Houston rates first among the nation’s 10 most populous cities in total acreage of parkland and second behind only San Diego in park acreage per capita, according to a 2007 study by The Trust for Public Land.  Houston has 56,405 acres of total park space, with 27.2 acres per 1,000 residents.  The national average is 18.8 acres per 1,000 residents.

The City of Houston maintains more than 100 miles of hike and bike trails.

The 155-acre Houston Arboretum and Nature Center is located in central Houston between downtown and the Galleria area.  Visitors can enjoy more than 5 miles of nature trails, including forest, pond, wetland and meadow habitats.

In the past seven years, the Buffalo Bayou Partnership has raised and leveraged more than $45 million for improvements along a 10-mile stretch of Buffalo Bayou (which runs 52 miles through the city) from Shepherd Dr. to the Turning Basin.  These improvements have included a 20-year master plan, three miles of hike and bike trails east of downtown, Sesquicentennial Park, the North Side Trail and the purchase of more than 35 acres of land in the East End for park lands.

The Millie Bush Dog Park was voted No. 1 in the nation by Dog Fancy magazine in June 2005.

More than 165 public and private golf courses are located in the Greater Houston area.

Blackhorse Golf Club was rated in the top 10 of America’s 100 best courses for $100 or less by Travel and Leisure Golf magazine.

The Tournament Course at Redstone Golf Club is the new home to the Shell Houston Open, the PGA’s 10^th oldest tournament.

Located 50 miles from the Gulf of Mexico, Houston is a destination for avid fishermen. An estimated 3 million Texas fisherman spend more than 9 million days fishing each year on the 1.5 million acres of lakes and 80,000 miles of rivers, streams and bayous of Texas.  They fish for sport and for food, avidly seeking such long-time favorites as large-mouth bass, crappie, sunfish, white bass and various species of catfish. Sport fishing offshore in the Gulf of Mexico and in the inshore waters of the Texas coast has long been a favorite recreational pursuit of both Texans and visitors.  Catches include tarpon, kingfish, red snapper, wahoo, ling, bonito and yellow-finned tuna.  Eighty miles offshore from Galveston is some of the country's best bill fishing, with catches of blue and white marlin and sailfish.

The array of wildlife found in Texas allows hunters to take deer, turkey, javelina, antelope, aoudad sheep and all small game and migratory game birds.  Duck, goose and dove hunting are extremely popular.  Other small game include quail, squirrel, pheasant and waterfowl.

Houston is located 30 minutes from Clear Lake, a 2,000-acre destination for boating enthusiasts.  Considered to be the nation's "third coast," Clear Lake has one of the greatest concentrations of sailboats, yachts and pleasure craft in the U.S.