We live fairly close to Dallas, Texas but haven’t been to the “city” in quite some time. With gas prices on the rise, I decided that a Dallas Staycation might be a fun option for a little getaway and we had the best time! I cannot recommend the Dallas CityPASS enough! This was a quick, 2 night/3 day trip and we packed in as much as we could.

• Dallas CityPASS Information
• ***Save 51% on 4 Dallas City Attractions!***
• Website: https://www.citypass.com/dallas
• Pricing: Adults = $49, Children (3-12) = $33

The CityPASS includes admission to The Perot Museum and the Reunion Tower GeO-Deck. You then get to choose two more activities between the Dallas Zoo, The George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum, and The Dallas Holocaust & Human Rights Museum. We chose the two museums because of the summer heat in Texas! We did not have to make reservations in advance and had immediate entry as soon as we arrived and presented our tickets from our phones! This was such an easy process and saved us a lot of money!

We started our staycation with a 45 minute drive to Grapevine, Texas to check out the Stranger Things Pop-Up in the Grapevine Mills Mall. You do need advanced tickets, but they are FREE! I’ve been a fan of the show for years, but finally got my boys into it this summer. We enjoyed all of the photo ops and found a few things in the store that we couldn’t live without!

• Stanger Things Pop-Up Information
• Website: https://www.simon.com/mall/grapevine-mills/stores/stranger-things
• Address: Located in the Grapevine Mills Mall
• Hours: Mon-Sat 10am – 9pm, Sun 11am – 7 pm

The Grapevine Mills Mall also has several stores and attractions like the Sea Life Aquarium, The Rainforest Café, and LEGOLAND that you can also enjoy on your stop!

After leaving the mall & grabbing lunch, we headed to The Perot Museum where the kids spent hours checking out artifacts and enjoying several hands-on experiences. My favorite is always the dinosaur exhibit! You really can’t visit Dallas without stopping at this incredible museum!

• The Perot Museum Information
• Website: https://www.perotmuseum.org/
• Address: 2201 N Field Street, Dallas, TX 75201
• Phone: (214) 428-5555
• Hours: Daily 10am – 5pm (opens at 11am on Sundays)

I am always over stimulated when leaving a museum, so from here we decided to head to our hotel and spend the evening with dinner at the hotel restaurant and then time on the roof top pool! It was the perfect way to end our day. We stayed at the Sheraton Dallas and the room was large and very clean! We had a nice city view and the food options here were great!

The next day was busy with a trip to The George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum on the agenda first! I really forgot how much I liked President Bush until I was in the museum and watched videos of him with his family, he is so funny! His artwork is incredible and the different exhibits were very interesting. My boys love that he loves baseball so much! And even though it was emotional, we enjoyed the 9/11 exhibit. They did a really good job with the artifacts and information. If you’re in Dallas, be sure to check this place out!

• George W. Bush Presidential Library Information
• Website: https://www.bushcenter.org/
• Address: 2943 SMU Blvd, Dallas, TX 75205
• Phone: (214) 200-4300
• Hours: Mon-Fri 9 am -5pm, Sun 12pm -5pm

After we left the George W. Bush Presidential Library, we headed to grab a quick lunch at Cisco Grill, which was absolutely delicious! Then we moved onto the Dallas Holocaust & Human Rights Museum. This was a sad visit, but I feel like it’s something that we must never forget so that it never happens again. The exhibits are very informative, but probably not the most fun activity for the kids. Mine had a ton of questions and we had some great conversations, but they honestly weren’t old enough to really appreciate this museum. If you have young kids with you, I would suggest choosing the Dallas Zoo (if you use the CityPASS).

• Dallas Holocaust & Human Rights Museum Information
• Website: https://www.dhhrm.org/
• Address: 300 N Houston St, Dallas, TX 75202
• Phone: (214) 741-7500
• Hours: Daily 10am – 5pm, CLOSED on Tuesdays

Once we left the two museums for the day, we headed back to the hotel for an afternoon swim before grabbing a quick dinner at the hotel café. We then visited the Reunion Tower GeO-Deck to check out the Dallas City lights at night! We got here at about 8:30 pm and had just enough time to see the city and then have ice cream before leaving! My boys have always called the Reunion Tower the “microphone building” and they were so excited to get to go inside! This might have been the highlight of the day!

• Reunion Tower Information
• Website: https://www.dhhrm.org/
• Address: 300 Reunion Blvd E, Dallas, TX 75207
• Phone: (214) 296-9950
• Hours: Daily 2pm – 9:30pm

On our last day of our staycation, we woke up and headed to the Dallas World Aquarium. This was not included in the City Pass, but has always been a favorite of mine! However, it was SO crowded. I’m sure it had to do with visiting on a Saturday and it being an indoor activity on a hot summer day, but it was unlike anything I had ever seen there before. If you’re visiting on a weekend, be sure to pack your patience. I recommend trying to go during the week. This was our only stop on Saturday and if we do this again in the future, I will plan a little better and try to make the visit during the week.

• Dallas World Aquarium Information
• Website: https://dwazoo.com/
• Address: 1801 N Griffin St, Dallas, TX 75202
• Phone: (214) 720-2224
• Hours: Daily 8:30am – 6pm
• Pricing: Adults =$28.95, Kids = $18.95

Once we got back home we discovered an amazing place in Grapevine and decided to extend the staycation a little longer! So we added a day and visited the WhoaZone at Grapevine! I haven’t laughed so hard in a long time. We spent 2 hours on the water, making total fools of ourselves, and I loved every minute! If you’re in the area, you HAVE to add this to your staycation itinerary. There are a couple of different options for your visit and what I liked best was the 20% teacher discount! This was the perfect way to spend the day in the Texas heat and fun for all of us!

• WhoaZone at Grapevine Information
• Website: https://whoa.zone/grapevine/
• Address: 3000 Meadowmere Ln, Grapevine, TX 76051
• Phone: (817) 241-4883
• Hours: Daily 10am – 6pm

As you can see, a visit to the Dallas area can be so much fun! I am so quick to plan a road trip to other states, but local attractions can be just as fun and a little cheaper than traveling hours away! If you can, plan your visit during the week to avoid those weekend crowds, but keep in mind that a lot of museums are closed on Monday and Tuesdays!

As always, I am so happy that you’re here adventuring with us. For more photos & videos, be sure to follow us on IG (link above on the home page)!