Thanks for the input! BigRuss - I really like your description on things, especially the Southlake Town Center, haha. So the Fairmont is a nice hotel but downtown? The Mansion on Turtle Creek is uptown? I do not mind spending the extra money on a really nice hotel since I am only staying 3 nights. I am really just looking for a safe/nice neighborhood where we can walk around and do some shopping when we are not at the game. Other then that, I am sure my husband will drag us to the historical areas (JFK shooting, etc). We are not into going to bars at night, so the night life is not a big deal.
Thank goodness I am not coming on OU-Texas weekend. Sounds horrible. Also, we will not be going to the State Fair either. Not really into museums or zoos either. Wow we seem boring!
I really appreciate the input from everyone since we are so clueless of the area!

I spend a lot of time around Southlake Town Center, but the best location for shopping will really depend on what you are looking for.

Southlake Town Center has chain stores - nice ones like Lucky and Coach and American Eagle and Buckle, but chains no less. (The strip center across the street has Nordstrom Rack which can be cool if you don't have one at home.)

If you stay in Dallas, you could shop at Northpark and the West Village - you'd get the big anchors, plus more unique stores.

Of course, if you want off price, stay at the Gaylord or Great Wolf Lodge and shop at Grapevine Mills for Off Fifth, Neimans Last Call, etc.

The October 10th game will be Tennessee Titans @ Dallas Cowboys, 4:15 PM start. That should be a very good game to watch. It'll be interesting to see Vince back in Texas against Romo.

The weather should be nice then. Hopefully you'll get an open stadium that day or at least Jerry will have the end zones open to get some fresh air in the stadium. Or if the weather sucks you'll be in a climatized mall with a football game going on.

4:15 PM EST which is 3:15 CST

One thing that MissMandy brings up is the "tram" system. The Fairmont is near the DART Rail, which is good because it goes to Mockingbird Station, which has restaurants, some shops, a couple of bars and an Indieplex (multiplex movie house for independent films) which is modern and nice.

But the Fairmont is also 1-2 blocks from the McKinney Avenue trolley, which has some utility for visitors. It's a historic trolley (that means really flippin' OLD) that goes from St. Paul Ave and Ross in downtown to the West Village (shops and many restaurants mostly non-chain and top-end gelateria Paciugo and another Indieplex -- this one owned by Mavericks owner Mark Cuban) along McKinney Avenue, which is the main artery through uptown. The trolley won't break any speed records (it takes about 20-25 minutes to get to the West Village, which is a 7-minute cab ride away) but will let you see the layout of the area and where you may want to go. It's the Dallas equivalent of the St. Charles trolleys in New Orleans, except the McKinney Ave. trolley is FREE.

You can also take the DART back to the Fairmont area from Cityplace station to Akard or St. Paul, which are about equidistant from the hotel.

If I were choosing between the Fairmont neighborhood and the ZaZa, I'd choose the ZaZa in a minute.

ok so the Fairmont, ZaZa, the Mansion on Turtle Creek, any others I should consider??? How about the Magnolia? Any other suggestions?
Are these hotels right on the main streets where you just walk out your hotel and there you are (as in right in the middle of the shopping area)? or do you need to drive to the shopping and dining areas? Is NorthPark and the West Village uptown or downtown? and what hotels are near there?

Dallas isn't a walking city. This is the South, and other than New Orleans and maybe Miami, the cities generally have a downtown where the commercial center is, and neighborhoods or areas where the various attractions are, and they're separate and spread out. It's not like NYC or Chicago where the commercial centers and shopping/restaurants/bars are jammed together. And there really aren't "shopping streets" like 5th Avenue or Michigan Avenue or even like downtown Minneapolis or Denver's LoDo area.

Dallas is trying to "revitalize" downtown like so many other southern cities, but that was only working a little bit before the '08-09 financial issues hit. There were two main areas to revitalize -- the core downtown box from Harwood to Griffith and Elm to Commerce, where revitalization has not taken hold; and the Arts District, which has grown and has a lot of museums, some theater and music venues and some restaurants but no shopping. Don't like museums? No Arts District for you.

The two areas adjacent to downtown that had lively restaurants, some shops and plenty of bars and clubs, the West End (mostly tourists) and Deep Ellum, are in fairly dire straits.

Ultimately, as a visitor you go from hotel to area and putter around the area. I don't know of hotels in the West Village (designed as residential and retail) or NorthPark (which is a big mall). ZaZa is in a decent area, but it's not a shopping zone, it's restaurant-and-bar zone.

Oh wow, I had no clue. I just assumed Dallas was a big city and you walk around to everything! So basically I should just pick a nice hotel that I like and just drive to the places we would like to visit. I should probably go buy a travel book about the area before we come to get familiar with it. We are basically just there to go to the game, but I figured we should stay a few days to check things out. It's not like we need to do any major shopping haha. It's just nice to be in an area to stroll around at night. The Mansion at Turtle Creek looks nice, but I wasn't sure if it was remote.

