3 days in Dallas

Day by day

1. Day 1: The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza and Dealey Plaza and the JFK Memorial

   The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza, Dealey Plaza and the JFK Memorial and Reunion Tower GeO-Deck, then Deep Ellum murals and music in the evening.

   1. Morning

      The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza

      Inside the former Texas School Book Depository, this museum traces President John F.

   2. Late morning

      Dealey Plaza and the JFK Memorial

      Stay on the pavement; standing on the white X marks painted in Elm Street means stepping into fast traffic.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Smoked brisket

      Barbecue joints in Deep Ellum and across the city; the most famous ones have long queues, so arrive early.

   4. Afternoon

      Reunion Tower GeO-Deck

      The tower topped by a lattice ball of lights, a landmark on the Dallas skyline since 1978, has an indoor and outdoor observation deck about 140 metres up with views over downtown, the Trinity River bridges and on clear days towards Fort Worth.

   5. Evening

      Deep Ellum murals and music

      Walk the murals in the afternoon, eat barbecue early to beat the queues, then stay for a show.

2. Day 2: Dallas Museum of Art and Nasher Sculpture Center

   Dallas Museum of Art, Nasher Sculpture Center and Crow Museum of Asian Art, then Deep Ellum in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Dallas Museum of Art

      Start with the European and American galleries upstairs, then walk across Flora Street to the Nasher's garden.

   2. Late morning

      Nasher Sculpture Center

      A Renzo Piano building with a glass-vaulted gallery opening onto a walled sculpture garden, showing modern and contemporary sculpture by Rodin, Matisse, Picasso, Calder, Henry Moore and others.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Frozen margarita

      Tex-Mex restaurants across Dallas, including the restaurant that still claims the original recipe.

   4. Afternoon

      Crow Museum of Asian Art

      Check the ground-floor gallery for temporary exhibitions before heading upstairs to the jade.

   5. Evening

      Deep Ellum

      Live-music venues, dive bars and late-night food along Elm and Main Streets.

3. Day 3: Klyde Warren Park and Perot Museum of Nature and Science

   Klyde Warren Park, Perot Museum of Nature and Science and Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden, then Uptown in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Klyde Warren Park

      A deck park built over the sunken Woodall Rodgers Freeway in 2012, joining downtown's Arts District to Uptown.

   2. Late morning

      Perot Museum of Nature and Science

      Take the glass escalator to the top floor and work down; it avoids the crowds at the ground-floor dinosaur hall.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Tex-Mex with queso

      Long-running Tex-Mex restaurants citywide, especially along Greenville Avenue and in Oak Cliff.

   4. Afternoon

      Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden

      Display gardens on the eastern shore of White Rock Lake, known for the Dallas Blooms spring festival with hundreds of thousands of bulbs, the autumn Pumpkin Village of tens of thousands of pumpkins, and a large children's science garden.

   5. Evening

      Uptown

      Cocktail bars, rooftop lounges and patio bars along McKinney Avenue.

Before you go

• The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza: Entry is by timed ticket; book online for weekends and holidays.

If it rains

• Swap in Dallas World Aquarium (West End): Go early on weekends; the narrow rainforest walkway gets congested by late morning.
• Swap in George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum (University Park): Allow time for the native-prairie walk behind the museum, which is pleasant in spring wildflower season.

Where to stay for this itinerary

With 3 nights, Downtown and the Arts District keeps most of this route within easy reach. For a calmer or cheaper base, Uptown and Victory Park ($$$$) suits nightlife, couples, food lovers and luxury. Compare every area.

Pace and daylight

The sights in this plan add up to roughly 15–19 hours of visiting over 3 days, before meals and getting between them. Daylight runs from about 10 hours in December to 14.3 hours in June, so in winter start early and keep museums for the afternoon.

More or fewer days

• One day in Dallas
• 2 days in Dallas

Questions travellers ask