Visit Corpus Christi
The Gulf Coast Capital
Corpus Christi, TX, US
Destination profile
About Corpus Christi
The Gulf Coast Capital pairs a walkable bayfront convention district — Hilliard Center with 138,000 sq ft of space and a 10,000-seat arena — with 9,500 hotel rooms, 120+ miles of beach and an airport 12 minutes from downtown.
Corpus Christi is the largest coastal city in Texas and the gateway to Padre Island National Seashore, the longest undeveloped barrier island in the world. The destination draws more than 10 million visitors a year on the strength of 220+ days of sunshine, 120+ miles of public beach and a compact, walkable bayfront convention district.
Meetings anchor at Hilliard Center — formerly the American Bank Center — owned by the City of Corpus Christi and operated by Oak View Group. The complex combines a 138,000 sq ft convention center with 76,500 sq ft of exhibit hall, 25,000 and 18,500 sq ft ballrooms and 22 meeting rooms, a 10,000-seat arena and the historic 2,526-seat Selena Auditorium. The Omni Corpus Christi Hotel (475 rooms, 24,000+ sq ft) and Holiday Inn Downtown Marina (345 rooms) sit within walking distance, with roughly 9,500 hotel and condo rooms citywide and more than 1,800 within three miles of the complex.
Between sessions groups can board the USS Lexington, meet dolphins at the Texas State Aquarium, tour the Art Museum of South Texas, fish the Laguna Madre flats, sail Corpus Christi Bay or run the beaches of North Padre Island. The city is also the "Birdiest City in America", a title it has held for two decades, and the hometown of Tejano legend Selena Quintanilla.
City-wide profile
Why meet in Corpus Christi
Capacity, access and planner support for Corpus Christi, at a glance.
Top reasons to visit
Why planners choose Corpus Christi
- Bayfront convention district — Hilliard Center, 76,500 sq ft of exhibit space and 1,800+ hotel rooms within three miles
- Beaches and the outdoors — 120+ miles of public beach, Padre Island National Seashore and the Laguna Madre
- 220+ days of sunshine and a walkable downtown seawall with dining, marina and the Art Museum of South Texas
Inventory & capacity
Access & district
- Airport proximity
- Corpus Christi International (CRP) ~10 mi, 12–15 min to downtown hotels and the convention center
- Air lift access
- Corpus Christi International (CRP): nonstop service to Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW), Houston (IAH and HOU) and Austin (AUS). No scheduled international flights — international groups connect through DFW, IAH or SAT (143 mi).
- District transit & walkability
- Compact bayfront core: Hilliard Center, the Omni (0.6 mi) and the Holiday Inn Downtown Marina are connected by a 1.5-mile seawall promenade with restaurants, marina and attractions. The CCRTA (B-Line and Route 77) serves downtown, rideshare is plentiful and motorcoach drop-off is at the venue porte-cochère. Parking sits in venue-owned lots and downtown garages.
Operations & incentives
- Labor & vendor status
- Texas is a right-to-work state. Hilliard Center is operated by Oak View Group with OVG Hospitality as the exclusive food, beverage and alcohol provider; a 21% catered-events management charge applies. Stagehand labor at the arena is non-union and booked through the event manager, and security, police and medical staffing are arranged by the venue.
- Local taxes & fees
- Hotel occupancy tax 15% on sleeping rooms (6% Texas state + 9% City of Corpus Christi). State and local sales/use tax 8.25%, which also applies to ticketed admissions and equipment rentals at Hilliard Center.
- Planner incentives & subvention
- Visit Corpus Christi provides RFP and bid support, complimentary site inspections, hotel room-block coordination, offsite and group-experience sourcing, attendance-building tools and an Attendee Savings Pass for delegates. No per-room rebate program is published; group support is negotiated case by case.
Hilliard Center
Corpus Christi, TX, US
The Hilliard Center is a full-service, first-class facility positioned on the South Texas Coast. Situated dire...
Selena Auditorium
Corpus Christi, TX, US
Corpus Christi International Airport (CRP) is about 10 miles — 12 to 15 minutes — from the bayfront convention district, with nonstop service to Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston (IAH and HOU) and Austin. By road, I-37 connects Corpus Christi to San Antonio (about 143 miles) and the Texas Hill Country; I-69E and US-77 link the Rio Grande Valley.
Parking
Hilliard Center owns and operates several surface lots and garages around the complex, with advance reservations available through ParkMobile; the loading dock is accessed from N. Chaparral Street. Downtown hotels and the seawall district add private garage and valet capacity within walking distance. Motorcoach and oversized-vehicle staging is arranged with the venue event manager.
