Road Trips from Dallas, Our Austin Trip

Welcome! This website is dedicated to providing inspiration for your family road trips from Dallas. In this post, I highlight the road trip from Dallas to Austin. Firstly, I cover how to get there and road stops along the way. Secondly, I share about where we stayed, The La Hacienda RV Resort. Lastly, I offer a long list of things to do while in Austin. Composing this comprehensive post of information on the Austin road trip from Dallas resulted in a long read. I have provided a table of contents to help you quickly navigate to the parts that you would like to read first.

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Road Trips from Dallas: Getting to Austin

Distance

Just a short three-and-a-half-hour drive (four when pulling a camper) South of Dallas/ Fort Worth, lies the Texas State Capitol, Austin. Austin, the “Live Music Capital of the World,” has easily earned its place in the rankings of one of the best road trips from Dallas.

Trip Planning

Even though this weekend get-a-way was pretty close to home, I still used my Roadtrippers app to plan it. In fact, every trip I plan, I plug my route into the Roadtrippers app. I am not normally a paid app kind of girl, but I loved this one so much and it was only $30 for the entire year! What makes the app unique is all the different points of interest that can be turn on along a route. Users can toggle on and off the following categories: hotels, things to do, camping and RV, outdoors, points of interest, and amusement and nightlife. Each one of those categories also contains several sub categories. Additionally, the app calculates the trip’s estimated gas expense and has some built in tours for road trip inspiration.

Trip Planning App Discount

If you would like to check out the Roadtrippers app at a discount, use this link and plugin this coupon code: BTR5QTP to get $5 off!

Alternate Transportation

No interested in driving yourself? Consider a bus ticket. Check out Wanderu to explore your options.

Points of Interest Along the Route

There are many fun points of interest along the road trip from Dallas to Austin. In the next section, I have listed some of the best stops along the way.

Waxahachie Stop (26 mi / 33 min)

The Munster Mansion

Are you a fan of the Munsters 60’s TV sitcom? Well, these home owners are so much so that they completely redesigned their house to be a replica of the Munster family’s mansion. Appointments are encouraged.

Italy Drive-By (43.4 min / 50 min)

The World’s Largest Caterpillar Italy

Travelers do not even have to stop to see this giant caterpillar shaped dome building! The building is home to the Monolithic Dome Institute manufacturing plant and is located along the northbound I-35 frontage road on the right at mile marker 387.

Hillsboro Stop (62 mi / 1h 3 min)

Roadside American

Carroll Estes owns this collection of American advertising memorabilia from the 40s and 50s. They have a plethora of vintage signs, for instance. It is by appointment only so that they can give visitors a tour.

West Stop (77 mi / 1h 15 min)

The Czech Stop

This is a very popular and yummy stop on the way to Austin. They serve up a wide variety of delicious pasties and kolaches in true Czech heritage spirit. Stop in on the way home and pick up a thank you treat for your house or pet sitter.

Waco Stops (107 mi / 1 h 58 min)

Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum

The Texas Ranger is a celebrated and honored symbol of the Lone Star State. Stop at the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum located along the Brazos river for an hour or so to learn about the history of the Texas Ranger.

Dr. Pepper Museum

Explore the history of Dr. Pepper and the soft drink industry, in general. Reservations are not required. Adult tickets are $10. Child tickets are $6. Four years old and under are free.

Magnolia Market at the Silos

This is a shopping Market co-owned by Chip and Joanna Gains from HGTV’s Fixer Upper TV. It’s a place with food, games, and shopping designed in a way to inspired visitors in their own home designing endeavors.

Cameron Park Zoo

Visit this 52-acre zoo next to the Brazos river where animals survive and flourish in their natural habitats. Adult admission is $12.50. Children tickets are $9.50. Children two and under are free.

The Waco Mammoth National Monument

Get a glimpse of ice age history when you visit the fossils of this Mammoth nursery herd first discovered in 1978 by Paul Barron and Eddid Bafkin.

Mayborn Museum

Located on the Baylor University campus, the Mayborn is a natural science and cultural museum focusing on Central Texas. Adult tickets are $8 and child tickets are $6.

Health Camp

I love that this burger joint is named “Health Camp”. This old fashion burger joint also serves frozen custard and ice cream. It started in 1948, as a food truck.

Temple Stop (130 mi / 2 h 16 min)

Buc-ee’s

RVers enjoy stopping at Buc-ee’s for many reasons, but the ample space to park your rig and the clean restrooms are the true win. This “gas station” is an experience in itself with a huge selection of gifts, BBQ food order to go, and their own line of travel convenient snacks. Everyone should stop here at least once in their lives. Most importantly, don’t forget to snap a traditional RV Buc-ee’s picture to post on social media.

