Huntsville, Alabama

To The Moon & Stars For A Family Weekend Getaway

By Heather Raulerson Freelance Travel Writer Raulersongirlstravel.com

Known as the “Rocket City,” Huntsville boasts a rich history, a vibrant cultural scene, and many family-friendly activities, making it an ideal destination for a weekend getaway. With its captivating blend of science, history, and natural beauty, this city offers something for every member of the family to enjoy. Discover the charm of Huntsville as we guide you through a weekend of adventure in this out-ofthis-world city.

Blast off your Huntsville weekend getaway at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center. The Davidson Center for Space Exploration is where space dreams are fulfilled, with hundreds of thousands of kids graduating from the infamous Space Camp. Here is also where you can walk under the massive Saturn V Rocket, get a photo of you in an astronaut suit, and marvel at the Apollo 16 Command Module and an Apollo 12 moon rock. Plus, if you are adventurous, strap yourself into the Multi-Axis Trainer. There is nothing like spinning yourself silly to simulate what astronauts’ training felt like in the 1960s.

Also in the Davidson building is the official NASA Visitor Center for the Marshall Space Flight Center, where you can sign up for a tour to see NASA’s Payload Operations Integration Center. You’ll see where they manage experiments on the International Space Station, and the test stands where they tested the rockets, even the National Historic Landmark of the Redstone first test stand.

Returning from space might make you hungry, so swing into one of the many barbecue joints in downtown Huntsville, like Moe’s Original Bar B Que. You can get a selection of meats, such as pulled pork, smoked chicken, smoked turkey, and ribs, accompanied by either a red BBQ sauce or the Alabama white sauce. Plus, you can add your choices of traditional Southern sides like baked beans, potato salad, Mac ‘N’ cheese, marinated slaw, banana puddin’, and much more. You can even enjoy live music on the weekends and bingo and trivia during the week.

Explore Huntsville’s outdoor attractions after lunch at Burritt on the Mountain and then at Huntsville Botanical Garden. Burritt on the Mountain is a living history museum that sits high above the city. With amazing views of Huntsville, this cool site encompasses 167 acres filled with authentic 19th-century cabins, a schoolhouse, a blacksmith shop, and the McCurdy Barnyard, where you can meet the little animals calling this place home.

The Huntsville Botanical Garden has many things to see all year. This beautifully landscaped 118-acre garden has woodland paths lined with art sculptures, a daylily garden, an azalea trail, an aquatic garden reminiscent of a Japanese water garden, a birding trail where you can see local and migratory birds and even a children’s garden. Make sure to see the butterfly house, the nation’s largest open-air butterfly house. You can find almost any type of flower and plant in the gardens.

In the evening, head back to school at Campus 805. This re-imagined middle school is now a pet-friendly, kid-friendly complex. You can enjoy live music, drink a craft brew, practice your axe throwing anf dine on wood-fired pizza.

You can then step into the Campus 805 speakeasy that are hidden behind lockers, making it a fun and unique way to spend an evening in Huntsville.

After a restful sleep at the Embassy Suites by Hilton Huntsville, an easily walkable hotel to all the eateries, shops, street art, and attractions downtown, head outside the hotel and into Big Spring Park. Your family will love seeing all the colorful koi fish and friendly duck families with all their little ducklings swimming around and under the red Japanese bridge in the middle of the park. The spring water is so clear; seeing the fish swimming and the Muscovy ducks, which look like turkeys, sitting by the mini waterfalls is a wonderful way to relax downtown. The Embassy Suites has a canal behind the hotel with a path to follow through the entire Big Spring Park.

Spend your next day walking around downtown Huntsville. There are plenty of historical sites and buildings that you should check out. Begin your exploration with a Twickenham Historic Home tour; you can pick up a self-guided map at the Visitor’s Center. This walking tour will take you to magnificent antebellum homes with gorgeous porches and manicured lawns. Another awesome home to tour is the Weeden House Museum and Garden. This house is where Maria Howard Weeden, an amazing artist, drew and painted African-American people in their natural likenesses. But what was amazing was her extreme nearsightedness, which made her sit nose to nose with her subjects and only use a brush with three hairs for water painting. After visiting these homes, go to Harrison Brothers Hardware, the oldest operating hardware store in Alabama since 1897. You can pick up unique gifts and souvenirs while your kids can enjoy the scavenger hunt within the store.

For a unique family Huntsville adventure, visit Lowe Mill ARTS & Entertainment. This huge textile mill covered in street murals on the outside has been transformed inside as the largest privately owned arts facility in the South and the second largest in the nation. Walking through the halls and looking into the tiny studios, you can’t help but get creatively inspired. Check out the Cigar Box Guitar Store, where you can learn how to play a cigar box guitar and even design one for yourself or your favorite musician. There are also several dining options while you are wandering among the art studios, such as Pizzelle’s Confections, Dragon’s Forge Cafe, and Chef Will the Palate.

Before you leave Huntsville, take the family on one more outing to Unclaimed Baggage, the nation’s only retailer of lost luggage. Have you ever wondered what happens to lost luggage at the airports? After three months, the unclaimed luggage makes its way here to be given a second life. You can wander this huge facility and find tons of cool stuff, from clothing and sports equipment to smartphones. You can even be a part of the daily “Baggage Experience,” where you go behind the scenes to see how the bags are processed. Some unbelievable finds have come through this place, like an Egyptian Burial Mask, an 1800s fan gilded with gold and reinforced with carved bone, and Hoggle from the Labyrinth movie that greets everyone at the door.

Huntsville, Alabama, is a destination like no other, from its pivotal role in America’s space exploration to its vibrant arts scene and picturesque outdoor spaces. With all this and more, you can’t go wrong with choosing this city for your next family adventure.