They call it Port Aransas: Where they bite everyday. It has been years since Alicia Walker wrote, “The ocean is the soul of Port Aransas, and its allure softens the saltiest of hearts,” but this charming city of Texas still melts the hearts of thousands of visitors and tourists every year. The peaceful ocean water views as you drive to Port Aransas from Corpus Christi, , the vibrant lifestyle of a free, partying people, the endless movement of golf carts exploring the city, the endless stream of RVs seeking a spot, the great walls of graffiti—Port Aransas remains cluttered and unkempt, and yet absolutely enchanting. It is no surprise that travelers tend to linger here before returning to the bustle of Corpus Christi or shuttling south towards South Padre Island, The Aransas Pass, or the hugely popular Rockport Beach and Mustang Island. A visit to Port Aransas would be incomplete without sampling the allure of Rockport Beach. Whether to do a barbeque by the beach, a picnic for the family or simply to gaze and play lazily at its beautiful beach and endless waters, the presence of water here speaks to the heart in a a very special way. And there are plenty of hotels, beachfront cabanas, and condos for those whom the beauty of Rockport begs to stay.
Location
Located on the North Padre Island, 40 miles (44 minutes) from the beautiful city of Corpus Christi, Port Aransas is one of the longest barrier islands on the Texas coast and lives peacefully surrounded by her neighbors, Corpus Christi, the Gulf of Mexico, the Lydia Ann Ship Channel and the Corpus Christi Ship Channel.
Once the rough-and-tumble home of sailors, pirates, anglers, stevedores, and prostitutes, Port Aransas has been transformed into a center of adventurous art, food, and culture. But the change has not come easy. In the 20th century, the city survived a massive hurricane with the latest being Hurricane Harvey in 2017. But the beach lovers refused to give the forces of nature a chance and with amazing resilience rebuilt the city to once more welcome the thousands of American and foreign tourist migrants who knock on its doors annually. Despite a two-hundred-year struggle, the city has managed to retain its finest Spaniard quirks. From afar, Port Aransas might resemble a small fishing village, or perhaps a port on the Mediterranean, but a closer look reveals a more complicated identity.
The Beauty and Activities at Port Aransas
- A tangled mess of streets hides beautiful beachfront cabanas and condos, lively entertainment houses, hotels, bars, and with live bands and beautiful gyrating beauties, colorful murals and abstract paintings sprayed on buildings share a vibrant, fragmented view of modern life in Port Aransas. Some tell political stories while others challenge artistic conventions, but each one is strange and beautiful in its way—even the caricatures embody a deeper meaning.
- The overall quality of the street art speaks of the city’s soul. Whereas other places might disallow graffiti, Port Aransas, just like the city of Corpus Christi, seems to invite its artists to share their dreams with the public.
- While the murals are enough to keep cameras out of bags and in hands, focusing on them alone would be a mistake. The streets are framed by narrow, vividly painted two-story houses. According to legend, property owners would acquire paint that was left by ships in port, so houses were soon coated with shades like canary yellow, lime green, and sky blue. Today, the colors are an attraction; they contrast stark gray afternoons and the thick smell of sea salt. For the best view of the colorful neighborhoods, rent and ride on the popular golf carts.
- One of the greatest attractions that lure vacationers to Port Aransas is the vantage points for dolphin watching. You can watch Dolphins do the summersault right before your eyes in Roberts Point Park (Located at 301 J C Barr Blvd in Port Aransas, Texas, 78373), Nature’s Preserve at Charlie’s Pasture (Located at 1356 Ross Avenue in Port Aransas, Texas, 78373), The Fisherman’s Wharf (900 Tarpon Street in Port Aransas, Texas, 78323) and the Station Street Pier (1009 N Station Street in Port Aransas, Texas, 78323).
- You will also want to visit the Beach Street Pier and the Port Aransas Jetty for a clean and unobstructed view of the vast and beautiful Gulf of Mexico. There is also the annual Sand Fest in April, which draws thousands of people to watch gifted sculptors and also participate in building elaborate sandcastles that shine light in the eyes of children and adults alike. It is a pompous event with live music, food, vendors and shopping.
