What a beautiful park and nature preserve! The staff here is wonderful and their excitement to share their love of nature with park visitors is infectious. Great nature and learning centers - great for people of all ages. read more

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I live 10 mins away and have never been. With the end of summer break approaching, I figured it was the best time to check it out. I applied some mosquito spray and ventured out. This place is awesome!!! Their gift store is filled with cute things and the staff is so helpful with recommending trails. While there I saw a bison, snakes, skunks, turtles, and so much more. They have a butterfly garden and a bird viewing center...that I was tempted to sit at and listen for too long. There are lakes where I saw a couple of different baby alligators and a camouflaged frog! The visitor center is filled with info and some spots to take pics. I learned a lot and am so glad I stopped by. I'll be back on the weekend when I can sign up for a pontoon ride! read more

Our grandsons - 10 years old - loved seeing the 'gators. They were smart enough to avoid getting too close to them.

We did the Pelicans and Pirates Pontoon tour. Incredible experience! The pontoon is electric so it's silent and the tour down the bayou was beautiful. Getting to be in the bayou at night was a special experience. read more

Armand Bayou Nature Center - Parks Near Me - Pasadena, Texas

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We went on the full moon pontoon tour with Captain James and Mykayla. It was so much fun and educational. We saw birds and gators. We will definitely be back. read more

Have been going here since I was a kid and im trying to get my kids into loving animals like I do. Mostly a great experience and most staff is amazing but they also have staff like Tyson who yelled at me and my 2 children 7, and 5 years old. Told me I was a bad father, used the f word, a word and called me a retard... all for using our walking sticks to stir up the water looking for animals. He should not be around children and take an anger class. If you can avoid him its a great for animal lovers read more

Armand Bayou Nature Center - Parks Near Me - Pasadena, Texas

I took my family to the golden jubilee and we had a blast! It's great on a regular day as well, though. I highly recommend it. read more

Armand Bayou Nature Center - Interactive displays - Parks Near Me - Pasadena, Texas

Critters crawl was a lot of fun. The staff were nice and the decorations fun. Weather was perfect too. read more

Armand Bayou Nature Center - Parks Near Me - Pasadena, Texas

The Armand Bayou Nature Center is a large 2500 acre urban preserve located in Southeast Houston. We highly recommend a visit if you're in the area! The entrance fee is $6 for adults, but definitely worth the price! You can easily spend a half day or more here exploring the different trails. The preserve features 5 miles of well-maintained trails including the more popular Discovery Nature Loop (with a bison viewing platform!) At the Armand Bayou Center, you can also see plenty of other wildlife. We saw a deer wandering the trails. There is also a quail viewing enclosure and an educational exhibit home to reptiles and amphibians. The highlight is definitely the bison! We did the Prairie Interpretative Loop and Discovery Loop during our day here. Total time spent at the preserve was about 2 hours. We love the educational placards set up throughout the trails. The trails were also very clearly labeled throughout the park. The Discovery Loop starts off at the admissions office and is partially a boardwalk and partially a forested trail that leads you through two beautiful lakes, a 19th century farm complete with an active vegetable garden, and ends with the popular bison viewing platform. Check out our photos fro the trail below! From the Discovery Loop, you can also branch off to take the short 0.5 mile prairie interpretative loop near the farmhouse. The prairie loop is a grassy trail that explains the importance of the endangered coastal prairie habitat! We ended our day here read more

Amazing! What a great place to visit and to learn about the history, wildlife, and ecosystems of Armand Bayou. Texas Conservation Alliance participated in a variety of activities for our 2024 annual meeting and activites weekend, including a safari tour, nature walks, prairie planting, a presentation about snakes by executive director Tim Pylar, and a guided pontoon boat ride on the bayou. Every staff member was very friendly, professional, and so very well informed about ABNC, wildlife, and the habitat of this unique landscape - not a single question went unanswered! Friends and family can pay a small fee to walk and hike along the many trails they have open, sign up for a guided safari tour, kayak ride, or boat tour, learn in the ABNC exhibit halls, see wildlife like hawks, alligators, frogs, snakes, salamanders, and jumping fish - and much more, like seasonally themed wildlife experiences, for example, an outing to watch bats and owls around Halloween. There is so much to do year round. Texas Conservation Alliance (TCA) had a wonderful time, and many of us who live outside of the Houston area, vowed to return and explore more of what they have to offer. Thank you Armand Bayou Nature Center for a fun, informative wildlife-filled weekend! read more

