Bandera: Cowboy Capital of the World
We just returned from a trip to Bandera, the self-proclaimed "Cowboy Capital of the World." This Texas boast just might be accurate, though, judging from the huge number of dude ranches, western stores, rodeos, honky tonks, and cowboy events in the area. Read all about Bandera in our expanded
Bandera Travel Guide and check out our new
Bandera Photo Gallery.
Labels: Hill Country
posted by Paris and John @ 8:05 PM
Willie Nelson Picnic Set for Ft. Worth
It wouldn't be the 4th of July without a Willie Nelson picnic and this year, for the 33rd year, Willie Nelson will again host the famous event. Since 2004, the annual picnic has been held at the Fort Worth Stockyards. This year's guests will include Kris Kristofferson, Ray Price, Leon Russell, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Ray Wylie Hubbard, the Geezinslaw Brothers, and many others (and, of course, Willie himself).
Where: North Forty Concert Venue at the Fort Worth Stockyards.
Cost: $30 advance or $35 at the gate
For More Information: • visit
Willie's Picnic
posted by Paris and John @ 1:47 PM
Austin Plans 4th of July Festivities
It's almost the Fourth of July and the capital city will be celebrating in style. Here's a sampling of some area celebrations to look forward to next month:
• Heart of Texas Red, White and Blues festival: Held July 1 at Waterloo Park, this event kicks off the holiday weekend off with live music on two stages featuring legendary blues artists. GE Smith of "Saturday Night Live" fame, blues Master Hubert Sumlin and a special guest will team up for a once-in-a-lifetime 90 minute set. The lineup also includes Charlie Sexton, WC Clark and many more. Guests can also enjoy food, arts and crafts, children’s activities and misting tents. www.redwhiteandbluesfestival.com
• Austin Symphony July Fourth Concert and Fireworks : This event is Austin’s largest Independence Day celebration and this year returns to Zilker Park’s Lou Neff Point. Look for some 100,000 people at this event which includes a rousing rendition of the 1812 Overture, punctuated by booming cannons and an elaborate fireworks display over Town Lake. This free event continues from 8:30 until 10 pm, with fireworks beginning at 9:30. Capital Metro’s free shuttle service runs from 4-11pm from Waterloo Park to the Mopac footbridge over Town Lake at Stephen F. Austin Blvd. www.austinsymphony.org
• "Fire in the Sky" : Austin firefighters and Whole Foods Market join forces for “Fire in the Sky” from 6-10 pm. This party on the store’s rooftop plaza and benefits the Austin Firefighters Community Education Fund. The event features live music, good food and a great view of the fireworks at Zilker Park. Tickets are $5. www.wholefoodsmarket.com
• Georgetown’s Independence Day Celebration : Just north of Georgetown, this event at San Gabriel Park starts with a Kid's Fishing Derby at 7:30 a.m. Later look for over 80 arts and crafts booths, food vendors and a children's area with games, a petting zoo, train rides and face painting with music in the gazebo throughout the day. A “Hometown Parade” begins at 11 a.m. and a fireworks finale at dark concludes the party. www.georgetownsertoma.org
• The Round Rock Fourth of July Fireworks and Frontier Days Celebration : Also north of Austin, this event starts with a parade through downtown Round Rock at 10 a.m. After the parade, head to Old Settler's Park for a “Western Traditions” carnival. Reenactment of the Sam Bass shootout, free watermelon, arts and crafts, fireworks and more are on the agenda. www.roundrockfrontierdays.com
• Lakeway : Northwest of Austin, Lakeway celebrates American Heroes all day long with a parade down Lakeway Drive at 10 a.m., followed by a pageant, picnic, swimming and games at the Lakeway Activity Center. Fireworks light the sky over Lake Travis at Lakeway City Park starting at 8 pm. www.lakeway.org
• San Marcos SummerFest : Now in its 26th year, this riverside event on July 4 takes place from 11am to 11pm. Events at Sewell Park, on the campus of Texas State University, include food and activity booths, as well as an air-castle, parade and costume contest for kids. Live music continues throughout the day. At 9 p.m., an illuminated float parade travels down the river and is followed by a fireworks exhibition. www.sanmarcossummerfest.com
Labels: Hill Country
posted by Paris and John @ 9:39 PM
July Means San Antonio's Contemporary Art Month
The country's only annual, month-long, citywide contemporary arts celebration is found in San Antonio. Contemporary Art Month or CAM spans the month of July; its purpose is to showcase and promote the diverse and vibrant art community of San Antonio while drawing cutting-edge international talent into the fold.
