Experience the best of Corpus Christi

The city curves around Corpus Christi Bay, with a seawall, marina and promenade facing the water and refineries and ships working the port beyond. The USS Lexington, a Second World War aircraft carrier moored in the bay, is a museum, the Texas State Aquarium stands close by, and a waterfront monument remembers the Tejano singer Selena, who made her home here.

South of the city, Padre Island National Seashore protects a long, undeveloped stretch of barrier-island beach where sea turtles nest, and Mustang Island, with the beach town of Port Aransas, lies to the east. The historic King Ranch, a vast cattle ranch, is a drive inland to the south-west.

Gulf seafood dominates the plates: shrimp, oysters, crab and grilled redfish, with Tex-Mex, barbacoa and breakfast tacos alongside. A steady sea breeze takes the edge off the heat, the Gulf is warm enough for swimming from spring, and birds crowd the coast in the cooler months.