Really great little nature center with a well maintained network of hiking trails. Lots of educational opportunities here as well as a great chance to enjoy the nature being preserved in this area. There is a bison enclosure where you can observe several bison from a viewing platform. I also saw lots of deer and birds on my visit. It's recommended that you purchase your admission in advance and check in at the entrance window. read more

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Our group took the guided tour on the electric tram. What a great way to get a two hour introduction to the center and natural history of bayous and prairies. Our guide, Gene, was knowledgeable and funny. We all enjoyed him. And our older group appreciated not having to walk too much. read more

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I had an absolutely enjoyable day with a couple of friends at the Armand Bayou Nature Center in Seabrook, Texas. We walked two miles, took lots of fun photos, saw an alligator, heard the birds twittering, smelled the pines, and enjoyed hearing the crunch of our feet on stone and leaf-covered trails. I couldn't bring Oreo, so that was a disappointment, but I understand it being a nature preserve why they want no pets. There are several trails you can go on; we went on the least-wet one, the Karankawa trail, as it had rained all day the day before. It was completely dry. There are tons of activities (See photo) including pontoon tours of the lake areas on the weekends; I'd love to go on that! This place is one of my highly-recommended walking tours. It has something for everyone! read more

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My granddaughter has been taking the Eco classes and loves this way to study the science of nature and ecology. She's learning about so many important things. The teachers are so good with the kids. Love this program. read more

Located less than 30 minutes from downtown Houston Texas is one of the largest nature centers in the United States that is located in an urban area. Armand Bayou nature Center is absolutely beautiful. It has multiple trails to hike as well as unbelievable wildlife. You'll see alligators, snakes, birds, bison, and many other types of wildlife while experiencing nature that has been untouched! read more

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Great place to get into nature. Wildlife , awesome trees and plants not to mention all the water it's known for. read more

Armand Bayou Nature Center - Mease Lake - Parks Near Me - Pasadena, Texas

Went on the pontoon boat trip this morning! It was fabulous. Saw lots of different birds and at least 7 alligators. Captain James was super knowledgeable and so was our guide Regina. Definitely worth going to see the beauty of the ecosystem of the bay right in our own backyard. read more

My wife and I enjoyed walking the trails on a Sunday afternoon. Neither of us had done so since we were kids; now, I can't figure out why. Armand Bayou offers a unique and pleasant way to ground yourself with nature. We were lucky enough to catch the staff feeding Lucy the skunk and Alice the opossum. The maintenance team keeps the trails well-maintained and easy to follow. I love that they have kept the old historic homestead buildings intact. We are going back soon to purchase a membership, since we plan to spend many more days at this not-to-be-missed nature center. read more

My kids LOVED their time at Ecoschoolers and asked to go back. Ecoschoolers is a homeschool based 2 hour class that they offer 2x a week. They had several other classes too for all ages. highly recommend! read more

I absolutely love this place. It's well maintained, generally peaceful, and feels far away from the "city" even though it isn't (sorta) so many beautiful things to see, trails to walk, living beings just enjoying themselves. I love it. My only complaint has nothing to do with the place actually. It's some of the guests! Coming here and being super loud, poking the animals with sticks, stepping on the bugs (on purpose), leaving trash. WHY?! read more

What a beautiful place! We went so we could enjoy the hiking trails and see some local wildlife and were not disappointed. Armadillos, birds, turtles and a little alligator were a few of the animals we saw. A lot of the trails were under water but we were still able to make it to the boat house and see the bayou. When we went to the vegetable garden they filled a bag with fresh veggies for us. What an absolute treat:) We will be back for sure when we are able to see the entire park. Every first and third Sunday are free btw read more

