Best Hotels in Downtown Houston: Which Area to Book

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Pick your side of downtown first. The east side around Discovery Green holds the convention center, the arena and the ballpark. The north and west side has Market Square’s bars and the Theater District’s stages. The tunnels under it all shut in the evening and at weekends, so you’ll be walking at street level. For shows and bars, book west; for a convention or a game, book east.

Downtown Houston Hotels

Which Part of Downtown Houston to Stay In

Downtown’s own management district splits the center into the Historic District, the Theater District and Avenida Houston.

• Avenida Houston: Named for Avenida de las Americas, the convention district follows the boulevard that runs past the George R. Brown Convention Center from the ballpark down to Hilton Americas-Houston. The 12-acre Discovery Green park sits across the street from the convention center, with the arena a short walk away. Book here for a convention, a Rockets game or an Astros night.
• The Historic District: Downtown’s northern edge holds the original town center, with Market Square Park in the middle and Allen’s Landing on Buffalo Bayou. Bistros, coffee shops, bars and clubs fill the blocks around the square. Stay here if your evenings are about drinks and dinner rather than events.
• Want a show? Houston’s Theater District covers 17 blocks and holds the Alley Theatre, Jones Hall, the Wortham Theater Center and the Hobby Center. It’s home to Houston’s resident ballet, opera, symphony and theater companies, one of only a handful of American cities with all four.

Downtown Houston After Dark and at Weekends

Downtown’s busiest hours fall in the working week, and weekend crowds take more effort to draw.

• Market Square and Main Street: Downtown’s nightlife runs along the 100, 300 and 400 blocks of Main Street and around Market Square. Warren’s Inn, a bar facing the square, has poured drinks for more than four decades, and La Carafe sits in one of the oldest buildings downtown.
• Around Discovery Green: Two restaurants, The Grove and The Lake House, sit inside the park itself. Pappasito’s Cantina is inside Hilton Americas-Houston.

Getting Around Downtown Houston Without a Car

Three METRORail lines cross downtown and meet at Central Station, where the Red Line stops on Main Street and the Green and Purple Lines on Rusk Street.

• Red Line: It runs north to south along Main Street with six downtown stops and crosses downtown in under 10 minutes. Ride it south for the Museum District and the Rodeo and Texans stadium complex.
• Heading east? The Green and Purple Lines share track from west to east, stopping at Theater District, Central Station, Convention District and EaDo/Stadium. Take them for the convention center, Discovery Green and the soccer stadium just east of downtown.

When Downtown Houston Hotel Prices Jump

Downtown room rates follow the convention and event calendar more than the weather. March and early May run busiest, while July, August and December run quiet.

• March: The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo runs through most of March at the stadium complex south of downtown, and CERAWeek brings the energy industry to the convention center in the same month. During one March convention, downtown hotels hit 95% occupancy.
• Early May brings the Offshore Technology Conference. It meets at the same complex and pushes citywide hotel occupancy above 75% at its peak. Check its dates before you pick yours.
• The quiet months: Downtown occupancy sat between 45% and 52% in July, August and December. Plan a downtown stay for those months if price matters more than events.

Downtown, Uptown or Allen Parkway

Houston spreads out, and two hotel areas that first-time visitors confuse with downtown sit outside it.

• Uptown and the Galleria: The Galleria sits in Uptown, west of downtown. Choose Uptown when shopping is the point of the trip and you have a car.
• What about Allen Parkway? Thompson Houston sits on Allen Parkway, west of the downtown grid. Check the street address before you book a room sold as downtown.

Game Nights at the Ballpark, the Arena and the Stadium

Downtown holds two of Houston’s pro venues, and a third sits just east of it.

• The ballpark: Astros games happen in the heart of downtown, next to the George R. Brown Convention Center. Hotels around Discovery Green sit a walk from its gates.
• Rockets nights: Rockets games fill the arena on Polk Street, a short walk from the convention center and Discovery Green. Convention District is the closest rail stop.
• Going to a Dynamo match? The soccer stadium sits just east of downtown in EaDo. The Green and Purple Lines stop at EaDo/Stadium, one stop past Convention District.

FAQs

1. Is downtown Houston a good place to stay?

Yes, if your trip centers on a convention, a game, a show or the Rodeo, because the venues sit downtown or a train ride away. It suits travelers without a car, since the Red Line runs from Main Street to the Museum District and the Rodeo grounds. For a shopping-first trip built around the Galleria, look at Uptown instead.

2. Is downtown Houston safe to walk at night?

Downtown has its own uniformed public safety guides, and they offer safety escorts until late evening. Downtown’s bars and restaurants cluster on Main Street and around Market Square. Expect to see homeless people on some streets. Call 911 in an emergency, and take an app-based taxi for longer trips late at night.

3. How do you get from downtown Houston to the Texans and Rodeo stadium?

Take the Red Line south from any Main Street stop to Stadium Park/Astrodome, a ride of 20 to 30 minutes. From the Green or Purple Line, change to the Red Line at Central Station. The stadium, home to the Texans and the Rodeo, sits in a complex south of downtown, not in it. Allow the full ride time on Rodeo and Texans nights.

4. How do you get from IAH to downtown Houston?

A taxi or app-based taxi takes 30 to 45 minutes from George Bush Intercontinental, which sits about 23 miles north of downtown. Allow more time at weekday rush hour. METRO’s local bus from the airport also reaches downtown, but the trip takes 50 to 90 minutes. An app-based taxi costs more than the bus but makes the quicker trip.

5. How do you get from Hobby Airport to downtown Houston?

Hobby sits about 7 miles south of downtown, and a taxi takes 15 to 25 minutes outside rush hour. It’s the closer of Houston’s two airports, so compare flights into Hobby and Bush before you book. A local METRO bus covers the route in about an hour, which works if you’re traveling light and not in a hurry.

6. Are the downtown Houston tunnels open on weekends?

No, they close at weekends and shut in the early evening on weekdays. The network runs more than six miles, about 20 feet below the streets, linking 95 blocks of office buildings. Only two entrances open straight off the street, at Wells Fargo Plaza and the McKinney Garage on Main Street; most of the rest sit inside office buildings. Tunnels linking Theater District venues to their parking are the exception.

7. Can you walk from downtown Houston to the Museum District?

Ride the Red Line south from any Main Street stop instead of walking. The Museum District sits south of downtown, past Midtown, and more than a dozen museums stand within four blocks of a rail stop there. The same line continues south to the Rodeo and Texans stadium complex, so a hotel near Main Street puts both on one train.