 |
 |
 |
| Home » About Fort Worth » Visiting Fort Worth |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
2007 Nomination Form |
 |
 |
 |
Attractions |  |
Tourism in Fort Worth is booming, bringing approximately 7.5 million visitors and contributing $900 million annually to the city’s economy. In Fort Worth, recent major developments include new attractions, events, facilities and infrastructure improvements, and their addition further expands the city’s appeal as a premier destination in the state of Texas.
Amon Carter Museum
A great museums of American art, the Amon Carter in 2001 added almost 20,000-square-feet of new gallery space, enabling four times more art to be on view. With one of the largest and most important collections of American photography, as well as holdings of iconic American paintings and sculpture, the Amon Carter Museum provides a magnificent showcase for its collection.
Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Department of the Treasury
Western Currency Facility Public Tour Facility & Visitor Center
The Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) produces the nation’s currency, or banknotes, in only two cities: Washington, D.C. and Fort Worth. A public tour and visitor center gives the public an opportunity to observe the manufacturing of U.S. paper currency. The tour facility is designed to accommodate 1,000 visitors per day.
Crowne Plaza Invitational Colonial Golf Tournament
Fort Worth is a golfer’s paradise. Home to Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson, Fort Worth's rich golf heritage is capped each year by one of the most prestigious PGA tournaments, the Crowne Plaza Invitational Colonial held annually at the Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth.
Fort Worth Opera Festival
May 2007 marked Fort Worth Opera’s 60th Birthday and the opening of the first annual Fort Worth Opera Festival, where several performances are performed in four weeks. Fort Worth area patrons are able to see multiple operas and enjoy other events over the space of a few weekends; out-of-town visitors can pick a weekend and see several different performances, plus enjoy all Fort Worth has to offer. All performances are in Bass Performance Hall.
Fort Worth Botanic Garden
The 109-acre botanical garden, with more than 2,500 types of exotic and native plants, features a tropical plant conservatory, rose and Japanese gardens, open areas and walkways. It includes 21 world-renowned specialty gardens. More than 700,000 people visit the gardens each year.
Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl
The Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl showcases Conference USA and the Mountain West Conference teams. The game is televised nationally by ESPN. One of only 25 cities to host a bowl game, Fort Worth is a perfect, centrally-located venue complete with outstanding entertainment, cultural, shopping, and lodging entities, and is a convenient drive or flight for fans.
More than 200 volunteers help with the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl. The majority of volunteers are placed on a hospitality committee for one of the two teams.
Fort Worth Cats Baseball Club
The Cats are an independent minor league team playing at the recreated LaGrave Field in Fort Worth. In 2005, the Cats were the champions of the Central Baseball League. Enjoy exciting baseball up close and personal.
Fort Worth Convention Center
In 2003, a $75 million expansion of the Fort Worth Convention Center provided an upgrade to both the interior and exterior, resulting in a dramatically improved and enlarged facility. An events plaza links the renovated Convention Center to the Fort Worth Water Gardens Plaza.
- 252,000 square feet of exhibit space
- 1,200 on-site parking spaces
- New and expanded dock facilities
- 41 breakout rooms (60,050 sf total)
- 30,000-square-foot ballroom
- 13,500-seat arena
Fort Worth Herd
Each morning in the Historic Stockyards 15 Texas longhorn cattle are rounded up from their corral and driven by cowhands in authentic dress down Exchange Avenue to the delight of tourists and locals alike. The cowhands give visitors presentations on the vital role the cattle industry played in the growth and prosperity of the city and serve as goodwill ambassadors throughout the day. The herd is driven back at 4 p.m. The daily cattle drives are the only known municipal program of its kind in the world and is aimed at raising awareness of the rich heritage of the city fondly remembered as Cowtown.
Fort Worth Museum of Science and History
Adding to the rich architectural legacy of Fort Worth’s Cultural District, the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History’s brand new $80 million facility is dazzling with its bright colors, geometric forms, and abundant natural light. Designed by internationally acclaimed architectural firm Legorreta + Legorreta, the new facility opened in November 2009. To strengthen the museum’s presentation of history, the expansion incorporates a major new center for the Cattle Raisers Museum. Exhibits also include DinoLabs; Paluxysaurus jonesi, the official dinosaur of Texas; the Noble Planetarum; the Fort Worth Children’s Museum; Innovation Studios; six glass-walled spaces near the main entrance offering hands-on demonstrations; and the Omni Imax Theater.
Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge
This urban retreat, complete with hiking, horse trails and a visitor’s center, is the largest municipally owned facility of its kind in the nation with 3,500 acres of sanctuary and 20 miles of trails.
Fort Worth Public Library
Reference Desk
300 Taylor Street
Fort Worth, TX 76102
Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo
The country’s oldest livestock show and world’s original indoor rodeo come to Will Rogers Memorial Center in Fort Worth’s Cultural District annually. From mid January through the first week of February, over 21,000 head of livestock, including goats, cows, llamas and pigeons, are displayed for prizes each year. Rodeo events draw cowboys from all over the South to compete for prizes. A dazzling midway with rides and games, a venue for cowboy poetry and a downtown parade are also included in the festivities.
