(bright music) - [Colleen] Located on the Gulf of Mexico, Galveston Island, Texas is a barrier reef island, offering 32 miles of gulf coast beaches.

It is a picture perfect destination for a family friendly beach vacation.

(upbeat music) I am Colleen Kelly.

Welcome to Galveston Island, Texas.

Galveston Island is not only at beach getaway for your next family vacation, it has historic and architectural places to visit.

It is home to over 1500 historic buildings on the National Register of Historic Places and has 14 different museums your family can explore.

With the location about 50 miles south of Houston, Galveston is just a short flight from anywhere in the US.

We start this episode with a high-flying adventure with the Galveston Helicopters, one if by land, two if by sea.

And we get the best of both when we visited the tall ship Elissa, in the Historic Seaport Museum at Pier 21.

Next we embarked on a Freedom Walk tour, which provided us with the historical background of the national holiday Juneteenth.

Then onto the iconic pyramids of Moody Gardens for a day of discovery and excitement.

And it was a perfect day at the Galveston Historic Pleasure Pier.

From thrilling rides to fun games and lively entertainment, there is something for the whole family to enjoy.

And calling all history buffs, we're diving into not one but two national historic landmarks.

Last stop is the beach, where a high speed adventure leaves me breathless.

So hold onto your hats and join us on Galveston Island, Texas.

(upbeat music) My name is Colleen Kelly, and when I was single I lived abroad and traveled the world.

Then I became a parent and wondered how would I ever travel again.

So I set out to find a new way to travel and get back to exploring the world, family style.

I'm here to guide you on how to get the most out of your family vacation.

Pack your bags and join me, Colleen Kelly.

We're going on vacation!

"Family Travel with Colleen Kelly" is sponsored by: (uplifting music) - [Announcer] "Family Travel with Colleen Kelly" is brought to you in part by Star Clippers, purveyor of authentic tall ship sailing adventures.

- [Colleen] We'll kick off our Galveston tour with an exhilarating adventure.

Climbing aboard a helicopter with our pilot, our knowledgeable local guide from Galveston Helicopters, we took to the skies for a breathtaking view of Galveston Island.

(gentle music) - The weather today is just spectacular.

- [Colleen] Incredible.

- And you get the whole picture, like where everything's at, you know, the different islands.

It's a really beautiful thing to do and explore before you actually decide to go next.

There's so much stuff to see.

So really great to get the big picture up here.

- [Colleen] Oh, look at that, so beautiful.

- [Hendrik] Yeah.

- I cannot believe that we're flying over here.

- (laughs) Yeah, it's really pretty, right?

- Oh it's gorgeous.

Look at those, the pyramids, right?

- [Hendrik] Oh, the pyramids, there they are.

- That's incredible.

And that's where the rainforest is.

- That's where the rainforest is.

Yeah, I heard that's the favorite of lot of people.

Like being the biggest pyramid too.

- [Colleen] I have to say, this is a great way to see Galveston.

- [Hendrik] Oh, yeah.

- I mean from the air, this is incredible.

- This the best perspective, right?

(both laughing) - I do have to say this, this might be my favorite.

- (laughs) Yeah, it's mine too.

I love my office and my views from it.

- [Colleen] You got a good job.

- [Hendrik] Oh, yeah, I really like it.

- We really did get a great day, getting a helicopter tour.

- Oh, yeah.

Was just amazing to have you on board.

Thank you so much for flying with us!

- [Colleen] Oh, thank you.

- [Hendrik] Alright, there we come in for landing.

(upbeat music) - On the helicopter ride, we got such an overall view of Galveston, and after seeing the Moody Gardens, I just couldn't wait to see what was in those pyramids.

(upbeat music) (upbeat music continues) We started our adventure in the lively Rainforest Pyramid, and it was so great to walk around taking all the sites with our biologist guide.

All right, so I'm at the Moody Gardens rainforest, and I'm talking to Caitlyn, a biologist.

Very impressive, this is incredible.

- So we are in the Rainforest Pyramid here at Moody Gardens.

It's a very unique building.

It is actually one square acre and 10 stories tall.

So as we're in here, you might see some birds flying around, and that's because it is a free-flight aviary.

So we have over 140 individual birds in here that just are able to fly around and live in here, call this place their home.

- That's amazing.

So they can fly anywhere right here, and you just see them like, which you just saw one right here, right?

- Yes.

- Is that how it works?

