save the date

9 last-minute date ideas for a fun-filled Valentine's Day in Houston

Take the plunge at iFly.

Photo by iFLY

Valentine's Day is here, which means romantic meals out, intimate evenings in, or, desperation — when realizing that Valentine's Day date hasn't yet been booked.

Not to worry: we're here to help, and have rounded up some fun activities around Houston that include glowing walks with dragons, posh pampering, and even indoor skydiving.

Book an experience, make it a spontaneous event, and see where the day and night ends. (And thank us later.)

Posh pampering at the largest luxury spa in Texas, Trellis Spa

Tell your date to get off work early, and book a few hours — or a day — of pampering at Trellis Spa. Guests are encouraged to experience the water circuit in the outdoor Soaking Pools & Garden, where they can rent a cabana to soak in Vitamin D while enjoying drinks and bites outdoors.

Behold the new Float Pool at the Trellis Spa. Photo courtesy The Houstonian Hotel & Spa

After a massage, facial, or mani/pedi, gather the glam squad to savor a delicious meal, a glass of bubbly, and beautiful wooded views from Trellis Spa's restaurant.

A glowing date at Radiant Nature at Houston Botanic Gardens

A walk-and-talk moment is the foundation of any rom-com, and couples and dates will have plenty of opportunities at Radiant Nature now running at Houston Botanic Gardens. Book an evening stroll through the dazzling and stunning immersive exhibition, which takes inspiration from the Lunar New Year and showcases many Chinese-inspired works: 50 paper lanterns, a Chinese pagoda, and the enormous, 200-foot dragon.

Radiant Nature Houston Botanic Garden The dazzling Radiant Nature at Houston Botanic Garden. Photo via Houston Botanic Garden

Pass through the 100-foot magnolia tunnel, a walk-in kaleidoscope, and a Texas prairie with 10-foot bluebonnets, along with lighted swings, and other interactive exhibitions for perfect IG — and romantic — moments.

Sultry fun and cabaret at Live at the Founders Club,

Be one of the first to enjoyLive at the Founders Club, a nightclub cabaret experience in downtown Houston. The Hobby Center for the Performing Arts recently announced the concept and its first performer Holland Vara. The Founders Club at the Hobby Center has been transformed into an intimate cabaret club with tables for four, light bites, and cocktails. A unique night out for friends, Holland Vera will put her own spin on classic love songs, making them into something entirely unexpected. Tickets are available here.

Be one of the first to enjoy the newly opened Founders Club for a night of cabaret. Photo courtesy of The Founders Club

Luxuriate in Texas' only Forbes Five-Star rated spa, The Spa at The Post Oak Hotel

The Spa Post Oak Hotel Tilman Fertitta Pause to enjoy the hydro-thermal experiences. Photo courtesy of The Spa at the Post Oak Hotel

Gift your date spa time to a whole new level at Texas' only Double Five-Star rated hotel and spa and the only Five-Star rated spa in the Lone Star State. In addition to a menu of top-of-the-line facials, massages, and self-care rituals, The Spa at The Post Oak Hotel offers several amenities, including an aroma steam room, tranquility pool, multi-sensory shower experience, and sauna.

The jeans come off at “Fiber in 3D: Indigo Houston” at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft

This clever exhibit at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft is an ideal talker, as it uses material from 67 pairs of donated denim jeans. Artists Baggs McKelvey disassembled, cut, tied, and spooled the fabric, turning it into nearly 6000 feet of handcrafted denim rope.

Fiber in 3D: Indigo Houston Houston Center for Contemporary Craft "Fiber in 3D: Indigo Houston" uses material from 67 pairs of donated denim jeans.Photo courtesy of Fiber Art Now and the artist

Officially, the installation serves as both commentary on the “fraught social history of denim in the United States” and as a reminder of the history of denim as a material of art and craft, says HCCC. But the idea of deconstructing jeans and what to do with them could lead to some blush-worthy comments and moments.

Unleash that inner 13-year-old at Sloomoo Institute

Designed not just for kids – but for the kids in each of us — Sloomoo Institute features over-the-top installations that engage the senses. Make your own slime at the world's largest DIY Slime Bar; the opportunity to get slimed at Sloomoo Falls, satisfying ASMR experiences with immersive video, sound, and scent, and all-new experiences like Slimey Fossils where guests explore slime imprints.

Total 13 going on 30 vibes at Sloomoo Institute. Photo courtesy of Sloomoo Institute

To celebrate the holiday, Sloomoo will have V-Day decorations throughout the experience, as well as Valentine's Day-themed photo booth, activity sheets, and other fun accessories. Some of the best dates are the messiest, no?

