Starting October 7, the San Jacinto Monument's Observation Floor will close for renovation, open on weekends, with discounted museum admission during this time.

A tour guide gesturing to a plaque on the outside wall of the San Jacinto Monument

Group Visits and Field Trips

Y’all Come!

THE MONUMENT IS THE PERFECT PLACE for your group’s day of fun and learning. Church outing? Girl Scouts? Athletic club? Reading group? Fraternity or Sorority? If you’re planning a group event in the Houston area, San Jacinto is for you.

From the world’s tallest monument tower to the coastal prairie’s natural beauty — the San Jacinto Museum and Battlefield promises something for everyone.

Check out general visitor information and tips for day trips before you come. Group discounts are available for the museum, and admission to the site is free. If you need help facilitating your group function, contact us and a staff member will help.

How Much Time is Required for a Typical Museum Tour?

For groups visiting the Monument, the typical visit including all venues, from arrival to leaving the site, lasts 1 1/2 to 3 hours. Please call 281.479.2421 if you have specific questions about time commitments based on your specific tour requirements.

To get started, please choose "Corporate Outings,” “Community,” or “Field Trips” below to learn more or contact us today.

Corporate Outings and Community Visits

Corporate OutingsExpand

Client entertainment? Sales meeting? Team building?

Think outside of the bar! The San Jacinto Museum and Battlefield provides the perfect environment for building relationships between people and groups, fostering organizational teamwork, and feeding your corporate culture something positive and interesting.

While the nearby Battleground at Deer Park golf course and the Monument Inn restaurant provide outstanding traditional client entertainment, a visit to San Jacinto Museum and the San Jacinto Battlefield educates and inspires its visitors.

Make your next meeting an event to remember — at the San Jacinto Museum.  If you’d like help planning your visit, a San Jacinto Museum staff member will help to facilitate your meeting.

We offer discounts for groups merely passing through. Special benefits are granted to Corporate Sponsors.  

Start Planning

Reservations

CommunityExpand

Are you interested in injecting some real color and context to your history club? Wanting to ignite the curiosity of young minds - or older minds? Interested in earning a scout badge? Or are you just looking for a fun getaway for the kids? Whatever your purposes, the San Jacinto Museum and Battlefield is a fascinating and fun destination for your group. If they’re not careful, group visitors just might leave with a little knowledge.

Educational opportunities abound. We even have a curriculum guide to help teachers plan.

Given enough time in a day, your group can get a feel for what the Texian and Mexican soldiers were experiencing before, during and after the most critical 18 minutes in Texas history. There are self-tours and educational programs that are sure to intrigue and inspire. Or schedule a guided hike for your group.

Whether you taking advantage of our educational programs or are simply coming out for an afternoon, the San Jacinto Museum and Battlefield never disappoints.  

Schedule your visit today! 

Schedule your visit today

Field Trips

TEACHING GRADE-SCHOOL HISTORY? Graduate-level military studies? Local culture? Ethnic history? Engineering? Design? We’ve got 1,200 acres of landmarks, landscapes, and learning that will bring insight and inspiration to your lessons. Each year, over 30,000 students visit The San Jacinto Museum and Battlefield.

Given enough time in a day, your students can get a feel for what the Texian and Mexican soldiers were experiencing before, during, and after the most critical 18 minutes in Texas history. There are self-tours and educational programs that are sure to intrigue and inspire.

School groups receive discounted admission to all venues.

Whether you are taking advantage of our educational programs or are simply bringing the students out for an afternoon, the San Jacinto Museum and Battlefield never disappoints. Please take a moment to fill out our reservation form at Calendly and we’ll help you start planning right away.

Planning Your Field TripExpand

Field trip reservations must be made at least two weeks ahead of your visit. Certain times fill very quickly, and we encourage schools to make reservations well in advance.  

