Buffalo Bayou Park Cistern — Attraction in Houston

Management would rather let their staff go than uphold their rights and advocate for them. Also, the prices keep going up for tickets, but i heard the wages don't. The tours are short-lived, and the guides that actually could sing are gone because of management. The subpar guides and singers are there because they don't really care for the quality of tours. All they need is a body to be there and play along with the visitor center hierarchy. None of the management has given a tour or has cared to be trained by one of the guides, yet they are the ones in charge of changes in tours but not the guides. It is not a good place to work at if you want to feel like your opinion matters here as staff, they remove all your agency and its not a good place to visit if you want the partnership to have your back on something. They are meeting their bottom line, they don't actually support the arts or their community, they support themselves. Because non profits can get away with taking all money from donors and still charging almost 20 dollars for a 30 minute sub par tour, and still not raise their wages. Not to mention all the gentrification they've done and plan on doing in the east end. The "mixed income housing" they built went against a survey of the community in the east end who has made their voice heard, and they did NOT want the apartments there. They house friends of the partnership, not actual community members, have no amenities, and yet again, management is there to meet a deadline and not actually be of service. Very scummy, ignorant, negligent, arrogant, and oblivious this group of...

Being outdoors has never really been my thing. I prefer staying in, eating pizza, playing video games, binge watching a TV series... you know... like a normal person. On a whim fueled by weight gain and sunshine deficiency, I decided to trek Buffalou Bayou Park.

Now I must say... I can't wait to go back.

It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon, and I had zero difficulty parking my car. At first I was overwhelmed, unsure of where to start or which direction to head. Being an expert at getting lost, I was afraid of taking a misstep in the 160 acre park. Trust me - you will not mind getting lost here.

Circular tracks often leave me bored and ready to leave after the first go-around. Buffalou Bayou Park is vast, beautiful, and full of attractions that made me wish for more hours in the day. I wandered for hours, admiring the scenic views and art displays. The park has different levels with several tracks, bridges, and gathering places. The incredible downtown skyline backdrop filled me with appreciation, even during my 45 minute walk back to the car.

There are so many amenities that I didn't get to experience: bike & boat rentals, a skatepark, play area, dog park, and even an audio tour.

Buffalo Bayou Park will turn the most introverted homebody into a nature-loving outdoors enthusiast. Bring a friend. Bring your dog. Bring your kids. Or be like me and get lost all by yourself. No matter who you go with, your adventure is sure to bring you closer to nature (with a touch of Houston's...

I had been thinking about visiting this place for a long time. Just yesterday I found out that entrance to the cistern is free every first Thursday of the month and, today being coincidentally the first Thursday of this month, decided to finally do it - everyone loves a free thing, right?

There's also free parking available but you might need some luck to get an available space. The tour into the cistern was pretty bare-boned; some history recounted, some dimensions and capacities discussed. We made an entrance into a darkened space and the guide used her flashlight to illuminate different parts of the place to explain each one. We then did some fun echo and reverberation stuff and finally the lights were turned on to enjoy the whole cistern in all its splendor. The guided part lasted maybe eight to ten minutes, after which we were free to walk around on the surrounding walkways.

You may have seen pictures, during your research, of all the columns beautifully lit up. Well, lighting on this tour was very basic. Only the periphery was lit up, the rest of the space was still dark. The complete lighting is apparently only switched on during special events.

Over all, it was a nice and enjoyable 25 minutes or so. After visiting the cistern, if you have the time, you may want to go for a walk on the trails next to the bayou, and make it a nice healthy...