Things to Do in Dallas

Dallas’s major attractions are distributed across multiple distinct districts — a car or DART light rail is needed to cover the full range efficiently. The Arts District concentrates the most world-class institutions within walking distance of each other. Deep Ellum and Bishop Arts require separate trips; Dealey Plaza is walkable from the Arts District. Allow at least two full days to cover the primary sites without rushing.

Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza

The Sixth Floor Museum (411 Elm St, downtown) occupies the former Texas School Book Depository, where Lee Harvey Oswald fired at President Kennedy on November 22, 1963. The museum presents the Kennedy presidency, the assassination, and its aftermath through over 400 photographs, films, and artifacts. The sniper’s position (the sixth-floor window) is preserved under glass.

The museum is honest about what is known and what remains disputed — the Warren Commission conclusions are presented alongside the debates they generated. The audio guide covers each exhibition area in approximately 75 minutes; allow 2 hours for a thorough visit.

Admission approximately $18 for adults; children 6–18 approximately $14 as of 2026. Open daily 10am–6pm; closed Tuesdays September–May. Book tickets online to avoid lines.

Dealey Plaza is the public space immediately west of the museum — the grassy areas, the triple underpass, the Grassy Knoll, and the pergola where Abraham Zapruder filmed the assassination are all free to access. The plaza is a National Historic Landmark. The John F. Kennedy Memorial (600 Main St, one block east) is a Philip Johnson–designed open cenotaph (1970), also free.

Dallas Arts District

The Dallas Arts District (downtown, between Flora St and Woodall Rodgers Freeway) is the largest contiguous urban arts district in the US, with 19 cultural organizations within 68 acres.

Dallas Museum of Art (1717 N Harwood St) has free general admission — one of the few major American art museums with no admission charge. The permanent collection spans 5,000 years: the Ancient Americas galleries, the African art collection (one of the strongest in the US), the Impressionist collection, and the 20th-century American rooms are all worth specific attention. Special exhibitions charge approximately $16–$22. Open Tuesday–Sunday 11am–5pm; Thursday until 9pm.

Nasher Sculpture Center (2001 Flora St) was purpose-designed by Renzo Piano for the Raymond and Patsy Nasher collection of approximately 300 20th-century sculptures. The glass-and-limestone building admits natural light precisely calibrated to minimize UV exposure while maximizing visual quality. Works by Rodin, Brancusi, Giacometti, Matisse, Calder, di Suvero, and Richard Serra. The garden is integrated with the building. Admission approximately $10 as of 2026. Open Tuesday–Sunday 11am–5pm.

Crow Museum of Asian Art (2010 Flora St) covers approximately 2,000 years of South, Southeast, East, and Central Asian art in seven permanent galleries. Free admission. Open Tuesday–Sunday 10am–5pm.

Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center (2301 Flora St) was designed by I.M. Pei and opened 1989. The Dallas Symphony Orchestra performs here September–May. Tickets from approximately $25; check the DSO website for the current season. Building tours run on non-performance days.

Deep Ellum

Deep Ellum (Elm St and Main St between Good-Latimer Expressway and Malcolm X Blvd, approximately 1 mile east of downtown) has been Dallas’s music district since the 1910s — originally a blues and jazz neighborhood in an African American commercial district east of downtown. The current district retains the music venue density and has developed into a general entertainment district.

Venues worth noting for specific types of music:

• Trees (2709 Elm St) — medium-capacity rock and indie shows; 700 capacity
• Dada (2720 Elm St) — smaller indie and art-music shows; 250 capacity
• Club Deville (1323 Commerce St) — outdoor bar, unpretentious
• Deep Ellum Brewing (2823 St Louis Ave) — the neighborhood brewery with a large taproom

The street murals throughout Deep Ellum (covering building sides along Commerce, Main, and Crowdus) form one of the largest outdoor mural collections in Texas. Walking the area during the day is productive for seeing the murals; evenings are for shows.

Pecan Lodge (2702 Main St) is the most acclaimed BBQ restaurant in Dallas proper, worth a dedicated visit (see the food guide).

Bishop Arts District

Bishop Arts District (W Davis St and N Bishop Ave, Oak Cliff, approximately 3 miles southwest of downtown) is a 16-block commercial area in an older Dallas neighborhood, developed from the 1990s onward from a deteriorated strip into the most concentrated independent retail and restaurant district in the city.

The visual character — 1920s–1940s commercial buildings, low-rise, walkable — is unusual in Dallas. The 60+ independent restaurants, boutiques, galleries, and coffee shops on W Davis and N Bishop reflect a genuine neighborhood rather than a curated development. The Texas Theatre (231 W Jefferson Blvd) in nearby Jefferson District is a 1931 cinema where Oswald was arrested 90 minutes after the Kennedy assassination; now an independent cinema and event venue.

Accessible by DART light rail (Bishop Arts / Beckley Station on the Blue/Red Line) or rideshare from downtown.

Fair Park and State Fair of Texas

Fair Park (1300 Robert B. Cullum Blvd, approximately 2 miles east of downtown) is a 277-acre National Historic Landmark containing the most complete collection of 1930s Art Deco exposition architecture in the US. The grounds were built for the 1936 Texas Centennial Exposition and have been maintained since.

Year-round museums within Fair Park:

• African American Museum (3536 Grand Ave): One of the few museums in the US dedicated to African American cultural heritage, art, and history. Free admission.
• Perot Museum of Nature and Science (actually located downtown at 2201 N Field St): The natural science museum is downtown, not at Fair Park, despite the name association.
• Texas Discovery Gardens (3601 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd): Organic gardens and butterfly house.

State Fair of Texas (mid-September through mid-October, at Fair Park): The largest state fair in the US by attendance — approximately 2 million visitors over 24 days. The hallmarks: Big Tex (a 55-foot animatronic cowboy figure greeting visitors at the entrance since 1952), Fletcher’s Original State Fair Corny Dogs (only available at the fair), and the annual Fried Food Competition (which has produced deep-fried butter, deep-fried Oreos, and dozens of other inventions since the competition began in 2005). Fair admission approximately $20–$25; parking and food extra. Best arrived via DART rail (Fair Park Station).

White Rock Lake

White Rock Lake Park (8300 E Lawther Dr, approximately 8 miles northeast of downtown) is a 1,015-acre park with a 9.3-mile trail loop around the lake. The Dallas Arboretum (8525 Garland Rd) is on the eastern shore — 66 acres of formal gardens with rotating seasonal plantings. Admission approximately $15 for adults as of 2026. Open daily 9am–5pm.