 

  • Field trips are offered Wednesday through Friday, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. They usually last two hours, but groups over 100 students will need an extra hour. Plan on arriving half an hour before your start time to check in.
  • Field trips consist of a virtual pre-visit lesson; Texas Forever!! The Battle of San Jacinto, a 35-minute movie; the main exhibit, which includes an activity; the special exhibit; and a post-visit activity.
  • Groups of over 50 students will be broken into two subgroups that alternate activities. Groups of over 100 students will be broken into three subgroups—two doing activities in the museum and one eating lunch/taking a self-guided tour of the site. If your group is larger than 200 students, please contact us to ask how we can accommodate your group.
  • Maintain a one-to-ten teacher/chaperone-to-student ratio for the safety of your students and for protection of rare items in the Museum.
Arriving at the MonumentExpand
  • When planning your bus trip using the Lynchburg ferry route to the Museum, allow extra time for ferrying and traffic congestion.
  • Stop to unload students on the west side of the Monument.
  • School Group Fees
    • $5 per student
    • $5 per teachers/chaperones/bus driver
    • Thanks to generous grants from the M.D. Anderson Foundation, Kinder Morgan Foundation and LyondellBasell, school group fees for Title 1 schools will be waived on a first come, first served basis. Contact us for more information.
  • Groups must have a minimum of 10 students to qualify for the field trip rate.
  • Payment for field trips is due upon arrival. All major credit cards are accepted. Please make checks out to the San Jacinto Museum. 
  • No food or drinks are allowed inside the Museum. Backpacks and lunches should be left on the bus.
Enjoying the MonumentExpand
  • Teachers and chaperones are responsible for supervising students during their visit and facilitating the activity in the main exhibit gallery. 
  • Time in the museum’s gift store can be included in the schedule! However, space is limited, and students must be supervised by a chaperone while in the store. 
  • Encourage students to keep voices low. Because walls of the museum are made of hard materials, even moderate voice levels are amplified. Obviously, running and disruptive behavior is prohibited.
  • The elevator at the San Jacinto Memorial Monument can hold 6 to 10 people; be sure to have a chaperone or teacher with the students in the elevator and on the Observation Deck.  
School Program OptionsExpand

Four different programs are available. Each program is TEKS-aligned for 4th grade social studies, but can work for a wider age-range as well.

 

  • Texas Revolution Celebrities (recommended for 4th grade) Who helped shape the Texas Revolution and the outcome of the Battle of San Jacinto? What were they like? What did they do? In this program, we will look at some of the notable figures who were part of the last battle of the Texas Revolution. This program will introduce students to a wide variety of primary sources and deepen their knowledge of the Texas Revolution and the Battle of San Jacinto.  See a preview of Texas Revolution Celebrities program.
  • Discovering the Battle of San Jacinto in Primary Sources (recommended for 7th grade) The Battle of San Jacinto was a pivotal moment in Texas history, but it happened long before anyone alive now was born. How do historians know what happened during the battle? One of the major ways is by studying primary sources, things like letters, journal entries, artifacts and maps that were created during the time period or by people who were involved in the events. In this program, students will learn what primary sources are and have a chance to analyze some primary sources from the Battle of San Jacinto.  See a preview of Discovering the Battle of San Jacinto in Primary Sources program.
  • Visualizing the Runaway Scrape (recommended for 4th and 7th grade) As the Texian and Mexican armies marched towards San Jacinto, terrified Texians abandoned their homes and fled east towards safety. This panicked evacuation of women, children, the elderly and enslaved people was known as the Runaway Scrape. In this program, students learn about the people who participated in the Runaway Scrape, their experiences, their motivations, and some of the hardships they endured.  See a preview of Visualizing the Runaway Scrape program.
  • The Battle of San Jacinto & the Birth of Texas (recommended for classes that have not covered the Texas Revolution and the Battle of San Jacinto) The eighteen-minute Battle of San Jacinto changed the course of Texas history forever. General Houston’s victory at San Jacinto and the capture of General Santa Anna the next day secured Texas’s independence from Mexico, paving the way for eventual statehood. In this program, students will learn about what happened in the battle, the people who fought in it and discover what they can learn from what participants left behind.  See a preview of The Battle of San Jacinto & the Birth of Texas program.
     

If you are not interested in a pre-visit lesson, pick the Battle of San Jacinto & the Birth of Texas program.

Please contact our education staff with any questions regarding booking a field trip to the San Jacinto Monument, by phone at 281-479-2431 or by email.

Safety FirstExpand
  • Remind students not to run or jump on the Monument steps, terraces, or anywhere inside the Museum.
  • Caution students not to stand, sit or play near the terrace ledge.
  • Caution students that the limestone terrace and stairs are slippery when wet.
    Have students remain in their groups with their group leaders.
Visiting the SiteExpand
  • There are three picnic areas available for eating lunch at the San Jacinto Battleground, including one next to the monument.
  • The San Jacinto Chapter of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas has placed markers throughout the San Jacinto Battleground State Historical Site to help interpret the actions of the two armies on April 20 and 21, 1836.

Group Visits Gallery