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I really enjoyed the Saturday morning pontoon tour of the bayou. So quiet and peaceful surrounded by vegetation the tour introduces you to fish, alligators, bugs, birds. The guides are very good and help one "see" what's in and around the bayou. As an Alamo Area Master Naturalist I truly appreciate well-informed volunteers like Gene, a fellow Master Naturalist in the Galveston Bay Area chapter. This tour is different and well worth the time. FYI: I'm Jo from Fair Oaks Ranch, TX., not California. read more

We traveled from California and booked a sunset bayou cruise in May 2023. We had a great time. Saw alligators, snakes, many birds and jumping fish! The scenery was beautiful and the guides were so friendly and informative. Highly recommend read more

The EcoSchooler program is fun and educational. My sons ask to attend every week. The educators are informative and fun. A wonderful program. Highly recommended. read more

Love this place! So beautiful and so much to learn. Walk carefully because there are animals around. I absolutely terrified a deer that was snacking nearby. read more

Great place to launch your kayak. Tons of wildlife. Be careful though, the bigger alligators can be aggressive.

What can I say about ABNC? I just absolutely love it! I did work there for 11 wonderful years. I got to do different things as a volunteer and a worker. Mostly teaching but also getting to be able to work with the reptiles. They were my favorite animals. Snakes rock! I also got to feed the bison and after a while they got to know me. It was great to see them really close and see them running towards me when I came next to their enclosure. The she is not friendly but he would let me pet him. Don't be scared, there was a fence between us and I never went inside their enclosure. I also have to add that the people are all great, volunteers, staff. The best people ever. Love them all. People and animals. Or is it the other way around? Anyway, go there! And say hi to the animals for me. read more

I feel like this place is a hidden gem for families. At $4-6 to enter, there is quite a bit to do with kids that will get them outdoors! Choice of 3 "hiking" trails, all kid friendly and even jogging stroller friendly. My kids loved the interactive building and I thought the tour of the farm site was really interesting too. I could see this place having really bad mosquitos, but it wasn't bad at all in March. On the walk my kids saw turtles, a frog, silk worms, various birds, mushrooms, and of course the bison. The bathrooms are nice (and clean) but definitely bring water/snacks (no concession type amenities). read more

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We were very lucky to show up on a 3rd Saturday. The day was gorgeous, though a little warm, and we got here just when it opened. It was quiet enough and it turned out to be free entry! The paths are very nicely maintained but be prepared to get swarmed by mosquitoes. It was cool to see the baby alligators and the bigger gator in the pond. The farmhouse is especially interesting considering they moved it there piece by piece. Talk up the carpenter as he has a lot of stories and history about the area. Apparently there was a murder on site! read more

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An excellent hiking adventure nestled in a suburban area. Tons of different trails in different types of areas- grass lands, swamp, along open water and woods. Bring water bottles and wear closed toed shoes and a hat and bring tons of bug spray and sunscreen. Grab a camera and binoculars as well. Throw a few snacks in your bag for littles, as walks can be longer than you expected. We saw a snake, tons of birds, caterpillars and butterflies and bunnies. Expect mud and mosquitos. Many of the trails include tons of information about the area, plants and animals you might see-- great for homeschooling opportunities. Some trails are on a boardwalk and are stroller and wheelchair accessible but most are only accessible by all terrain stroller. read more

A friend took me for a hike here. They had a great hiking trail. I hate spiders and they everywhere but as long as you watch where you are walking it shouldn't be a problem. It was a hot summer day, but the trees kept us cool. read more

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Spend your morning or afternoon here. Bring a date here. You won't regret it. A beautiful escape from the city. read more

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Right now, the Karankawa Trail is not muddy except for one small area. And, no mosquitos so great time to hike it! Beautiful day here today. We saw box turtles, pelicans, osprey and a hawk. The center is nice, only $4 for adults to enter. Loved Martyn's Farm and the history of the area. read more

