I am planning a trip to Texas next fall 2022 and was debating on which zoos, facilities, and places to visit. Never been to the state other than stopping at DFW for connecting flights. I know for a fact that my #1 zoo to visit list is Fort Worth. They have 3 flamingo species, Storm’s Storks, Elephant Springs, the new African Savanna as well as the MOLA (Museum of Living Art). I looked at the Dallas World Aquarium and even though they don’t have Jabiru Storks anymore they still have a ton of species I’d like to see such as Shoebill, Blyth’s and Great Indian Hornbill, Pompadour Cotinga etc….
In Houston I used to really want to go to the zoo but since they don’t have Giant Eland anymore and most of the other species I can see in Fort Worth is it still worth visiting??? To me right now the elephants would be the major “to visit” reason” but since the new elephant exhibit opened in Fort Worth I feel like that makes up for potentially missing out on Houston and allocating that day to another activity. Dallas looks like a good facility. I know both Fort Worth and Dallas hold Saddle-Billed Storks. Which zoo has the better exhibit for them where you can get the closest to them/easier to film through barrier? Also, I know that Dallas holds Yellow-Billed Storks and has a breeding program for them behind the scenes. Are any of them on public exhibit yet?
Part of the reason that this trip seems so hard to pick exactly what I want to see is because I think being in FL I feel like I’ve been really lucky (spoiled actually) being able to visit Jacksonville, DAK, Busch Gardens, Sea World Orlando that truly already have remarkable exhibits (in their own unique way). For instance, I was thinking about visiting Houston because of their Pantanal exhibit but when I looked at footage/photos of it just felt to me like another Range of the Jaguar with mostly the same species. I’m sure for someone who’s a native Texan, but has never seen Jacksonville’s Range of the Jaguar it might be considered the best South American exhibit ever and that’s ok. I’m just trying to squeeze in the best bang for my buck Texas experience while trying to visit other non-zoo things. In Corsicana, they have the head of Black Diamond that used to be in the Houston Museum of Natural Science but now it’s privately owned but I think you can still make an appointment to see it? The good news is that Corsicana is en-route either way from Fort Worth to Houston or vice versa. It’d be nice to add him to the famous elephants seen list along with Siam and Bolivar.
If there are any good value dude ranches to visit within a 2-hour radius of Dallas/Fort Worth that anyone would recommend experiencing. I’d totally take that into consideration as that’s something I’ve always wanted to do. Also, I plan on visiting the Fort Worth Stockyards to do some shopping along the way. Additionally, I like history and art so depending on time, I will also try to also visit the Six Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza and the Dallas Museum of Art. My one must-see attraction in the area is Six Flags over Texas in Arlington. They have a Mr. Freeze clone that I’ve always wanted to ride along with the classic Schwarzkopf looper Shockwave. Lastly, I’ve never ridden an RMC so I’m also hyped to ride the new Texas Giant. Also, riding a mechanical bull has been on my bucket list for a long time. If anyone knows of any restaurants or places in Fort Worth, Dallas or Houston that have one you can ride, I will totally add it to the trip itinerary.
I’d like to visit San Antonio to do Sea World and Six Flags Fiesta Texas as well but with only 10 days of vacation, I can only do so much in that given amount of time so it probably won’t be likely. If I have any leftover time I’d like to try to visit one or two of the private exotic ranches in the Hill Country that specializes in breeding certain exotic hoof stock species as that is what I’d like to hopefully do one day as a hobby. Certain places are out of the question such as the Ox Ranch, 777 Ranch, King Ranch, and more because they are so far from the Dallas/Fort Worth area.
Texas is such a huge state with so many interesting sights to see and visit but like I said before I’d only have so much time (10 days max) and at least two of those days are flying to and from the state and getting a rental car to drive to the respective attractions I want to see. The one out of Texas extra place I want to visit is Tulsa Zoo to see Sneezy. I looked on Google Maps and it says that Fort Worth to Houston is about a 4-hour drive. Thanks for all your help and suggestions. I really appreciate it!
In Houston I used to really want to go to the zoo but since they don’t have Giant Eland anymore and most of the other species I can see in Fort Worth is it still worth visiting??? To me right now the elephants would be the major “to visit” reason” but since the new elephant exhibit opened in Fort Worth I feel like that makes up for potentially missing out on Houston and allocating that day to another activity. Dallas looks like a good facility. I know both Fort Worth and Dallas hold Saddle-Billed Storks. Which zoo has the better exhibit for them where you can get the closest to them/easier to film through barrier? Also, I know that Dallas holds Yellow-Billed Storks and has a breeding program for them behind the scenes. Are any of them on public exhibit yet?
Part of the reason that this trip seems so hard to pick exactly what I want to see is because I think being in FL I feel like I’ve been really lucky (spoiled actually) being able to visit Jacksonville, DAK, Busch Gardens, Sea World Orlando that truly already have remarkable exhibits (in their own unique way). For instance, I was thinking about visiting Houston because of their Pantanal exhibit but when I looked at footage/photos of it just felt to me like another Range of the Jaguar with mostly the same species. I’m sure for someone who’s a native Texan, but has never seen Jacksonville’s Range of the Jaguar it might be considered the best South American exhibit ever and that’s ok. I’m just trying to squeeze in the best bang for my buck Texas experience while trying to visit other non-zoo things. In Corsicana, they have the head of Black Diamond that used to be in the Houston Museum of Natural Science but now it’s privately owned but I think you can still make an appointment to see it? The good news is that Corsicana is en-route either way from Fort Worth to Houston or vice versa. It’d be nice to add him to the famous elephants seen list along with Siam and Bolivar.
If there are any good value dude ranches to visit within a 2-hour radius of Dallas/Fort Worth that anyone would recommend experiencing. I’d totally take that into consideration as that’s something I’ve always wanted to do. Also, I plan on visiting the Fort Worth Stockyards to do some shopping along the way. Additionally, I like history and art so depending on time, I will also try to also visit the Six Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza and the Dallas Museum of Art. My one must-see attraction in the area is Six Flags over Texas in Arlington. They have a Mr. Freeze clone that I’ve always wanted to ride along with the classic Schwarzkopf looper Shockwave. Lastly, I’ve never ridden an RMC so I’m also hyped to ride the new Texas Giant. Also, riding a mechanical bull has been on my bucket list for a long time. If anyone knows of any restaurants or places in Fort Worth, Dallas or Houston that have one you can ride, I will totally add it to the trip itinerary.
I’d like to visit San Antonio to do Sea World and Six Flags Fiesta Texas as well but with only 10 days of vacation, I can only do so much in that given amount of time so it probably won’t be likely. If I have any leftover time I’d like to try to visit one or two of the private exotic ranches in the Hill Country that specializes in breeding certain exotic hoof stock species as that is what I’d like to hopefully do one day as a hobby. Certain places are out of the question such as the Ox Ranch, 777 Ranch, King Ranch, and more because they are so far from the Dallas/Fort Worth area.
Texas is such a huge state with so many interesting sights to see and visit but like I said before I’d only have so much time (10 days max) and at least two of those days are flying to and from the state and getting a rental car to drive to the respective attractions I want to see. The one out of Texas extra place I want to visit is Tulsa Zoo to see Sneezy. I looked on Google Maps and it says that Fort Worth to Houston is about a 4-hour drive. Thanks for all your help and suggestions. I really appreciate it!
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