The twentieth century made Corpus Christi a port, a Navy town, and a resort all at once. Refineries and the petrochemical trade grew along the ship channel, the Naval Air Station trained aviators by the thousands, and the bayfront filled with the miradores, the seawall, and the beaches that drew Texans to the coast. In 1962 Congress set aside Padre Island National Seashore, and in 1992 the USS Lexington came home to the bay as a museum. The Sparkling City also became a capital of Tejano music — and honors its most beloved voice, Selena, the Queen of Tejano music, at the bayfront Mirador de la Flor.
Corpus Christi stories run with the wind and the water. They'll tell you the Gulf breeze never quits — which is exactly why the bay is one of the great windsurfing and kiteboarding spots in the country. They'll tell you that down on Padre Island the beach runs wild for nearly seventy miles, the longest undeveloped stretch of barrier island in America, where Kemp's ridley sea turtles still come ashore to nest. And they'll point out across the water to the Blue Ghost, riding at anchor where a carrier has no business being, as if to say the strangest and finest things in South Texas all gather on this one bay.
Why People Visit Corpus Christi Texas
- Tour the USS Lexington, the WWII carrier "the Blue Ghost," moored as a museum on the bayfront.
- Explore the Texas State Aquarium for Gulf of Mexico wildlife and sea-turtle conservation.
- Walk the wild dunes and beaches of Padre Island National Seashore — nearly seventy miles of protected barrier island and Kemp's ridley turtle nesting grounds.
- Beachcomb and birdwatch on Mustang Island, just across the causeway.
- Stroll the downtown seawall, the marina, and the bayfront miradores for skyline and harbor views.
- Visit the Mirador de la Flor, the bayfront seaside memorial to the Queen of Tejano music.
- Wander Heritage Park's restored historic homes for the city's multicultural story.
