There's The Strand, which is great, but there's lots of great shops just off the beaten path, too. Most stores open around 10 am and close at 6 pm. Some close even earlier, and Sundays have even more abbreviated hours. The restaurants stay open later, and some have live music. We went fairly early on Saturday and finished with dinner... more

There are a bunch of shops on the Strand. They are still in the process of rebuilding some of them but there are plenty of others to go in. We spent hours there! more

Most of the shops are still closed and/or under renovations. We walked into a few shops and the workers weren't the most friendly. One shop- not sure the name- sold lots of mall-type surf clothing by Roxy and other well-known brands. The man at the register glared at me and didn't say anything until I said hello. He might as... more

During the month of June, Olympia The Grill at Pier 21 and Luigi's Ristorante Italiano opened. The food is great at both. Plus Olympia offers live entertainment on weekends. I live and work in Galveston so we enjoy downtown frequently. At this point, about 75 percent of the businesses downtown have opened. You should try to schedule your trip in... more

They were still rebuilding alot so there weren't as many places to go as usual but it was still cool. We shopped for a couple of hours and enjoyed ourselves. more

Our family is so sorry to see what Ike has done to a great city, that is so rich in history. We are glad to hear everyone is working hard to open their shops back up. Can't wait for Old Strand Emporium, Yagas, Front Palor. The Strand is my favorite spot just to hang out and have a few beers.... more

You'd like to make this a destination for after-the-beach activity, but you can't because everything is closed by 5 PM. The idea was right, restoring old and historical buildings, and turning around an old downtown, making it an inviting tourist attraction. Here are a couple of examples for why the potential hasn't been realized. We thought we should see the... more

The Historic Area and shopping closes down pretty early, so you might want to do it before 5pm. We got there early enough to be the last people served at La King's Ice Cream Parlor before they closed at 6pm. Very cute place where they make their own ice cream and are happy to let you sample every flavor you'd... more

it is so much fun we have been going for years. there is cairrage rides more