Sometimes your family just needs to get out of T-Town. That's when you pack everyone into the car and head west toward the Big D, which offers a host of great adventures that won't break the bank. You'll find fascinating museums, great hotels, and fabulous restaurants to tantalize your taste buds. But with so much to choose from, where should you go the next time you head to Dallas? 

Destinations

 

Perot Museum
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The Perot Museum of Nature and Science is located just off I-35E in Downtown Dallas and is a huge hands-on museum the entire family is sure to enjoy. You can walk among the dinosaurs, stare into space and learn how it constantly expands, find out how earthquakes and tornadoes work, and create tomorrow's technology today in the Texas Instruments Engineering and Innovation Hall. Traveling exhibits are always coming through too, so you can visit multiple times and always experience something new.

Heather and Jathan at the Stockyards
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The Fort Worth Stockyards transport you back in time to the old West. Cowboys come and ride the rodeo and get fitted for custom stetsons, the best in country music blares out of Billy Bob's Texas, and longhorn cattle still stampede through the streets twice a day. Whether you're looking for amazing places to shop, great places to eat or simply want to take a historic walking tour and learn about what put this place on the map, you're in for a treat. Just be sure to wear comfortable shoes and plan to hang out for a while. There is so much to see and do here that you won't want to leave too soon.

Lodging

The Southfork Hotel is a three-star full service establishment that offers big rooms for a great price. It is in Plano, just north of Dallas on North Central Expressway, and is close to great shopping, dishes up a delicious breakfast bar complete with made-to-order omelettes and it even has a pool for the kids to splash around in after a long day of sightseeing. Best of all, you can purchase a package that includes tickets to tour Southfork Ranch, which is the legendary home to the Ewing family of TV's Dallas. You haven't had the complete Dallas experience until you've explored the home of one of TV's most iconic clans.

Dining

Urban Crust
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If you stay in Plano, then you won't want to miss Urban Crust, a phenomenal wood-fired pizza parlor with an intimate dining room, signature pizzas like the Buffalina Pizza with Buffalo mozzarella from Italy or the Black & Blue with basil pesto, baby portobellos and blue cheese. The drink menu is also fantastic, with choices like the Cran Cosmo that's made with Grey Goose Le Citron Vodka, white cranberry juice and dried cranberries or the Nacho Libre Margarita made with Patron Silver Taquila, fresh jalapenos and fresh lime juice. Yum!

If you sleep in and miss out on the breakfast buffet at the Southfork Hotel, then head over to Angela's at the Crosswalk, a fun little hole-in-the-wall restaurant that offers up comfort food all day long. Satisfy your hunger with a breakfast burrito, biscuits and gravy or a Belgian waffle. Or perhaps you've got a hankering for melt-in-your-mouth pastries like huge cinnamon rolls and sticky buns or a canoli or bread pudding for dessert. In that case, their baked goods are hard to beat. But if it's lunch or dinner you desire, then you might try a mega sandwich like the chicken fried steak sandwich, an Italian grinder, or the 1/2-pound Crosswalk burger. No matter what you order, you're going to leave feeling happy and satisfied.

If you go to the Perot Museum, then cross the street and head over to El Fenix for a great Tex-Mex lunch. The wait is typically short, the food is slap-your-mama good, and the atmosphere is lively, which is helped in large part due to the exceptional service the wait staff offers. From the fresh salsa and fire-roasted queso to the oversized platters of fajitas, enchiladas and fish tacos, everything is made to order and served up in heaping, generous portions. The price is average, but the food and service are anything but. Do yourself a huge favor, and don't miss this place if you want something spicy and divine.

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