Weekend events planner

Here are the top 7 things to do in Houston this weekend

You’ve been working hard all week, so let loose this weekend with our picks for the best things to do in Houston. We've rounded up seven can’t-miss events, happening Thursday through Sunday. Head to a special happy hour featuring a limited-offer brew. Catch a musical. Or, sip some stellar wines at a downtown steakhouse. For more options, check out the full CultureMap Events Calendar.

Happy hour fiesta
Thursday, January 11
Sip the latest member of Saint Arnold Brewing Company’s special Icon series, Icon Blue – Chocolate Milk Stout, during happy hour at Hugo’s. Available only for a three-month period, the brew features Mexican chocolate tablets made by James Beard Award-winning chef Hugo Ortega. The event also includes samples of beer cocktails by sommelier Sean Beck, a masa-based food demonstration, and beer-based Mexican street foods. (5:30 to 7:30 pm; tickets: $25 per person)
1600 Westheimer Rd.; 713-524-7744

Musical evening
Thursday, January 11 to Sunday, January 14
BBVA Compass Broadway presents The Color Purple: The Musical at the Hobby Center. The 2016 Tony Award winner for Best Musical Revival is a re-imagining of the Pulitzer Prize-winning story about a young woman’s journey to love and triumph in the American South, with a score of jazz, gospel, ragtime, and blues tunes. (Various times; tickets: $35-$165 per person)
800 Bagby St.; 713-315-2525

Moving strings
Thursday, January 11 to Saturday, January 13
Head to Jones Hall for a performance of Bartók’s masterful Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta, featured in Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, as conductor Andrés Orozco-Estrada leads the symphony, including multifaceted pianist Kirill Gerstein who returns to the stage for a performance of Brahms’ Piano Concerto No. 1. (8 pm; tickets: $23-$120 per person)
615 Louisiana St.; 713-315-2525

Special sips
Friday, January 12
The Guided Master’s Wine Tasting at Pappas Bros. Steakhouse Downtown offers a taste of some of the most prized gems on the Pappas Bros. wine list, presented by master sommelier Jack Mason. Your ticket also includes a chef’s selection of hors d’oeuvres. (6 pm; tickets: $300 per person)
1200 McKinney; 713-658-1995

Shop away
Saturday, January 13
Shop for more than 100 varieties of fruit trees, adapted to grow in Houston climate and soils, at Urban Harvest’s fruit tree sale. You can also expect a Green Thumbs Education Pavilion with nutritional and environmental activities for kids, live music, food trucks, and a drawing for a free tree. (9 am to 1 pm; tickets: admission is free)
5601 W. Loop S.; 713-880-5540

Race day
Saturday, January 13
Gear up for Monster Energy AMA Supercross at NRG Park. Motorbike racers compete on a dirt track with daring obstacles and gravity-defying jumps. (6:30 pm; tickets: $30-$136 per person)
One Reliant Park; 713-629-3700

Take your mark
Sunday, January 14
Show your support for the Chevron Houston Marathon by cheering on participants. The marathon and half-marathon wheelchair start time is 6:45 am, while the marathon and half-marathon begin at 7 am. For course info, click here.

Gear up for Monster Energy AMA Supercross at NRG Park.

Photo courtesy of Monster Energy AMA Supercross

Gear up for Monster Energy AMA Supercross at NRG Park.

event-planner

concert news

Jimmy Buffett’s Coral Reefer Band will keep the party going in Houston

Photo courtesy of Jimmy Buffett's Coral Reefer Band

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Death is proving to be no obstacle in keeping the spirit of Jimmy Buffett alive, as his Coral Reefer Band will set off on the Keep The Party Going Tour in 2026, which will include a stop at the The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands on Friday, July 24.

The monthlong tour will start on July 9 in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, traveling to 19 cities. In addition to Houston, the band will play in Austin on July 23 and Fort Worth on July 25.

Buffett passed away in 2023 after a battle with skin cancer, but before he died, he asked that everyone “keep the party going.”

The Coral Reefer Band backed Buffett around the world for decades, and they'll continue the tradition of delivering singalong-filled summer nights that Buffett made a yearly ritual for Parrotheads everywhere.

Sharing lead vocals on the tour will be Mac McAnally, Scotty Emerick, Will Kimbrough, Peter Mayer, and Nadirah Shakoor.

Fans can expect an evening filled with many of the iconic songs that defined Buffett’s career, as well as deep cuts and special insights and stories from the musicians who shared such a deep connection with the singer.

Buffett's long career included over 30 albums, many of which reached the top 10 on the Billboard 200. For all of his success, it took Buffett 34 years until he achieved his first — and only — No. 1 album of his career, License to Chill in 2004.

His most iconic song is "Margaritaville," which inspired both a restaurant chain and hotel and resort chain.

On the tour, the band will also honor another long-standing tradition of Buffett’s by continuing to support the charity, Singing for Change, to fund grassroots, local non-traditional community organizations turning good vibes into good deeds.

Tickets for the tour will be available starting with a Citi presale beginning on Tuesday, March 17, at 10 am.

Additional presales will run throughout the week ahead of the general on-sale on Friday, March 20, at 10 am at LiveNation.com.

JIMMY BUFFETT’S CORAL REEFER BAND – 2026 TOUR DATES

Jul 9 — Bethlehem, PA — Wind Creek Event Center
Jul 10 — Atlantic City, NJ — Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena
Jul 11 — Washington, DC — The Theater at MGM National Harbor
Jul 14 — Wilmington, NC — Live Oak Bank Pavilion at Riverfront Park
Jul 16 — Charlotte, NC — Truliant Amphitheater
Jul 18 — Atlanta, GA — Synovus Bank Amphitheater at Chastain Park
Jul 19 — Orange Beach, AL — The Wharf Amphitheater
Jul 21 — Rogers, AR — Walmart AMP
Jul 23 — Austin, TX — Moody Amphitheater at Waterloo Park
Jul 24 — Houston, TX — The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion Sponsored by Huntsman
Jul 25 — Fort Worth, TX — Dickies Arena
Jul 28 — Highland Park, IL — Ravinia
Jul 30 — Indianapolis, IN — Everwise Amphitheater at White River State Park
Jul 31 — Grand Rapids, MI — Acrisure Amphitheater
Aug 1 — Clarkston, MI — Pine Knob Music Theatre
Aug 4 — Holmdel, NJ — PNC Bank Arts Center
Aug 6 — Wantagh, NY — Northwell at Jones Beach Theater
Aug 7 — Gilford, NH — BankNH Pavilion
Aug 8 — Boston, MA — Leader Bank Pavilion