- [Caitlyn] Yes, that's exactly how it works.

They can go anywhere in the Rainforest Pyramid.

We actually also have free-roaming white face saki monkeys.

We have free-roaming sloths.

We have a free-roaming basilisk.

So it's not just birds you'll see here.

You will also be able to potentially see sloths and monkeys as well.

- [Colleen] That's incredible.

- So lots of free-roaming animals.

We also have exhibits like our giant river otters, our ocelot, our Komodo dragon.

So those are in exhibits.

They're not gonna be free-roaming (laughs), but, yes, lots of animals to see in the pyramid.

- Caitlyn, this is great.

So let's get out there and see some more birds and species, and you'll teach me some things, right?

- Absolutely, yeah, I can point out a couple birds for you.

- All right, I'm ready.

(upbeat music) And after the rainforest, we continued our trek through the Aquarium Pyramid where we saw all sorts of marine life.

All right, this was amazing, but apparently I wanna meet the special friend, a penguin.

I mean, who doesn't love that?

And yep, I got an exclusive one-on-one interview with the famous penguin Hendrix, named after the one and only Jimmy Hendrix because this penguin is a rock star.

And I just have to tell you, being up close to this penguin, it was incredible.

And, of course, the art, the art was amazing too.

(upbeat music) Behind the scenes, everybody, like honestly, I think this penguin is more of the star than anybody.

Like really, he loves the camera.

Did you love the camera?

Oh, he's not shy at all (laughs).

He's walking to the camera, everybody, behind the scenes.

After braving the skies, exploring the rainforest, and meeting a new friend, I took to the sea.

Okay, well, not really, but I did feel like I was setting sail on the tall ship Elissa tour.

This famous ship has 40,000 visitors annually.

We had a great time with our tour guide who gave us an in-depth tour of the history of this great vessel and the adjacent historic Seaport Museum.

- So you're standing on board the 1877 barque Elissa.

We're on Galveston Island right here in Galveston Harbor.

And this is the Galveston Historic Sea Park, part of a Galveston Historical Foundation.

- [Colleen] This is incredible.

So you're here to teach people about sailing or what is it that you all do?

- [Mark] So we do a ton of things here, but, yeah, we're here to teach people about sailing.

The ship is a museum ship about 90% of the time.

But we also teach people how to sail the ship, and we also take the ship out sailing in April, and it's part of the whole experience here at the Seaport.

- [Colleen] And why is this important to all of you to teach people?

- Traditional sailing is definitely a passion of mine.

It's definitely a passion of a lot of people.

I think it's really important to the human experience.

It is literal living history, and, I mean, we could go on and on about just how cool I think it is.

It'll just come right outta my voice.

But so we like to teach it, we like to train it, we like to keep it alive and vibrant.

We teach a ton of volunteers, and this is one of the oldest actively sailed ships in the world.

- Really?

- [Mark] So we really think it's important to keep it sailing.

- [Colleen] The oldest ship?

- One of the oldest in the world that still sails.

- That's incredible, that's incredible.

- It is incredible.

- I love that.

And I think that the education part's really important, 'cause as a parent, I love to know that even though we're going on vacation, like they're getting some education.

- Absolutely.

You can come here and learn a lot about the history both for Elissa herself and inside our Immigration Experience where it tells the story of Galveston, the late 1800s.

- [Colleen] And tell me more about the Immigration Experience.

What can people like learn here?

- What's really cool about it is that it was a project of Galveston Historical Foundation, that's the company here.

And it is real stories of people who immigrated.

So it's an interactive experience.

You get a chance to experience what they actually felt, how they experienced that journey and that trip through journals.

And it's reinterpreted by people doing the telling of the story.

You know, it's actor done, but you get real authentic history experience.

- [Colleen] Those are one of my favorite experiences is actually hearing people's stories.

- Right.

- Right?

- [Mark] Yeah, and we found when we did a lot of research into this, you know, how did people want to engage or connect with history?

And it's the stories, right?

They want to know where did you live, what did you eat?

- [Colleen] Were you a real person.

- [Mark] Yeah, exactly.

You know, what happened to Dad?

You know, did you bring your kids with you?

I mean all that stuff really resonates all the way through all that historic piece.

- [Colleen] So they can hear all these stories of people immigrating to Galveston.

- [Mark] You certainly can, yeah.

I mean, you can spend your whole day here at the Seaport with everything we've got to offer.

- [Colleen] Well, I love the education, 'cause again, as a parent, I like them to go to the beach.

