Best Summer Vacay Spots

Texas declared as awesome a place to visit as it is to live

Dallas-Fort Worth is among the best summer travel destinations in the U.S.

Deep Ellum/Facebook

If you haven't already planned on getting out of town this summer, know there's a good chance people will be coming to Texas during their precious time off. According to recent rankings from WalletHub, the Dallas, Houston, and Austin metros are among the best summer travel destinations.

WalletHub used 30 key metrics to compare the 80 largest metro areas and identify the most budget-friendly and fun-filled summer destinations. The data takes into account factors such as cost of the cheapest flight to number of attractions to diversity of activities.

Dallas-Fort Worth shows up at No. 6 overall, with the top spot for fewest travel headaches. Houston also makes the top 10, with a pretty impressive ranking of sixth for fewest travel headaches contributing to its overall No. 9 placement. Austin-Round Rock comes in at No. 17 on the list.

And San Antonio? We're all the way at down at No. 50. We've got a great score for local costs — No. 6 overall — but some pretty dismal placements elsewhere. The famed River Walk and Alamo no doubt contribute to the No. 18 ranking for attractions, but our airport hassles and costs bump us down to No. 31 for travel convenience.

Where we really stumble is weather — No. 73 out of 80 — which makes sense for anyone who's familiar with Texas in the summer.

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Turkey Day news

San Antonio eats up top-10 rank on list of best cities for Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving pumpkin pie at Kona Grill in San Antonio

Photo courtesy of Kona Grill

San Antonio is one of the best place to celebrate Thanksgiving in Texas in 2024.

San Antonio is sitting at the head of the table as one of the best places in the country to celebrate Thanksgiving this year, a new study has revealed.

San Antonio ranked No. 7 out of 100 of the largest U.S. cities in WalletHub's annual "Best Places to Go for Thanksgiving" report, published November 12. The city made a big leap over its 2023 ranking as No. 14, and remains the second highest-ranked city in Texas.

The study analyzed each city based on 18 metrics to determine the best places for Thanksgiving, such as the number of pumpkin patches per capita, the average cost of a Thanksgiving dinner, the number of volunteer opportunities, the average weather forecast, and more. The metrics were then organized into five overall categories to determine the rankings.

The categories that San Antonio ranked the highest in were the average weather forecast during the holiday period (No. 2), and affordability (No. 11), while the lowest-ranked category was for safety and accessibility (No. 90). Other categories that determined San Antonio's overall ranking were the number of celebrations and traditions (No. 14), and a "giving thanks" rank (No. 75).

"The best cities for celebrating Thanksgiving all have an abundance of high-quality restaurants and places to buy festive decorations, and their residents get very excited for the holiday based on their Google search history," said WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo.

By Thanksgiving on November 28, San Antonio will be fully decked for the December holidays. San Antonians who will have extended family in town during Thanksgiving weekend can take in of all the marvelous Christmas lights brightening the city. The home of the Alamo certainly goes all out for the most wonderful time of year.

Elsewhere in Texas, Dallas ranked two spots above San Antonio as the fifth best city for Thanksgiving. Houston ranked No. 23, while Austin only came in at No. 39.

San Diego, California (No. 1) topped the overall list of best places to go for Thanksgiving this year, followed by its Golden State neighbors San Francisco (No. 3) and San Jose (No. 4). Atlanta, Georgia (No. 2) rounds out the top five.

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