Houston Tunnel Tour
Houston, Texas
Trip Type: Family Friendly Tours & Activi
Duration: 3 hours
Three hours will fly by on this guided walking tour above and below downtown Houston. Learn about Houston’s beginnings before posing for selfies along Main Street’s five blocks of art. Browse at Forever 21 and the Esperson Gallery at GreenStreet before walking to The Shops at Houston Center, a three-level “foodie” mall.
After a Dutch-treat lunch, explore ten buildings connected to Houston’s underground city. Exit the Tunnel at Pennzoil Place, then pose for a photo in front of Joan Miro’s colorful Personage and Birds sculpture on Chase Tower’s plaza before riding up to its 60th-floor sky lobby. Take all the photos you want before returning to The Rice.
After a Dutch-treat lunch, explore ten buildings connected to Houston’s underground city. Exit the Tunnel at Pennzoil Place, then pose for a photo in front of Joan Miro’s colorful Personage and Birds sculpture on Chase Tower’s plaza before riding up to its 60th-floor sky lobby. Take all the photos you want before returning to The Rice.
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Three hours will fly by on this guided walking tour above and below downtown Houston. Learn about Houston’s beginnings before posing for selfies along Main Street’s five blocks of art. Browse at Forever 21 and the Esperson Gallery at GreenStreet before walking to The Shops at Houston Center, a three-level “foodie” mall.
After a Dutch-treat lunch, explore ten buildings connected to Houston’s underground city. Exit the Tunnel at Pennzoil Place, then pose for a photo in front of Joan Miro’s colorful Personage and Birds sculpture on Chase Tower’s plaza before riding up to its 60th-floor sky lobby. Take all the photos you want before returning to The Rice.Meet tour guide Sandra Lord at Minuti’s Coffee Shop at The Rice and start your three-hour walk through downtown Houston at the corner of Texas Avenue and Main Street, site of the first Capitol of the Republic of Texas, an independent nation for almost ten years. After learning about Houston’s beginnings, get ready to take lots of selfies along five blocks of Main Street art. Pose in front of the J.W. Marriott Hotel’s two street-art murals and Main Street Square's four Art Block destinations -- the Main Street Marquee, which changes every three months; Color Jam Houston, where four bright colors spread from light poles to the street, then to the sides of a garage; Flying Carpet’s inverted Trumpet Flower, a six-story sculpture created out of woven strips of recycled wood; and Mas que le cara or More Than the Face, a “movie screen” designed by YesYesNo that captures passersby’s faces and transforms them into strange shapes.
On Dallas Street, check out Forever 21 and the Esperson Gallery in GreenStreet, three blocks of street-level shopping, dining, and entertainment. Walk two blocks to The Shops at Houston Center, downtown’s three-level “foodie” mall, home to more than 30 restaurants. Fill up with a Dutch-treat lunch featuring Otto’s BBQ, Treebeard’s shrimp etoufee, Salata’s scrumptious creations from ingredients you choose as you go down the line; Boston Meatballs; or Doozoo’s dumplings. Explore the Downtown Houston Tunnel System with Sandra, also known as the “Tunnel Lady” because she decided years ago that the Tunnel could be a tourist destination.
As you walk through the skybridges and tunnels connecting 10 office-building basements, Sandra will share some fun facts about their history, art, and architecture. Because the Tunnel is mostly private property, you will not be able to take any photos but you might get to sample some free cookies. Exit the Tunnel at Phillip Johnson’s 1976 masterpiece, Pennzoil Place, then cross the street and pose for a photo in front of Joan Miro’s colorful, 54-foot-high Personage and Birds. Enter I. M. Pei’s 1981 Chase Tower, the tallest building in Houston, the tallest building in Texas, and the tallest five-sided building in the world. Ride an elevator to the 60th-floor sky lobby and be wowed by the view looking west. Take all the photos you want of Houston’s famous skyline before returning with Sandra to The Rice.
After a Dutch-treat lunch, explore ten buildings connected to Houston’s underground city. Exit the Tunnel at Pennzoil Place, then pose for a photo in front of Joan Miro’s colorful Personage and Birds sculpture on Chase Tower’s plaza before riding up to its 60th-floor sky lobby. Take all the photos you want before returning to The Rice.Meet tour guide Sandra Lord at Minuti’s Coffee Shop at The Rice and start your three-hour walk through downtown Houston at the corner of Texas Avenue and Main Street, site of the first Capitol of the Republic of Texas, an independent nation for almost ten years. After learning about Houston’s beginnings, get ready to take lots of selfies along five blocks of Main Street art. Pose in front of the J.W. Marriott Hotel’s two street-art murals and Main Street Square's four Art Block destinations -- the Main Street Marquee, which changes every three months; Color Jam Houston, where four bright colors spread from light poles to the street, then to the sides of a garage; Flying Carpet’s inverted Trumpet Flower, a six-story sculpture created out of woven strips of recycled wood; and Mas que le cara or More Than the Face, a “movie screen” designed by YesYesNo that captures passersby’s faces and transforms them into strange shapes.
On Dallas Street, check out Forever 21 and the Esperson Gallery in GreenStreet, three blocks of street-level shopping, dining, and entertainment. Walk two blocks to The Shops at Houston Center, downtown’s three-level “foodie” mall, home to more than 30 restaurants. Fill up with a Dutch-treat lunch featuring Otto’s BBQ, Treebeard’s shrimp etoufee, Salata’s scrumptious creations from ingredients you choose as you go down the line; Boston Meatballs; or Doozoo’s dumplings. Explore the Downtown Houston Tunnel System with Sandra, also known as the “Tunnel Lady” because she decided years ago that the Tunnel could be a tourist destination.
As you walk through the skybridges and tunnels connecting 10 office-building basements, Sandra will share some fun facts about their history, art, and architecture. Because the Tunnel is mostly private property, you will not be able to take any photos but you might get to sample some free cookies. Exit the Tunnel at Phillip Johnson’s 1976 masterpiece, Pennzoil Place, then cross the street and pose for a photo in front of Joan Miro’s colorful, 54-foot-high Personage and Birds. Enter I. M. Pei’s 1981 Chase Tower, the tallest building in Houston, the tallest building in Texas, and the tallest five-sided building in the world. Ride an elevator to the 60th-floor sky lobby and be wowed by the view looking west. Take all the photos you want of Houston’s famous skyline before returning with Sandra to The Rice.
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