Texas Highlights

Discover dynamic Dallas, home to the Dallas Cowboys and Texas’ prime tourist draw. An assortment of modern museums awaits as well as America’s largest Arts District, whose flagship gallery the Dallas Museum of Art, is filled with more than 24,000 artworks. Dallas World Aquarium and Zero Gravity Thrill Amusement Park offer adventurous delights for all ages, while diners can tuck in to tasty Tex-Mex and shop in a number of speciality markets, classy gallerias and designer outlets.

Experience life on a real Texas Ranch in Graham, just outside Dallas. Here, you can take a horseback ride, go hiking and biking, take a guided 4x4 tour of the estate, or try your hand at clay pigeon shooting. Take a boat trip on the nearby Possum Kingdom Lake, known locally as PK, or perhaps go fishing or just relax over a leisurely picnic. Back on the ranch, take a wagon ride, feed the cattle, or listen to old western tunes played on the guitar.

Just next door to Dallas, but a world away, Fort Worth has a more relaxed, country feel with an unmistakable Wild West influence. The cattle trade was, and still is, a major industry here, so don your cowboy boots and Stetson and head on down to Stockyards National Historic District, home to a former livestock market where you can watch a rodeo show – a great taste of the American West. Fort Worth also boasts some excellent museums and a welcoming downtown, where Sundance Square is packed to the gunnels with buzzing restaurants, bars and clubs and often hosts concerts and festivals.

Head south to laid-back Austin, filled with the pulse of country and folk music and a great place to catch a live concert. Take a relaxing stroll around the grounds of the University of Texas, perhaps checking out the view from the top of the UT Tower while you’re there. Afterwards, admire the striking architecture of the pink granite Texas State Capitol, which is taller than its more-famous counterpart in Washington DC. For an offbeat summer attraction, wait until dusk and then head for Congress Avenue Bridge, home to 1.5 million Mexican free-tailed bats – quite a sight to behold.

Continue on to bustling San Antonio, where the Alamo, the site of the 1836 battle, makes a stark reminder of Texas’s turbulent past. The Alamo is connected to various shopping centres, theatres, parks, museums and even a brewery by the famed San Antonio River Walk, a system of paved footpaths along the San Antonio River. The walk is brought to life by the multi-coloured table umbrellas at the bars and cafés that line the route, which also connects to Marriage Island. This heart-shaped islet in the middle of the river is supposed to possess good luck-generating powers, making it popular for weddings.

Finish your Journey in well-heeled Houston, famous for NASA’s Space Center Houston, which offers a fascinating insight into space exploration – you can even take a tram tour of Mission Control. An assortment of other museums in the Museum District showcase the sciences, arts and local history. After all that exploring, refresh in the city’s ethnically diverse restaurant scene – why not try the southern speciality of fried chicken and waffles?