Salado Stop (155 mi / 34 min)

Robertson’s Hams & the Choppin’ Block

Great stop for top notch beef jerky or smoked meaty snacks. You can also dine in on the patio.

Georgetown Stop (180 mi / 2 h 55 min)

Inner Space Caverns Georgetown

These beautiful caverns were discovered during the construction of Interstate 35. A visit here will surely give you something to talk about for the reminder of the road trip.

Road Trips from Dallas: Where We Stayed in Austin

We elected to stay at the La Hacienda RV Resort. It is just three miles from Lake Travis, making it the perfect place to stay for RV and cabin camping in Austin. Because we had to wait until we got off work to leave, we did not arrive at the La Hacienda RV resort until 10 pm. I hope you get an earlier start to your drive. Setting up in the dark and the pouring rain is no fun.

Making Reservations at La Hacienda RV Resort

The La Hacienda RV Resort offers both back-in and pull-through RV sites with full hook ups and several sizes of cottage rentals. The online reservation process was typical, with one exception. After selecting my site, it asked if I wanted to pay an additional fee to lock in my site number. We did not pay it, and we did not get the site we picked. The park was completely full during our trip.

The Facilities and Amenities at La Hacienda RV Resort

Site Location Tips

The resort has more of an RV park feel than a lost in nature feel. It has outstanding amenities, but may not be right for true nature lovers. The front part of the park is fabulous with nice size lots, but the back part of the park could use some work. For instance, the lots are tiny, the picnic tables are in bad shape, and some of the RVs look like they have been there a long time based on all of the junk accumulated around them. However, Jason (the very kind and helpful maintenance man) told us that the new management company should be cleaning things up. For now, I do recommend springing for the larger sites when you book for the most enjoyable experience.

Pool and Playground

In addition to the heated pool (a little bit too warm when we were there), there is an adults only heated pool and hot tub. The four-story playground structure is one of the best I have seen at an RV Resort. The putting green next to it is icing on the cake. Be sure to bring your own putters and balls because the park does not provide them. The map shows a pond, but unfortunately it is currently it is drained. However, we were told that new management may be working to get it back.

The Lodge and Store

The lodge is extremely nice. For example, inside you can find a pool table, a dart board, a ping pong table, a foosball table, a variety of puzzles, board games, and some pretty cool art work. Next door, visit the camp store for gifts, necessities, or ice cream.

Other Activities

Behind the pool there is also horseshoes, bocce ball, and a dog park/run. The resort does not have miles of trails to hike like some campgrounds, but there is a short gravel walking trail and exercise room to get your fitness on. Lastly, in the very back of the park next to the cabins, you can find a small soccer field.

WIFI/Cell Service

Even though the RV resort boasts free WIFI there are limitations. If you do not purchase the paid for WIFI service, you will be limited to email checks because the bandwidth is not sufficient for streaming. Sadly, our own cell phones showed 5G, but only at 1-2 bars. Thankfully, my husband was still able to work by using the hotspot on his personal phone.

Campfires

Campfires are allowed but only as long as they are contained and off the ground. This park is not nestled in a woody place. You will be hard pressed to collect fallen limbs on your own, but campers can buy a bundle of firewood for only $4.00 in the camp store. We missed the 5:00 store closing time, due to not wanting to leave the pool. Consequently, my husband had to run up to Randalls to purchase a $10 bundle. The bundle was large and we had plenty left over for the next day.

Surprise Encounters at La Hacienda RV Resort

Major League Fishing Pros

We had the honor of sharing the campground with some fishing celebrities because Major League Fishing was holding a tournament on Lake Travis. It was so fun to meet Brent Chapman, Mark Davis, and Dave Lefebre! The fishermen were all so kind. My son had the best time checking out the sophisticated computer systems on the boats. The pros gave us fishing lures, autographs, and some great fishing tips.

Romanian Easter Celebration

Another unexpected thing to experience in a Texas RV campground was a Romanian Easter celebration taking place. Our site happened to be next to 10 cabins occupied by Romanian friends and family celebrating the holiday. It was fascinating to witness the culture’s music, dress, dance, and festivities. It really took some restraint to resist the elegant fruit towers adoring each porch. We made due with simple watermelon at our site.

Other Accommodation Options in Austin

Take advantage of CozyCozy.com to compare vacation rental and hotel accommodations in Austin, Texas!

Road Trips from Dallas: Camping Activities with Kids

Nature Inspired Kiwi Kit

The resort amenities kept my kids busy the entire weekend, but if you follow my blog, you know that I always try to do some sort of new game or activity with my children on our camping trips. This trip was absolutely no different, because I packed a nature inspired Kiwi crate kit. Kiwi is a subscription service that mails STEM kits to your home. My kids get so excited when that green box arrives in the mail. Sometimes I have to hide it until we have time to build, because I know they will want me to drop everything and do it with them the moment it arrives.

