Because I am a bit of a social media junkie, mostly for work in my defense, so I found myself here…read morethe other night. I tend to go to at least one of these types of events a month, but this one sadly wasn't one of my top favs. In fact if it didn't have the awesome food truck Eatsie Boys outside, I might have found it more of a total wash. The drinks were tasty (Izkali Tequila is a great company that goes to lots of events lately), but all the food they had inside was completely picked over or stale. The dip ran out of chips, and the dip was served in a bread bowl so people kept ripping off pieces of it to dip with their dip. Considering how many people don't wash their hands regularly that made my tummy a bit queasy. The cupcakes also tasted days old, which was a shame since I know they are usually awesome from that company. Also they had this spin the wheel giveaway thing that's people snagged you right away when you got in, which turned out to be nothing more than a scam to get you to give your credit card number over so you can go across town to listen to a speech about a resort community to get airline tickets. That sort of thing was a total turn off, and when my mom kept asking questions about it they kept giving her the run around. All in all, unless I had a reason to go again aka friends going or someone I know was winning something, I wouldn't get tickets again.

The rodeo is a great way to spend the day. It's family fun packed with rides, food, music, shopping…read moreand much more. Spread out over multiple venues. You will get your steps in. There are shuttles and golf carts to and from venues as well as the parking lot.

This was me and my bestie's first year attending the Houston Rodeo, and we were not completely sure…read moreof what to expect, other than what we had seen on TikTok. I have been to rodeos prior in Fort Worth, but definitely on a much smaller scale. Overall, we had a great experience and I would recommend the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, albeit with some pre-planning as it was a bit difficult to navigate. When we initially arrived via Uber, we were dropped off at the rideshare drop off/pick up area, and it was a little walk to the stadium, where we were able to pretty quickly and seamlessly go through security and make our way into the grounds. Once inside, we did have some trouble navigating where/what we were going to since we are new to the event, but we were able to find our way to the livestock show after some trial and error. Once in the stadium, we immediately decided to grab some drinks before we found our seats. Unfortunately our experience was not the best, and when we ordered drinks we felt disregarded and the staff member helping us was rude and short with us. After we received our drinks, we were making our way to our seats and the $14 Mr Pibbs were completely flat, but we were anxious to go back after our experience with the staff. However, the staff who directed us to our seats were amazing! Not only were they super helpful, but after the concert they took photos for me and my best friend which was so kind and I will cherish forever, since we live states away from each other and rarely get photos together. The livestock show and rodeo was so fun and interactive, and we had the best time watching all of the events and hearing the commentary. The concert was also awesome, and the setup was perfect for all angles to enjoy seeing the act. We saw the Red Clay Strays and it was such an amazing experience. Afterwards, we made our way to the carnival just for some after concert snacks and to see the ambiance, and it was great! We grabbed some esquites and there was plentiful seating to people watch and enjoy the carnival energy. Afterwards however, we weren't able to order our Uber to the same drop off zone for some reason, so we were hesitant but had to order to a sushi restaurant a short walk nearby. It was definitely scary walking as two girls over there, and we did our best to stick around other rodeo-goers, but the shady taxi drivers and men carrying phones flashing their driver options were very insistent and invasive of us, heckling us with constant questions after we politely declined. One driver even circled us blasting music, and it was nerve-wracking since we aren't from Houston and are young women. I would hope that in the future these "drivers" can be deterred from the area or the rideshare zone can be better advertised or organized to prevent instances like these. Otherwise, we did make it out safely and in the future will be better prepared to get in and out of the rodeo!

Once a year the Houston Theater District hosts an Open House. This is the first year that I have…read morepurchased tickets on site but every year there are special rates for the day at several of the Theaters. I ended up with some discounted tickets to Alley (performing out of UH because of construction) to Dracula and a Christmas Carol. I was very impressed with the performance of Christmas Carol so these are going to make a great gift. SPA always has at least a few interesting previews and this year was no exception. The "Inventor" from an upcoming show "The Illusionists" had some fun up-close magic for one little girl and another fun bit about chainsawing an assistant in half. This year the usual door prizes and scavenger hunts were not seen but I was lucky enough in the past to win some awesome prizes. Next year I will take advantage of the free backstage tour of Alley. Admission is free but if you are not savvy about DT parking you'll likely have to shell out 8 bucks to park underground. Clip of Kevin James/the Inventor of The Illusionists: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=396VOvQGN7k