That's great.

- Sure.

- But to learn something, that's the most important part.

- Yeah, you know, people sometimes only associate Galveston as a beach town, but there is a lot of deep rich history in the downtown area, and we're a big part of that.

- As a grandchild of immigrants, it was really amazing to walk through the immigration process, and you actually felt like you were a real traveler coming to the States for the first time.

Now it was time to say bon voyage and travel to our next destination in Galveston.

Galveston is the birthplace of Juneteenth, and each summer, the island hosts many events to celebrate this significant occasion.

We followed the Freedom Walk tour with our guide Sam and discuss its five historic locations and what they mean not only to the people of Galveston, but to the entire nation.

So today, I am here with Sam, who's the professor of June 19th, that's what they call you.

- Your Professor Juneteenth.

- (laughs) And you're gonna take me on the Freedom Trail on like a real historic walk.

- Absolutely, we're gonna start at the first stop, the Middle Passage marker, and we have five total stops.

So look forward to educating you about Juneteenth here on Galveston Island.

- Well, I'm excited to do it, so.

- Let's go.

- Alright.

We jumped in with the crew in our special transport, which was kind of like a souped up golf cart, to visit the sites, and we were on our way to our first stop.

- This is a location where enslaved people would've been brought into Galveston and also where the Union soldiers brought the message of freedom.

Galveston is the birthplace of Juneteenth.

So when people think of the story of Juneteenth, many do not realize that it started right here in Galveston on the southwest corner of 22nd and Strand.

That day, June 19th, 1865, represents the day in which General Gordon Granger came into Galveston and issued general orders number three, which freed all enslaved people in Texas.

And from Galveston, he left, went further inland, spread the news.

So we're here at the 1861 US Customs House, which was here in 1865 when Juneteenth first happened.

So the soldiers would have come to this location, and there was a printing press here that would allow them to print the notices about general order number three.

Reedy Chapel is the fourth stop.

As the soldiers left downtown and moved throughout the city, one of the places that they would've stopped, it's the colored church on Broadway, which was not called Reedy Chapel at that time, and posted the notice that is believed on the door, because this is a place where individuals would've felt they could trust receiving that information.

- [Colleen] They felt safe.

- They felt safe, and then they would've felt that the information being shared at the church was actually the truth, because people hearing that they are free, is this really true, is this happening?

We've been praying, we've been asking God for freedom for decades, and finally it has arrived.

So we are here on the final stop of the Freedom Walk.

This is the location where some believe Gordon Granger stood on the balcony and announced, "All slaves are free."

- [Colleen] Really?

- But that's more a myth than legend because there's no historical documents that can prove that he stood on the balcony.

But this site is very important to the history because this home was built in 1859.

So it's one of the locations that was originally here in 1865.

And there have been many Juneteenth celebrations at this location.

The late state representative Al Edwards was able to get House Bill 10-16 passed in 1979, and that's a statue of Edwards here that commemorates the legislator that passed the law making Juneteenth a state holiday.

- That's incredible.

Well, thank you.

This was a very special tour.

I really appreciate this, and I learned so much as well.

- Thank you for coming to Galveston.

- Oh, thank you.

This was wonderful.

You know, it was eyeopening and powerful.

That's probably the best way to explain it.

And it just really emphasized the historic nature of Galveston and a lot about the resilience of the city and people even today.

After a day full of exploring, your family is bound to work up an appetite.

Here are some spots guaranteed to satisfy most people's cravings, featuring fresh local flavors that truly capture the essence of the island.

We were on the island, so we had the freshest seafood.

It literally came right off the boat to the restaurant, and I even got to hold a fish.

That was, that was a fun moment.

For more than 20 years, Katie's Seafood Market has provided seafood to Galveston locals and visitors.

Freshly caught fish is provided for every dish from the seafood market next door.

(upbeat music) And for my favorite part of the meal dessert, you can head to La King's Confectionary.

And this candy store will satisfy any sweet tooth in your family.

This place was like a dream come true.

Like all things in Galveston, this place has history, history, history, and these guys are doing it old school, throw back to a bygone era.

Opened in 1927 and still using traditional equipment and procedures to make confections, it will take you back to that favorite childhood sweet treat memory.

And if you're traveling with an adventurous family who's always on the hunt for thrills and chills during vacation, visit Galveston Historic Pier.

With 19 exciting rides, midway games and family friendly dining options, this place is a destination for a day full of excitement.

