Hotels in Dallas? what not to miss? (Tyler, McKinney: rental car, rental)

[Vagabond Chick]

I'm coming to Dallas to check out the city to possibly relocate. I'm a 30 year old, single, female who's coming from boring, snowy Denver. I would describe my style as outgoing, flamboyant, sometimes rocker - I listen to all types of music from country to hardcore metal. I love variety and culture. I would like to check out the nightlife, walk around the city and a check out a few neighborhoods.

Where would you suggest I NOT miss to get a flavor for Dallas? Bars, restaurants, walking tours, museums, something with a cultural pulse? I've heard Deep Ellum is a great artsy neighborhood?

Where is a safe city and central location to stay during my visit?

Thanks for your imput!

[dfwcre8tive]

Stay somewhere downtown near a DART station... you'd have good access to most neighborhoods and activities. DART rail now goes from downtown to Deep Ellum/Fair Park. Some things you can do:

Check out the West End Historic District/Dealey Plaza and 6th Floor Museum (and Kennedy Memorial)
Take the M-Line Streetcar to Uptown for bars, restaurants and shops
Check out the Bishop Arts District, full of restaurants, galleries, shops in a funky neighborhood
Take a walking tour of the Arts District; visit the Nasher Sculpture Center
See Deep Ellum's art galleries, bars and rock/music venues at night
Visit NorthPark Center or downtown's flagship Neiman Marcus for world-class shopping

I can give you more specific restaurants and places if anything of that sounds interesting.

[Lakewooder]

To take advantage of dfwcre8tive's suggestion, a good place to stay at Mockingbird Station would be Luxury Hotel Palomar - Dallas Boutique Hotel - for something a bit more walkable and less expensive you could try the La Quinta on Central Expressway between Fitzhugh and Henderson. Also there are many downtown options.

[pepper131]

Check out what is happening at Double Wide, Lee Harvey's and Jack's Backyard when you come to visit - they each have calendars.

Not sure when you are coming, but the weekend of the 26th, I have 3 gallery openings on my calendar supporting various friends. When are you visiting?

Deep Ellum is still somewhat artsy, but a lot is going on around Bishop Arts District. And check out Kessler X+ (around Tyler/Davis) - they are having an art walk on April 10th.

Check out We Are 1976 on Henderson - they have workshops on weekends. And around the corner is Pearl Cup for coffee - sometimes they have music.

The La Quinta on Central at Willis (Henderson) is a good central location. You'll need a rental car to explore, though. Or take cabs. You might also like the Belmont Hotel in Oak Cliff - they can often shuttle you to areas nearby.

[loratliff]

When I first read your post, I immediately thought of the Belmont Hotel. Great bar, great restaurant (Smoke) and a cool hotel. You would definitely need a car to get around though.

The Stoneleigh is another option, with more fun stuff in walking distance.

[Dallas native]

Originally Posted by Vagabond Chick

I'm coming to Dallas to check out the city to possibly relocate. I'm a 30 year old, single, female who's coming from boring, snowy Denver. I would describe my style as outgoing, flamboyant, sometimes rocker - I listen to all types of music from country to hardcore metal. I love variety and culture. I would like to check out the nightlife, walk around the city and a check out a few neighborhoods.

Where would you suggest I NOT miss to get a flavor for Dallas? Bars, restaurants, walking tours, museums, something with a cultural pulse? I've heard Deep Ellum is a great artsy neighborhood?

Where is a safe city and central location to stay during my visit?

Thanks for your imput!

Don't know what your hotel budget is, but if you want something upscale you might like the Hotel ZaZa in Uptown. It's very flamboyant and is often host to visiting show-biz types. It's well located in Uptown where you could hop on the McKinney Ave. Trolley. It's also within walking distance of the Dallas Arts District in Downtown. Dallas Texas Hotels & Suites | Hotel ZaZa Dallas | Luxury Boutique Dallas Hotels

[Vagabond Chick]

Thank you all for your responses!

[lrfox]

I don't want to hijack this thread, but I also don't think it's necessary to start a new one on the same topic.

I'll be in Dallas on Memorial Day Weekend. I like some of the suggestions above (though I wouldn't describe myself as "flamboyant"). I'm staying at the Rosewood Crescent, downtown.

My biggest interests are architecture and food. For food, we'll probably want to do one nice meal and stay on a reasonable budget for the rest of the weekend. I love a great meal as much as the next guy, but I can't afford to drop $100+ per person all weekend. Furthermore, I find that some of the cheap eats (street food, authentic ethnic stuff, etc) are often times better than the ostentatious 5 Diamond meal. Any suggestions for good street food or underrated hole-in-the-wall (preferably a local flavor) type places would be awesome.

I am sort of a photography nerd too and love to take architectural photos (this is about 1/2 of the reason I booked the Rosewood Crescent). Any suggestions as to neighborhoods to explore (preferably on foot)? I'll have a car (I was told I'd probably need it as the TRE doesn't run to the airport on holidays) but have no problem relying on DART to get around the city core. In fact, the more I can use DART, the better. I know from glancing at the map that I'm staying right near the Nasher Art Center which is good.

I've already taken into account the nightlife advice above. Anyone have any particular watering hole that they prefer? I love a good local craft beer/ brew pub.

Any other suggestions on what might be a "can't miss" or special events going on during Memorial Day Weekend?

Thanks in advance!

[Lakewooder]

Here's one suggestion near your hotel - check out our photo threads also

The Ginger Man, Dallas

[lrfox]

^That looks great. They have a great selection. Thanks!