Let's Go, Astros…read more I've been a Houston Astros fan for a long time. Even before I moved to Houston, I already loved this team. Watching players like Nolan Ryan, Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio, and Jose Cruz play. At the time I never imagined that I would ever meet any of these players. As my kids grew up in Houston, they also became Astros fans. It was so much fun to go to the Astrodome for a "Kids Run the Bases" after watching the game. Or being picked as the "Kid of the Day" for the game at Minute Maid Park. And then there was that time when I ordered a "Happy Birthday" scoreboard sign for my daughter and her best friend during the seventh inning stretch. They couldn't understand why we couldn't go to the bathroom until the message showed up on the big screen. I really love the community outreach that happens behind the scenes. So many players get back to the community. I was so happy when I heard from Nolan Ryan's team at Texas Beef. For several years, they donated thousands of dollars' worth of sausage for the state championship women's lacrosse tournament that our team hosted. It was a great addition to our snack bar that helped raise money for our women's high school lacrosse program. Other players also have foundations that support causes that really impact people's lives like disaster relief, charity funds, and support for children battling cancer. I recently went to batting practice where I learned more about the Correa Family Foundation and what Carlos Correa and his foundation do for the special heroes and their families that that are battling so many challenges as they fight childhood cancer. Jose Altuve, Kyle Tucker and Alex Bregman have also stepped up to the plate to support local causes. Over the years, I have had a bit of a World Series addiction (my friend, Omar, and I have rooted for different teams), but it is also so much fun to just come to a regular everyday game. Just to root for the home team. It's been so nice over the years to meet players off and on the field. Love to see the interaction with the players and their youngest fans. Watching the tears build up in a little boy's eyes as Jeremy Pena traded a bat for a glove made my heart so warm. So, take me out to the ball game. Let's Go, Astros! #3,000!

I went to see my first major league baseball game on April 17,2026. It was a really great…read moreexperience. We had good seats, food was good. It wasn't very crowded. Everyone behave and the night was beautiful ending with a great fireworks show.

The information we gained from the seminars and lectures was invaluable. The speakers were…read moreextremely knowledgeable and willing to speak with you personally afterwards. The Four Seasons hotel was beautiful and located in convenient proximity to the convention center and performance venue. The only issue we had with the festival was the disorganization when it came to the performance lineup. We were told to show up at noon but weren't given a specific time slot meaning we didn't know when we went on and therefore couldn't prepare as well as we wanted to. The venue, Warehouse Live, was good and the sound engineer was superb. The sound quality was as clear as I've ever heard live. But as part of the singer/songwriter group, there were almost no people there to see any of the artists between noon and 4 pm which I found odd for a major festival where major industry representatives were attending. Out of 2,800 bands they considered, only a handful were chosen so you'd think they would make more of an effort to pack the venue for these artists.

This is where all the great independent Houston music is! Great for artists or music lovers. Very…read moretalented and passionate people.

There are many ways to engage with pre-Rodeo events…read more.. :: Attend one of the three days of the World's Championship Bar-B-Que Contest (you need private passes) :: Attend Rodeo Uncorked! Roundup & Best Bites competition (gotta buy a ticket - and they sell out fast) :: Attend the Rodeo Uncorked wine auction and dinner (tables start at $6,000) :: Dress up on Go Texan Day or take part in the City Hall roundup festivities (Free!) The most family-friendly and affordable/free pre-Rodeo event you can take part in is the Rodeo Parade. Arrive early to cheer on Rodeo Run spectators, then stick around for the actual parade which showcases the trail riders and all of the committees and groups within the organization. Hundreds and hundreds of horses - even dancing horses - floats, dancing drill teams and bandmates. The parade lasted a few hours, was kid/dog friendly and FREE. I was surprised to not see that many people out this year. I mean, it was no Astros World Series celebration, but there certainly was a show to see. Hope more locals check it out next year.

BULLSHIT. ignored pregnant woman literally having contractions and unable to walk. took care of of…read moredrunk intoxicated man removing clothes and refused woman with child a ride to the front gate. DISGUSTING USE OF MONEY. DISAPPOINTED in the treatment from the police aid here.