Who's Participating: Look for participation by Linda Pace, founder of Artpace San Antonio, who is hosting Mexico City based independent curator Claudia Alvarez at the ground floor gallery of her Camp Street building to showcase cutting edge talent from her Mexico. Additionally, galleries, artist run spaces and collectives from Austin—including OK Mountain, Art Palace, The Donkey Show and Testsite (a project of the Fluent Collaborative)—as well as DFW’s 500x, the oldest art collective in Texas, will be participating in Motel 3, a series of events situated in a renovated fifties motel.
For more information on CAM:• visit
www.CAMSanAntonio.org
posted by Paris and John @ 10:27 AM
Tower of the Americas to Reopen After $11 Million Renovation
Wednesday at 5pm marks the public reopening of Tower of the Americas. Originally built for HemisFair and soon becoming a landmark of San Antonio, the Tower will be better than ever with a restaurant, lounge, a $4 million multisensory theater, and an observation deck. You'll find all the details on our extended
Tower of the Americas page in the San Antonio travel guide.
Labels: San Antonio
posted by Paris and John @ 9:48 AM
"Reign of Spain" Theme for San Antonio New World Wine & Food Festival
The 275th anniversary of the arrival of Canary Island settlers in San Antonio inspired the Reign of Spain theme for the 2006 San Antonio New World Wine & Food Festival (November 7-12). Putting it all together will be Gerry Dawes, frequently referred to as "Mr. Spain" called an "unimpeachable Spanish food and wine specialist" by the editors of Food Arts magazine. Look for chefs from the Canary Islands and mainland Spain at the event's sessions and seminars.
About the Festival: Started in 2000, the San Antonio New World Wine & Food Festival is designed to promote San Antonio as a premier wine and food destination and culinary and cultural gateway to Mexico and Latin America. The foods and wines showcase New World regions including Texas, Mexico, Central and South America and the Caribbean as well as emphasize the region's roots in Old World cultures and countries. The Festival features both local and internationally known chefs and winemakers, creating an educational event designed to introduce residents and visitors alike to the vast diversity of Mexican, Latin American and Spanish cuisines and wines at the same time it showcases the broad spectrum of Texas agricultural products. This non-profit event benefits designated San Antonio charities.
For More Information:• call 1-800-ALAMO-07
• visit
www.SanAntonioVisit.comLabels: San Antonio
posted by Paris and John @ 9:43 AM
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more about RSS readers on our Feed page.
Labels: TexasTripper News
posted by Paris and John @ 2:35 PM
Family Specials at Barton Creek Resort
Through September 7, your family can enjoy Barton Creek Resort's activities for only $90 per person, per night, double occupancy, Sundays through Thursdays. Also, kids stay free at this AAA Four Diamond golf resort. Weekend rates are also available from $96 per person, per night, double occupancy.
The resort, located in Austin, has a full menu of summer family activities including:
• Special packages for the Fourth of July weekend with a special party on July 1 followed by a fireworks display. Kids' buffet available.
• Cool off with family movie Fridays in the hotel's amphitheater; includes free popcorn and sodas.
• On holiday weekends, the resort sets up a special indoor game room dedicated to ping pong, air hockey, video games, foosball, Pac Man, and other video arcade games.
• Kid’s Club is open 8:00 am to 9:00 pm Sunday through Thursday, and until 10:00 pm on Friday and Saturday. Kid’s Club is a dedicated indoor facility that resort guests may utilize for children ages six months to 8 years. Computers were recently installed so computer-savvy children can play age-appropriate video games. Other activities are offered, such as story time, puzzles, arts and crafts and more.
• Poolside cookouts for the Fourth of July and Labor Day weekends.
• Junior Tennis Day Camps and Clinics for ages 4 and up also are scheduled through August.
• Poolside fun including tic tac toe, word search, bingo blast, face painting, Chinese checkers, chess, friendship bracelets, chalk art, paper masks, story time, arts & crafts, water balloon toss, memory card games, relay races, pool ring toss, and hula hoop challenges. And family fun—Austin style: smoothie walk, 18 hole miniature golf, water checkers, kid fitness fun, family fitness camp, hair wrap fun, nature trail hike, sharks & salamanders, red light-green light-swim!, mad science, sand art, diving for golf balls, and s’mores poolside.
