Car free trip-Dallas (Houston, Austin, Fort Worth: rental car, rental, neighborhoods)

[theurbanfiles]

I’m hopeful it won’t be that way, but that is just the timing of it all. My wife is matron of honor in a wedding and pre festivities, shower, etc, are the previous weekend. Dallas is much cheaper to fly into than Austin. The game I’m attending is March 26, literally the 2nd home game (and both of those are exhibitions) that’s interesting how they do that, but probably more teams should to adjust to their big league park. Perhaps tickets will be cheaper as a result, too.

You bring up points about fringe destinations as well. Fair Park is connected by DART and seems doable, but the other 2 we would certainly need that. However, I’m still intrigued and trying to learn more about the electric scooter. How does it move compared to say, a bike? Could we take one of those, say 3-5 miles? Or would it be too slow/run out of battery?. I need to research those I guess lol.

[MarshaBrady1968]

It's hard for me to remember a March in DFW which was not about 80% days of rain...and if you have not been to Texas before, rain means like someone turned giant buckets upside down, not cute little sprinkly droplets like the PNW. On the upside, flights and hotels should be pretty cheap in March - LOL!

[ChristieP]

Unless you're a huge architecture fan, there's not much to see at Fair Park when the Fair or another event isn't going on. Aside from the businesses directly across from the entrance by the DART Rail station, the surrounding neighborhood can be quite marginal...

The scooters are still a novelty, and I couldn't tell you how long the charge lasts. Personally, I would not operate one without wearing a helmet.

[TheOverdog]

The Market Center station is walkable, but you do have to budget an extra 10 minutes to walk around the stupid building. It's still very early, I'd simply pick a different hotel location. There are dozens (perhaps even hundreds if you include suburbs) of hotels in better locations close to DART stations.

[DTXman34]

Originally Posted by cavsfan137

You bring up points about fringe destinations as well. Fair Park is connected by DART and seems doable, but the other 2 we would certainly need that. However, I’m still intrigued and trying to learn more about the electric scooter. How does it move compared to say, a bike? Could we take one of those, say 3-5 miles? Or would it be too slow/run out of battery?. I need to research those I guess lol.

One thing not mentioned is the Santa Fe Trail, which starts in Deep Ellum and connects with the White Rock Lake Trails. The Santa Fe Trail starts off not too pretty (you'll hit a few intersections with traffic lights), but the closer to White Rock, the more wooded and prettier it gets. There's also an outdoor bar & restaurant along the way called the Lot.

Here's also a link for architecture tours: https://www.dallasadex.org/tours/walking/.
If you like late 19th/early 20th century architecture, the Dallas County Courthouse, Adolphus Hotel, and Wilson Buildings are my favorites in Downtown.

I'm also surprised no one mentioned the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza, which is the site of JFK Assassination. That's arguably the most visited place in Downtown. Just a short block south along Houston St., there's a free trolley that takes you down to the Bishop Arts District. I'd mark Lockhart BBQ as a destination since it's in the center of the district, but also because it's pretty damn good! For hotel recommendations, consider an AirBnb at the Statler in Downtown. It has a great rooftop bar and speakeasy in the basement. Just a 5 min walk south of there, is a Farmers Market with a lot of vendors on the weekend. Deep Ellum is also close by.

[theurbanfiles]

Responding in order (getting a good feeling about the place from all these helpful responses!

MB1968: I will note that. I am not sure if the fact I am coming in late March will help, or not. Of course, I am always flexible. Considering the baseball game is simply a Spring Training game that happens to be at Globe Life Park, I am assuming I should be able to walk up and score seats. That is what I plan to do. However, if weather doesn't allow for play to occur, at that point I will probably just improvise and take the self guided tour of AT&T Stadium. And spend more of the rest of the time in museums/cultural venues/shopping plazas rather than parks/streets.

ChristieP: The novelty is a big part of why I want to try it haha, if nothing else for a short bit. That's a good thing to note. Re: Fair Park, I really, really am a huge architecture/urban design fan, and the fact that Fair Park is the largest collection of civic art deco structures in the world marks it as particularly unique to Dallas. I also am a huge sports fan, and so in some ways, a visit to the original Cotton Bowl holds more meaning to me than a visit to any other sporting venue in Dallas : ) That said, I am not married to going there either, it's just one of the places I have in mind.

TheOverdog: It said that it was a 15 minute walk to get from the hotel I booked to the station when including the fact that I would walk around the building. That certainly isn't terrible. I think I may just do it on the way out though and Uber back. It doesn't look like a bad neighborhood or anything like that, but say I'm out in Deep Ellum, I'd rather not walk back to that station, then take metro, then walk another 15 minutes at 9, 10 at night. The reason for this hotel choice (I'm sure there are many closer), is that I had hotel points that needed used, and this one appeared to have the best proximity to downtown distance-wise, while also being low points (12,500/night, as opposed to double or triple that to actually get a place downtown). I know it's not the best option, but I'll compromise what I want most, for having no charge for the night lol. However, I may at least toy with some of the AirBNBs in the core.

DTXman34! Thanks for your suggestions on that trail you mention, architecture, along with places to see and do downtown! Thank you again for all of your thoughts, I will explore them further leading up to the trip.