I personally favor Fort Worth and Tarrant county to Dallas. Downtown Fort Worth is alive and I feel safer at night. It requires a car to see the area and it is at least 30 minutes to drive from one area to the other... Dallas to Arlington, Arlington to the Airport, Fort Worth to the airport etc. That is why I suggested a place in the middle.

Yeah, don't kid yourself, Mers. In terms of square mileage, Dallas is larger than NYC and Fort Worth is nearly the same size. You'll be renting a car, so nothing's THAT remote.

Enjoy the Cowboys game! As far as where to stay, I'd stay in Sundance Square in downtown Fort Worth, probably the Renaissance Worthington. The location is perfect. I stayed there this past spring and the rooms have recently been redone. There's plenty of entertainment and restaurants within walking distance. I'm familiar with both the Dallas and Arlington areas as well as our family has season tickets to the Dallas Mavericks, Texas Rangers and Dallas Cowboys. Hands down, I'd pick FW for the place to stay. If you do stay there, I'd be glad to offer more specifics on restaurants, museums, etc. Last year, there was a bus option to the Cowboys game, I'm not sure of the details as my son drives and has an off-location parking lot that he has found that works well. I'd be glad to scout out info for the bus if you'd like. Happy planning!

I'm beginning to think that I might be better off staying in Fort Worth. Is it a safer area then Dallas?
I will look into the Renaissance Worthington. Recommendations for restaurants would be great.

Downtown FW, especially in the Sundance Square area, is very safe at night. There are biked security officers galore. Great atmosphere - some downtoan dining recs include Reata (www.reata.net). They have an outdoor bar/dining at the top which is wonderful in beautiful weather. Thai Tina's for Thai food. Mi Cocina's for Mexican food is in Sundance Square but if you have a car, go to Joe T. Garcia's and eat outside. There is a TCU football game that Saturday afternoon so there will probably be a football vibe going on anyway. Again, if you have a car, try to hit great barbeque - either Angelo's or Railhead. The best steak place in downtown FW is Del Frisco's - would definitely need reservations. (www.delfriscos.com) Does this help?

yes that helps so much! and you think that the best place to stay is the Renaissance Worthington? Sounds like a great location.

There are several nice places places to stay in downtown Ft. Worth. I think the Omni is less than two years old.

Here's the deal: If you're in downtown Ft. Worth, there will be about 15 restaurants you could walk to at night. In Dallas, not so much. (If you stay at Southlake Town Center, there would also be lots of restaurants in walking distance.)

The Omni is newer and glitzier but is on the other end of town - making it more difficult to walk at night to and from restaurants/clubs/entertainment. It's across the street from the convention center and caters more to convention traffic. I've been in the rooms - yes, they are nice, but I'd choose location (Worthington). The Worthington is probably the nicest on the end of town where the action is...hope this helps.

I'm with dorkforce here. Omni is gorgeous, but not central to walking.

I highly recommend the Renaissance Worthington, also. Wonderful hotel right in the heart of downtown Fort Worth. Walk out the door to lots of dining and shopping. You are minutes from the Botanical Gardens (really, don't miss the Conservatory, which includes prehistoric plants bigger than my house!) and the Japanese gardens there, also.

Sundance Square (a couple blocks from the Worthington) has lots of goings on on the weekend, a number of excellent restaurants, and you really should try to catch a Saturday morning tour of Bass Hall. You can't miss it...there are two huge angels on the front with gold trumpets!

Here is a link to Sundance Square info: http://www.sundancesquare.com/

By the way, I live in Arlington, just 10 mts from the Stadium. There is plenty to do here, but I do absolutely love Fort Worth and Sundance Square.

If you stay at the Worthington, you are also just a hop from the Historic Stockyards, a part of Fort Worth that still celebrates the cowboy and our Western heritage: http://www.fortworthstockyards.org/

Don't get me wrong, there is plenty to do in Dallas, too. BUT, I'd choose Fort Worth for my hotel. You can drive to Dallas in about 30 minutes. The Sixth Floor Museum IS worth seeing; yes, it is dedicated to Kennedy and the day he was assassinated. Very well done, though. Not maudlin.

Also, Dallas has great shopping. I love North Park and the Galleria. Closer to Fort Worth is Grapevine Mills. But those are mostly outlet and chain stores, so don't know if the girls would enjoy that.

Anyway, I vote for Fort Worth Worthington: http://www.marriott.com/hotels/trave...el-fort-worth/

Try to get a room near the top. View is wonderful.

Have fun! You will love the area, I'm sure, no matter where you stay!

thank you so much for your help.

It may be too late. In Sundance Square, there is a wonderful and very private 10 bedroom bed and breakfast inn called Etta's Place. It is a marvelous place to stay. Check out www.ettas-place.com. You can't miss.