The best road trip stops on the Fort Worth to El Paso drive are Abilene TX, Midland TX and Balmorhea State Park. The distance from Fort Worth to El Paso by car is 603 miles, with an 8h33m driving time.
Planning a Fort Worth to El Paso road trip itinerary
The Fort Worth to El Paso drive connects two of the biggest cities in Texas.
5 great Fort Worth experiences to book
- 🎸 Visit the legendary Billy Bob’s Honky Tonk – with a dinner and photo package.
- 🏛️ Take a small group historical tour of Fort Worth – including the Livestock Exchange Building.
- 🍖 Taste the best of the Fort Worth Stockyards – on a foodie tour.
- 🍷 On a wine tour, explore the best wineries of North Texas.
- 👻 Discover the spectres of the stockyards – on a Fort Worth ghost tour.
Fort Worth fully embraces its status as a cow town, with the Stockyards district full of cowboy heritage. And cowgirl heritage, as the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame shows off.
It’s also a place that knows how to have a shamelessly good time, with Billy Bob’s Texas Honky Tonk famously big on the yee-has and line dancing.
The city does have an impressive cultural selection, though. The Kimbell Art Museum and Amon Carter Museum of American Art cover the art side, while the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History and Fort Worth Botanical Garden do science and nature.
Other good Fort Worth experiences include a Stockyards food tour, electric bike BBQ tours, historic pub crawls and ghost tours.
If you want a Fort Worth hotel with character, try the Stockyards Hotel or the Sinclair.
El Paso has plenty of stories behind it, some of which are covered on the ghosts, cowboys and outlaws tour. You can also explore the surrounding landscape on a UTV adventure tour, or going biking, hiking and rock-climbing in Franklin Mountains State Park.
As for other El Paso attractions, the Border Patrol Museum looks at the work of those who monitor the US’ borders, with a little bit too much emphasis on weaponry. The El Paso Museum of Archaeology, meanwhile, looks at the prehistory of the South West.
For El Paso accommodation, try the style-drenched Plaza Hotel Pioneer Park for a special occasion and the Springhill Suites for good value with a pool.
Fort Worth to El Paso distance and driving time
By car, the distance from Fort Worth to El Paso is 603 miles. That makes for a driving time of around eight hours and 33 minutes. The quickest route is down the I-20 and I-10.
The best stops to add to a Fort Worth to El Paso road trip itinerary are Abilene TX, Midland TX and Balmorhea State Park.
Fort Worth to El Paso road trip attractions: Abilene TX
The first port of call for many visitors in Abilene TX is Frontier Texas, a museum about life in the Old West. Unlike many dreary local history museums, Frontier Texas uses state of the art technology to be as interactive as possible, and the scope is much grander than the immediate local region.
Elsewhere, the Grace Museum inside a grand former hotel covers art and local history.
The other really interesting attraction in Abilene TX is the National Center For Children’s Illustrated Literature, which collects the original artwork from beloved children’s books.
For Abilene accommodation deals, compare prices here.
Best stops between Fort Worth and El Paso: Midland TX
Midland TX is very much an oil town, and life revolves around the oil industry. The Permian Basin Petroleum Museum looks at why the oil is there in the first place, and how the region has developed. The city also plays host to the Museum of the Southwest, which covers art, science and regional history. The museum also has a planetarium.
For Midland accommodation options, hunt here.
Fort Worth to El Paso drive: Balmorhea State Park
Balmorhea State Park in Toyahvale TX is home to the world’s largest spring-fed swimming pool. More than 15 million gallons of water flow through this 1.3 million acre pool on a daily basis, fed by the San Solomon Springs. It’s naturally heated, too, with the water temperature at a steady 72 to 76 degrees all year. It’s also possible to go Scuba diving here.
More Texas road trips
- Where to stop on the El Paso to Albuquerque drive, El Paso to Santa Fe drive, El Paso to Tucson drive and El Paso to Phoenix drive.
- Best stops on the Dallas to Amarillo drive and the Fort Worth to Amarillo drive.
- The best stops on the Abilene to El Paso drive, Abilene to Fort Worth drive, Abilene to Lubbock drive and Abilene to Amarillo drive.
- Texas road trips from Houston: The best stops on the Houston to Amarillo drive, Houston to Beaumont drive, Houston to Fort Worth drive and Houston to Lubbock drive.
- Best stops on the Austin to Galveston drive, Dallas to Galveston drive and Fort Worth to Galveston drive.
