A mere fifteen minutes after being buzzed into this secluded wellness resort about thirty miles northwest of downtown, I was floating in an infinity-edge pool with a margarita in hand. As I looked out over the wooded hills surrounding scenic (if drought-depleted) Lake Travis, I struck up a conversation with
Situated on a six-hundred-acre spread thirty minutes north of downtown, this 1,002-room resort has half a dozen restaurants, a six-acre water park, a 36-hole golf course, and a 26,000-square-foot spa, as well as its own Starbucks and FedEx shipping center. It’s larger than many Texas towns, not to mention every
This secluded country escape roughly halfway between Austin and Houston should have a warning posted at its entrance: “Caution: Guests may become incurably spoiled. Stay at your own risk.” Once inside its gates, you’ll wend your way along a narrow road through acres of bucolic farmland, passing organic gardens, pastures
Every square inch of this 315-room hotel in the Museum District exudes the look-at-me personality of a Kardashian sister. Formerly the famed Warwick Hotel (which opened in the twenties), the twelve-story building was transformed into the glitzy ZaZa in 2007 (a sister property of the same name opened in Dallas
Opened in 1911 as a triumphant symbol of Galveston’s rebirth after the devastating 1900 hurricane, the coast’s premier beachfront hotel unveiled an $11 million face-lift last year on the occasion of its hundredth anniversary. So while you’ll find much-needed upgrades throughout, the Queen of the Gulf still radiates the same
The first thing I noticed as I pulled into this middle-of-nowhere retreat an hour south of Abilene was that I had no cell service (though Sprint customers should have better luck). The second thing I noticed was the achingly pastoral scene surrounding me: an organic garden verdant with heirloom tomatoes
The most strenuous task you’ll have to accomplish during your stay at this 210-acre working ranch may be uncorking the bottle of Texas wine that’s been set out for your arrival. Unless you consider strolling through a garden or floating the Guadalupe River (bring your own tube) to be unnecessarily
Housed in a twenties-era downtown high-rise, this boutique hotel boasts the only underwater bird’s-eye view of the city. That’s right: if you’re daring enough to swim to the glassed-in edge of the Joule’s heated rooftop pool, which juts out a dramatic eight feet beyond the building’s facade, you can peer
The first time I drove by hotelier Liz Lambert’s high-desert “kibbutz,” which sits on a large, flat plot of dusty land just off U.S. 67, I mistook it for a trailer park. Which it basically is, except instead of dumpy double-wides, it’s strewn with seven sleekly restored vintage trailers, from
Is that Mick Jagger taking an evening swim? It’s hard to tell in the glow of the neon “SOUL” sign that illuminates the tree-lined pool at this coolly decadent boutique hotel, but spotting rock royalty here is about as surprising as encountering a lion while on safari in the Serengeti.
ROUTE: Paris to DecaturDISTANCE: 148 milesNUMBER OF COUNTIES: 6WHAT TO READ: Michael Andrews’s Historic Texas CourthousesWhenever I start to suffer the ill effects of traffic overload and endless status updates on my smartphone, I set out for a quieter, quainter place that has at least two of the following: a
ROUTE: Fort Belknap to Red Bluff ReservoirDISTANCE: 505 milesNUMBER OF COUNTIES: 15WHAT TO READ: J. Evetts Haley’s Charles Goodnight: Cowman and PlainsmanIn the rolling country northwest of the Palo Pinto Mountains, nestled along FM 61, stand the barracks of Fort Belknap. It was from this outpost, in 1860, that a
The Hill Country Drive, the BBQ Market Drive, the Backwoods Drive, and thirteen other summer trips, from the mountains to the coast, that will take you down some of the prettiest, most picturesque, most wide-open stretches of asphalt Texas has to offer. Buckle up!
ROUTE: Uncertain to JasperDISTANCE: 140 milesNUMBER OF COUNTIES: 6WHAT TO LISTEN TO: Jim Reeves’s “Welcome to My World”If you want to see, smell, and taste the Deep South, look no further than East Texas. Start your drive in Uncertain, but before you even get behind the wheel, take a short
ROUTE: Bandera to Concan (and back)DISTANCE: 125 milesNUMBER OF COUNTIES: 3WHAT TO LISTEN TO: 104.3 FM, the RanchA great drive may be about slowing down and clearing your head, but who can resist roads lined with signs warning of “Earth Slides” and “Steep Grades, Sharp Curves”? Born of massive geological
ROUTE: West of Ozona to Sanderson DISTANCE: 85 miles NUMBER OF COUNTIES: 3 WHAT TO READ: James H. Evans’s Crazy From the HeatA drive whose sole purpose is to experience the simple pleasure of being behind the wheel has a few requirements. The route must lead west, because that’s the
ROUTE: Port Arthur to Port AransasDISTANCE: 308 milesNUMBER OF COUNTIES: 11WHAT TO BRING: A pair of binocularsI started as far east as you can go on the Gulf Coast and still be in Texas. And since the Sabine Pass Lighthouse, which is technically across the state line in Louisiana, is
The Birding DriveBy Patricia SharpeROUTE: Mission to South Padre IslandDISTANCE: 89 milesNUMBER OF COUNTIES: 2WHAT TO READ: David Allen Sibley’s The Sibley Guide to BirdsHugging the U.S.-Mexico border in far South Texas, the sultry stretch of land known as the Lower Rio Grande Valley is the Casablanca of the bird
ROUTE: Turkey to Lubbock (the long way) DISTANCE: 366 miles NUMBER OF COUNTIES: 13 WHAT TO LISTEN TO: Buddy Holly’s That’ll Be the Day and Waylon Jennings’s Ol’ WaylonWest Texas is the Texas of wide-open spaces, but it is also the Texas of music giants, starting in the Rolling Plains
Out of more than half a million acres of state parks and natural areas, we’ve chosen the ten best trips—where to camp, what to do, and what to look for when you head to the nearest town
Our outdoors guru on exploring the state’s parks, getting lost, and being next to alligators.
