I’m in Texas for a few more days visiting family for the holidays. We’re right around the Waco/Kileen/Temple area (near the center of Texas). We’d like to go sightseeing, but aren’t sure of where to go. We’re on somewhat of a time constraint - a family member needs the car from 6:30pm-7:30am to go to work. I’ve been searching the local towns’ websites (Austin, San Antonio, Dallas, etc.) but can’t seem to find anything that strikes my fancy. Any suggestions?
DoperChic
You could head west across the Lampassas Cut Plain and then south through the Hill Country. Fredericksburg should have some nice shopping this time of year. In fact, we’re heading there tomorrow. Burnet, Marble Falls, Wimberly… they’re all in some pretty country.
DoperChic, that depends entirely on what sort of things you’re interested in seeing. Dallas and Austin are both very cosmopolitan. Plenty to see and to do. Dallas is really good for the arts – museums, symphony, opera. Austin is more of a “happening” college town with good clubs and lots of live bands. Again, though, a little more clarity on what your interests are will make recommendations much easier.
Well we’re a pretty big group here ranging in age from 2 to 49. I guess we’d be most interested in seeing the historic sights. Shopping is great, but something that can be done back home in Pennsylvania, too. We’re thinking now of trying out Austin. It’s only about an hour away, so it’s well within our time contraints. One possible tour would be the Austin Ducks - an amphibious touring vehicle that goes on both land and water.
In Austin, there are several museums. My family found the new Texas museum pretty interesting, and there’s also the Lyndon B. Johnson presidential library which is nice, and I believe free, though might not be open if you go when UT is having it’s Christmas break.
And this might not be the right time of year for it, but if you ever go to Austin in the spring or summer, you have to see the bat colony coming out from under the bridge. I don’t remember what the bridge name is, but it’s a fairly big tourist attraction and you’d be able to find info on it easily. It’s the largest urban bat population in the US, and they all come out at dusk to feed, and it’s just amazing to watch.
The “new Texas museum” Sam mentioned is the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum.
For art museums, your best bet is Fort Worth, which is 30 miles west of Dallas. The Kimbell Art Museum’s collection of classical European works is acknowledged to be among the finest in the world, and it’s also a fairly small museum, so going through it won’t be too taxing for the patience-challenged. Admission is free, unless you want to see their special exhibits. The Kimbell is flanked by the Amon Carter Museum of American Art, which also has free admission, and the Ft. Worth Museum of Modern Art, which has a tremendous new building and another widely-respected collection of modern art. Admission is free for childern under 12, and $6 otherwise. While in Fort Worth, you can visit downtown’s historic Sundance Square. The old courthouse is nearby and (I think) was filmed for Walker, Texas Ranger if you’re into that kind of thing. Also nearby is Bass Hall, with its huge twin angels on the facade; free tours are offered on Saturday mornings, if you’ll be staying until then.
A little southwest of Fort Worth is the town of Glen Rose, which is a popular tourist destination. Of course, right near Temple/Killeen is the enormous army base of Ft. Hood, though I have no idea if they conduct public tours or anything of the sort.
In Dallas, the Sixth Floor Museum provides a non-sensational account of the JFK assassination and is very, very well done; I can’t remember what the admission is. Alternatively, the Conspiracy Museum aims to satisfy the tinfoil-hat contingent. As for art exhibits, the newly-opened Nasher Sculpture Center has an excellent collection of modern sculpture. Admission is $10 (ouch). Just south of the Nasher, inside an office tower, is the Crow Collection of Asian Art, which can be described as jewel-like, both in its smal scale and the quality of its holdings. About 5 miles north of downtown is the campus of Southern Methodist University, where the Meadows Museum houses one of the best collections of Spanish art outside Spain.
Speaking of university collections, the Browning Library is located at Baylor University, so literary fans of Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning may be interested in a visit.
The bats are under the Congress Street bridge, and leave at dusk.
Whatever else you do while in Central Texas, you must get some Kolaches from some little mom & pop shop in some town like West or Snook.
Alas, they leave for god around November, not to return until after Easter.
We have an exceptionally good zoo in Fort Worth, which even Dallasites will admit is better than theirs. We’ve got a Log Cabin Village (real log cabins, relocated into one area) which has a docent in each cabin, who will talk about things like carding and spinning fibers, or making candles, or milling corn. After the talk, a short demonstration of the pioneer skill is performed. Included in the village is a mill and a smithy, who also demonstrate their skills. Various touristy items are available for purchase, like stone-ground cornmeal. The village does charge an admission fee.
