Tote1940 Loc: Dallas

It's immense! Huge very diverse State. Allow yourself plenty of time; while on Interstates you can travel > 75 mph in cities traffic just crawls.
Being from Europe our Museums cannot compare but nicely complement those in the Continent. Houston's Museum of Fine Arts is very large, also some gorgeous Mansions to visit. Fort Worth not only has Stockyards where you can see real cowboys and longhorns ( by the way it's famous Stock show and Rodeo is starting now) but gorgeous and very photogenic Modern Art Museum (Tadeo Ando) , Kimball a world class small museum and Amon Carter with American art and one of best photography collections
In Dallas we have Dallas Museum of Art and my favorite Meadows (best collection Spanish Art this side of pond together with New York's Hispanic Society). San Antonio's Mc Nay is a growing jewel .
If you like skylines both Houston and Dallas very impressive.
East Texas very wooded, blends into Louisiana; West Texas (Midland Odessa) bleak desert, much oil drilling; can serve for dramatic shots in monochrome or Infrared if weather helps.
Much abandoned industry , Route 66 travels to California from near Amarillo; many photo ops there
Caves plenty, best ones Carlsbad, although not in Texas just across border into New Mexico, indescribable size. Monochromatic however.
Totally different experience Caddo Lake (only natural lake in State, although created only in 19th Century) bayou with paddle boats , there used to be an steam powered paddle boat do not know it still there.
Amarillo : Cadillac Ranch pretty ugly by now, many grafitii ; Palo Duro Canyon great photography, like small Grand Canyon. Should be amazing if you do Infrared and weather collaborates.
Where to stay : around San Antonio and Austin several resort Hotels with flowing rivers for kids to float in
We favor Horseshoe Bay resort; teh whole "Hill Country" is very picturesque. In Fredericksburg (Admiral Nimitz's hometown) there is an outstanding Museum of WWII in Pacific, including Japanese Mini sub that attacked Pearl Harbor.
Fall in Texas is very mild, great time to come to this State, our home last 25 years.
Huge State, not to say country, extremely varied
Good luck and a great trip

SnoShuSam Loc: Texas, (ex Virginian)

Lived here in Texas since Mar. 2021. Taxes are high. Local govt. is awful. BUT! The Johnson Space Center is awesome! The Alamo is extremely humbling and an awesome visit. West Texas is beautiful and San Antonio is fantastic! But! The two best things in Texas are the people and the Bar-B-Que. Outside the state of Texas there is no such thing as Bar-B-Que!!!! That should start something.

LDB415 Loc: Houston south suburb

If you start at the southernmost point in Texas and drive north and out the northernmost point, then drive the same distance north again, you'll be about an hour short of Canada. If you start at the easternmost point coming in from Louisiana and drive out the westernmost point outside El Paso you've driven almost 40% of the way across the United States. A poem goes The sun has riz, the sun has set, and here we is, in Texas yet. Very many great suggestions plus a few comments you should ignore.

David in Dallas Loc: Dallas, Texas, USA

Texas is big. It's almost 1000 miles (1600 km) east-to-west and about the same north-to-south. Folks visiting from the EU or the UK have no idea just how big this is. You'll need to concentrate on a few major destinations, I think. (When I first came here in 1980 rural folks would talk about how many six-packs it took to drive to their neighbors.) The big cities are pretty "Liberal" (by Texas standards) but the rest of the state is fairly conservative. You'll like the people here.

JFCoupe Loc: Kent, Washington

I have read that Big Bend National Park is terrific. Also if along the coast, I think Padre Island National Seashore would be a place to visit, and perhaps good for bird photography.

mikenolan Loc: Lincoln Nebraska

Here's another recommendation for Palo Duro Canyon, there's a shade of red rock there that is not found anywhere else.

Floyd Loc: Misplaced Texan in Florence, Alabama

The McDonald Observatory in the Big Bend area is one of the best places to see and photograph the Milky Way. Also, the observatory has a very nice program about our space neighbors and how they react to each other that are very worth the small expense.