You know, I've got a family of thrill seekers, everybody.

So this place didn't disappoint.

I got to hang out with a local family on the pier, and it really just brought back memories of my kids and my husband hanging out on a pier and going to rides and just enjoying family time together.

- Hi, I'm Sydney, and this is Randy and our kids, Ridley and Sawyer.

- I was born and raised in Galveston.

I've lived there for 30-plus years and really enjoy the island, very beautiful.

And I think the beaches are really what keep me hanging out here.

So it's been fun.

- Galveston Island is really great for families of all ages.

What's really special about Galveston is the little things, like downtown Galveston, it has all the museums, and it's just really great for kids.

- I think enjoying some of the lovely beaches around here would be a great activity for the family.

Also, the Pleasure Pier, of course, it's a beautiful place with a lot of fun activities, that we brought her here one time, and we haven't been able to get her to stop talking about it since.

- I like the rides I can't go one, but I wish I to go on them, bigger like the big one.

- I decided to give the rollercoaster a shot myself.

And as you know, I'm not a huge rollercoaster person, but I did it, I did it.

It was a thrilling experience.

It was super fun.

And you know, I pushed myself.

I'm proud of me.

(upbeat music) Today, we're at Bishop's Palace, and I feel like a queen for the day.

Ah, I could get used to this.

Galveston boasts numerous historic sites that offer opportunities to explore and learn about its vibrant past.

A prime example is Bishop's Palace.

Oh, how did it feel in there?

Very royal, and I did like to pretend like I was a princess.

I mean, how could you not?

It's a palace, right?

But it's also a national landmark.

All right, so we're here at the Bishop's Palace, and I'm with Will, and this is an incredible place.

I wanna know about the history of this place.

- Sure, well, we're in the 1892 Bishop's Palace, built for Walter and Josephine Gresham by an architect named Nicholas Clayton, who's very well known in Galveston for being an architect for a lot of the different sites and really part of what makes Galveston such a treasure of Victorian architecture.

- Oh my gosh, beautiful.

- This house is the greatest example of that here.

- [Colleen] So what's your most special place that people have to see here?

- I think there's a couple of things.

You know, the balconies are really fun to walk in.

When you walk up the steps, you can kind of interact with the house in a lot of different ways.

The house was built before the 1900 storm, so it's really a symbol of resilience here in Galveston for people that sought out to take protection here during the 1900 storm.

So to be in the house, knowing that it has that connotation to history is really important as well.

- [Colleen] When you're driving around here, you see such gorgeous buildings, and they're all different, and they're just so historical.

And that's what I love about Galveston is just every time you turn a corner, it's something new.

- [Will] Yeah, it's one of the reasons that Galveston has always been synonymous with architecture, and we keep coming back to that, but where other communities and other cities haven't necessarily held onto that, Galveston has been really fortunate that there's been a lot of community support and recognition for our historic homes.

(upbeat music) - It's beautiful.

I love it here, but I don't think I want to go home.

- It's hard to go home after you come to Galveston.

- (laughs) Yeah.

- Sure, yeah.

- [Colleen] At the Bryan Museum, the focus is on the artists who lived during the West's golden age, bringing the history of Texas and the American West to life, and what's more Texan than cowboys, or in my case, cowgirls.

We talked to the curator, Eric Broussard, who gave us the lowdown on this very unique museum.

- Some of the most popular things that we have in the museum is a very large diorama of the Battle of San Jacinto that was built for us by King and Country.

Also, we have the sword that captured Santa Ana.

We've got personal firearms that belong to former Texas Rangers and people who fought in the Texas Revolution.

We've got some beautiful documents on display such as land grants from not only the Mexican government for Impresario colonies, but also from the Texas Republic as well.

The building itself is very iconic in Galveston.

It's been such a fixture for so long.

The unique thing about Galveston is, if you've been here more than 10 minutes, you've heard the term island time.

Everything moves a little slower here.

It's not a rat race, it's not super fast paced.

So it's a great place to come on vacation, bring your family, especially if you just want to relax and kind of, you know, dial it down a little bit.

- We set off for Stewart Beach, the premier beach on Galveston Island, to experience the magic of island time for ourselves.

But our visit wasn't just about soaking up the sun, it was also learning how to protect the sea life that calls this beautiful place home.

So today I'm with Elizabeth, and she's an environmental coordinator.

And you are basically in charge of this beach.