Wow this is such a gem! We went on a sunset pontoon tour where we saw tons of wildlife (birds and alligators)! The guides were so kind and passionate about this place and gave us great facts. It's untouched beauty and everyone should visit! read more

Best place to paddle inside a city limit! "The Paddler's Review": For those of you with canoes or kayaks, Armand Bayou is one of the nicest places to paddle within an hour of most Houstonians (just a few minutes if you live in Clear Lake). South from the park takes you into wide open water that will eventually lead into Clear Lake and civilization. North from the park leads you into the coolest pristine eco-system full of wildlife and meandering channels (I recommend this way). Enter the park off the first entrance on Bay Area Blvd. past the bridge, and stay to your right. This will lead you to a dock and the best place to put your boat in the water. Note the "no motors beyond this point" sign. Your only on-the-water competition will be other paddlers and the wildlife (and not a speeding powerboat). Ten minutes of paddling North past the bridge brought me sightings of cormorants, a heron, an osperey eating a fish, and a 4 foot alligator. Stay to your left, or you'll get into a channel that takes you into a flood controlled waterway that will eventually lead to a large industrial complex (interesting, but not natural). When the water's low (North wind) or the water vegetation really starts growing, you might find you have to stay to the deeper water channels, but overall it's a great, easy paddle that unless you're really hardcore will keep you busy and in the more natural area for a nice half day trip. This last trip (Feb 27, 2009) was on a balmy "winter" day with temp running close to 80. A little windy with overcast skies (just spotty sunlight). I wasn't expecting any alligators, but I saw 17. From a juvenile 2 footer to what I estimate as up to 12 feet (my kayak is 16 ft), alligators were everywhere. On a previous trip several years back, I counted only two large gators - very exciting. Around gator #7, I admit that I was getting a little creeped out, and had to remind myself that my boat and I are not on the menu. I hope the abundant and thriving wildlife is indicative of the improving quality of the water and the efforts that ABNC & other organizations are making (great job!). In past trips, I've seen wild hog, snakes & turtles, countless variety of birds and my most memorable sighting, an eight-point buck swimming across the bayou in front of me. That and the wide open sky with the sound of wind rustling through the trees just makes me feel like I got away from it all. Sorry Buffalo Bayou, but Armand wins hand down as the best urban paddle for me. You'll love it, too! read more

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I was just looking for some nature spots out in Clearlake for photography and I was lucky to find this place. I was just planning on going to check out the nature, however, I was extremely fortunate as the day I went just happened to be the annual Fall Festival. They charged for parking since it was an event and I think the admission was increased but it was worth it. The first plus about this park is that it's designed well. If you stay on the main path it makes a full loop from start to finish that puts you back near your car when you finish. This is a HUGE plus as back tracking is a pain, especially if you are lugging around a backpack. There are lots of animals in this park that is in the natural environment and then others that are in cages. This day though they have locals come in as blacksmiths, carpenters, candle makers, and many more. One of my favorite nature spots in all of Houston! read more

Armand Bayou Nature Center is the largest urban wilderness preserve in the U.S. It was created in 1974. The Nature Center contains 2500 acres of the natural wetlands forest, prairie and marsh habitats once abundant in the Houston/Galveston area. It's home to over 370 species of birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians It's been 5 years since my last visit here but I enjoyed it. I walked one of the short trails. I don't think hikers would care much for this place. Short trails and sometimes much company. But, visitors who want a short walk in the woods and a visit to the old-timey Texas farm (moved here) should enjoy it. They have a preserve of the Tallgrass Prairie. Before the American Midwest was settled 240 million acres of tallgrass prairies covered most of the American Midwest. Where bison roamed and fed on these grasses. These tallgrass prairies are essentially gone. It's estimated less than 3% of the 240 million acres remain. I'm posting a picture taken here that gives the feel of it. On a good day you can take pictures of wild life. ============================================ 2017 Addendum *** three star rating for boat ride This is an independent activity at the nature center so I didn't want to mask my earlier review which was of the nature center itself. This review is of their early morning "Breakfast Boat Ride" which is a tour of the bayous on a pontoon boat. I'm rating the boat ride 3 stars. I don't remember how much it cost but it was pricier than I expected, and best I could tell your can't get your money back no matter what. Even if they cancel all they'll do it schedule you for another time or let you use the money to by tourist items in their gift shop. The breakfast isn't much. It's a abbreviated Continental Breakfast. You get coffee and a pastry. If there was more to it, it was so insignificant I don't remember it -- we ate breakfast afterwards. But, I didn't go for breakfast, I went for the boat tour so the breakfast was inconsequential to me. I went hoping to get pictures of wildlife. But, the wildlife was sparse. As you can see from my pictures (you'll have to click on more pictures to see them since I didn't create a new review) there was almost no variety of creatures. I got several pictures of egrets and one alligator. Not an inspiring adventure. I'm not likely to go again. I might think it worth doing if I hadn't already done, it but I doubt . read more

