For a little Texas history and a nice stop from Dallas to Austin, try the Texas Ranger Museum in Waco (exit 335 I believe). Interesting and a nice break in the 3 hour drive.

I've been traveling to Austin for about ten years since my son moved there. One thing to add is First Night Austin, a great civic celebration that takes place on New Year's Eve. There are music, dance, and art offerings all day long throughout the downtown area, culminating in a fun parade in the evening.

Hotels must be seeing a downturn, as I just saw a post on travelzoo that the downtown Crowne Plaza is running a special rate of $85/night Nov 19 Dec 30

My in-laws all live in Texas--San Antonio and Austin, and we generally spend a couple nights in the hill country too when we are visiting for the holidays.

Something that none of the other posters have mentioned is that both San Antonio and Austin have mega gourmet food stores which are the size of small shopping malls and not to be missed--an excursion in themselves. The flagship Whole Foods store is in downtown Austin, with lots of counters for buying prepared food (everything from pizzas to suishi to raw foods). In San Antonio there is the equally enormous Central Market, a couple miles north of the Riverwalk, which also has prepared food that you can buy for a meal. Both have great carry out for picnics or meals at your hotel.

My DH and I were in Austin last year on Dec 30th and went to a smallish improv club on 6th street and then hung out in the Driskill lobby bar for dessert (sat on a cowhide couch), saw three folk/cowboy different bands play there with no cover, then wandered around the lovely historic ballrooms and out onto a balcony overlooking the city. Magical. Make sure you go there one evening--even your teen girls will like this.

Favorite places in Hill Country--Bandara (eat at Old Spanish Trail for Chicken fried steak--walls are covered in stills from John Wayne movies) http://www.texasbob.com/eats/tbe_ost.html; Fredicksburg got the aforementioned German food; and Enchanted Rock (Native American sacred site--great views of surrounding countryside).

http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/f...nchanted_rock/

My favorite restaurant in San Antonio is Rosario's (because it tends towards Mex, not just the usual TexMex)--has excellent enchaladas with poblano crema, a Kahlua flan to die for, and a fun atmosphere. A short way from the Riverwalk: www.rosariossa.com

Happy Trails!

Sorry for getting back sooo late. Thank you all for the advices and recommendations. In Austin, is it worth it to stay in downtown and pay for parking? Or should we just stay outside of downtown? Thank you.

I have lived in Dallas my entire life.

Last time we went to Austin, we stayed at the Sheraton downtown. It was very nice and an easy walk to to sights downtown. Just be cautious walking back to the hotel late at night. We had no problems but it was pretty early and busy.
I have stayed at many other hotels in the area and it really just depends on what you want. You can stay outside of the city center and save a ton of money. Parking is no problem in Austin, just pay. So it's up to you. It's great either way and easy to navigate.

San Marcos is an all day affair. I LOVE going there and alway find great bargains!
Stop in Kyle and get some pie:
http://www.texaspiecompany.com/

I go every year to the Ice thing at the Gaylord Texan because I am a customer of the hotel. I have also been to the winter events in Ottawa and Montreal. I am never impressed with the Gaylord show. Skip it and do something authentic. If the kids want to swim, Great Wolf is cool, but skip it if swimming isn't a big attraction.

On the way to San Antonio/Austin, stop in West, Texas and grab a kolache. Look on the map, it's not too far out of Dallas and I always fill my tank and grab a few fresh ones.

The Dr Pepper museum is in Waco. It is a Texas institution! Also Blue Bell in Brenham.
Google both for more info.

Have a great time. I hope to go to Ottawa during Winterlude 2010!

IMO it's definitely worth staying downtown. Easy to walk most places (and parking isn't that expensive). The Sheraton mentioned above is a good choice. We particularly like the Radisson on Cesar Chavez St (1st St) [some of the rooms on the lower floors are very large] and the 4 Seasons. Both are right on Town Lake in beautiful settings and within a block of Congress Ave. The 4 Seasons often has specials online and in Dec you're likely to find a good deal.

One of our favorite restaurants is in between the Radisson and 4 Seasons - the Shoreline Grill. Very good regional food and great views from the terrace (although Dec may be a little chilly for that)

Well everyone enjoys different things. While TxTravelPro didn't enjoy the ICE show I certainly did and know many others that have. It was like viewing works of art in our eyes. And art tastes will vary. Forget the remark about authentic, the Gaylord is worth a visit...even for us 100% Texans.

Skip Austin, and spend more time in Dallas and San Antonio. The Alamo and Rivewalk in SA are very interesting.

Skip Dallas, and spend more time in Austin and San Antonio. The Alamo and Riverwalk in SA are very interesting. Historic Fort Worth is worth a visit. Dallas, IMO, is just another one of those modern, cookie cutter large cities.

I recommend skipping Houston too. I lived there for 3 years and it's just a big ugly city with nothing much to offer.

bookmarking

I'm surprised someone would say to skip Austin and spend time in Dallas instead. To me, Dallas and Houston are both nice places to live, but as a tourist, I'd rather go the Austin and SA route.

Volcano... as someone born and raised in Dallas I wholeheartedly agree. I love my city and there are a few noteworthy things to do, but there are SOOOO many reasons to get the heck down to Austin, the Hill Country, San Antonio.
I could spend a month in that area and not run out of things to do!

TTP, well I'm a Houston girl, and I totally agree with you. Love living here, but for a vacation, I'm heading west. :)

Thanks all for your advices and input. My family and I have decided our itinerary:

Dec 25 - Arrive in Dallas
Dec 26 - Houston (we are still going to Houston for one
night since we'd like to attend service at Lakewood
Church)
Dec 27 Austin
Dec 28 Austin
Dec 29 San Antonio
Dec 30 San Antonio
Dec 31 San Antonio
Jan 1 Dallas
Jan 2 Leaving Dallas

We have already booked the hotels except for Austin - not find the good deal in Austin yet.

Thanks again for all input. Much appreciated.

Looks good. You may have already taken care of this, but just FYI - there are plenty of hotels along the Southwest Frwy (US 59) within blocks of the Lakewood Church. The Renassiance Hotel (corner of the Freeway and Edloe) is literally across the street.

Thanks dfr4848. Yes, we already booked the hotel in Houston at Doubletree Suite Galleria.

It's snowing this morning in Dallas - pretty heavily, too. It was in the 70s over the weekend. That's what we mean about the weather in December.

We really hope the weather will be good and warm when we are in Texas.