Join the Houston Arboretum & Nature Center’s New Year’s Walking Challenge and start 2025 with quality time in nature! This annual tradition allows participants to enjoy the great outdoors and earn a free Arboretum Individual Membership at the same time. To participate, sign up for the Challenge, visit the Arboretum once a week for four consecutive weeks (January 3 – 31, 2025), snap a photo of the weekly location, and post your photo to Facebook or Instagram.* We can’t wait to see your progress and keep up with your adventures at the Arboretum!

Participants must be 18 or older to register and receive a free Membership.

*As of the 2024 New Year’s Walking Challenge, we are no longer accepting weekly photo submissions on X (formerly Twitter).

Registration will open Monday, December 2, 2024 at 9:00 am. Once we hit our registration cap of 200 people, registration will close.

If you are not able to register but would still like to walk with us, we will be posting the weekly location on social media each Friday during the Challenge. Please be aware that, even if you walk, anyone not registered for the Challenge WILL NOT be eligible for a free Individual Membership.

Instructions

1. Register for the Walking Challenge.

2. Check the weekly location – it will be emailed and posted to the Arboretum’s Facebook and Instagram accounts each Friday during the challenge (see schedule below).

3. Head to the Arboretum each week and take a photo at the weekly location.

4. Post your photo on Facebook or Instagram using the directions below.

• Facebook:
  • Go to the Arboretum Facebook Page
  • Find the weekly location post pinned to the top of the Arboretum page
  • Post your photo as a comment on the corresponding week’s location post
• Instagram:
  • Note – your profile MUST be set to public to participate
  • Upload your photo or video to Instagram as a Post or Reel. Instagram Stories do not count for the Challenge.
  • Tag your photo with @houstonarboretum, #HoustonArboretum, and #ArboretumWalkingChallenge.
  • It is also helpful if you select Houston Arboretum & Nature Center under ‘Add Location’
• Email:
  • If you do not use social media, you can email your photos every week to [email protected].

5. Receive an email with instructions for redeeming your FREE membership before the end of February.

Schedule

We will post the location on the following dates:
January 3
January 10
January 17
January 24

All photos must be uploaded by the end of the day on Friday, January 31.

Credit for an Individual Membership will be provided. Upgrades are available by paying the difference. Please call 713.681.8433 or email [email protected] if you have questions. You must be 18 or older to participate in the Challenge. We will send you weekly emails with reminders to hit the trails. At the end of the Challenge, we will send all challenge finishers one final email with information on how to redeem your membership.