Tour 1: Experience The Unique Big Bend Region
January 2-6

Come experience the unique West Texas region, its delicious cuisine, its friendly hospitality and its exciting attractions. Become surrounded by the natural beauty that encourages a variety of outdoor adventures as you travel through a diverse landscape.

Sunday, January 1

  • (Optional) Arrive in Midland by 4:00 p.m. and check-in at your hotel, then enjoy dinner at one of Midland’s fine restaurants

Monday, January 2

  • A motorcoach will pick up arriving delegates at the Midland International Airport at 11:00 a.m. All delegates will begin the tour at 11:30 a.m.
  • Visit Midland, Your Window to the West
  • Tour the CAF Airpower Museum, vintage airplanes, and the world’s largest collection of World War II Aviation Nose Art™
  • Tour Permian Basin Petroleum Museum, and the world’s largest collection of antique oil drilling equipment
  • Tour the Museum of the Southwest, including the Blakemore Planetarium, which has one of only 8 HD Spitz SciDome Star Projectors in the world
  • Enjoy Tex-Mex food and Folklorico dancers

Tuesday, January 3

  • Visit Fort Davis, named a 2008 Dozen Distinctive Destination® by the National Trust of Historic Preservation®
  • Tour of Fort Davis National Historic Site, one of the best examples of an Indian Wars’ frontier military posts in the Southwest
  • Tour and star party at McDonald Observatory. Features one of the world’s largest optical telescopes
  • Visit the Davis Mountains State Park
  • Savor a unique dinner at the Historic Prude Ranch
  • Overnight at Indian Lodge

Wednesday, January 4

  • Tour Alpine’s Museum of the Big Bend
  • Lunch at Chisos Mountain Lodge, whose restaurant has the best view of any restaurant in Texas
  • Tour Big Bend National Park/ Santa Elena Canyon
  • Tour Historic Terlingua, which holds the best concentration of mining era architecture in the region
  • Tour and dinner at Lajitas Golf Resort and Spa
  • Overnight at Big Bend Resort and Adventures
  • Optional after dinner drinks at Starlight Theatre

Thursday, January 5

  • Drive through Big Bend National Park
  • Tour the historic Gage Hotel in Marathon
  • Visit Fort Stockton, Your Crossroads to Adventure
  • Lunch at the Historic Annie Riggs Museum
  • Visit Odessa, The Right Place in Texas
  • Tour The Globe of the Great Southwest, modeled after the original Shakespearean Globe Theatre
  • Step back into history at The Presidential Museum & George Bush Home
  • The Ellen Noel Art Museum of the Permian Basin. Features rotating art exhibitions, and unique Sensory Garden for the visually handicapped
  • Visit the Stonehenge Replica on the campus of UTPB
  • Dinner at The Historic Barn Door Restaurant and Pecos Depot

Friday, January 6

  • Early departure to Grapevine (estimated late morning arrival)

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