Houston’s New Theme Park is Finally Opening its Gates for a Sneak Peek

The Houston area’s new amusement park is finally making its first splash. That’s right, the uber-long-awaited Grand Texas, first teased back in February 2013, is finally making moves after so many delays it was looking like one big tease.

The mega, 630-acre theme park in New Caney isn’t open quite yet. But you can swing by its Gator Bayou Adventure Park from 10 am to 6 pm this Saturday, November 3rd to get a sneak peek of the upcoming attractions.

At first, it was called the next AstroWorld. Then, an empty promise. Now, it’s here.

Thrill seekers, rejoice.

At least, 5,000 of you should. That’s max capacity for the preview. And something tells us it won’t be close to enough — more than 62,000 people like and follow Grand Texas on Facebook.

The East Montgomery County Improvement District is hosting the free-admission event out at 23211 TX-242 in New Caney, Grand Texas’ address.

Get ready for adventures like getting up close to some curious critters in the petting zoo, doing a little catch and release at the fishing hole, riding a pony, slamming into friends with a bumper car, navigating a maze, zipping through the sky, scrambling up a rock wall and gliding down water slides by the floating Wild Isle (OK, maybe not the water slide in this November free preview).

And don’t forget to brace yourself for the 70-foot free fall on the Vulture Dive.

The New Amusement Park Life

There’s even more to do, but remember — there’s no such thing as a completely free park. Everyone can do those activities for free, but pass-holders will get access and discounts for additional attractions, food and merchandise.

The pay-to-play attractions include Eagle Challenge, a six-story structure for the kiddos that boasts over 50 activities, Raccoon Run, an soaring aerial adventure for little ones aged 5 to 10, and Big Rock Mining where guests can mine for rocks and gems with a sluice box.

Tickets for the super-hyped water and adventure parks are on sale at the theme park’s website. The tickets allow access to both Big Rivers and Gator Bayou.

Adult day passes are usually $39.99 but they are currently marked down to $29.99 for a limited time, the same price as junior tickets. The annual pass is also listed at a steep discount — $59.95 instead of $89.99 and a discount annual group pass is $59.95 per pass as well instead of $74.99.

If the many delays have you wary about buying an annual pass, not to worry. The annual passes are good for 365 days after activation, not starting at a certain month.

Gator Bayou and Big Rivers were both scheduled to open on June 29 before more delays wiped out a summer opening all together. It’s been more than five years, but Gator Bayou will start revealing if it was all worth the wait this Saturday.

When the entire Grand Texas jumbo theme park is complete, it will feature dozens of rides, five roller coasters and tons of live entertainment. You can also expect four hotels, restaurants and Grove Factory Outlets.

So, will it be the next Six Flags? Will it make you forget AstroWorld? You decide.