United States Texas Texas Guide Things To Do Essentials Where to Stay Getaways All Texas Texas Theme Parks and Amusement Parks Written by Arthur Levine Facebook Twitter Arthur is a travel writer with more than 25 years of experience. He has been covering theme parks, amusement parks, water parks, and attractions for TripSavvy since 2002. Tripsavvy's Editorial Guidelines Arthur Levine Updated 07/22/21 Share Pin Email Six Flags It's a big state. With big everything. So it should come as no surprise that Texas has plenty of theme parks and amusement parks with lots of big coasters. Among the biggest of the parks is Six Flags Over Texas, the original Six Flags park. Its claims to fame include The New Texas Giant, a legendary coaster that got a makeover in 2011 and catapulted back into a beloved ride. Six Flags Fiesta Texas, which offers lots of music and shows, is quite different from most of the other parks in the Six Flags chain. Its neighbor, SeaWorld San Antonio, is another standout among Texas parks and is especially noted for its Aquatica water park. 01 of 13 Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier IsleShire / Flickr / CC BY-SA 2.0 The small seaside amusement park includes a coaster, thrill rides, family rides, and kiddie rides. The pier also offers restaurants and shops. 02 of 13 Joyland Larry Pieniazek/Wikimedia Commons/CC BY 2.5 Joyland in Lubbock is a medium-sized, traditional amusement park with a small Galaxi steel coaster, a Mad Mouse coaster, a log flume, a gondola ride, spinning rides, thrill rides, kiddie rides, and a couple of "dry" wet rides (no bathing suits required). 03 of 13 Kemah Boardwalk Richard Cummins/Getty Images An entertainment, amusement, shopping, and restaurant complex, the rides at Kemah Boardwalk include the Boardwalk Bullet wooden coaster, a double-decker carousel, and a Ferris wheel. There is also a stingray reef and rainforest exhibit and the Boardwalk Beast speedboat thrill ride. 04 of 13 Morgan's Wonderland Druidhills/Wikimedia Commons/CC BY 3.0 This unique park in San Antonio is designed specifically for children and adults with special needs, their family members, caregivers, and friends. The attractions, which include a carousel, a pirate-themed playground, a Ferris wheel, and a splash park, all have been built with accommodations. Guests with special needs receive free admission. Reservations are required. Continue to 5 of 13 below. 05 of 13 Kiddie Park Kiddie Park The charming park in San Antonio dates back to 1925. Its owners bill it as the oldest children’s amusement park in the country. Attractions include an antique carousel, spinning helicopters, a Ferris wheel, and other classic rides. There are also live pony rides, carnival games, an arcade, and face painting. 06 of 13 SeaWorld San Antonio Buddy Mays/Getty Images Part of the SeaWorld chain (there are locations in San Diego and Orlando as well), the marine life park offers shows and exhibits along with rides and the Aquatica water park. Themed rides include Wave Breaker, the Rescue Coaster. 07 of 13 Six Flags Fiesta Texas Arthur Levine The major theme park in San Antonio is known as much for its stage shows as its rides and features rock, soul, oldies, and other genres. Among its standout attractions is Iron Rattler, a wonderful hybrid wooden-steel coaster. Included with admission are the water park rides at White Water Bay. 08 of 13 Six Flags Over Texas Six Flags One of Six Flags' flagship parks (and the original park in the chain), it is loaded with coasters and many other rides. Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington boasts the industry's first log flume ride, the first mine train coaster, and the first hybrid wooden-steel coaster. It also features Six Flags' first Justice League: Battle for Metropolis interactive 4-D ride. Continue to 9 of 13 below. 09 of 13 Tilt Studio in Beaumont and Katy Nickels and Dimes Incorporated The indoor family entertainment centers offer arcades, snack bars, laser tag, bowling, mini-golf, and Outrun 2 racing simulator attractions. The Beaumont location also features bumper cars and a Himalaya spinning ride. The Katy Tilt Studio has a Tilt-A-Whirl spinning ride. 10 of 13 Traders Village in Grand Prairie, Houston, and San Antonio Traders Village The Traders Village locations are primarily flea markets that each attract thousands of dealers to their sprawling sites. But they also offer small amusement parks with rides such as Village Vortex, which sends passengers looping upside down; The Fleafall, a drop tower ride; and kiddie rides, including a carousel, a helicopter spinning ride, and a climbing structure. For 2021, the Grand Prairie park is opening Prairie Screamer, an 80-foot-tall, 50 MPH roller coaster. Traders Village also offers events such as festivals, concerts, and pro wrestling, as well as RV parks at the Houston and Grand Prairie locations. 11 of 13 Wonderland Park Billy Hathorn/Wikimedia Commons/CC BY-SA 3.0 The classic amusement park in Amarillo features three major roller coasters, including the looping Texas Tornado. It also offers a great collection of water rides such as the Big Splash log flume, the Shoot the Chute splashdown ride, and the Rattlesnake River raft ride. Wonderland also has a sky ride and mini-golf. 12 of 13 Western Playland Western Playland The medium-sized amusement park in El Paso offers the Hurricane roller coaster, a spinning coaster, the Tsunami splashdown ride, a drop tower ride, kiddie rides, and additional thrill rides. Continue to 13 of 13 below. 13 of 13 ZDT's Amusement Park ZDT's Amusement Park The small amusement park in Seguin offers the unique wooden coaster, Switchback. it also has other rides, go-karts, water park attractions, and the unique wooden coaster, Switchback, a climbing wall, and an arcade. Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Share Pin Email Tell us why! Submit