By: Kylie Kinnett Photos by: Rachael Benavides
How did you decide to start Enjoy Corpus Christi Tours?
After we retired from traditional employment about two years ago, we traveled a bit, and while we were traveling, we made the decision to start our tour business in Corpus Christi. It had been a dream of ours since doing jeep tours in Colorado. We knew that Corpus Christi had a rich and diverse history that was not being shared in the way that we envisioned. We had already done a lot of the historical research, and all we had to do was be brave enough to start our own business – something neither one of us had done before.
What do you feel your tours bring to the community that it was lacking before?
We realized that our visitors come to Corpus Christi for the beach and for other water activities. That’s great, but we also knew that the history and culture of Corpus Christi could be promoted with local tours. We are able to share the history of Corpus Christi with folks from out of town and with our own residents, too. Our Sightseeing Historical Tours, Art Tours, and Cemetery Tours offer an opportunity for tourists to get a great overview of our city and all it has to offer in the comfort of an oversized, air-conditioned van.
Tell me a little bit about your ghost tours.
Our Ghost Tours really caught on with our locals after Hurricane Harvey. We used social media to promote an activity that our locals could enjoy while there were no tourists in town. We cover at least 13 “haunted” sites in the historical downtown area. We stop at several sites, and our guests are able to explore by hearing the history of the particular place and why the location may be haunted, what others have experienced, and by taking lots of pictures – always hoping for that apparition or orb! We always go inside at least one site for more fun and photos.
What does the future look like for Enjoy Corpus Christi Tours?
Just as Corpus Christi continues to grow, we believe our business will as well. We are in the process of adding new historical tours. We want to venture a bit out of the downtown area and talk about the development of Corpus Christi as a whole. We are adding Cemetery Tours for the fall months, and we will be offering Corpus Christi Celebrity Tours in the spring. We would like to collaborate with other venues to create some very special adventures. With the growth foreseen by our record-breaking new bridge, we envision adding additional vans and tour guides.
