Discover the Top 12 Amazing Fun Facts About Houston You Never Knew!
1. Sky Dance Mural
Get ready to twirl your tutus and soar through the Houston skies, because this city can have you dancing on walls: Houston is home to the colossal 30,000-square-foot "Sky Dance" mural at 1415 Louisiana St, crafted by artist C. Finley in collaboration with the Houston Ballet, where three gravity-defying dancers leap for joy in a celebration of the city's bustling commissioned mural scene.
Source => neighborhoods.com
2. Space Center Moon Rocks
Houston, we have Moon rocks! Fetch your space suits and prepare for a cosmic experience: Space Center Houston is home to the world's largest collection of lunar samples, weighing in at an astronomical 382 kilograms (842 pounds), including a 3.8 billion-year-old touchstone – one of only eight in the world – that you can literally reach out and touch.
Source => spacecenter.org
Did you know that 1.5 million bats call Austin's Congress Avenue Bridge their home, creating the world's largest urban bat colony? Witness their nightly insect feast and join the delighted locals and tourists! 🦇
=> Fun Facts about Texas
3. Spindletop's Rotating Dining
Houston, we have a dining solution: Head to Spindletop restaurant on top of the Hyatt Regency Hotel for an out-of-this-world, rotating culinary experience, as you savor scrumptious meals while soaking in the mesmerizing panoramic views of the city's skyline.
Source => opentable.com
4. LEED Platinum City
Houston, the city where Mother Earth proudly wears her LEED Platinum tiara like a true Southern Queen: It turns out that over the past decade, Houston has experienced a whopping 445% growth in LEED Platinum-certified office space, skyrocketing from 1.1M SF in 2010 to more than 6M SF in 2020. This makes the Texan metropolis a shining example of sustainable office construction, as per the standards set by the U.S. Green Building Council, with energy companies galloping ahead in the green building race, especially along Houston's Energy Corridor.
Source => bisnow.com
5. Blue Bell Ice Cream in Space
As the saying goes, "the cow jumped over the moon" – but did you know that they might just be lactose looking for their favorite ice cream brand out there in space? Houston, we have a creamy situation: Blue Bell Creameries, founded in Brenham, Texas in 1907, is not only a Southern favorite, but has even found its way to astronauts aboard the International Space Station. Though we can't attest to the celestial preferences of cows or astronauts, Blue Bell does boast using fresh milk from 60,000 cows daily and spreading their scrumptiousness as far as Las Vegas and Denver.
Source => en.wikipedia.org
6. Texas Medical Center Baby Boom
What do a baby-making marathon, medical moguls, and giant hospitals have in common? Houston, we have a solution: The home to the world's largest medical complex, Texas Medical Center, is also where you'll find the largest children's and cancer hospitals. They're so committed to new life that the center oversees 26,280 births per year, meaning every 20 minutes, a Houston baby enters the world!
Source => tmc.edu
7. Houston's Unique Public Art
In a monumental twist of artistic fate, Houston's Alden Bridge Village Center may have unknowingly created the world's largest tribute to Stranger Things' leading lady with their towering abstract sculpture: Houston boasts more than 600 unique public art pieces, such as the 15-foot-tall Big Barbara at Alden Bridge Village Center, a colorful Jarabe Tapatío dance-inspired fiberglass piece at the University of Houston, and a half-submerged bronze man dubbed The Dreamer nestled in The Woodlands' tree shade, all symbolizing a fusion of cultural pride and creative passion.
Source => houstoniamag.com
8. Galleria Mega-Mall
Houston, where everything is bigger and more extravagant – even the shopping malls: The Galleria not only reigns as Texas's largest shopping wonderland with 2.4 million square feet and 400 stores, but also houses financial institutions, law offices, and energy trading companies within its three office towers. Bonus entertainment: strut your stuff alongside high-end boutiques like Chanel and Gucci before twirling into the 20,000-square-foot "Polar Ice" rink beneath the mall's sparkling atrium.
Source => en.wikipedia.org
9. Astrodome's Iconic Events
From serving monstrous forehands to delivering powerful body slams and rocking the house with epic guitar solos, Houston's Astrodome sure knows how to throw a versatile party: This iconic venue has hosted events like the 1973 "Battle of the Sexes" tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs, The Rolling Stones' electrifying concerts in the '80s and '90s, and the legendary Wrestlemania X-Seven in 2001 featuring "Stone Cold" Steve Austin's victory over The Rock for the WWF Championship.
Source => astrodomeconservancy.org
10. Speedy Houston Bats
Who needs a Batmobile when you've got wings? Houston's own caped crusaders, the Mexican free-tailed bats, zoom past traffic with flair: Boasting speeds of up to 99 mph (160 kph) in horizontal flight, these 250,000 winged wonders can cover over 60 miles in a nightly insect-hunting marathon, thanks to their sleek fur and aerodynamic design.
Source => tpwd.texas.gov
11. World's Largest Rodeo
Move over cowboys, there's a new sheriff in town - and this one's got a lasso the size of Texas: Houston plays host to the world's largest rodeo, the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, which lassos in the crowd for a whopping 20 days, proudly sharing the spotlight with other annual events like the Chevron Houston Marathon, Tour de Houston, Bayou City Art Festival, and the Texas Renaissance Festival.
Source => houstontx.gov
12. Fourth-Largest US City
Houston, they say everything is bigger in Texas, and Houston is no exception: With over 2 million residents, it's the fourth-largest city in the US, home to a culturally diverse population, a thriving economy, and a bustling arts scene.
Source => census.gov