Tours
Exploring Galveston Where History and Science Meet...
Galveston Hurricane Tour offers five different tour types. Below you will see a description of all the different types of tours we have to offer as well as other information including tour times, prices, and how many people each tour can accomodate. If you have any questions regarding any of the tours that you do not see answered below, please feel free to reach out by clicking below and sending us an email! We will be happy to answer all your questions and help you choose the tour that best fits you and what you're wanting to learn about and experience.
TOUR TYPES
The guided community walking tour has quickly become our most popular hurricane tour!
This 2-mile walking tour takes you on a fascinating journey through historic architecture, as we recount mind-bogging survival stories, sobering tales of death and destruction, inspirational accounts of heroism and bravery, innovations born on Galveston Island, adaptations to the built environment, the latest hurricane science, and even two hurricane romances!
The tour leaves from behind Ashton Villa, and walks through downtown before ending up in the East End Historic District. Walking pace is slow to moderate. This is our most interactive tour, as guests participate in discussions and topics about hurricane impacts and responses, like evacuations and how to build better.
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The walking tour partners with Shrimp N Stuff to provide a 1-hour break in the middle of the tour to cool off in the A.C. and enjoy a fantastic variety of seafood, burgers, tacos, sandwiches, salads and much more! The break at Shrimp N Stuff extends our time past a “3-hour tour”, but we promise not to get you stranded like Gilligan’s Island! We walk for 2 hours 30 minutes and sit for around an hour, for a total time of 3 hours and 30 minutes. But hey, you’re in great company, and the evening will go surprisingly fast!
The charge for this tour is $40/ person with a 20% discount ($32) for youth aged 12-17. This does not include the cost of food and drink at our 1-hour break. The tour is not recommended for children under 12, as the content is focused more towards adult/ teen audiences.
*The tour takes place rain or shine.
WHO
Ages 12 and up
TIME
3 hours 30 minutes total (2 hours 30 minutes walking tour + 1 hour break)
COST
$40/ per person (20% discount for ages 12-17)
Make your Galveston Hurricane Tour your own.
Private tours are available in limited quantities for groups looking for a more personalized experience. Your group can work with Dr. Hal to create a tour that fits your schedule and focuses on the subjects and locations that interest you most.
One of the most popular options is to have Dr. Hal join your group in your own vehicle. This provides a comfortable, personal setting while giving your group the opportunity to explore Galveston's hurricane history, science, and stories at a pace that works for you.
For a more distinctive Galveston experience, consider combining your private tour with a ride in a replica Model-T-style carriage. These open-air vehicles offer a unique way to see the island while taking in the coastal surroundings and Gulf breeze. Check out these vehicles at Carriage Haus: https://www.carriagehausrentals.com/.
WHO
All ages
TIME
2 hours
COST
$240
(The price of carriage rental is additional if you have chosen that option.)
Already have a chartered bus or van? Make your Galveston experience even more memorable by adding Dr. Hurricane Hal as your personal tour guide.
Hal can join your private group and will
feature 10 or more locations throughout Galveston. Along the way, guests get a unique look at the island’s hurricanes, history, geography, architecture, and resilience—with plenty of stories and humor along the way.
Private bus tours are an excellent way to cover more of Galveston in less time and are especially popular with conferences, professional organizations, corporate groups, and private excursions.
WHO
10 person minimum.
TIME
1 hour 30 minutes
COST
$30 per person (discount to $20 per person for a group of 15+)
Turn Galveston into a living laboratory with an educational field trip led by Dr. Hurricane Hal. These interactive tours bring science, meteorology, engineering, geography, architecture, and history together through the real places and stories of Galveston.
Designed to complement concepts taught in the Texas STAAR curriculum, the approximately two-hour tour gets students out of the bus and exploring four locations around the island.
Along the way, students have opportunities to ask questions, investigate real-world examples, and connect classroom concepts to the environment around them.
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Four Big Ideas of this tour are:
Resilience
Students explore what it means to be resilient and consider practical ways they can help make themselves, their families, and their communities better prepared for challenges.
The Scientific Method
Hurricanes provide fascinating real-world examples of scientific investigation. Students examine how observations, assumptions, and hypotheses can be tested—and sometimes proven wrong. Actual hurricane and flooding evidence from Galveston helps turn the scientific method into something students can see for themselves.
Physical Processes
Students explore the physical forces behind hurricanes, storm surge, and different types of flooding. Using Galveston as a real-world example, the tour connects what students see around them to the natural processes that shape the coast.
Perspectives & History
The story of the 1900 Galveston hurricane provides an opportunity to think about disaster from different perspectives. Students consider the human impact of the storm while exploring ideas such as hardship, adversity, tragedy, and the ways communities respond and rebuild.
The goal isn't just to teach students about hurricanes—it's to get them curious about the world around them.
WHO
Middle school through high school students.
TIME
2 hrs
COST
$300 flat rate
20+ students: $15 per student
Teachers & chaperones: Free at a ratio of 1 adult for every 3 students or fewer.
Parents: When attending at a 1:1 student-to-parent ratio, parents pay 50% of the student rate.
Our University Tours give college groups an opportunity to explore the intersection of history, science, engineering, meteorology, architecture, Earth science, and public policy through the real-world story of Galveston's hurricanes and coastal environment.
Spring Break in March and April is an ideal time for university groups to visit the Gulf Coast and experience Galveston from an educational perspective. Tours can be tailored to the interests and academic goals of your group.
Students will explore the legacy of the 1900 Galveston Hurricane, coastal flooding, storm surge, the seawall, grade raising, disaster preparedness, and the ways communities adapt to natural hazards.
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Depending on the group's area of study, discussion can focus on:
-Resilience & Preparedness — How individuals and communities can better prepare for and recover from disasters.
-Science & Investigation — Using real-world hurricane examples to examine evidence, assumptions, and the scientific method.
-Coastal Processes — Understanding flooding, storm surge, water levels, and the interaction between natural processes and the built environment.
-History & Perspective — Examining the human impact of the 1900 Storm and the decisions that shaped modern Galveston.
Relevant fields of study include history, architecture, engineering, meteorology, Earth science, environmental studies, and public policy.
COST
$300 flat rate
For groups larger than 15, cost is $20 per student.
TESTIMONIALS
My husband and I recently took a walking tour with Hurricane Hal in Galveston, and it was, without a doubt, the absolute best tour we have ever taken on the island...
AverianM
My husband and I recently took a walking tour with Hurricane Hal in Galveston, and it was, without a doubt, the absolute best tour we have ever taken on the island...
AverianM
My husband and I recently took a walking tour with Hurricane Hal in Galveston, and it was, without a doubt, the absolute best tour we have ever taken on the island...
AverianM
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