Rockport (Texas)

Rockport is a small city in the South Barrier Coast region of Texas, about 45 minutes north up the Gulf of Mexico coast from Corpus Christi. It's right between Copano Bay to the west, on the coast of Aransas Bay. Aransas Bay is around 4 miles wide at this point, with the Gulf of Mexico beyond.

Get in

The primary way to enter Rockport is via Corpus Christi then Portland. Take Highway 181 to 35, in Rockport turn on Business 35. It's approximately 3.5 hours south of San Antonio. Be careful, the roads seem to be heavily patrolled by police.

There is also a very nice airport near Fulton, just a few miles north, though Corpus Christi is the nearest commercial airport. Many of the major airlines fly into Corpus, though most flights originate in Houston or San Antonio.

Get around

Local transit seems to largely be via automobile.

See

• Texas Maritime Museum. 

Do

• Rockport Country Club. 

Eat

Also see nearby Fulton, which has some really good restaurants.

• The Boiling Pot, 201 S Fulton Beach Rd, ☎ [phone]. Along Fulton Beach, Cajun-style fresh seafood, served dumped on butchers paper on your table. Extremely good food and service. It looks pretty questionable from the outside, but that's all for appearances. $19.95 per person for the Cajun Combo. 
• Jalisco's, 1701 Highway 35 N, ☎ [phone]. Very good, authentic Mexican food, lunch around $8 per person. 

Sleep

• Holiday Inn Express. Views of the bay, a smallish motel (not hotel like most Holiday Inn Expresses). Along the main drag in town, with a park to the south and the gulf across the street to the east. The whole hotel is covered by free Wireless Internet. 
• Hunt's Castle, 725 S. Water St, ☎ [phone], toll-free: [phone]. Three story waterfront motel on Aransas Bay. Suites, kitchenettes, and cabins. $99-$150 a night, discounts for weekly/monthly stays. 
• Magic Sun Tan Motel, 1805 Broadway St, ☎ [phone]. Bay-front motel with its own 500 foot fishing pier and swimming pool. $55-90 a night including breakfast, discounts for longer stays. 
• Copano Cottages, 5481 Hwy 35 N, ☎ [phone]. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: 11AM. Copano Cottages offers ten pet-friendly cottages ranging from 1 bedroom to 3 bedrooms and includes parking for boats. $119-225 a night. 

Connect

WiFi is rare here. The Holiday Inn Express is one of the few places that has free WiFi.

The town is well covered by mobile providers, including Sprint CDMA and AT&T GSM.

Go next

North of town across the bay is the Goose Island State Park, which includes a tree over a thousand years old, a huge fishing pier, and free WiFi Internet access from the Visitors Center. Day passes are available for $2 per person.

• Fulton offers some additional attractions and lodging.

Routes through Rockport

Corpus Christi ← Jct S ←

S  N

→ Fulton → Houston