The El Paso Independent School District opened the Planetarium in 1969, and in 2001 it was renamed the Gene Roddenberry Planetarium to honor the famous El Pasoan. While normally closed to the public during the school year, it is open occasionally for public shows, and during the summer. It was a fun stop during our El Paso visit to see more of the local side of the city, and it opened a gateway to enjoying Star Trek movies with my kids!
Know Before You Go
You cannot prepurchase tickets to shows, the are only sold 30 minutes before the show, on a first come, first service basis.
We arrived an hour before the show began, and there was already a bit of a line forming.
The website states that the lobby gets warm during the summer, so dress accordingly and bring plenty of water.
There is a nice little educational exhibit in the lobby, and we enjoyed reading everything, and the several hands-on interactive displays. The hour waiting for the show flew by!
There was plenty of seating in the planetarium, and all the seats were good!
Star Trek
The Planetarium is named for the native of El Paso, Gene Roddenberry, who created the tv series, Star Trek. I’ve never really watched the series, but we purchased the newer movies on dvd, and the kids watched them on the drive to El Paso. My boys loved them, and now we can’t wait to watch the new one coming out in July, 2016.
Things To Do in El Paso
Play
Franklin Mountains State Park has terrific hiking and mountain bike trails, as well as a primitive camping sites. Click HERE to read more.
Eat
We grabbed dinner late one night at The Pizza Joint, and had the best time! There was a big chalk board for the kids to draw on, and they had board games we played while waiting on the pizza, during our meal, and long after the pizza was gone. The staff was friendly and funny, too!
Sleep
We stayed at the Hotel Indigo, and I absolutely LOVED it! Next trip, I think I want to try one of the houses on VRBO. There are some with a pool for what we paid for the hotel! Click HERE to visit VRBO in El Paso.
Gene Roddenberry Planetarium
6531 Boeing Dr, El Paso
Click HERE to visit their website.
Keep Having Fun in the Texas Sun!
Michelle
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