Texas rewards travellers who are prepared to look beyond cowboy stereotypes and oversized steak dinners. This is a state where you can tour presidential libraries, explore major art collections, climb observation towers, swim in spring-fed pools and drive for hours through dramatically changing landscapes. The guides below cover cultural institutions in Dallas and Fort Worth, historic homes in Galveston, museum-heavy Houston, and some of the most useful road trip routes across the state.
Austin museums, swimming spots and Hill Country escapes
Austin mixes heavyweight museums with the outdoorsy side of central Texas life. The Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum explains how the state sees itself, the Blanton Museum of Art has one of the strongest university art collections in the south, and the LBJ Presidential Library offers a detailed look at one of America’s most consequential presidencies. Beyond the museums, locals head to Barton Springs Pool, Mount Bonnell and McKinney Falls State Park for relief from the summer heat.
- Compare Austin’s big museum experiences at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum and the Texas Science and Natural History Museum, from Texas independence exhibits to dinosaur skeletons and geology collections.
- The Blanton Museum of Art combines European paintings, contemporary Latin American art and Ellsworth Kelly’s striking Austin chapel installation.
- The LBJ Presidential Library covers the Civil Rights Act, Vietnam War era politics and life inside the White House during the 1960s.
- Outdoor Austin includes sunset views from Mount Bonnell, cold-water swimming at Barton Springs Pool and hiking trails through McKinney Falls State Park.
Road trips into and out of Austin
- Best stops on the Amarillo to Austin drive.
- Best stops on the Lubbock to Austin drive.
- Best stops on the Fort Worth to Austin drive.
- Best stops on the Dallas to Austin drive.
- Best stops on the Houston to Austin drive.
- Best stops on the Memphis to Austin drive.
- Where to stop on the Austin to Albuquerque drive through west Texas and New Mexico.
Dallas museums, JFK history and skyline views
Dallas is strongest when it leans into culture and history rather than cowboy clichés. The compact Dallas Arts District packs several major museums into walkable blocks, whilst the city’s presidential sites and the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza explore defining moments in American politics. Elsewhere, observation decks, science museums and Fair Park attractions show how broad the city’s visitor appeal has become.
The Dallas Arts District and university museums
- The Dallas Museum of Art, Nasher Sculpture Center and Crow Museum of Asian Art cover everything from ancient artefacts to contemporary sculpture in a few city blocks.
- The Meadows Museum has one of America’s strongest collections of Spanish art, whilst the George W Bush Presidential Museum recreates the Oval Office on the Southern Methodist University campus.
JFK sites, science museums and family attractions
- The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza examines the assassination of President Kennedy from inside the former Texas School Book Depository building.
- How to combine Southfork Ranch with the JFK sites in a single day trip from central Dallas.
- The Perot Museum of Nature and Science focuses on hands-on engineering, dinosaur halls and interactive science exhibits aimed at families.
- The Dallas Zoo spreads across 100-plus acres with a strong African savanna section and regular animal feeding sessions.
- Hall of State, Texas Discovery Gardens and the African American Museum of Dallas are all part of the historic Fair Park complex built for the 1936 Texas Centennial Exposition.
- The Reunion Tower Ge-O Deck gives panoramic views across downtown Dallas and the sprawling suburbs beyond.
Road trips to and from Dallas
- Best stops on the Dallas to Hot Springs AR drive.
- Where to stop on the Dallas to Memphis drive.
- Highlights along the Abilene to Dallas drive.
- Highlights along the Conroe TX to Dallas drive.
- Highlights along the Marshall TX to Dallas drive.
- Highlights along the Texarkana to Dallas drive.
- Where to stop on the Oklahoma City to Dallas drive.
- Where to stop on the Little Rock to Dallas drive.
- Where to stop on the Wichita to Dallas drive.
Why Dallas works surprisingly well as a flight stopover city.
Fort Worth’s museums and cultural district
Often overshadowed by neighbouring Dallas, Fort Worth has one of the strongest concentrations of museums in Texas. The city’s Cultural District combines major American and European art collections with science museums, botanical gardens and western heritage attractions within a relatively compact area.
- The Kimbell Art Museum and Amon Carter Museum of American Art pair masterpieces by European painters with major collections of western and American art.
- The Fort Worth Botanical Garden includes Japanese gardens, rose collections and shaded walking trails beside the Trinity River.
- The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame explores the lives of ranchers, performers and pioneers who shaped the mythology of the American west.
- The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History combines children’s exhibits with space science and Texas-focused natural history displays.
Galveston mansions, beaches and maritime history
Galveston feels markedly different from inland Texas cities, with Victorian architecture, Gulf Coast beaches and a long maritime history. The island’s museums cover oil drilling, naval history and railroads, whilst the grand homes along Broadway reveal the wealth that once flowed through this important port city.
- The Bryan Museum, Ocean Star Museum, Galveston Naval Museum and Galveston Railroad Museum cover everything from Texas frontier history to offshore oil platforms and warships.
- Moody Mansion and Bishop’s Palace showcase the extravagant architecture built before the devastating 1900 hurricane.
- East Beach is the island’s livelier stretch of sand, whilst Stewart Beach is better suited to families wanting calmer conditions and facilities.
- The East End Lagoon Nature Preserve protects wetlands and bird habitats on the quieter eastern edge of Galveston Island.
- Best stops on the Austin to Galveston drive and the Dallas to Galveston drive.
Houston museums and family attractions
Houston has one of America’s strongest concentrations of science-focused museums. The city’s museum district balances hands-on attractions for children with serious natural history collections, including dinosaur skeletons, gemstones and space science exhibits.
- The Children’s Museum Houston focuses on interactive exhibits and role-play activities aimed at younger visitors.
- The Houston Museum of Natural Science is known for its dinosaur halls, gemstone displays and planetarium shows.
- A practical guide to visiting the Downtown Aquarium in Houston.
- Plan your visit to the Museum of Fine Arts Houston.
- Seeing the Waugh Drive Bridge bat colony in Houston: What you need to know.
- Guides to wildlife sites near Houston: Brazos Bend State Park and Armand Bayou Nature Center.
- Getting to Houston: The best stops on the Abilene to Houston drive, Arlington to Houston drive, Dallas to Houston drive and Waco to Houston drive.
- Getting to Houston from interstate: The best stops on the Little Rock to Houston drive and Nashville to Houston drive.
- Texas road trips from Houston: The best stops on the Houston to Amarillo drive, Houston to Fort Worth drive and Houston to Lubbock drive.
- Interstate road trips from Houston: Where to stop on the Houston to Albuqueruque drive, Houston to Hot Springs AR drive, Houston to Memphis drive, Houston to Oklahoma City drive and Houston to Wichita drive.
Elsewhere in Texas: Caves, roadside Americana and long-distance drives
Outside the major cities, Texas offers enormous underground cave systems, quirky soft drink museums and some of the state’s classic long-distance drives. These guides cover west Texas landscapes, Panhandle road trips and routes heading towards New Mexico.
- The Caverns of Sonora are filled with unusually dense crystal formations deep beneath west Texas ranch country.
- The Dr Pepper Museum in Waco traces the history of one of Texas’s best-known soft drinks inside a restored bottling plant.
- Best stops on the Dallas to Amarillo drive and the Fort Worth to Amarillo drive.
- Where to stop on the Dallas to Lubbock drive.
- Best stops on the Amarillo to Albuquerque drive and Lubbock to Albuquerque drive.
