72 Hours in Dallas, Texas

Ever since I was in college, I was SOOO excited to go and visit Texas someday. In August, I got invited to go to Dallas for a birthday weekend. My Instagram best friend Lindsay of @sunshineandstairclimbs on Instagram (GO FOLLOW HER!!!!) whom I have been lucky enough to visit in her own hometown of Indianapolis, Indiana (here) and Chicago, Illinois (here) with was celebrating her Birthday on SUPER BOWL WEEKEND (!!!!!) in Dallas, Texas and invited several of her friends (some of whom happen to live in Dallas!) who all live across the country to come and celebrate. It was such a special weekend getting to celebrate Lindsay AND meet some of her many friends that I have heard SO MUCH about in-person (shoutout out to Cody, Eva, LaRaina, Meredith, and Mich!!!) who are such LOVELY people! Needless to say, I LOVED how Lindsay’s birthday weekend brought all of us together in one city AND that I got to visit a brand new-to-me city and state that I now want to go back to too!!!

Our Dallas weekend was planned by Lindsay herself! Lindsay has been to Dallas before and knew ALLLL the good places to go to celebrate her Birthday. Luckily for me and our Birthday Bash crew, Lindsay planned to hit up MANY spots that we ALL loved (!!!!).

For more United States travel inspiration, check out my Exploring 50 States expedition page.

Getting There:

The best way to get to Dallas from Washington, DC is to fly. Dallas has two major airports: Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) and Dallas Love Field (DAL). Dallas-Fort Worth is the 4th busiest airport in the United States and is pretty large, whereas Dallas Love Field is much smaller and is more peaceful. I booked my flight about 4 months beforehand for about $260 round trip. Typically, I fly on either United or Delta, and this time, I flew United out of Dulles International Airport (IAD) to DFW, since it was the most affordable option. While I was a bit nervous to fly in and out of DFW, due to hearing about its crazy busy reputation, I was pleased to have had a good experience there at least in my Terminal (Terminal E!), as it was much more peaceful and extremely chill *even* on a Friday afternoon when I landed there.

As for transportation within Dallas and to/from the airport, I found myself using Uber/Lyft (whatever the cheaper option was!) and found that getting around Dallas happened to be pretty affordable compared to the Washington, DC area due to most things in Dallas being close to one another. My airports to/from the airport were around $100 with tip round trip, as DFW is about 30-45 minutes from downtown Dallas (DAL is much closer to downtown than DFW).

Where We Stayed: 

Lindsay did some research on travel for our trip to Dallas and ended up selecting … The Canopy by Hilton – Dallas Uptown! Personally, I have ALWAYS wanted to stay at a The Canopy by Hilton location and was SO excited when Lindsay decided to book this for her 33rd Birthday Bash for our group to stay at. I found the staff at our hotel to be EXTREMELY kind and receptive AND fun to talk to. While I didn’t check it out, all hotel guests have the opportunity to check out the rooftop within the evenings and enjoy a stunning Dallas city skyline. AND, The Canopy by Hilton has a wide array of drinks, snacks, and dining options at an extra charge to all guests. At the same time, I enjoyed the rich history of Dallas that our hotel had to offer, including the frame from an old Dallas trolley car on display within its breathtakingly gorgeous lobby!

As for location, our hotel was located within ALLL that Dallas has to offer, being in the West Village Neighborhood near and easily walkable to several shops, murals, restaurants, cafes, and MORE! As previously mentioned, Ubers were super easy to come by and affordable to get and all rides were super quick, too. Dallas ALSO has an adorable and free historic trolley that takes you allll throughout the city with a stop right by our hotel, running every 15-20 minutes. The only potential downfall to some to our hotel was that there was no free breakfast/coffee after a certain hour, BUT luckily there are cafes within easy walking distance (LESS than 5 minutes walking!!!) away for that morning caffeine fix.

What We Did:

Hot Chocolate Run & Walk – Bright and early on Saturday morning, Lindsay and I walked a whopping 5k at the Texas State Fairgrounds via the touring Hot Chocolate Run & Walk. We met Lindsay’s best friend (now a friend of mine!!!) Eva before the race (as she ran it!) and enjoyed walking over to the starting line before kicking off our respective run/walk. Lindsay and I enjoyed GREAT conversation during the run/walk despite it POURING and practically everyone getting their shoes/socks wet and the exciting energy of being apart of a race. Afterwards, we got complimentary shots (I chose an AMAZING Peanut Butter Whiskey!) and fondue.

Highland Park Village – That Saturday afternoon Lindsay, Mich, and I went off to the ultra-darling Highland Park Village. Highland Park Village is definitely a luxury fashion hub within Dallas! Stores there include: Chanel, Lele Sadoughi, LoveShackFancy, Carolina Herrera, Christian Dior, Ralph Lauren, and Tory Burch. We had an AMAZING time visiting the Lele Sadoughi Dallas storefront, where the ultra-sweet ladies recognized Lindsay from her past visits there (!!!!) AND we each made one too many purchases. After a pit stop at Lele Sadoughi and *of course* Starbucks, we shot some fun content amongst the gorgeous architecture around Highland Park Village and I wondered into LoveShackFancy!