The Capillary Kit

Kiwi offers a variety of themed kits, but we enjoy their nature inspired kits and crafts the best. Right before the trip we received the Capillary kit. It contained a dye project that shows how water travels up the roots to plants and also a wooden tree game that demonstrates how roots stabilize a tree.

Get a Discounted Kit

Want to try Kiwi? Use this link to get 50% off your first month or $10 off your Kiwi store purchase.

Road Trips from Dallas: Things to Do in Austin

We did not spend much time outside of the RV resort. However, if you are looking to take a day trip to venture outside of the park, there are plenty of local attractions all of which are just a short drive away. I have listed several below:

Lake Travis

This crystal blue lake is a reservoir on the Colorado River. It is a popular place for water sports such as fishing, skiing, and sailing. Many visitors rent boats or take tours when visiting the lake.

Bob Wentz Park

This Lake Travis County park is in close proximity to Austin. It is a lovely place to swim or relax on the shores of the lake. There is a boat ramp, sand volleyball, and a small sandy peninsula with covered picnic tables.

Lake Travis Zipline Adventures

Lake Travis Zipline Adventures boasts five daring ziplines. Three claim to be the longest and fastest ziplines in Texas. Here adrenaline junkies can zipline across canyons and over Lake Travis.

Lake Travis Waterloo Adventure

Lake Travis Waterloo Adventures is a massive floating water park and obstacle course. It is the size of two football fields! Guests have access to lockers, a bar, food, and lounge chairs. (Opens May 15, 2021)

The Oasis

The Oasis is a very popular spot for dining with gorgeous sunset views overlooking Lake Travis. They do not take reservations, but you can browse the shops or get a drink from one of their bars and roam the viewing decks while you wait for a table.

Golf Courses

Austin is home to several beautiful Hill Country Golf Courses. Our favorite is the Twin Creeks Country Club, but it does require membership. Falconhead Golf Club is just 8 miles from the La Hacienda Ranch Resort.

Austin Zoo

The Austin Zoo provides an up-close experience with rescued and rehabilitated animals in a Texas Hill Country setting. Make sure you wear closed-toe walking shoes as their walking paths are made of granite gravel. The adult ticket price is $15.95. Child tickets are $11.95.

Sixth Street

Sixth Street in the downtown area is a great spot for entertainment. You can find dining, bars, dance clubs, trendy art galleries, movie theaters, food trucks, and live music.

The Austin Aquarium

The Austin Aquarium offers interactive adventures with marine life, birds, and mammals. The admission price for an adult ticket is $19.95. A child ticket is $14.95. Foster children and educators are free.

Road Trips from Dallas: Travel Insurance

Travel insurance can be beneficial on any trip 100 miles or more from home – even on road trips. If you have to cut your trip short, travel insurance can help you receive reimbursement for non-refundable prepaid trip expenses, like campground reservations. Some plans even cover RV rental expenses or closed attractions. With plans from 10 different providers, Travel Insurance Masters can help you find the right coverage you are looking for!

Conclusion

In conclusion, Austin is considered one of the best road trips from Dallas. It is not a long drive and it offers exciting entertainment, good food, beautiful scenery, and adventurous outdoor activities. If you are looking for a great place to settle while you explore Austin or enjoy Lake Travis, La Hacienda RV Resort is one of the best places for overnight stays in your own RV or for a stay in one of their many cabins.

Other Road Trips from Dallas

Before you go, I invite you to check out some of my other road trips from Dallas posts below:

Beach Road Trips from Dallas

Read about the Texas Coast’s Port O’Conner and Matagorda Bay.

Dolphin Encounters-Port O’Connor, TX

Travel a little farther to my favorite RV camping experience yet, Gulf State Park in Gulf Shores, AL.

25 Things to do When Visiting Gulf State Park

Road Trips from Dallas Under an Hour

North Texas Jellystone Park in Burleson is only 45 minutes away from DFW. Read about this location that will have your kids begging to go back.

15 Winter NTX Jellystone Activities

Lake Lewisville is also about 45 minutes from Dallas. Read about two different campgrounds on Lake Lewisville.

Room to Play at Pilot Knoll Park – Lake Lewisville, TX

I’ve Got a Bite-Hickory Creek, Lake Lewisville

Joe Pool Lake is just a half hour from Dallas. Learn more about Loyd Park on Joe Pool Lake below.

30+ Exciting Things to do in Grand Prairie: Spotlighting Joe Pool Lake

Let’s Connect

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