Photo Courtesy of Landry’s Inc.
OUR PARTING SHOT
Galveston’s One and Only Historic Pleasure Pier Generations of BOIs (Born On Island) and Houstonians alike cherish fond memories of Galveston’s Historic Pleasure Pier. The approximately 1,130-foot pier extends over the Gulf of Mexico at 25th Street and Seawall Boulevard and is home to Texas’ first Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. restaurant, a number of shops, entertaining midway games and 16 rides, including gentle rides for young visitors and exhilarating coasters for thrill seekers. First built in 1943, the Pleasure Pier served as a military recreation facility during WWII. Later, the City of Galveston took over, named it the Pleasure
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H O U S TO N H OT E L M A G A Z I N E
Pier, and created a sensational family tourism catalyst with rides, an arcade, an aquarium, concessions, a large ball room, and fishing at the end of the pier. Hurricane Carla destroyed the pier in 1961 but it was resurrected in 1965 as the wildly popular USS Flagship Hotel, the only hotel in the country at that time built entirely over water. The Flagship/ Pleasure Pier reigned as a star attraction until 2008 when history repeated itself and Hurricane Ike destroyed both the Flagship and the pier. Things looked grim until native Galvestonian Tilman Fertitta, CEO of Landry’s,
purchased the pier and restored it as a family fun destination with a world-class amusement park for all ages. For visitor information on Galveston’s Historic Pleasure Pier, visit: www.pleasurepier.com.