Lower Greenville – Sunday afternoon, I took a solo adventure to Dallas’s super fun Lower Greenville neighborhood. My Mom texted me during my trip that I needed to check out the consignment store scene in Dallas, SO that’s what I did! Luckily, Lower Greenville is home to MANY great ones!! I started my trip at the Goodwill store and then headed over to Crossroads and 2nd Street consignment stores, all of which where I found some *incredible* name brand items altogether for a total of under $100 (retail value over $1500). I ALSO popped into Dallas MKT which had some ultra-adorable merchandise and came across an artisan market where I fell *in love* with J’Luxe Candle Co candles and *just wish* I could’ve taken one of those candles into my carryon! At the same time, I enjoyed taking in the many murals, shops, dining options, and vibes within this eclectic Dallas neighborhood.

Where We Ate:

XOXO Dining Room – Our first night in the Lonestar State, we enjoyed *none other than* a Valentine’s-themed dinner at XOXO Dining Room. We took an Uber there and outside of the restaurant was a pink Valentine’s-themed Barbie-like box (!!!!) to take photos at amongst the stunning PINK “XOXO”-themed murals! XOXO has two rooms inside: one that is extremely Valentine’s-themed and the other feels like a modern day revamp of a retro theater-turned restaurant, which is where we sat! I LOVED the restaurant vibes of both sections! And, as for the food, it was subpar and the drinks as well, however, the vibes and photo opportunities were everything!

Bistro 31 – I truly felt like Royalty at Bistro 31! Not only was the service phenomenal and the staff extremely kind here, BUT the food and drinks and vibes were IMPECCABLE! One of the biggest highlights of dining at Bistro 31 is *none other than* … Chanel (!!!) mimosas! What could make a brunch spot ANY better than a Chanel mimosa (well alongside terrific service and food!)?!?!

The Finch – I WILL say that I am STILLL craving that delicious (and much cheaper than any other city restaurant that I have been in!!!) ribeye that I had there!!!! We ended up getting to The Finch *just* a bit early for our reservation which is rare – LOLLL! – and sat right at the stunning bar with cherry blossom-like blooms front and center. The Chardonnay there was a GREAT way to kick off our dinner at The Finch, before enjoying an incredible sit down meal with even more incredible company!

La La Land – When in Lower Greenville, I *finally* got to check out a La La Land Cafe location! With its gorgeous bright yellow branding, I LOVED getting to walk in and check out this adorable cafe chain that doesn’t have any locations close to home for me. The Lower Greenville location looked like it was in an adorable restored home-turned cafe with a super fun yellow truck outside. I ended up only getting a cookie which was FREE and delicious (!!!), as all first-time guests get a FREE pastry!

Moxie’s – Moxie’s is where we had Lindsay’s Super Bowl Birthday Bash (!!!!) AND where I styled a bejeweled AND pink football clutch! We had a HUGE group with us which made it SOOO much fun, as both of our booths were conveniently located in the bar near the TV showcasing the Super Bowl and *of course* Taylor Swift (!!!!). The nachos and drinks were delicious at Moxie’s and the company and occasion was EVEN better!

RH Rooftop – I had NEVER been to an RH Rooftop location before, but was IN AWE at this incredible location on Dallas’s Knox Street! RH Rooftop is located on the 3rd floor of the Restoration Hardware store which is GORGEOUS and a sight to see on its own (!!!!) and offers a stunning view of the Dallas city skyline. The food is offered on an a la carte basis, with no entrees coming with any sides, however all sides are offered on an a la carte basis, though! I ordered the lobster roll and LOVED it alongside a glass of wine before heading to the airport. I will note that RH Rooftop is pretty pricey compared to most restaurants, but it is definitely worth trying for the atmosphere and vibes!

 

Wrap-Up:

I truly LOVED getting to visit Dallas and *FINALLY* check the state of Texas off of my bucket list of seeing all 50 United States. In fact, this trip to Dallas allowed me to hit the HALFWAY MARK (!!!!) of hitting all 50 states! Lindsay is such a special friend of mine, I felt so honored to be invited to celebrate her birthday. I LOVED getting to be in such great company, too, with Lindsay alongside all of her incredible friends whom I *finally* got to meet in real life (some of which I am still excited to meet in the future that weren’t able to make it this time around!), too! SOOO many blessings ALLL around during this incredible long weekend away in the Lonestar State. Dallas is SUCH A COOL CITY, with sooo many neat spots, ranging from restaurants to historic hotels to a historic trolley and even museums. I have a HUUGEEE bucket list mentally of places that I hope to hit on future Dallas trips. My biggest bucket list items are the Fort Worth Stockyards, the Dallas Trolley (which is FREE), and a stroll through the Adolphus Hotel. I am SO lucky to have met some incredible people that have since become my friends on this trip and look forward to connecting with everyone again in the future, whether in Dallas or somewhere else or both.

XOXO – Katie <3