You can eat a good steak here in cowboy country—and take in some fine art while you’re at it.
A historic dance hall, the cypress-shaded Guadalupe, a couple of rustic inns: A great weekend getaway awaits you less than an hour from Austin and San Antonio.
1. Alibi BoutiqueGruene’s unofficial motto may be “Gently Resisting Change Since 1872,” but a new(ish) retail spot southwest of the town’s historic heart has shoppers altering their usual itinerary. This fashionable women’s shop could double as the personal closet of an eco-minded, paparazzi-aware young actress. Decked out in an organic
Some people call it a quartoseptcentennial, or a septaquintaquinquecentennial (seriously), but you’d better save your breath. You’ll need it on this wide-ranging 6,000-mile voyage commemorating Texas’s 175th birthday. It starts in Glen Rose, ends in Austin, and stops along the way at 175 places that tell the story of the
From La Valentina in Dallas to Casa del Sol in Juárez, 75 Mexican restaurants that will leave your taste buds begging for more, plus seven great recipes.
North from Lufkin to Nacogdoches, east to San Augustine, southwest to Zavalla, west to Diboll, and north to Lufkin.
1. Olde Towne General StoreAfter learning about Nacogdoches’s colorful past at the visitors center across the street, stop in at this down-home deli for sustenance. The chalk-board menus list appetizing offerings—corned beef sandwiches, deviled eggs, loaded baked potatoes topped with barbecue sauce—that’ll bring you back to your grandma’s kitchen. If
From the cowgirls racing around barrels to the cowboys hanging on for their lives atop bucking bulls, there’s nothing quite as exciting as watching the rodeo at the Fort Worth Stockyards.
Fort Worth Stockyards.
In Donald Judd’s last interview before his death, in 1994, the artist explained that he’d first come to Marfa two decades earlier because he “just wanted a place in the Southwest for the summertime.” Whether he intended it or not, this far West Texas town has since become the
Jordan Breal talks about searching for vacation spots, driving across Texas, and eating bone marrow.
Quick! You still have time to get in a great vacation before school starts and summer ends. And with this handy—and extremely thorough—guide to five perfect trips, all you need to do is fill up the tank, buckle up the kids, and go.
It’s time for grillin’ and chillin’—and we know just where to buy fresh seafood and have the perfect picnic on the sand.
There are any number of fun, adventurous, and unexpected things to do in the Big Bend region of far West Texas. Here are fifteen of my favorites, including scuba diving in Balmorhea, gliding over Marfa, drinking a microbrew in Alpine, horseback riding in Fort Davis, and floating through the Lower
A travel writer makes her (cautious) way through Latin America.
From a boutique hotel in hip South Austin to a bed-and-breakfast across the Mexican border, from fly fishing on the Llano River to bathing in the Chinati Hot Springs, 33 getaways the guidebooks don’t tell you about, courtesy of our intrepid staff of weekend warriors.
Austin Street Retreat, 408 W. Austin Street (one block north of Main), Fredericksburg (830-997-5612, fax 830-997-8282; www.fbglodging.com). Double occupancy $125 (breakfast not included). No telephones in some rooms; no televisions; hot tubs with handheld showers only. Children allowed in Maria’s only. No smoking indoors, no pets. AE, DS,
Alamo Village, 7 miles north of Brackettville on FM 674 (830-563-2580; www.alamovillage.com)Alibates National Monument, 419 E. Broadway, Fritch (806-857-3151; www.nps.gov/alfl)Alley Oop Fantasyland Park, 1000 Parkside (on the west side of town), IraanBarnard’s Mill Art Museum, 307 SW Barnard Street, Glen Rose (254-897-7494)Big Rocks Park, 1020 NE
Jim Baker’s boyhood home, take in Robert Mosbacher’s old stomping grounds, and see the Houstonian suite where George Bush slept!
Whether you want to ride a horse, bomb down a mountain-bike trail, hike up a hill, relax in a hot springs, scale the face of a giant granite boulder, or just sit on your tailgate and look at a pretty sunset, there’s a lot to do on and around the
Whatever I do in them, Texas mountains have a way of clearing my mind.
Breathtaking scenery, tons of runs, and pillowy, powdery white stuff: If you need a lift this winter, New Mexico skiing won’t leave you cold.
Our guide to finding Texas wildflowers that stand out in their fields.
The rap on Corpus Christi is that there’s no there there—but a case can be made that it’s a great weekend destination.
If you’re heading to New Orleans and you’ve got five days to spare, don’t fly or drive. Take a trip fit for a king—aboard the Delta Queen .
She’s the girl who wears cowboy boots under her poufy white taffeta dress every weekend as she rides in some other town’s parade.
Location: Hill CountryWhat You’ll Need: Road map, spittoonTexas runneth over with wineries; more than 160 are scattered from the Panhandle to the Piney Woods. But for a doable weekend that blends good wine and well-run tasting rooms with wonderful scenery, side trips, varied shopping, and restaurants both
There are plenty of unpleasant reasons to take a staycation this summer, from the collapse of your 401(k) to the global outbreak of swine flu, but there are plenty of pleasant ones too. For the thirteen weekends between the first day of summer (June 21) and the first day of
A drive that’s unforgettable to the end.