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Not really a review but an update to the owl prowl volunteers. Remember how we mentioned seeing two large birds at night high up on a tree (12th Street near Heights area) along an easement. Well today at approximately 5:50 pm while I was in my backyard, I heard a large "hoot, hoot". I looked across at a warehouse building and on roof top stood a Great Horned Owl. While looking at this one, a second Great Horned Owl flew over and perched itself next to the other one. They sat there for a minute or two. I got a great look at them with my binoculars. It was amazing to see them and to hear them!!!!! read more

Bring bug repellent! No picnics or pets. Finding the place was very easy and there was plenty or parking. It was Saturday around 11am. I walked in and paid $4.00 for admission. That is such an inexpensive trip! I also got a map and asked the guy at the desk for information on the trails. He told me his favorites and why. It was great. I entered the park and immediately there were red tail hawks in an enclosure! They are beautiful animals. The ones they have are not able to be released into the wild because they are injured so they are being taken care of by people to ensure they have a long and healthy life. after that you walk to a wetlands area and there are so many things going on! There were birds resting in the trees, turtles sunning on rocks, turtles swimming, fish, bugs, and a lot of signs with a lot of information. I enjoyed relaxing and watching the animals. I find them so entertaining. After that you go to the "Interpretive house" and in there are a bunch of other animals like snakes, alligators, turtles, frogs, lizards, fish, etc. and a lot of displays with a bunch of information. It wasn't clear if the animals in there were going to be released back into the wild or not. This building is also where the restrooms are located. After that you have your choice of trails: Martyn, Karankawa, Marsh, Lady Bird and Prairie trails. I did all of them. I saw the most wild life on the Martyn trail. There I saw cardinals, deer, and rabbits. There were tons of mosquitoes out there though and I recommend that you bring and use bug repellent generously. The weather was beautiful and the place wasn't crowded. I really only had to deal with other people on the "discovery trail" because that is where all the little kids go. There is an old farm house for them to see, scouting events for kids, and doll making stations. However this trail is also where the Buffalo are located. It is definitely worth making your way through all the kids to go see the beautiful animals. This is a great way to keep your family educated and connected with nature. Also it is a cheap way to get everyone out of the house! I just wish they had a trail specifically designed for runners so that way people could jog around the wild life. They just recommend you go to Bay Area Park next door. read more

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Walked in on a Sunday and was surprised to see they had Free Admission. They have 3-4 trails ranging from .26 miles to 1.5 mile loops. They alert you that venomous snakes exist and to stay alert. We kept our eyes wide open (and moved quickly) but we didn't see any snakes, with the exception of what they had on display. We did get to see a few Gators, and heard a male and female calling back & forth, pretty neat. Lots to look at, and some fun exhibits that let the kids get hands on. The trails are both shaded and in the sun so pack your sunscreen! Few rules: No pets, No biking, No smoking, No jogging, No collecting, No picnics, No feeding the wildlife. Easy enough! Really happy to see so much natural land still preserved just right outside the city. If you haven't been, put it on your list! read more

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