[theurbanfiles]

Hey, so just figured I'd pop in with a few more questions.

1. Where in your opinion is the absolute best spot to photograph the Dallas skyline?
2. Are any of the areas I'm considering visiting or going around somewhat unsafe, or unsafe nearby? Is the metro safe usually
3. Any particularly good restaurant recommendations?

[MarshaBrady1968]

Originally Posted by cavsfan137

Hey, so just figured I'd pop in with a few more questions.

1. Where in your opinion is the absolute best spot to photograph the Dallas skyline?
2. Are any of the areas I'm considering visiting or going around somewhat unsafe, or unsafe nearby? Is the metro safe usually
3. Any particularly good restaurant recommendations?

First comment does not involve the above question: I see you are a "cavsfan" so why have you not mentioned a basketball game? All of our sports facilities are outstanding, but just wondering...

1. The "famous" Dallas skyline pics which show Reunion Tower ("The ball") to be the highlight are from the southwest. This parlays into answers to #3: go to Trinity Groves area and Bishop Arts District when you get those pics and look for restaurants
2. The "metro" (LOL) called DART (Dallas Area Rapid Transit) is as safe as any large city I suppose, probably safer than many
3. I'm not much of a foodie, but I cannot say enough good things about Ida Claire's, though it is not super convenient to any of the other places you said you might go. I think sme other CD posters will have some other good options

[theurbanfiles]

Originally Posted by MarshaBrady1968

First comment does not involve the above question: I see you are a "cavsfan" so why have you not mentioned a basketball game? All of our sports facilities are outstanding, but just wondering...

1. The "famous" Dallas skyline pics which show Reunion Tower ("The ball") to be the highlight are from the southwest. This parlays into answers to #3: go to Trinity Groves area and Bishop Arts District when you get those pics and look for restaurants
2. The "metro" (LOL) called DART (Dallas Area Rapid Transit) is as safe as any large city I suppose, probably safer than many
3. I'm not much of a foodie, but I cannot say enough good things about Ida Claire's, though it is not super convenient to any of the other places you said you might go. I think sme other CD posters will have some other good options

Re Bball: So, I checked and there actually is a Mavericks game the night of the 26th also! That said, it’s me AND my wife, and already that day we may have seen AT&T Stadium (at least the outside but maybe also a self guided tour), and potentially sat at the Rangers game for several hours. Now, I could go on to the Mavericks game from there no problem, but she isn’t that big a sports fan, and I want to be mindful of getting in some places she likes too ��

Trinity Groves looks to be near a super cool looking Calatrava style bridge, is that the spot? I think it’s about 5 miles or so rt to jog there from my hotel, and so I might do that in the morning and grab a cold brew in that area while out on my jog.

Okay, just wanted to make sure, I know that they can vary and also that you mentioned Fair Park being sort of marginal (not sure if that was meant to be unsafe-or if there were any particularly tough areas near the core of the city) or not. We’d be taking it probably only during the day time hours anyways, but I guess the reason I asked was you sometimes hear about problems. We were in Asia Pacific Cities last summer which are torch bearers for safety and didn’t encounter any issues there, but wasn’t sure if there were more panhandlers, etc on or near say Dallas’ DART or stations-there are some US cities where I have been advised against taking the subway, at least certain lines.

Thanks for your recommendations!

[theurbanfiles]

I like setting final plans, and so I'm gonna type this up, for me really, but also in case any of you guys are curious. I am going to be in Austin Friday Late, then all day Saturday, Sunday, Monday (though Monday I plan to make a nature day amongst my "Cities Break" and explore Hill Country).

Tuesday:
-Depart Austin by 7 AM
-If making good time, stop in Waco (Brief 10-15 min stops at Downtown, Magnolia Silos, Baylor Univ.)
-AT&T Stadium (Probably not the tour, but at least going up to it)
-Texas Rangers vs. Cleveland Indians (1:05)
-Fort Worth Stockyards for couple hrs. (maybe leave game early and beat rush hour/get there in time for cattle parade?)
-30-60 minute sightseeing overview of Downtown/Sundance Square
-Possibly a brief stop to see outside of TCU/Football Stadium, or the Kimbell/Modern Art Museum Exteriors
-Staying in Dallas Market Center

Wednesday (choose one, based on how feeling)
-7 AM run (5-6 miles, Trinity River Park)
-Take DART to Fair Park
-Take DART back to Downtown
-Sightsee around Downtown for 4-6 hrs. (major sights, perhaps visit a museum and rent a scooter also)
-Partake in food/drink/conviviality of Deep Ellum for a few evening hours
-Get back to hotel not too late, as we have an 8 AM flight that Thursday.

-or- Take our car out earlier in the day to visit at least some of the non downtown places I mentioned, plus potentially Highland Park Village, SMU, White Rock Lake, The Mansion from Dallas (perhaps just a drive by), the core of Frisco or Plano (I like collecting cities, and Frisco I believe has the US soccer museum), etc. Return car back to hotel by 2-3, then still see Downtown and Deep Ellum by Metro but perhaps on an abbreviated schedule of what I had previously mentioned.