Kemah Boardwalk — Attraction in Kemah

Parking Garage Horror/1 1/2 hour wait - Landry’s

I have been visiting the Kemah Boardwalk since it opened. Tons of fun and great food/amusements. Landry’s food was superb. But the wait was not. We had to wait 1 1/2 hours. I inquired if making a reservation would have helped, I was told it would be best to make them 2 days ahead. So, you know the food is terrific. But, my parking experience on May 11 (Sat) was a complete nightmare. If it had just been me, it might have been ok. But I left my 76 and 79 year-old-husband and sister in law waiting to pick up outside Landry’s. They had to wait 1 1/2 hours before I could escape the parking garage. We’re talking 11:15 pm. It was absolutely an emergency situation. A crawl. I said to myself - what could be causing this? Then I remembered I was unable to pay for my parking because although I was instructed curtly to “pay at elevator, card only, $12. I dutifully tried 3 different ways to pay, but I could not get Wi-Fi because I didn’t know the boardwalk’s password . So, I said to myself, what if that happened to 4 floors of cars? Yep, bingo. For all the great options to pay, it was in vain wout Wi-Fi. We ALL had pay as we exited the garage. There was someone helping us when I got there - scanning the ticket and running out credit cards. It was lunacy, Meanwhiie, my elderly riders (one of whom has had 2 strokes) braved the mosquitos for an hour and a half. It’s unconscionable. My husband had a fall this morning and I believe it was a direct result of having to stand for that long. By the way, the elevators were “out of service” in the garage. These people I brought had to navigate down 3 flights of stairs. How could an elevator be broken on a Sat. Nite? Some people brought wagons and strollers. They were forced to push them back down into the garage while cars were whipping around them. I have been to the Boardwalk dozens of times, I have never had a negative experience prior. It’s as if the garage has been turned over to a contractor that doesn’t have the Boardwalk’s high standards for service. I was completely trapped for an hour and a half. If there had been a medical emergency, I don’t know how EMS could have reached it. I suggest no one park in the garage on Sat. Nite especially if you have elderly people with you. The stairs are treacherous, no elevator and no hope of getting out of the garage in a timely manner. If the Boardwalk contacts me, and the parking pay system is corrected (Wi-Fi wout need of password) , the elevators fixed with immediate service set up if they break again, then I shall write a glowing review which I believe will be warranted. Meantime, stay out of the garage for now. There was gross negligence this weekend and the employees I interfaced with were curt when I entered the garage and minimizing when I left. The photo show the employee holding a card for me to scan as I exited the garage. I told him I don’t have any Wi-Fi , so then he took my ticket to scan and my card to pay. I would hazard a guess that many older people wouldn’t even know what he was holding up. Come on, Kemah Boardwalk, you...

Horrible experience at the Kemah Boardwalk.

Immediately upon entering and trying to buy tickets, the ticket attendant was rude and seemed prejudice. She was smiling and greeting all the white guests but was completely mute and stone faced when we came up to the window. We had never interacted with the girl but her mood completely shifted in our presence.

Still, we went ahead and tried to purchase tickets. She lazily tried to charge our card and then gave it back saying it was declined - which respectfully, is impossible. My fiancé and I may be of a darker hue but, money has never been an issue for either of us - especially for a $7 ticket. We then gave her another card and went on our way.

Then, because we did not want her negativity disrupting our vacation any further, I purchased tickets online. We proceeded to the ride that we purchased the ticket for and were told that we still needed to go to the ticket place to obtain a physical ticket. We walked over and were once again not greeted or smiled at like the other guests before us. It was quite literally 30 seconds before we walked up and she was laughing and talking to the guests in front of us like she was the happiest person in the world.

I handed her my phone to scan the ticket and she said the QR code was “invalid” and she couldn’t give me a ticket. I then proceeded to not only show her my order ID and confirmation number, I showed her the confirmation email and charge on my card. She again refused to give us a ticket and said she couldn’t print an invalid ticket. I told her that we purchased a ticket so I will either be getting said ticket or a refund, and she called her manager.

We met with the manager at the side window, where after another 5 minutes we finally received our ticket. But, not before they requested to take a picture of both the QR code and the email confirmation.

I have no idea if this situation truly was prejudice or not, but it sure as hell felt like we were being dismissed because we are Black and I hate that our decision to have a nice little date night at one of my childhood favorite vacation spots has turned into a nightmare experience.

We will never be coming back and we advise other Black people and people of color to be cautious of weird behavior like this. I am so frustrated and disappointed, no guest should be blatantly treated the way we were.

At the most, we advise any who is still reading to not purchase tickets for anything at the boardwalk online. Clearly their machines either do not work properly, most likely due to their databases not updating in a timely manner. Just save yourself the time, we waited nearly 20 minutes to receive our...

Never Again. A Total Waste of Time and Money.

I don’t even know where to start. From the moment we walked in, it was a mess — and the first person we had to deal with, Brandon, was already rude, unbothered, and completely unprofessional. No greeting, no eye contact, no help — just straight-up attitude like we were interrupting his nap.

Kemah Boardwalk was completely underwhelming. Half the rides were shut down with no warning, no signage, and definitely no refund or explanation. Yet they had no shame charging full price like nothing was wrong. The whole place felt like it was being run by people who’d rather be anywhere else — especially Brandon, who moved slower than a dead battery and looked like he hated being alive.

And don’t even get me started on the wristbands. It took 20 whole minutes just to get four wristbands, and we were the only ones at the counter. Six other groups came, got helped, and left while we just stood there watching Brandon fumble around like it was his first day on Earth. And then — surprise! — he kept our CityPASSes. We had to remember ourselves five minutes later and go back to ask for them, at which point he handed them over silently like we were bothering him again. No apology, no thanks, no awareness.

There’s also no internet, no signal, and no Wi-Fi anywhere on the property — which is completely ridiculous for a place that expects you to pull up digital passes and check ride availability. It’s 2025, not 1998.

Customer service in general? A joke. No one knows what they’re doing. Everyone looks miserable. No communication, no smiles, just blank stares and frustration. And don’t think about using the bathrooms unless you’re ready to hold your breath — I’ve seen gas stations cleaner and more maintained.

Kemah Boardwalk might’ve had charm years ago, but now it’s just a sad, overpriced, rundown tourist trap. And if Brandon is the face of the operation, that explains everything. We left angry, disappointed, and feeling completely ripped off. Save your money, your time, and your patience — literally anywhere else would be better...