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During my 2014 trip around North America, I basically skipped through Texas, the Lone Star State. I didn’t get to experience its quintessential activities, like barbecue, Tex Mex, live music, and college football. If I return to Texas, these are the five places I would love to visit.
Galveston
Image by Katie Haugland Bowen via Flickr
To be honest, Galveston is only on my list because I know it’s a cruise ship hub. Many Central American and Caribbean cruises depart from Galveston, and I have yet to visit these two areas. But when I am not cruising the turquoise seas, there are a lot of fun things to keep me occupied in Galveston as well. The city’s historic Pleasure Pier looks like my kind of place indeed.
El Paso
You don’t hear a lot about El Paso, but I have always enjoyed visiting the “underdog” cities. El Paso actually straddles the Mexican border, with Ciudad Juarez, which is Chihuahua’s largest city, just a stone’s throw away. But its proximity to Mexico isn’t the only good thing about El Paso. There’s plenty to keep you busy around town, like going on the Wyler Aerial Tramway and exploring the desert in Franklin Mountains State Park. This is the largest state park in an urban setting. Fortunately, there are many hotels in El Paso available at good prices, making the city perfect for a budget-friendly weekend getaway.
Dallas
Dallas looks like a place where you could never be bored. There are too many attractions in the city, like important museums, an aquarium, and some beautiful gardens. Plus, according to the official Dallas tourism website, there are 12,000 places to eat and over 80,000 places to stay on a budget. On my bucket list would be visiting Dallas during football season and seeing the Dallas Cowboys play. The State Fair of Texas looks like it would be a once-in-a-lifetime experience, too.
Houston
My uncle and aunt lived in Houston in 2016 and seemed to love their stay. It had never really been on my radar previously, but I wouldn’t turn down a visit to this metropolis. Top attractions in the city include the Space Center Museum, the Museum District, and Buffalo Bayou Park. I have also heard that the city has some interesting street art, and Rice University’s architecture is simply stunning.
Austin
I have written previously about all the things I did wrong in Austin. It was one place I managed to visit in Texas, but I missed out on all of the places and experiences that make the city one of America’s most popular. To do my visit right next time, I would definitely listen to some live music, visit Barton Springs Pool, check out some of the different neighbourhoods, take photos of the impressive street art, and eat lots and lots of barbecue.
Hopefully, I make the journey to Texas again soon so I can visit all of these places and have a memorable Lone Star State experience.
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