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Dallas Events and Attractions >>
From its western roots to its modern skyline and diverse population, Dallas is a sophisticated city appealing to travelers of all types and ages. Here, the latest fashion trends are displayed, restaurant options abound and special events occur frequently. When looking for an upscale experience, Dallas has it all.
In a city with roots leading back to pioneer days, Dallas understands its Western heritage. In the center of downtown, the largest bronze monument in the U.S. marks the actual site where the Shawnee Trail Drive of the 1850s moved through Dallas. Today visitors from all over the world come to stand in  Pioneer Plaza to visualize the cowboy escorts blazing through the trails. Nearly steps away, the West End historic entertainment district draws crowds who stroll through the brick warehouses, which have been restored to retail shops including the legendary Wild Bill’s Western Store.
Also in the West End the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza chronicles the assassination and legacy of President John F. Kennedy with documentary films, photographs and artifacts. And the Old Red Museum, located in the Dallas County Courthouse, built in 1892, tells the story of Dallas County from prehistoric times through J.R. Ewing and beyond. But for the TV series aficionados, a tour in the Ewing Mansion at Southfork Ranch is a must. In Dallas nothing honors the Western past like a two-step around the dance floor at Gilley’s Dallas, Dallas’ best venue for Texas country music and entertainment. Brave visitors ride the mechanical bull featured in the film “Urban Cowboy” in attempts to claim their eight seconds of victory. Visitors can learn more about Texan history at the Dallas Heritage Village, a history museum representing life in Texas in the 1800’s and at the Texas Hall of State in Fair Park, built in 1936 to celebrate the Texas Centennial, the restored Hall of State remains one of the finest examples of Art Deco Architecture in the US. Also in Fair Park, the Women’s Museum, a Smithsonian Institution affiliate and the first national, chronicles the lives of American women in a way never before seen through state-of-the-art interactive exhibits.
While exploring the Texas of the past, these global visitors find themselves immersed in a city on the cutting edge of urban development. Accommodations impress the luxury traveler. Recent hotel developments include Texas’ only Ritz-Carlton® located in the posh Uptown district. And a $20 million renovation to the only five-star, five-diamond hotel in the state, Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek, lures the most discriminating travelers. Other properties of grandeur proportions include The Joule, Dallas, Hyatt Regency and the W Dallas – Victory. With easily accessible hotels, ranging from luxury and boutique to family friendly and economical, the Dallas area provides 70,000 rooms to visitors. All major chains are represented, including Starwood, Hilton, Hyatt, Fairmont, Four Seasons, IHG, Choice Hotels, Best Western, La Quinta and Marriott and more.
Dallas offers an endless variety of activities, entertainment and food. The culinary scene in Dallas flourishes with over 7,000 restaurants available throughout the city. The French Room is the only AAA five-Diamond restaurant in the state, and Fearing’s at The Ritz-Carlton, Dallas was recently recognized as one of the World’s top 10 hotel restaurants by Hotels magazine. Dean Fearing, Stephan Pyles (considered the creator of the Southwestern cuisine), Ken Rathbun (Iron-chef winner) and Blythe Beck (protagonist of the Oxygen’s Naughty Kitchen reality show) are a few of Dallas’s celebrity chefs. Steaks, barbecue and Tex-Mex are traditional favorites.
Perhaps the most profound development attracting visitors, the Dallas Arts District capitalizes on its position as the largest contiguous urban arts district in the nation. Five cultural venues were designed by Pritzer Prize-winning architects, and the 19 block area is an eye-catcher to the international travelers who arrive daily. The highlights include: Dallas Museum of Art; Nasher Sculpture Center—celebrating five years as one of the few institutions in the world devoted to the exhibition, study and preservation of modern sculpture; Crow Collection of Asian Art; Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center—home to world-class Dallas Symphony Orchestra and the new music director Jaap van Zweden; and the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts—debuting in October 2009. Additionally, the Meadows Museum at Southern Methodist University displays the largest collection of Spanish art outside of Spain, drawing crowds to its cultural center.
Said to be the birthplace of shopping, Dallas is breaking ground with new store openings and mall renovations. International visitors are astonished at the variety of options offered by the best shopping location in the Southwest. With the first planned shopping center in the U.S., Highland Park Village, Dallas is often designated as the origin of destination shopping. The city continues to provide the best experience with unsurpassed locations such as NorthPark Center—the largest in North Texas with 235 distinctive stores and restaurants and more on the way—Victory Park, West Village, Mockingbird Station and the newly renovated Galleria Dallas, named one of the “10 great places to spend it all in one place” by USA Today and featuring an ice rink and new specialty stores just for children. Many international visitors come to the Dallas area for exceptional outlet shopping in Allen, Grapevine and Hillsboro, where they find discounts on the best designer fashions. As an additional incentive, tax-free shopping is offered throughout the city to foreign visitors.
Year around visitors can experience the thrill of watching one of Dallas’ five professional sports teams play their way to victory. As one of the only cities in the U.S. to host all five sports, Dallas is continually filled with the excitement of the Dallas Mavericks (NBA), Dallas Stars (NHL), Texas Rangers (MLB), FC Dallas (MLS) and the legendary Dallas Cowboys (NFL). In addition, more than 200 golf courses are available throughout the area. The PGA HP Byron Nelson Championship and the PGA Crown Plaza Colonial Championship are held in the DFW area annually. Dallas was recently voted number four in the “Best Golf Cities in America” by Golf Magazine. In February 2010, the city will host the NBA All Star game and, in 2011, Super Bowl XLV will be played at the new Cowboys Stadium (only 20 minutes from downtown Dallas).
Dallas also offers several adventure-entertainment options, Visitors can race cars at Texas Driving Experience in Texas Motor Speedway, sail aboard of the maxi-catamaran Chamonix II in Lake Lewisville or fly historical airplanes at the Cavanaugh Flight Museum, which features more than 30 restored aircrafts spanning eras from World War I through Vietnam.
And travel to Dallas is easy. Dallas is served by two major airports. DFW International Airport is the third busiest in the world and is the home of American Airlines Located 33km. from Downtown; it offers direct flights to 171 international and domestic destinations annually. Love Field Airport, headquarters of Southwest Airlines, is located 17km. from Downtown, with direct flights to several domestic locations.
Wherever they are traveling from, visitors feel right at home when they land in Dallas, greeted with southern hospitality and entertained with all that the city offers, international travelers are quick to understand why Dallas is a leading destination.
2009-2010 DALLAS HIGHLIGHTS: Considered to be the most significant cultural construction project in the nation since the Lincoln Center in New York, the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts is scheduled to open October 12, 2009, and will include the Norman Foster-designed Winspear Opera House and the Rem Koolhaas-designed Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre. Dallas continues to add stellar hotels; aloft - Starwood Hotels' new concept reinventing the W brand - will open in September 2009 in the heart of downtown.
On Dallas’ Main Street, Swirll Winery has opened their doors, and the Contemporary Art Dealers of Dallas – an association of 13 local galleries - present the best of CADD in their new gallery located next to the flagship Neiman Marcus store. Hard Rock Café recently opened a new location in Victory Park focusing in Texas-born artists. The first phase of Park Lane opened in March 2009, and upon completion includes 700,000 square feet of retail space, a Hotel Valencia with 245 guestrooms and the largest Whole Foods store in the country. The Trinity River Audubon Center, one of Dallas' prominent "green" projects designed by Antoine Predock, opened in October 2008 on 6,000 acres in the largest urban hardwood forest in the United States.
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