This blog was written by influencer Jamie Harper with "Fly By the Seat of Our Pants."
This blog and other blogs by Jamie can be found at http://flybytheseatofourpants.com/
**Our stay in Conroe was hosted by Visit Conroe. The opinions and experiences expressing what to do in Conroe are my own.
As transplants to Texas, there are hundreds of towns we’ve never heard of. Conroe was one of these towns. On a road trip from DFW to Houston, I saw Conroe on a map and decided to spend a day exploring with my kids.
We had a fantastic day. There is plenty to occupy your entire day or just try one or two things on your way passing through Conroe!
Conroe is about 40 minutes north of Houston. It’s has a small, close-knit community atmosphere. You’ll find with nature, history, and fun all in close proximity.
Where to Stay in Conroe
The Holiday Inn Express and Suites was perfect for our family. It is centrally located and easy to access.
Holiday Inn offers a large family suite with a king bed in a separate bedroom and another king bed plus a pull-out sofa in a spacious living area, complete with a minifridge and microwave. This comfortably accommodated our family of 6 with plenty of space and privacy when needed.
A stay at Holiday Inn Express and Suites includes free breakfast, a workout room, and an outdoor pool. My kids were obsessed with the automated pancake maker at the buffet breakfast. I found my eggs and sausage, my toddler got a bowl of cereal and everyone loved the hot chocolate. Buffet breakfast are an absolute must when travel with kids and Holiday Inn provided perfectly for all the picky eaters in our family.
What to do in Conroe
Imagine at 7-Acre Wood
Our first stop was a delightful outdoor play space and petting farm at 7 Acre Wood. With SO many options of things to do, we spent our whole morning playing, exploring and imagining. This outdoor area provides so many physical and fun activities for kids. Plan on staying a few hours.
I’ll list a few of our favorite play spaces. We started at a minigolf course. With clubs and balls easily accessible, you can play the course as many times as you want. This was the first time for my younger kids and I had plenty of time to give some lessons.
The petting zoo was filled with sheep, goats, donkeys, and llamas. My kids are a bit skittish around animals, so they weren’t very brave about petting them. You can go right in and pet all the animals. Make sure to close the double gate quickly so the goats can’t escape. You can buy a bag of feed for the animals and feed them through the fence if your kids are braver than mine.
In the 7 acre wood, we loved the playground and the toddler play area. The toddler area had small cars and houses to play in. The Sahara play area was a large sandbox with sand toys.
The puppet theater was quickly loved by my kids.
My kid’s imaginations went wild as they played on the 2 boats they have on the property.
My favorite part was a scooter track and the flats scooters you can sit on. It was a flashback to my days in PE in elementary school. The zipline and swings provided fun for all ages. All over the property, you’ll find photo opportunities and fun things to do. My girls played a 1 on 1 game of soccer. While my big boy drew on the walls in the chalk house and my toddler played house.
Something for every age at 7 Acre Wood!
$6.50 per person over 18 months. Extra charges for weekend hayrides, barrel train rides, pony rides, and paintball.
Seek and Find on the Geocaching Geo Tour
As you travel around Conroe, find hidden treasure with Geocaching. Conroe has 32 official geocaches around town. You can print a passport and when you find the caches you can earn a prize.
If you aren’t familiar with Geocaching, download a Geocaching app. It will find your location and give you pins where you can find a geocache. Follow the directions on the app and you’ll be led to a specific pinpoint (usually near trees or bushes).
Once you get there, look around for a box or bag with hidden treasure in it. It’s so fun to find the box! Sign the log that you found it. You are welcome to take a treasure if you leave a small treasure for the next participant.
The caches in Conroe were fun because we had to solve some puzzles to unlock it.
Learn through the Heritage Museum
The Heritage Museum Montgomery county is a perfect place to learn about history in an interactive and fun way. The replica of a general store is perfect for the little ones to play as a pioneer.
Play at Candy Cane Park
Right behind the Heritage museum, you’ll find a unique and creative playground area called Candy Cane Park. We loved the giant bugs to climb on and around. The climbing tree forest was also fun. Don’t miss the geocache in the birdhouse!
Art Benches and Historic Downtown
You’ll find plenty of parking in the quaint historic downtown area of Conroe. Along with the historical buildings and shops around a few blocks, you’ll find 12 artistic benches within a couple of minutes’ walk along with the history of the city, water features, statues, and founders plaza.
Lone Star Monument and Flag Park
Texas Flag Park has flags from throughout Texas history flying with an explanation for each one. There is also a walkway along water with flags flying over Texas. The man who designed the current Texas flag was from Conroe, so they do a really good job memorializing all the flags that shaped the current state as we know it.
Since my kids have taken Texas history every year of their schooling, they knew much more about the different flags and history than I did. It was fun to watch their excitement as they shared stories and characters they knew about.
It’s a beautiful walk. I love the chance to be in nature and learn about histroy.
Swim in Lake Conroe Park
While the lake was too cold to enjoy water sports while we were visiting Conroe, I could see the potential for fun and beauty at Lake Conroe. There is a large picnic area and beach at Lake Conroe Park. Admission is $2/person.
What to Eat in Conroe
While Conroe offers all the regular fast food places your family loves, I always enjoy finding food and atmosphere unique to the area.
Eat at Kountry Katfish
With so much playing in the day so far, we were starving! Head over to Vernon’s Kountry Katfish for an amazing fried fish meal in a hometown diner. The parking lot was full even though it was a random Monday afternoon, so I knew this place is amazing.
I loved that the kids had activities to do right as we were seated. We trying fried green tomatoes, Mozzarella sticks and Apple Stix (fried apple pie).
I got all my kids to try catfish and everyone said they liked it! This is a huge compliment from my picky crew!
My son ordered popcorn shrimp from the kid’s menu and had a side of mashed potatoes. My girls got chicken strips and a hamburger with french fries and broccoli.
Kountry Katfish also does a lot of catering. They give back to the community by hosting dinners for the football team or church functions. They donate a lot of food for various events. I love supporting venues that give back to the community.
Kountry Katfish provided the was a perfect meal and filled us up for more exploring around Conroe.