I haven’t been to our water gardens lately (I’ve developed mobility problems), but they were spectacular when I went last. If you’ve seen the old science fiction movie Logan’s Run, the water gardens were part of the background in the last part. The water gardens are free, and parklike.
We have the botanical gardens too, though there’s probably not much to see this time of year. Most of it is free, though some sections charge a fee.
The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History charges a fee for admission to the general exhibits. It also has a planetarium and an Omnimax theater, which charge a separate fee for the shows.
It’s been years since I’ve been to the Inner Space Cavern, but I enjoyed it greatly. Reservations are suggested for larger groups (20 people and over). It’s 20 miles north of Austin.
I don’t know much about the Riverwalk in San Antonio these days. Twenty years ago, it was a delightfully touristy place, where one could stroll for free and also partake of various activities, most of which did cost money.
Still the same, only longer and more developed. It’s margarita intensive and relaxed - a good place to spend a weekend. San Antonio is very touristy, but I think a day trip from the Waco area is right out. That’s a 4-5 hour drive one way.
Good golly! I lived there for ten years and never knew that!!
Waco has a Texas Ranger museum…no, not the baseball team. Ft Hood, the “largest military post in the free world” is next to Killeen and also has a great military museum, if you’re into that. If you want to see the “real” Texas, you need to get away from the I-35 corridor, though, IMO.
Are you a Conan The Barbarian fan?
If so, Cross Plains might be the place for you.
http://www.texasescapes.com/TexasPanhandleTowns/CrossPlainsTexas/CrossPlainsTx.htm
Too bad it ain’t Labor Day–you could attend the annual Barbarian Festival!
Well there’s always the Dr. Pepper Museum in Waco… 
The standard sightseeing in Austin includes a trip to the Capitol, the LBJ Museum and a drive through the UT campus, and now the Bob Bullock Museum, as well as perhaps day trips out into the Hill Country or hikes in Perdenales Falls. Or a trip out to Johnson City and the LBJ Ranch. There are some beautiful drives around Lake Travis to the West of Austin. A nice family dinner may be a trip to the Salt Lick in Oak Hill, outside of Austin, near Driftwood.
In the Austin-San Antonio corridor, you can go to the historic German town of New Braunfels. There are a bunch of things to do around there – from Natural Bridge Caverns to the Schlitterbahn although it is closed this time of year. It is starting to get a bit far for a day trip from Waco, though.
I second going West into the Hill Country. There are a bunch of things to do out there, from the gimmicky dude ranches, to pretty nice hikes and drives as well as quaint old towns and such.
If you want to come in towards Houston, you can go to the Blue Bell Creamery in Brenham or to the historic site at Washington on the Brazos, but again that starts to be a bit far for a day trip.
The Alamo qualifies as a historical thing. And it’s in San Antonio.
I second the Bob Bullock museum in Austin. Johnson City is the hometown of LBJ and you can visit the place where he grew up. I believe Fredericksburg has a Chester Nimitz museum. And shopping.
I’ve always loved San Antonio. History, culture, music, food, tons of stuff. Nearby river-rides and caverns, Safari trip, etc…
Waco’s not exactly the 8th wonder but there’s some places worth seeing. It is in a good location to travel from though.
If you find yourself near Canton this weekend they have the biggest damned yardsale in the world (AFAIK) It’s worth seeing at least once.
*note: You can’t see it all in one day. :eek:
A few links you might want to check out. Enjoy yourself and y’all come back now… ya hear. 
http://www.wacocvb.com/waco-attractions.html
http://www.state.tx.us/category.jsp?language=eng&categoryId=11.1
http://www.citibay.com/citibay/attractiions/dallas-fortworth/dallas-fortworth.shtml
Another vote for spending time in Fort Worth. When we lived in the DFW area, we enjoyed the Fort Worth zoo much more than the Dallas zoo. The Japanese gardens are nice but I don’t think the kids will get much out of it other than feeding the fish. There’s also the “historic” stock yards.
Do not go to see South Fork. You will be disappointed. And although it’s somewhat sacrilegious to say, the Alamo is kind of disappointing too. It makes you wonder why they were fighting over it.
