Sheli

Recently my husband and I have been invited to visit a parishioner in McAllen, TX this coming January. I have only been in TX twice in my life, to visit Dallas, and while both experiences were wonderful, I am uncertain about McAllen.

After looking at mapquest.com I find that it is in the very very southern tip of the state and about 1/2 to 3/4 of an hour away from Mexico. Also, I have searched the Texas Department of Tourism and have found little to no information on this town/area.

So Texas Fodorites, here are my questions to those of you who know, besides taking a trip into Mexico, what other things are there to do in this part of TX during the month of January? Is visiting the coast an option?

We will have to fly (being from Omaha) through Austin or Houston into the local airport. What can I expect? Size of airport, rental car availablity? Should we just expect our hosts to cart us around?

Or, am I looking for adventure in the wrong place and will find that this part of the US is just like any other. (Stripmalls, movie theaters and grocery stores?)

TIA for any info or insight you can offer.

Sheli

Kay

McAllen, Texas is RV central in January. If you're under 65 expect to be carded at the liquor store.
It's a town of strip malls, dust and fast food. No adventures other than the make your own type. Yes, you can always go to the coast. Still cool in January though (by my standards anyway).
Sorry for the dark opinion. McAllen just isn't my kind of town.

Sheli

Kay:

Thank you for your frankness. The family that invited us are southbounders in the winter and in their mid 60's! So, I am wondering what we would really be doing there besides running into Mexico every other day for some excitment. (and that is a relative phrase!)


Sheli

Christie

The bad news is that there is virtually nothing to do in McAllen during the winter unless you are a student at UT Pan-American or a "snowbird" at one of the many RV parks in the area.

The good news is that McAllen is only an hour from South Padre Island National Seashore. While the water will porbably be too cool for swimming, there will still be many things to do and see. You can easily spend a day there doing the Dolphin Watch boat and having wonderful fish dinner at any one of the many restaurants on the island. (Sea Ranch is a personal favorite.) You can also go through the Point Isabel Lighthouse and the two museums in Port Isabel. We enjoyed both of them. The horseback riding stable on SPI is very reputable and is a fun way to spend an evening.

Fly on Southwest Airlines from Omaha into Valley International Airport in Harlingen. HRL has a very nice, new airport facility with every size and variety of rental car available from all of the national companies. McAllen will be an easy 30 minute drive from the airport.

I am in McAllen twice a year with my job, and it is not a half-bad place to visit. Drive down the road to Edinburg and have authentic Mexican dinner at Casa Del Taco, which is between UT Pan-Am and the Courthouse.

Sheli

Christie:

Thank you. I think we will shorten the trip from 5 days to 3 and try to do some of the things you suggested.

Sheli

Larry

If you're looking for fast paced adventure, McAllen is not the place to visit. If you want to spend a relaxing couple of days in wonderful (normally) weather and see friendly people, then come on down. McAllen is an exceptionally clean border town (not 1/2 hour from Mexico - only 7 miles). Weather can fall to 40's or upper 30's at nite in January, but normally back to 70's -80's in daytime. Local shopping mall is one of the highest grossing malls in the US. Many excellent local restaurants as well as most of the chains. Day trip to the beach and to Brownsville (Gladys Porter Zoo is great) will keep you entertained for a full day. Of course a trip to Mexico is a must. Reynosa is across from McAllen, and a smaller Mexican town Progresso is about 15 miles further. It is very popular with the winter tourists because it is so accessible and because of the great bargains on prescription drugs and other curios. The metropolitan area of McAllen is well over 500,000 and during the winter an additional 80-100,000 tourists winter here as well. The airlines to McAllen (MFE) are American (thru DFW) and Continental (thru Houston). Univ. of Texas, Pan American is in Edinburg, about 8 miles north. If you like basketball, UTPA plays NCAA division 1. Incidentally, altho it doesn't necessarily vouch for how nice the city is, you might want to know that McAllen has been the 3rd fastest growing area in the US over the last 10 years. Let me know if I can answer any other questions.

Sheli

Larry:

Thanks for the info. We are still mulling over the trip and will probably make a decision in November. I'm doing a bit more research...so I will have more questions later!

Again, thanks

Sheli

Jean Valjean

While McAllen is certainly not the most exciting place on earth, it does offer a lot of shopping opportunities.

You'll notice that many of the shoppers come from Mexico, specifically from Monterrey, two hours away.

Monterrey is Mexico's third largest city, and it may prove to be a WAY more agreeable option than Reynosa. Reynosa is, at best, a dingy border town. Monterrey, OTOH, is one of Mexico's most prosperous cities, and has many sightseeing, dining and shopping opportunities. You could easily do a daytrip from McAllen, as it is only 160 miles away, and you get there by an excellent highway.

Hope this helps.

dsk

Sheli,
I once worked not far from McAllen...but not for long!
If you are seeing people you know that is one thing but as a 5 day trip...ouch!
I think you are wise in trimming trip to 3 days and looking for other things.
South Padre is nice but not in January
Sorry for the downer on my native state but I must be honest.

lisa

I'm with the others. If you were considering the trip as a vacation as well, there are hundreds (make that thousands) of other more exciting places. If you must go, then others have given you the best ideas to think of. If you don't have to go, I'd suggest spending your time and money somewhere more memorable and senic.

Diane

I lived in Mission/McAllen for 10 years & still go back twice a year to visit friends. The golf course in Mission (Shary) is public & beautiful any time of the year. Winters are usually mild, mexican food is great, people are relaxed & friendly, economy is booming & history is abundant. Try to visit the old Catholic Mission, walk through a citrus grove at sunset & be sure to stay at the La Posada Hotel in McAllen to get the full flavor of the area. There are wonderful antique shops & a great symphony orchestra plus the beach at Padre Island is not too far away. I loved living there & miss it!