When it comes to traveling around the state, it’s easy to be overwhelmed by the sheer number of destinations to choose from. One of the things I love most about Texas is that you can drive a few hours (or more than a few hours) in one direction and be at, say, the beach and then head another direction and find yourself in the mountains or in the rolling Hill Country or in the Piney Woods. For the last several years, a few of my colleagues and I have been visiting small towns and exploring interesting areas of big cities in search of noteworthy things to do, see, and eat. Here’s a cheat sheet guide to what you can expect to find in a few of the places we’ve singled out across the state recently…

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Tagged: Abilene, East Texas, Fort Davis, Fort Worth, Galveston, Grapevine, Gulf Coast, Johnson City, Kerrville, Marshall, Midland, North Central, Old Town Spring, Palestine, Panhandle, River Walk, San Antonio, West Texas

For many travelers, this far West Texas town is a last-chance pit stop before heading south to brave the wilds of Big Bend National Park. But, this past spring, after driving 407 miles (that’s roughly 7 hours and 143 country songs) from Austin to get here, my three friends and I were perfectly content to drop anchor in this desert oasis for a few days. Our plan: to brave nothing wilder than our TV-less hotel room. And so we spent 72 hours shopping, strolling, eating, and exploring along the short stretch of Highway 90 that makes up the town’s main drag.

Read on for my Marathon trip guide…

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Tagged: 12 Gauge, Barton Warnock, Big Bend, birding, Burnt Biscuit Bakery, Crinoids Hills, Evans Gallery, Front Street Books, Gage Gardens, Gage Hotel, Hallie Stillwell, J.P. Bryan, James Evans, Johnny B's Soda Fountain, Klepper Gallery, Marathon, Marathon Coffee Shop, Post Park, stargazing, trip guide, West Texas, White Buffalo Bar

In one of my favorite descriptions of Marfa, writer David McDannald points out that sometimes it’s “a shadow of a town” and sometimes it’s “a desert Mardi Gras.” At the end of this month, West Texas’s buzziest destination will be lit up like Bourbon Street on Fat Tuesday when hundreds of Austinites and Brooklynites and Portlandiers (okay, and maybe some folks from other parts too) roll in for the seventh annual Trans-Pecos Festival of Music and Love. Held at El Cosmico, hotelier Liz Lambert’s trailer-strewn (and Beyoncé-approved) kibbutz just off of Highway 67, the event will have all the trappings of a true hipster gathering: an “epic” sandlot baseball game, arts and crafts workshops, and Shiner-braised vegan riblets from Frank, along with three days of jam sessions with Ben Kweller, Meshell Ndegeocello, Amy Cook, Brownout, and others. I can only hope that Blondie himself will be making a surprise appearance like Robert Plant did last year.

Tickets, which range from $25 to $130, are available here.

Tagged: Amy Cook, Ben Kweller, Brownout, El Cosmico, Liz Lambert, Marfa, Meshell Ndegeocello, Robert Plant, Trans-Pecos, West Texas