Second, if you visit the Panhandle area check out Palo Duro Canyon (probably misspelled), between Lubbock and Amarillo. The canyon is a small Grand Canyon and during the late Spring and Summer, in the canyon, a live show with men and horses, wagons, cattle (Longhorns), and Indians portray the history of the West as it happened in the Panhandle. Very enjoyable. The Amarillo Chamber of Commerce can be contacted for more information.

Thirdly, while in the Dallas, Ft. Worth area visit the premier Western Art Museum containing huge paintings and sculptures by Remington and other famous artists.

Finally, be prepared for distances measured by Texans in hours. not mileage. Years ago, an old tourist photocard addressed the situation whether traveling the State border East to West or North to South, and still generally true today: An Easterner intending to travel from Little Rock to El Paso says, "The sun has rize, and the sun has set, here we iz still in Texas yet."

Sendai5355 Loc: On the banks of the Pedernales River, Texas

Houston and San Antonio have many interesting places to visit. However, San Antonio is my favorite. Not much to see west of San Antonio until you get to Fort Stockton and Midland/Odessa. Texas can still be warm in late September and early October with high humidity in Houston and San Antonio.

For perspective:
Distance from Houston to San Antonio is 200 miles (320 km).
From Houston to El Paso is 750 miles (1200 km).
From Houston to Midland is 500 miles (800 km.).
Distance from San Antonio to DFW is 300 miles (480 km.).

As in any other place on earth you need to be aware of your surroundings. Enjoy your trip.

mikestachowiak Loc: Buffalo, NY

You will love Texas. In October still can get pretty hot 90-100 depending where you go.

StanMac Loc: Tennessee

It is said that if you cross the Northern border from Saskatchewan on the way to Matamoros, MX, when you cross the Texas border at the panhandle you would be only halfway there.

Stan

M1911 Loc: DFW Metromess

When in the Dallas area, check out the Fort Worth stock yards and go to a rodeo somewhere.

wrangler5 Loc: Missouri

It would be only slightly facetious of me to say that if you're landing in Houston, two weeks should be enough time to drive to El Paso and make your return flight at DFW - if you don't dawdle. I've driven in England and Wales, and believe me when I say "just down the road" means something different in Texas. (Here's a link to a map of Europe with Texas overlaid - https://www.texasmonthly.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/germany.png )

That said, Texas is a wonderful place to visit. We have relatives with a horse farm north of Dallas and always enjoy going when they invite us. The countryside may not be a dramatic as the mountains of Colorado or the Pacific Ocean coastline of California and Oregon can be. But the experience of the vastness is something you've probably not had before, so don't forget to capture some of "it" while you're moving between all the interesting places others have suggested.

And a cultural note - you probably won't see it much in big cities, but if you do happen to spot somebody walking down the street or in a store with a gun on their hip, don't be concerned. That's almost certainly NOT somebody you have to worry about.

Lucasdv123

I live in Texas and Yes , you got to watch back cause we will put a bullet in your ass.No just kidding.between September 29 and October the 22 is the state fair in the Dallas Fort Worth area.you got to go there. You also need to San Antonio and see the Riverwalk and the alamo.stay at the Drury Plaza on the Riverwalk and ask to stay on the San Fernando tower with a patio so you can see the show projected onto the San Fernando cathedral which is about 500 years old .the show is about 45 minutes long repeated twice about 3 or 4 times per week and starts around 9 pm.the hotel feeds you a hot breakfast and at 5:30 pm-7:00 pm you get 3 drinks for everyone 21 or over and a free meal.have a great time and most of all have a safe trip cause we would like to hear from you and not of you.make sure you rent a car in advance cause Texas is 801 miles south to north and 773 mils east to west.1244 kilometer and 1290 kilometers.

huntmj

I am well traveled so will take the negative comments without concern. The many positive suggestions are useful and will help form the plan for the trip. Thank you all for taking the time to help me.

SteveR Loc: Michigan

I found Palo Duro Canyon disappointing. However, the drive out from Amarillo to the canyon is almost more breathtaking. Talk about big sky country. When we did the drive we had a thunderstorm to the left of us and sunny skies to the right of us. Fantastic.