The Ultimate Family Guide to Visiting Surfside Beach, Texas with Kids
Nestled on the Gulf Coast, Surfside Beach, Texas, is a hidden gem that offers a serene and family-friendly beach experience. Surfside Beach is the perfect destination for families seeking a tranquil escape with plenty of opportunities for adventure and relaxation. This guide explores everything you need to know about making the most of your visit to Surfside Beach with kids, ensuring a memorable and enjoyable trip for the whole family. This is the ultimate family guide to Visiting Surfside Beach, Texas with Kids.
Visiting Surfside Beach Texas with Kids
Location
When it comes to Texas beaches, you’ve probably heard of the BIG THREE: Galveston, Port A, and South Padre. Surfside Beach is sort of in between Galveston and Port A (closer to Galveston). The nice thing about Surfside is that you don’t have to drive through Houston to get there from Austin (like you do when going to Galveston). We made it there in under 4 hours.
Where To Stay: Camp Banks Surfside
We got a cute Airbnb that was walking distance to the beach, shops, and restaurants. It really was the perfect location! We loved being able to stroll down to the beach in less than 5 minutes. The house fit our family of 5 with room to spare! There were 3 bedrooms, 6 beds, and 3 bathrooms, making the house feel spacious and comfortable. We loved all the special details, like the ice cream sundae bar and the record player (my kids were obsessed)! They had everything we needed (like the beach wagon and beach chairs we had forgot at home), beach toys, and more. We were able to eat most meals here and only went out to eat a few times. They also had fun kid amenities inside the house like a gamin console, book, and games.
Visiting Surfside Beach Texas with Kids
Where We Ate: The Seahorse Bar & Grill
Just a short walk down from our spot on the beach is a fun restaurant called the Seahorse. You can enjoy the beach views and fresh air from their patio that overlooks the ocean. We walked right up the stairs from the sand with our beach clothes on and sandy feet and no one cared! We love a place with casual, kid-friendly vibes like that! They have a good kids menu and HUGE portions. Pro tip: order the fried spicy chicken sandwich with an extra bun and split it with someone. It comes as a double!
Surfside Jetty County Park
Just about a 5 minute drive from our beach house was the Surfside Jetty County Park. There was plenty of free parking, a clean playground, beach access, and a long jetty you could walk all the way out on. We loved walking down the jetty and watching everyone catching fish! If you bring your fishing gear, this is the place to try!
Moody Gardens
We booked this trip for over spring break, which happened to be very chilly and windy on the days we were there. Not great beach weather, so we decided to drive the 45 minutes over to Galveston and check out Moody Gardens. We had never been despite visiting Galveston Beaches several times over the years. My youngest son is obsessed with penguins, so we knew this would be right up his alley. Moody Gardens is kind of hard to explain if you’ve never been. There are these pyramids, and each one has its own theme. There was also a zip line and ropes course, which my 11 year old was very excited about.
We started the day at the Aquarium Pyramid, specifically to see the penguins which did not disappoint. We loved watching them eat and jump in and out of the water. They are so cute and entertaining! We strolled through the pyramid, watching the sharks, jellies, string rays, fish, and more.
We made our way over to the other Pyramid for lunch in the restaurant and to check out the rainforest exhibit. Lunch was mediocre and overpriced, but unless you leave the premises, you don’t really have very many options for food. The Rainforest Pyramid was my favorite. There were so many cool creatures inside this one- colorful birds, playful river otters, and even a sloth!
After this, my son tried the zip line and ropes course. My youngest son did the little kid ropes course as well. We didn’t stay for any of the 3D/4D movies they offered, because the sun was starting to peek out and the kids wanted to see if it was warm enough to try the beach again.
Tips
Surfside Beach is a lot like any other Texas beach. The Texas beaches aren’t the prettiest if you’ve been other places like 30A in Florida where there is white sand and the water is crystal clear. Here, the sand is brown and the water is…well, brown too. But the water is pretty warm (even on cold days), and you can go out pretty far into the water while still being only about waist-deep. Perfect for boogie-boarding!
Definitely pack boogie boards, beach chairs, blankets, sun shade, and sand toys. The most important thing to pack is powerful mosquito spray with all the deet, keep it on you at all times and spray it often (day or night)! The mosquitoes are big and biting here!
Another thing to note are the jellyfish. We see them almost every time we visit a Texas beach. No one in our family has ever been stung, but I always pack a small bottle of white vinegar with us just in case. I read that its best to clean a sting with white vinegar rather than peeing on it (FRIENDS reference for you FRIENDS fans out there!) You could also try these sting zapper wipes or sting relief kit if you’re worried about it.
Boating, Surfing, Nature Walks, & Fishing
As the name might imply, surfing is big at Surfside Beach. My kids didn’t want to surf since it was cold when we came, but you could sign the kids up for surfing lessons through a local place like Surfside Station.
Fishing is also very popular here. You can try it yourself, or book a fishing boat company that will almost always guarantee you catch something.
Boat rides or dolphin tours are also a popular activity in this area!
You could also try the Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge, which is a short drive from the beach (under 30 mins).
Why We Love Surfside Beach
It just has such a laid-back and relaxed vibe. There’s not a whole lot going on, which is sometimes just perfect, you know? You don’t feel overwhelmed here at all. Take it easy, relax, unwind, and spend time together as a family. So much of our daily life is go-go-go, and it’s nice to visit a place without a lot going on so that you’re forced to just slow down and relax.
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