Texas: The Lone Star State

There’s a saying that goes: As big as Texas … and for those visiting this state, it applies to all the things to do and see.

Dallas/Ft. Worth

While they go head-to-head in some areas (lobbying for corporate relocations and building top-rank cultural attractions), Dallas and Fort Worth have also staked out their own separate identities — partly, we suspect, because they want to be seen as different from their neighbor.

Dallas gleams — skyscrapers, designer shopping, glittering arts facilities and commercial verve are combined into a cosmopolitan city. It may well be viewed as the epitome of the thriving North American metropolis at the close of the 1900s.

Fort Worth, on the other hand, preserves its Cowtown past in the Historic Stockyards District, the rodeo and its citizens’ love of Western wear and cowboy bars. While Fort Worth can boast its own share of high-tech businesses and contemporary culture (including some world-class museums), it keeps one boot in its frontier past.

Houston

Houston defies the stereotypical view of Texas — it’s wet and green and one of the busiest ports in the world, as well as a center for the petrochemical, medical and aeronautics industries. Its upscale Galleria, famed art galleries and tony River Oaks enclave bespeak Houston’s wealth, but the Harwin warehouse district, the Heights area and burgeoning Asian neighborhoods signal the city’s diversity.

Austin

The capital of the state and the home of the University of Texas, Austin has always managed to avoid being just a government town or just an academic one. It was long known as a laid-back haven for musicians, hippies, slackers and whatever other counterculture group came along. But in the last decade, it has drawn a new crowd of high-tech whiz kids who have only added to its reputation. Now it’s not only a cool place to hang out, it’s a cool place to hang out and become a millionaire. So lots of people are hanging out: It’s quickly growing from a medium-sized city to a large one.

Down South

Bordered by mountains and the Rio Grande, El Paso is strongly influenced by Mexico and the Old West. A cultural mix of Hispanics, Anglos and Native Americans gives it an atmosphere unlike that of any other city in the state. Pueblan tribes inhabited the area before 1581, when Spanish explorers arrived to establish a series of missions along the Rio Grande. You can still visit several of the old missions in the area. The Mission Trail is a marked driving route that runs to the Ysleta and Socorro Missions and the San Elizario Presidio. All of these have been rebuilt since they were originally constructed in the early colonial days, but they still date to the 1800s and early 1900s.

The Hill Country is situated in south-central Texas (north and west of San Antonio and west of Austin). It’s a tranquil setting of lakes, natural springs, abundant wildlife, hidden limestone canyons and rugged juniper- and oak-covered hills. It has small towns, state parks, ranches, wineries and scenic drives (a spring wildflower excursion is nearly a religious rite for some locals).

Big Bend National Park

This giant park (801,163 acres) is in a remote corner of Texas, but it’s well worth the effort. Located in the southwestern part of the state, where the Rio Grande makes its "big bend" (essentially a giant U turn), the park includes three separate ecosystems—river, mountain and desert. Desert terrain — the Chihuahuan Desert to be exact — dominates, however, making the park a fascinating place to visit during late fall, winter and early spring. (The summer months can be very hot—avoid visiting then unless you plan to spend all your time in the mountains.)