If you are newly sober or trying to regain your focus after a recent relapse, getting involved with a peer support group and staying busy are two key aspects of maintaining your sobriety. If you’ve decided to enroll in a sober living program, you have many options to choose from!
At Eudaimonia, we offer sober living homes and apartments for adult men, women, and LGBTQ individuals in several locations across the country. We have three men’s sober living homes and one home for women in Houston, Texas, a sprawling city near the coast that offers an abundance of fun and exciting activities and attractions.
If you’re looking for ways to stay busy and avoid boredom while living in one of our transitional living homes in Houston, here are 10 of the top sober activities in Houston, Texas.
- Explore the Museum District.
The Museum District is located in Central Houston and is home to 19 different museums and cultural centers.1 The area is separated into four different walkable zones and several of the museums have free admission, including the Menil Collection, a 30-acre neighborhood of art.2 In that same neighborhood, you’ll also find the beautiful Rothko Chapel, a historical building with abstract murals and outdoor sculptures. Visitors are asked to preserve the silence while inside the chapel and it is designed to be a place of worship and meditation for individuals of all cultures and beliefs.3 Admission to the Rothko Chapel is also free.
- Attend an Astros game at Minute Maid Park.
If you’re a major league baseball fan or you’re just looking for a fun group activity for the men or women in your sober living home, Houston Astros home games are always a great time. The Astros play at Minute Maid Park, a giant retractable-roofed stadium in downtown Houston and games will start back up again in March of 2018.4
- Go ice skating at Discovery Green.
There may not be any snow for the holidays in Houston, but you can still enjoy fun outdoor winter activities like ice skating. Grab a few sober friends from your transitional living house and head to Discovery Green where you can enjoy the largest outdoor skating rink in the southwest.5 Tickets range from $8-$17 (depending on the day) and skate rental is included in the admission price. If you have more than 10 people in your group, you’ll need to complete a group registration online before you go.
- Enjoy the outdoors at Buffalo Bayou Park.
If you prefer outdoor sober fun to indoor activities, Houston weather is perfect for walking, running, and biking any time of the year and there are plenty of parks to enjoy without ever having to leave the city. Buffalo Bayou Park is just one of the many urban parks located in Houston, offering 160 acres of trails, park areas, and activities. Spend a day walking or biking the trails that follow the bayou (bike rentals are available at 105 Sabine Street), take your dog to the Johnny Steele Dog Park, skateboard at the Lee and Joe Jamail Skatepark, or rent a canoe or kayak and float down the bayou (rentals available at 3422 Allen Parkway).6
- Check out the Houston Zoo.
The Houston Zoo is a great experience for all animal lovers—adults and children alike. If you and your sober living roommates are looking for something different to do, why not spend a Saturday or Sunday at the zoo? Located in Hermann Park, the Houston Zoo is home to more than 6,000 animals with 11 different exciting exhibits. If you decide to visit during the holiday season, you’ll also be able to experience the zoo transformed into a beautiful winter wonderland, with thousands of lights and holiday decorations. Tickets are $18 per person and hours vary.7
- Catch a movie screening or free event at Market Square Park.
Market Square Park is located in Downtown Houston’s Historic District and plays host to a variety of fun and free activities year round. In the summertime, you can catch movie screenings and festivals and year-round dining, public art, green space, and a small dog park are available for Houston residents to enjoy.8 This outdoor oasis is just one of the many free outdoor sober activities Houston has to offer.
- Check out James Turrell’s “Twilight Epiphany” Skyspace at Rice University.
While you’re enrolled in a transitional housing program in Houston you can’t miss this unique art installation on-campus at Rice University. This pyramid-shaped structure is covered by a 72-square-foot roof with a ceiling illuminated by LED lights that frame a square opening in the center. The square-shaped hole offers a beautiful view of the sky above. If you can get there during the early morning hours at sunrise or during the evening at sunset, you’ll be treated to a beautiful 40-minute light show involving the changing LED lights and the natural light of the sun, which complement each other to create an immersive and unique experience. The shows take place six days a week and are free. All visitors must make a reservation online to attend the evening shows. Reservations are not required for the sunrise shows.9
- Watch the bats emerge from the Waugh Drive Bridge.
More than 250,000 Mexican free-tailed bats live in the crevices beneath the Waugh Drive Bridge in Houston.10 Every evening at dusk, you can watch them all emerge at once for a fantastic show of nature. The outdoor show provides free entertainment nightly and is a unique activity that your and your sober living roommates can enjoy over and over again. Just bring some lawn chairs or a picnic blanket and you’re set.
- Eat your way through the diverse and delicious Houston food scene.
If you’ve recently relocated to Houston, Texas to enroll in a Eudaimonia transitional living program, you should know that you’re living in a city full of diverse and delicious food. Grab a slice of mouthwatering New York style pizza from Frank’s Pizza in Houston’s Historic District downtown or chow down on falafel from Zabak’s Mediterranean Cafe in the Galleria. If you’re in the Heights, stop by Les Givral’s Kahve for yummy and cheap Vietnamese fare or relax with a cup of coffee at Antidote Coffee House. In Montrose, Little Bigs burgers and shakes always hits the spot or venture over into the Third Ward to get your taco fix at Brothers Taco House. There’s always something good to eat in Houston.
- Spend a day at the Space Center Houston.
Space Center Houston is the visitor’s center for the NASA center for human spaceflight activities. This science and space learning center is an interesting and educational experience for people of all ages and is home to more than 400 space artifacts, fascinating exhibits and attractions. General admission tickets are $29.95.11
As you can see, there is no lack of sober activities in Houston, Texas. If you’re thinking about relocating to Houston for a Eudaimonia sober living program, it will be easy to avoid boredom in a city with so many different activities and attractions. With countless options for sober fun in your spare time, our Houston transitional housing programs for men and women are designed to help you establish a fulfilling and exciting life in sobriety.
Call Eudaimonia Recovery Homes today to learn more about our sober living homes in Houston, additional recovery support services, or to enroll today.
References:
- http://houmuse.org/
- https://www.menil.org/about
- http://rothkochapel.org/visit/visitor-info/
- https://www.mlb.com/astros/schedule/2018-03
- http://www.discoverygreen.com/ice
- http://buffalobayou.org/visit/destination/buffalo-bayou-park/
- https://www.houstonzoo.org/plan-your-visit/hours-and-directions/
- http://www.marketsquarepark.com/about/
- http://skyspace.rice.edu/cms/visit-skyspace/
- http://www.houstontx.gov/parks/batpage.html
- https://spacecenter.org/