Get in it to win it at Activate

The newly opened Activateprovides high-tech games that test your date's physical and mental agility across various real-life challenges. Participants can immerse themselves in realistic arcade games and compete alongside a team of at least two to five others.

Enjoy a bit of friendly competition at Activate this Galentine's Day. Photo by Activate

Activate features 11 activity rooms with over 500 games and difficulty levels, each lasting one to three minutes. Wristbands track participants' scores and progress, making them perfect for some coy smack talk as you two compete for bragging rights later.

Journey underground forHaha Real at the Buffalo Bayou Park Cistern

Link hands and venture underground and view the new multi-media installation in the Buffalo Bayou Park Cistern. Rachel Rossin's Haha Real is inspired by the classic children's story, The Velveteen Rabbit. This very dark installation at the Cistern blends AI animation techniques and video-game engine graphics with traditional art. Couples can enjoy a landscape of holographic figures and an immersive soundscape by Houston-born musician Frewuhn. Tickets are available here.

Haha Real Buffalo Bayou Park Cistern Enjoy the newest installation at Buffalo Bayou Park Cistern. Photo by Zainob+Mathew Create

Take the plunge at iFLY

Everyone looks good in a flight suit and goggles, so why not take the plunge at iFLY. For the holiday, first-time flyers can get four flights and two videos shared by two people, making it twice the fun. The exclusive package will be available for purchase online and at iFLY tunnels from February 1 through February 19.

Take advantage of a great flying package at iFLY. Photo by iFLY

sushi classes in houston custom lipstick the founders club things to do in houston galentine's day ideas

Movie Review

New horror film Nosferatu pays homage to the cult-classic original

Photo courtesy of Focus Features

Lily Rose Depp in Nosferatu

The original Nosferatu from 1922 is one loved by cinephiles, a silent German Expressionist film that is regarded by many as the most influential horror film from early cinema. A loose adaptation of Bram Stroker’s Dracula, it is now being remade for a modern audience by a singular filmmaker in his own right, Robert Eggers.

This Nosferatu plays much like an homage to the original, following the same basic story centered on Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp) and Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult). The firm Thomas works for is selling a decrepit mansion to Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård), but in order to seal the deal, Thomas must travel to Transylvania to have Orlok sign the papers in person.

Both Ellen and Thomas fall under a type of spell from Orlok, with Ellen having a secret history with the count that she never divulged to Thomas. Insatiable, Orlok pursues Thomas, Ellen, and more across Europe, with his influence causing a mania among a population already afraid of the Black Death.

Written and directed by Eggers, the film is both straightforward in its storytelling and enigmatic in its details. To underscore Orlok’s sorcery, there are a number of sequences that may or may not actually be taking place, with characters waking up as if out of a nightmare. The spooky mood is felt throughout the film through visuals and sound, an unease that’s never all that scary but is unsettling nonetheless.

Eggers seems determined to pay tribute to F.W. Murnau’s film while also putting his own touches on the story. A couple of scenes utilizing shadows are mesmerizing in their execution and in the way they call back to similar scenes in the 1922 version. While most vampire movies have victims being bitten on the neck, Eggers has his characters attacked on the chest, a weird placement that seems designed both to upend expectations and to make things extra creepy.

It’s a good thing Eggers does a great job with the atmosphere of the film because he allows his actors to indulge in melodramatic acting that threatens to take away any power the story has. Given the time period in which the film takes place and the events it features, the technique is somewhat effective, but never fully involving, and could even be considered laughable by some.

Depp is the biggest offender in this regard, and her performance is so over-the-top that it is a slight hindrance to the central role of Ellen. As the villain, Skarsgård can be given more leeway, and he makes the biggest impact with just his choice of voice. Hoult, appearing in his fourth film in 2024, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson give similar solid performances, and Willem Dafoe is typically great as a professor hired to try to end Orlok’s reign of terror.

While there is some blood and gore in the film, this Nosferatu resembles the original most in the way it insinuates horror instead of actually showing it. Eggers — whose previous two films were The Lighthouse and The Northman — loves himself a good period story, and his respect for film history and unique style both shine through here.

---

Nosferatu is now playing in theaters,

movies film

save the date

9 last-minute date ideas for a fun-filled Valentine's Day in Houston

CultureMap Emails Are AwesomeGet Houston intel delivered daily.

We will not share or sell your email address.

Movie Review

New horror film Nosferatu pays homage to the cult-classic original

CultureMap Emails Are Awesome
Get Houston intel delivered daily.