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Delta Airlines Flights from Seattle (SEA) to Houston (IAH)
Orbitz is pleased to offer airline tickets on Delta Airlines, which operates 4 regularly scheduled daily non-stop flights from Seattle (SEA) to Houston (IAH), departing between 6:20am and 11:45pm, and one additional non-stop flight regularly scheduled to depart at 1:05pm and arrive at 7:12pm, everyday except Tuesday and Wednesday. Generally, a movie is offered on this route. The average travel time from Seattle, WA to Houston, TX is 4 hours and 5 minutes.*
* Some flights must connect with additional service on this airline.
During your Houston vacation, don't miss these great establishments and attractions:
Menil Collection
Here, on display in an unremarkable neighborhood near the University of St. Thomas, is one of the world's great private collections. Jean and Dominique de Menil arrived in Houston in the 1940s, fleeing the war in Europe. For more than 4 decades, they purchased and commissioned works of art; brought artists, architects, and academics to the city; organized groundbreaking exhibitions; and did much for Houston's art museums and for the art departments of Rice University and St. Thomas University. Their collection, especially the modern art, is vast, so much so that only a fifth of it can be exhibited in the museum at one time. The structure housing the collection was designed by Renzo Piano, who worked closely with Mrs. de Menil. It is graceful and personable and doesn't seek to impress the visitor or impose itself on the collection. In these qualities it is the physical embodiment of Mrs. de Menil's ideas about experiencing art. When you walk into the museum there is nothing between you and the art -- no grand lobby with marble stairway, no large banners or gift shop vying for attention, no tickets to buy, no tape-recorded tours. Viewing the art becomes a direct and personal experience.The Menil Collection is concentrated in four areas: antiquity, Byzantine and medieval, tribal art, and 20th century. This may seem an incongruous mix, but, strangely enough, it holds together. The collectors never intended to gather up the most representative of a period; they simply followed their own tastes, which were modern. And one interesting consequence of this fact (intended or not) is that, in walking through these galleries one right after another, the viewer gradually discerns a universality in some modern art that connects it all the way back to antiquity and across the boundaries of Western culture to the tribal peoples of other continents.In addition to the main museum, four satellite buildings form a museum campus. One of these satellite buildings is the much-talked-about Rothko Chapel, with its 14 brooding paintings by Mark Rothko, created specifically for this installation and the last works before the artist's death. In front of the chapel stands Barnett Newman's Broken Obelisk. A block south of the Rothko Chapel is the Byzantine Fresco Chapel Museum, which is worth seeing as much for the building that houses them (designed by François de Menil, son of Jean and Dominique) as for the frescoes themselves, which were ransomed from international art thieves. Across the street from the main museum, in a building also designed by Renzo Piano, is a permanent exhibition of the works of Cy Twombly, which, though perhaps difficult to approach, are easy to view because of the gallery's exquisite light. It lends a luminous quality to the large artworks, and somehow just being in the place livens one's spirits. Finally, Richmond Hall, 2 blocks south of the campus, holds an installation by neon light artist Don Flavin.
Kemah Boardwalk
Many visitors to Space Center Houston (see review below) will afterward go out for seafood at nearby Kemah, which is as touristy as the Houston area gets. It used to be a rustic shrimping port on Galveston Bay where you could buy some shrimp and a beer and sit by the dock on an afternoon to watch the shrimp boats come in. Most of the pier was washed away in 1984 by a hurricane, and in the 1990s it was bought by a developer who built the boardwalk, several restaurants, a hotel, and some touristy stores and attractions. The restaurants overlook the water; if you stroll down the boardwalk you'll pass every one. Pick the one that most appeals to you. Among the attractions is a 50,000-gallon, floor-to-ceiling aquarium housing more than 100 species of tropical fish in the Aquarium Restaurant.
Houston Ship Channel
For those fortunate enough not to live among the industrial areas of the Texas Gulf Coast, the landscape of refineries and their intricate tangle of pipes, their forests of cooling towers and stacks, and their fields of tanks are as exotic as the Zanzibar coast. If you find this sort of thing intriguing you can take a free boat ride on the Sam Houston Inspection Ship, which tours the upper 7 miles of the deep water channel. The boat dates from the 1950s and has a lovely cabin trimmed in mahogany as well as fore and aft observation decks. I hail from Houston but rarely have the opportunity to see the ship channel up close, and I enjoyed this trip. You should probably make reservations well in advance during the summer months when it is quite popular, but I'm told that the ship channel is best seen in cooler weather, when there is no risk of bad smells. The trip takes a total of 90 minutes, during which you will most likely see large container ships, tall grain elevators, tugs, and barges. If after the trip, you want to see more of the channel, you can drive to the San Jacinto Battlefield, where the Battleship Texas is on display.
Make your reservations for discount hotel rooms in the
Houston area, including:
Sam Houston Hotel
Things are decidedly modern at "The Sam," and I use "modern" in the best of senses -- sleek, uncluttered interiors that strive for purity but avoid the "lab" look, which always leaves me with a chill. The guest rooms exert a comforting, quieting influence -- a respite from bustling downtown Houston. They also rack up lots of style points with unexpected touches, like nicely chosen fixtures and sharply dressed beds. The standard rooms are medium size and have ample, very attractive bathrooms. The two kinds of suites are larger and come with extras such as plasma TVs. But the electronics in all the rooms are quite good. The original Sam Houston Hotel was opened in the '20s and closed in the '70s. At that time, its location wasn't in the best part of downtown; now the location is great, just 2 blocks from the ballpark and Main Street.
Four Points
This is a businessperson's hotel that's comfortable and well situated. It has easy access to the freeway, and you can get in and out quickly without having to negotiate a parking garage. The location is convenient -- between downtown, the Rice University/Village area, and the Galleria. Rooms are being thoroughly remodeled and have plenty of light. The furnishings are modern and functional without looking cheap; some rooms have sofa sleepers. Improvements include plush new mattresses -- one king-size or two doubles -- and well-finished bathrooms (medium size).
Hotel Icon
I like a hotel that's not afraid of a bit of fringe, a splash of gold damask, a touch of refined decadence. So many hotels I see opt for the zero-risk approach to traditionalism: conservative furniture with American Colonial or neoclassical elements -- what I call the George-Washington-slept-here look. This place goes more for the Lola-Montez-slept-here look: lots of texture, ornament, and a definite "boudoir" feel to the rooms, all of which makes this hotel a fun place to stay. In renovating the old Union National Bank Building (ca. 1911), the designers sought to capture something of the feel of that golden age of refinement and exuberance. The most fun is to be had in the suites on the top floor, each named after a glorious old hotel. These rooms are extra large and extra plush and touched by a bit of idiosyncrasy (although I can't tell how much of this is the product of the original building's floor plan and how much was by design). The standard rooms are laden with atmosphere and amenities. The higher rate is for rooms with extra-large bathrooms equipped with a pass-through above the large tub that opens up to the bedroom. To set the mood for your stay, I recommend having a drink at the mezzanine bar, which is really in character. Bank Jean-Georges, the hotel's restaurant, is reviewed below. The location is excellent.
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