My weekend Dallas trip was successful. I say this because I planned accordingly and everything fell in place. This is my second solo trip ever since Chicago which was pretty exciting. The weather was sunny and windy which is perfect if you are going to explore on foot. The best way to explore downtown Dallas is to park your car and walk around downtown. While Dallas downtown is huge, you can do all these activities within 30 min walk which isn’t bad at all. So that being said, let’s get right into 2 days travel itinerary for downtown Dallas!
1. Trinity Groves/The Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge
Here, you get to see the beautiful and iconic views of downtown Dallas. You should normally be able to cross the bridge, however, when I went there, it was closed for construction. A local photographer told me the bridge is actually for children — playground and building blocks. Seemed like this spot could be useful for a lot of events or food trucks etc!
2. Joule’s Eyeball
This giant eyeball is so big you cannot miss it. The details of this giant eyeball is so realistic, it feels like it’s looking at you. This is located in the garden of The Joule Hotel.
3. Forty Five Ten/Mirador
This fashion designer boutique shop in downtown Dallas is one of my favorites! Forty Five Ten, a high-end retailer, is a 5-story building with everything in it! Cafe with a mural on the first floor, clothing on the second through fourth, and American restaurant/bar Mirador on the fifth floor. If you love art and fashion, this spot is for you!
4. Ascension
A cute coffee shop to relax my tired legs. I got their iced almond latte and it was refreshing! The cafe is quiet and cozy, staffs are welcoming. Tall glass windows lets the sun shine inside and brightens up the room. Liked their minimal interior design.
5. The Joule
If you love art and beautiful hotel lobbies, The Joule is definitely a great stop. Their lobby has so many art pieces from the entrance, you just want to buy them all and hang them in your house. They have an underground bar that opens at 5pm, restaurants, cafe, book shop and beauty shop. You will have so much fun wandering around the hotel and just feeling the vibe. Their beauty shop has many cute accessories so definitely check it out!
6. Dallas Fish Market
I went into this place thinking it would sell fish in the market, but it was actually a fancy seafood restaurant and bar. I wasn’t hungry so I just took photos since their interior is gorgeous. Their menu includes a lot of fresh seafood plates, so if you love seafood, this place is for you! Updating this post, I actually want some right now.
7. Commissary
It’s a bakery cafe. I had to check out this place because of their cute blue interior and tall glass windows. Seems like downtown Dallas has all the aesthetic cafes and restaurants!
8. Westin Downtown Hotel
Just checking out their hotel design because it’s beautiful. Compared to Joule, it’s less grandiose, but it’s still contemporary and modern. I really liked their main lobby and second floor bar lounge.
9. Dallas Museum of Art
Just like Houston, Dallas has free admission during Thursdays. My favorite was this colorful umbrella leaf looking piece out of all. It’s fun to check out each cities museums because they always have unique art pieces and you never know which ones will surprise you!
10. Klyde Warren Park
A beautiful and relaxing park with art, water fountains, and playground for kids. There are a lot of food trucks here to keep you full. One restaurant that stood out for me was Savor.
11. Historic West End Area
This is where I parked my car and walked around. I parked at Star Parking, which was $10 for 24 hours! This area however doesn’t have much going on, just bunch of public parking lots.
12. Perot Museum of Nature & Science
You should definitely check out this nature and science museum in downtown Dallas! The amount of information and value contained in this museum… shocking, because you will learn a lot! I really like their building structure, it’s unique. Each floor showcases different topics like animals, space, gems etc and it adds experience since it’s an interactive museum. The animals looked so realistic! It took me about 3–4 hours to read and look around the entire Perot museum. They had a special limited exhibition called The Art of The Brick. This probably is my favorite exhibition. All the art is made of LEGO brings and they really did a great job. Super creative and relatable. You can also see Dallas downtown views from the museum itself.
13. Nasher Sculpture Center
Relaxed and calm sculpture center with contemporary art. There’s a garden and more sculptures around. My favorite at that time was this giant fork. It’s right by Klyde Warren Park and Dallas Museum of Art. Currently there’s an on-going exhibit called Sterling Ruby: Sculpture.
14. Renaissance Dallas Hotel
The hotel I stayed in is also located in downtown Dallas, which is close to all of these museums, restaurants and activities. All within 20 minutes! My stay here at the Renaissance Dallas hotel was awesome. Their elevators are unique where there are no buttons inside of the elevator. Instead, there is a touch pad outside of the elevator where you enter your floor number and it will choose the elevator for you. The room was clean, modern and had a good view.
Thank you for reading! All photos are taken by me :)
