmon, and oysters. The desserts are also pretty fantastic. I definitely recommend the key lime pie.
Art of Coffee
This cozy little coffee shop is located in the Lighthouse District next to the Boardwalk. We took our expertly prepared lattes out to the lush backyard garden to enjoy. I picked up the shop’s loyalty card because I plan to return for more peace, relaxation, and great coffee.
Some of the other outstanding restaurants to choose from in and near the Kemah Boardwalk are:
• Aquarium
• Joe’s Burger Bar
• Saltgrass Steakhouse
• Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.
• Landry’s Seafood House
• Bayside Grille
• Pizza Oven
• Crazy Allen’s Swamp Shack
• Nam Thai Restaurant & Bar
• Tookie’s
Lodging
Many hotels, motels, and vacation rentals are available near the Kemah Boardwalk. I have no experience with these because we live so close to Kemah. Here is a shortlist to check out.
• Kemah Boardwalk Inn – right in the Boardwalk property
• Courtyard by Marriot Houston Kemah
• Seaside Inn
• Multiple B&Bs, VRBO vacation rentals
Clear Creek Winery & Meticulous Spirits
Clear Creek Winery is housed in an interesting-looking two-story building across the street from T-Bone Tom’s. This is definitely a place to check out if you’re looking for a great winery and/or small-batch distillery.
Although a wide variety of wines is available to choose from, and the wine is made onsite, the grapes are shipped from growers in California. During our visit, Heather, the young lady behind the bar, answered all of our questions about the Winery.
The setting here at the Winery is beautiful, inviting, and a great place to peacefully relax with your favorite adult beverage. Meticulous Spirits’ vodka, gin, light and dark rums are processed onsite in small batches. Neither Steve nor I tried the spirits, so we will revisit soon to check these out.
We enjoyed a wine tasting even though we did not have a reservation. This was probably because our visit was in the middle of the afternoon during the middle of the week. Reservations for wine or spirit tastings are recommended, but walk-ins are accepted if space is available.
I had no idea what a Bartesian was, but one is behind the bar here and is available to mix up great cocktails if wine is not your beverage of choice. Fascinating machine; sort of a Keurig for spirits. Have you ever had a cocktail made using one of these? I am so curious now.
Tours are given on Saturdays, and I expect weekends are busy here, as are all of the Kemah Boardwalk areas.
Have you visited Kemah and its famous Boardwalk? Why not?
These are the bare highlights of the Kemah Boardwalk. This is a perfect place for families, couples, and friends to enjoy a great day trip outing, weekend or week-long getaway, experience on the Texas Gulf Coast. Please check here to discover the many many events held at the Kemah Boardwalk all year long.
It was spring break for the kids. We visited the park and oh what a good time we had This place is huge lots to see and do. Most definitely will return.
Well me an my special friend went for my bday n it was fun i enjoyed the hunted house very much so. Enjoyed seeing the beautiful sights if u havent went please do so u will love it trust me u will
I’m so glad you enjoyed the place. There is a whole lot of stuff to do there, isn’t there?