I never thought I’d visit Dallas – in fact, even Texas state has never been on my bucket list. But then Luka Doncic* happened to the Mavs and we decided we wanted to see him do his magic live. Of course, no one flies 13 hours in economy class just to see a basketball game. Hence, we decided to do a short road trip in Texas and stay in Dallas for a couple of days. In this post you will find top 5 things to do in Dallas which you can easily fit into a 2-day schedule.

*In case you didn’t know, Luka was born in Slovenia and despite his youth he is already a legend here in my country.  

1. See a basketball game in American Airlines Center

I’ll start with what brought me to Dallas in the first place. If you are an NBA fan, check the Dallas Mavericks schedule and try to be in town for their home game. You can get the tickets on Ticketmaster via this link. You can park in a public lot for just 5 USD (the price in March 2022). If it’s full, just go to the opposite side where you’ll pay 10 USDper night. Still a bargain considering the location. Try to get to the American Airlines Center on time and enjoy the show. Oh and try to wear something blue, possibly with No. 77 😉

2. Dallas panoramic views from Reunion Tower

If you want to see Dallas from bird’s eye view, Reunion Tower is your safest bet. Built in 1978 the tower is one of the most visited landmarks in town. From its viewing platform, situated 143 m above the ground, you get a stunning view of Dallas skyscrapers, the Dealey Plaza and the bridges across the Trinity River. The indoor area includes interactive touch screens and cameras providing 360-degree views across the city. Reunion Tower is occasionally closed for the events, so make sure to check the schedule and prices here. The tower is also included in Dallas Citypass so do the math which fits better into your wallet.

3. Dealey Plaza and Sixth Floor Museum

Dallas is also the place where the president of the United States John F. Kennedy was assassinated. The tragic event happened in 1963 while riding in a presidential motorcade through Dealey Plaza. The crime scene is marked with big X on the street. In memory of the president’s life and legacy the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza was built – it is located in the former Texas School Book Depository building. You can check out the opening hours and admission here. Speaking of presidential history, the George W. Bush Presidential Center is located in Dallas too.

4. Enjoy in one of many Dallas city parks

Dallas is full of well-maintained city parks. One of the most popular is Klyde Warren park, where you can just sit down and soak up the atmosphere. During Summer weekends the place gets crowded, however during our mid-week visit in early March we got the whole place to ourselves. We had zero expectations and ended up playing a game of table football and table tennis. The park also offers o book corner, free Wi-Fi, cozy chairs and relatively peaceful environment.

5. Get lost in the streets of Downtown

Dallas Downtown is easily walkable, and surprisingly low in traffic. The beauty of it is that you get beautiful buildings on every corner. From gorgeous Cathedral Shrine of the Virgin of Guadalupe to a large collection of prize-winning buildings such as Nasher Sculpture Center, Winspear Opera House, Wyly Theatre and Perot Museum of Nature and Science. We are both nature lovers but we just couldn’t take our hands off the camera.

While you stroll the streets of Dallas Downtown, grab a coffee in one of the many great coffee shops. We loved the one at Berkley’s Market on the Main Street. It was a refreshing gourmet break from all the average Starbucks’ we had during our road trip.

Other things to do

Since we only had 2 days in Dallas, I didn’t want to fill our schedule till the very last minute. The “5 things to do in Dallas” plan worked our perfectly and I don’t feel like we’ve left out something very important. Sure, there are many Instagram spots in other parks and by the river, but this was not one of those trips. We rather saved time to go shopping instead. 😉

By the way if you are a shopaholic, you’ll need a car because you can find the best deals outside of town. Actually, we didn’t see any stores during our stroll in Downtown. Like literally not a single store. We drove all the way to Allen Premium Outlets, and visited some Ross & Marshall stores on the way. Happy wife, happy life, remember that. 😉

If you are a museum and art freak, Dallas is the place for you. In fact, with 19 contiguous blocks, the Dallas Arts District is the largest urban arts complex in the nation. It offers 3 world-class museums: the Dallas Museum of Art, the Nasher Sculpture Center and the Crow Collection of Asian Art.

If you are traveling with kids, you also might want to check out Dallas Zoo and Aquarium. 

At last, but not the least, Dallas is known for great food, especially BBQ. We somehow ended up with not eating a single steak (I am not much of a meat lover anyway) but everything we ate was delicious. Locals suggest checking out Yelp app, the reviews there are supposed to be quite accurate.

Other useful tips

If you are flying from Europe, you will probably land in Dallas Fort Worth International Airport. You can also check other nearby airports like Austin or Houston if you get a better deal. They are not close (both are around 2-3 hours’ drive from Dallas) but if you want to make a road trip, you’ll need a car anyway. Make sure you take a toll pass because most of the highways have toll system enforced. There are plenty of parking lots in town, and they are not expensive. Alternatively, you can also use Uber or Lyft. We didn’t use public transport but you can explore your options here.

Hotels in Dallas do not come cheap, but you can easily get a decent motel under 100$ per night if you stay a bit further from downtown. Check out Booking.com or Expedia for best deals.

You are welcome to check out my Instagram and Facebook album for more photos and stories from Dallas and Texas road trip. If you liked this post, I would appreciate a friendly follow.

To sum up, Dallas is one of the prettiest US cities I’ve visited. It actually comes right after Boston in my book. The only thing I missed in Dallas (or during our short road trip) was some good hiking. This part of Texas is flat, so don’t expect anything exciting in terms of nature wonders. Or am I wrong? Have I missed something? Let me know in comments below! 😉