The city of Corpus Christi, located on the Gulf Coast of southern Texas, originated as a small outpost in the middle of no man’s land between the continental United States and Mexico to the south.
On its outskirts, battles were fought and won, while Corpus evolved into one of the major ports in the United States, carrying a plethora of agricultural goods and oil into the Mexican Gulf’s waterways. Today, the area is known for its pristine beaches and the Padre Island reserves (the world’s largest), as well as a really multicultural vibe that draws everyone from Tex-Mex eaters to long-haired surfers to the microbreweries and beachfront shrimp booths.
When you add in some fantastic museums like the Texan Aquarium and the USS Lexington, as well as pirate history and a plethora of fantastic nature parks, Corpus Christi becomes a top choice for visitors to the Lone Star State! Let’s check Things To Do In Corpus Christi Texas.
1: Visit Padre Island National Seashore
The Padre Island National Seashore, which runs 70 miles along the Gulf of Mexico from the shores of Corpus Christi to the borderlands with Mexico in the south, is one of the world’s greatest swaths of pristine barrier island!
The protected area, which features undulating dunes of grass-topped sand, virgin beaches, and rolling hills of sand bars, rarely fails to elicit gasps.
It’s not only right on the Central Flyway for migrating birds, with everything from brown pelicans to piping plovers calling it home, but it’s also one of the best places to help conserve the Kemp’s ridley sea turtle!
2: Corpus Christi Harbor Bridge
This steel through-arch bridge, which connects the Port of Corpus Christi and the City of Corpus Christi, spans the harbour waters and exudes classic southern charm. Built in the late 1950s in the style of the Mississippi River’s major bridges, the incredible engineering accomplishment now ferries up to 30,000 cars every day.
People don’t come here to look at the welds and joints. They come to view the famed LED light shows that take place every night on the structure.
The bridge, which is made up of over 10,000 individual light emitting diodes, changes colour from red to blue to green during the performance. It’s especially beautiful on July 4th, when the port is lit up in red, white, and blue.
3: Texas Surf Museum
The traveler who believes that surfing is exclusive to America’s West Coast. Thanks to the trade winds of the Atlantic and Carib seas, the Eastern Seaboard, from Long Island to the Texas panhandle, has tremendous surf, all frothy and rocky. The Texas Surf Museum, located just a few blocks from Corpus Christi Bay, is a good example.
The people that live here are dedicated to documenting the history of wave riding in Texas.
Visitors can watch a surf video while relaxing on constructed surfboard chairs, see a plethora of surfing images, and learn all about the area beaches and sands’ protection and preservation.
4: Art Museum of South Texas
This cutting-edge art museum, located right on the water’s edge in the heart of downtown Corpus Christi, features a huge permanent collection of more than 1,500 artworks and sculptures. The exhibition focuses on the creative output of Texas, the American Deep South, and Mexico, with large exhibits dedicated to Dorothy Hood, a modernist known for her legendary portraiture and Munch-esque sketches from the Lone Star State.
The touring exhibitions cover a wide range of topics, including Texan landscape impressionism and maritime photography.
5: Aransas National Wildlife Refuge
The vast and untouched wildernesses of the Aransas National Refuge can be found just over an hour’s drive north of Corpus Christi centre.
This protected stretch of southern Texas is home to a plethora of migratory birds, with brackish riverways and hypersaline lagoon waters, rolling swamplands and unending marshes.
There are also gators and bobcats to see among the herons and spoonbills, all lurking in the dense thickets of oak boughs and hammocks. A tourist centre is also accessible throughout the summer, providing information on the meandering trails and wildlife that flourish in the area.
6: Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History
The Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History, another must-see institution located along the harborside sector in downtown Corpus Christi, has been showcasing some of Texas’ strangest and most wonderful objects for more than 50 years.
The permanent collection’s different parts are appropriately eclectic, reflecting the space’s dual focus.
The restored shipwreck of the San Esteban – a Spanish galleon laden with gold from the New World that beached on the edge of Padre Island in the 16th century – completes the science side of things with explorations of the Nanoverse (things that are really, really small), palaeontology, and agriculture, while the history side of things reaches its pinnacle with the restored shipwreck of the San Esteban – a Spanish galleon laden.
7: South Texas Botanical Gardens
The South Texas Botanic Gardens are located on the southern side of Corpus Christi and cover 180 acres of land.
The location is accentuated by the lovely outlines of decades-old pavilions, which are a kaleidoscope of colourful hibiscus and hummingbirds.
There are various indoor greenhouses and flora exhibitions, ranging from arid gardens showing Texas and international spikey cactus to a winding shrub nature walk flowing deep into mesquite trees where wild deer and bobcats share the woods. In a nutshell, this is a great spot for a leisurely walk away from the city or the salt-streaked Texas coast.