- Food enthusiasts have good reason to flock to Port Aransas, too, as cafés and restaurants have popped up, like wild mushrooms, in the most unexpected places. Certain mid-range restaurants—for example, Fins & Grill House set in a 19th century-like structure, whose quaint garden seating looks out over the harbor—deliver fresh seafood and glasses of beer and margaritas and even burgers. Others such as Bijoux serve fusion cuisine befitting this cultural hodgepodge. Even frugal travelers can enjoy fine dining at affordable prices: flaky restaurants stuffed with meat, fish, and cheese are available throughout town, and by the harbor restaurants, a thick seafood stew, for less than $10. For good drinks with a vintage twist, there is numerous small open-air bars, which deliver coffee by day and pisco sours by night, when it turns into a jazz bar. From fetching bistros to art-house nightlife, the city’s food scene accommodates New World tastes without sacrificing its Old-World flair.
Port Aransas Night Life
Port Aransas is best explored by foot or golf carts because the sights can be as haphazardly laid as the city. When the weather is right, couples, kids, and families spend hours in the beaches, hotels, and plazas that speckle the city. Skateboards grind against metal bars, swing sets moan, and teenagers smooch in the shadows. Packs of street-happy people roam like lions inside shuttered fresh markets. Seagulls swarm the port, begging for breadcrumbs where visitors stand watching street performances. There is a hypnotic quality to this no-holds-barred state of being. An afternoon is just as well spent exploring the city—feeling paint with fingertips, taking photos of old stuff from cars to houses, and stopping for a cup of coffee or two—as it is with a structured plan.
As the sun resigns for the day, and dips below the horizon, saying goodbye with a beautiful golden glow over the Gulf of Mexico, the engaging and happy-go-lucky nightlife of Port Aransas takes over as the city transforms itself into a haven of relaxation, ululations, excitement and music. Live music and the chatter of tourists, locals, and vacationers take up all the air. The many small streets emerge with an amazing display of neon lights as agile band members and revelers alike set the tone for the night. The sweet aroma of the storied Texas barbeque mixes with the aroma of cooking seafood to send the visitors into a frenzy of entry and exit into and out of the restaurants as guests spill out onto the sidewalks.
There are yet others who never want to leave the beach, day or night. By night they gather around beach bonfires, amidst crackling flames, telling stories, sharing family experiences, and investing in sweet memories under the stars, sometimes as they roast, the sound of the waves provides a soothing backdrop to the tales they tell, as if encouraging them to be a constant companion to the vast ocean for the night, or simply saluting them for passing by, to bear witness to this Texas beauty. Local folks will sometimes be found in the mix telling gory stories of ghosts, of shipwrecks, the vicious pirates who ruled the Aransas of yore, and the never-ending story of the buried treasure by a famous pirate Captain Jean Lafitte that nobody has been able to find, and which is believed to hold vast wealth in gold and jewels. And as you chat, the people of the ocean never stop doing their thing. Under the star-lit sky, if you throw your eyes to the horizon, you will still see the anglers, and boats sailing under the stars with their neon lights presenting to the eye the amazing beauty on the horizon.
Conclusion
This beachside city is not named Port Aransas: Where they bite every day for nothing. Going there is indeed a big bite. You get a good chunk of everything. The annual migration of Texans and Americans and indeed international visitors will continue to this fishing capital of America, the over 60,000 visitors who go to Aransas continuing to swell, drawn by the cocktail of activities, beauty, day and nightlife, friendliness of the people and the bevy of beauties who color the city. This is the place President Franklin Roosevelt went to amidst a stormy Congress debate on an important bill and said, ‘I will be back”. And he went back. Because few ideal vacation places in Texas and America offer so much like Port Aransas.
There is a languid, graceful flow to Port Aransas. This is the city that melts hearts that Alicia wrote about, and it is still there for travelers to see now. Still living up to its nickname, where they bite every day.