- That's a nice way to put it, isn't it?

(both laughing) In Galveston, we clean all 32 miles of beachfront every single day.

And in the summer, it's about a 24/7 operation.

- [Colleen] Every single day.

- Every single day.

We have people that are emptying all of our trash cans.

We have up to 4,000 of them out here on the summer.

And then we also have people handpicking the whole beach front.

- Wow, that's impressive.

- Yes, it's a big undertaking for sure.

- I think that's so important for our environment too, to clean up these beaches.

- Very much so.

You know, living on a barrier island, our community very much understands what it means to be the caretakers and the stewards of this island.

So we are always encouraging our tourists and those who are coming to visit down here to have that same attitude.

- [Colleen] And tell us about that program for the tourists.

- Oh yes.

Like I said, we have a few different programs for our visitors.

One of 'em is right here behind us, our Beach Toy Borrow Box program.

- Oh, I love that idea.

- Yeah, we noticed, you know, hundreds of beach toys being left after a holiday weekend, and we were throwing 'em away at this point.

So we wanted to find a way to reuse them and be able to, you know, give other people the opportunity to play with them too.

So all of those beach toys that were thrown away are now brought back to our lot.

They're clean and placed in one of these borrow boxes here on our beaches for the public to enjoy.

- I wish they had that years ago when my kids were little 'cause that would've been great.

- And saved a lot of money of money, yeah.

(both laughing) - For sure, that is such a good program.

- Yes, we're very proud of it.

- Well, you should be.

- So when you come visit us here on the island, if you wanna make sure to just pick up all of your beach stuff before you go inside, that helps us out big time.

- Absolutely, and it's important to also tell our children to do this as well.

- Oh, very much so.

- For future generations.

- Start 'em young, and they'll have that attitude for their whole lives, and they'll take it home.

(both laughing) - It might help you out a little too, right?

- Yes, definitely.

- Thank you for your time.

I learned so much today, but now there's a beach behind me, and I think I'm gonna go check it out.

- I think you should go enjoy it.

The weather's wonderful for you.

- Yeah, but I'm gonna clean up first, Elizabeth.

- Okay, thank you, I appreciate it (laughs).

- And I made the most of this beautiful weather by hopping on a high-powered jet ski.

And these thrilling machines are the ultimate way to experience the excitement of the open sea, while also staying refreshed on a hot day, perfect for creating unforgettable family memories under the sun.

I have never jet skied on an ocean, so that was a little scary because these things are fast.

But once I got out there, it was so much fun.

I just love to go fast, and it brought back memories of me hopping on jet skis with my daughters.

But it was really great on a hot day at the beach.

Your family will love it, and I was shaking.

It was so exhilarating, literally shaking.

And that's a wrap on our thrilling tour of Galveston Island.

It's hard to believe how much we've experienced in this trip from our exhilarating helicopter ride with our pilot where we soaked in the stunning views of the Gulf and the city's historic charm to our fascinating visits to the tall ship Elissa and the Historic Seaport Museum, we've truly embraced the spirit of adventure.

We delved into the rich history of Juneteenth during the Freedom Walk tour, celebrated the wonders of nature at Moody Gardens and enjoyed a full day of excitement at the Galveston historic Pleasure Pier.

We also visited and learned about the two historic landmarks, Bishop's Palace and Bryan Museum.

Before I came to Galveston Island, I, of course, knew about the famous beaches, but I didn't know about the history and charm.

Your family will love it.

It's great for multi-gen and kids of all ages.

Thanks for joining me on this unforgettable adventure to Galveston Island, Texas.

I'm Coleen Kelly.

Thanks for watching "Family Travel" from Galveston Island, Texas.

Enjoy making memories on your next family vacation.

(upbeat music) Woo, they are so cute!

- (laughs) That's it.

- It's stuck.

- [Director] Once more.

- I'm Colleen Kelly.

Welcome to Galve Beaches.

- Especially during Summer.

(penguin honking) - [Director] Do it again.

- What?

- [Colleen] To the family.

(upbeat music) - [Colleen] "Family Travel with Colleen Kelly" is sponsored by: (uplifting music) - [Announcer] "Family Travel with Colleen Kelly" is brought to you in part by Star Clippers, purveyor of authentic tall ship sailing adventures.

- [Colleen] For information on even more destinations and travel tips, visit familytravelck.com.

Follow us on X, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram.

We'd love to hear from you.

(bright music) (charming music)