For more information:• call 1-800-336-6158 or 512-329-4000
• visit
www.bartoncreek.comLabels: Hill Country
posted by Paris and John @ 10:40 AM
Texas Home of Two of Top 10 Quirkiest Interstate Attractions
The US interstate system turns 50 this summer...plenty of years to develop a whole collection of weird roadside attractions. Just where are the country's strangest interstate attractions? According to members of the Society of American Travel Writers (a group to which we belong), not one but two of the 10 most unusual is right here in Texas.
Along I-40, the Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo ranks as one of the top 10. After all, where else will you find 10 tail-finned Cadillacs planted nose-down in a field?!
And, out in West Texas, you'll find the World's Largest Roadrunner Statue in Fort Stockton. Along the side of I-10, look for Paisano Pete, a roadrunner statue measuring 20 feet long and 15 feet tall.
Those Cadillacs and the Texas-sized roadrunner are in proud company; they join a list that includes Florida's Dinosaur World on I-4, New York State's Jell-O© Museum and Gallery on I-90, Kentucky's KFC Museum on I-75, Missouri's Leila's Hair Museum (yes, it's filled with things made from hair) on I-70, Michigan's Mystery Spot on I-75, South Dakota's Wall Drug (one of our favorites), the World's Largest Truck Stop on Iowa's I-80, and the World's Tallest Thermometer on California's I-15.
posted by Paris and John @ 4:25 PM
Cool Off at a Texas Waterpark
If you're reading this in Texas, you know that the calendar may say spring but the thermometer definitely says summer. With temperatures already topping 100 degrees in many parts of the state, waterparks are in full swing now. Check out our article on
watersparks where you can cool off around the state.
Labels: Hill Country
posted by Paris and John @ 2:50 PM
Kimpton To Open Dallas Hotel
Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants Group, LLC has announced plans to open the Hotel Palomar Dallas, a nine-story hotel and 10-story condominium tower in the heart of Dallas’ Park Cities neighborhood. Slated for completion in August 2006, this $90 million transformation of the Hotel Palomar & Residences marks the first property in the Kimpton portfolio to be redeveloped as a mixed-use complex.
Formerly The Mockingbird Hilton, Hotel Palomar is undergoing a complete renovation including the remodeling of all 185 guest rooms, an addition of a full-service bi-level destination spa, exhale, and the launch of a Kimpton chef-driven restaurant. Development plans also include a new 10-story condominium tower south of the hotel with 70 high-end residential units, luxury penthouse condominiums atop the hotel tower, contemporary loft-style condominiums facing Mockingbird Lane, and over 25,000 square feet of ground retail space.
For more information:• visit
www.kimptonhotels.com • call 1-800-KIMPTON
Labels: Dallas
posted by Paris and John @ 2:47 PM
Win an Autographed Copy of Day Trips from Austin!
You can win an autographed copy of our newly-released Day Trips from Austin guide! We'll be giving away a copy to a newsletter subscriber selected at random. To enter, just add your name to our subscription list (don't worry: we'll never sell or trade your email address and you can unsubscribe at any time). We'll announce the winner on July 15. For more and to enter, see our
Day Trips from Austin Contest Page.
Labels: TexasTripper News
posted by Paris and John @ 11:04 AM
Austin Drawing 40,000 Bikers
Through June 4, expect to see many more bikers than usual in Austin because of The Republic of Texas Biker Rally. The largest motorcycle event in Texas and one of the largest in the country, the event includes a bike parade on Friday, live music from Joan Jett, Paul Rodgers (the original lead singer of Bad Company and now front man for Queen), Ruben Ramos, Little Joe y La Familia, Vallejo, Omar & The Howlers and Van Wilks.
The event will also be drawing plenty of national attention thanks to five film crews in town including the Discovery Channel and four reality shows.
Labels: Austin
posted by Paris and John @ 10:59 AM
Barton Creek Resort & Spa Named One of World's Best
Texans have long known that Austin's Barton Creek Resort & Spa is a great golf resort but now the word's out to everyone: the readers of Conde Nast Traveler magazine have noted Barton Creek one of the world's 100 best golf resorts.
Labels: Austin
posted by Paris and John @ 10:56 AM