Fort Worth Stockyards
International visitors are drawn to the Old West feel of the Historic Stockyards District’s brick streets and restored buildings. The district boasts rodeos, western events, restaurants, retail outlets and much more. Some western attractions include the Tarantula Train, White Elephant Saloon, Stockyards Station and Cowtown Coliseum.
Fort Worth Zoo
The Fort Worth Zoo, considered one of the top attractions in the country, is Fort Worth’s most popular tourist attraction, with more than 1.2 million visitors annually. The zoo is home to more than 5,000 exotic animals. Interactive education programs are offered for preschoolers to teenagers during the school year and summer months.
Intermodal Transportation Center (ITC)
ITC brings together all forms of public transportation – commuter rail, regional train service, buses, taxis – for visitors and residents of Fort Worth. The 31,000-square-foot facility is designed to echo the city’s past and blends with the surrounding downtown buildings. The ITC houses the Trinity Railway Express (rail from Dallas to Fort Worth), Amtrak, The T bus service, and taxis.
Japanese Gardens
Part of the Fort Worth Botanic Garden, the Japanese Gardens were constructed form an old gravel pit used to build the streets of old Fort Worth. Its retaining walls were made from left over red granite used to build the Tarrant County Court House in 1894. Today it has seven different crossings, three main pools filled with fish, a meditation garden, tea house, pagoda and moon deck. The huge, entrance gate was designed by well-known Fort Worth architect Albert Komatsu. The most recent addition to the gardens is the Mikoshi, which is a guided, portable shrine that was donated by Sister City Nagaoka, Japan.
Kimbell Art Museum
Designed by architect Luis I. Kahn, the Kimbell is not only America’s best small museum, but also a beautiful work of architecture. The Kimbell has achieved world status for the quality and scope of its collection and its original exhibitions.
Log Cabin Village
The Log Cabin Village is a living history museum devoted to the preservation of Texas heritage. Six log houses, dating back to the mid 1800s, were selected from the North Texas region, moved to the present site, and restored in the 1950s. The Village was then donated to the City of Fort Worth, and it opened to the public in 1966. Today, each of the historical structures, furnished with authentic artifacts, provides a vivid look at life in the nineteenth century North Texas frontier. Each log house displays different aspects of pioneer life. The exhibits include a water-powered gristmill, a one-room schoolhouse, a blacksmith shop, an herb garden, and several log home settings. Historical interpreters, who are City of Fort Worth staff and volunteers, depict the lifestyle of the pioneers who settled in the area in the mid to late 1800s.
Main Street Arts Festival
It’s Fort Worth’s annual rite of Spring. Held each April, historic Main Street is blocked off for the Main Street Arts Festival, a marketplace of arts, crafts, food and live entertainment.
Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth
Designed by world-renowned architect Tadao Ando, the Modern is the second-largest contemporary art museum in America, next to New York’s MoMA. Hailed as one of the most significant architectural projects in the nation, the design embodies the pure, unadorned elements of a modern work of art, with massive planar walls of concrete and immense cantilevered cast-concrete roofs. The Modern offers 53,000 square feet of exhibit space and 11 naturally landscaped acres, including a 1.5-acre reflecting pond.
Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall
The Bass Performance Hall, called the “last great performance hall built in the 20th century,” serves as a permanent home to performing arts organizations in Fort Worth. The $60 million, 2,000 seat, art-deco auditorium houses the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, the Fort Worth-Dallas Ballet, the Fort Worth Opera and the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition.
National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame
The only museum in the world dedicated to honoring and documenting the distinguished women of the American West includes three permanent galleries, traveling exhibits, a multi-purpose theater, a research library, a retail store, and the Cowgirl Hall of Fame. The $21 million, 33,000-square-foot museum designed by David Schwarz honors women from a wide range of backgrounds, including Georgia O’Keeffe, Dale Evans, Patsy Cline, Sacajawea, Willa Cather and Annie Oakley.
Sid Richardson Collection of Western Art
This exhibit includes the largest single collection of works by Frederic Remington and Charles Russell, considered by many to be the finest of the western artists.
Six Flags Over Texas
Six Flags, one of the country’s most popular theme parks, is located just 10 miles from Fort Worth in Arlington. Visitors of all ages enjoy a wide range of roller coasters and kiddie rides, as well as an array of concerts and shows.
Sundance Square
Sundance Square, named after the famed Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, is a 16-block area of buildings that date from the turn of the century and have been beautifully restored to provide a wonderful architectural view of the past. Sundance Square is full of excitement with a vibrant mix of restaurants, shopping, theater, arts, movies, music and more. Texas Monthly has called downtown Fort Worth the most exciting downtown in the state.
Texas Ballet Theater
Texas Ballet Theater is the premier resident professional Ballet Company of North Texas. Under the direction of artistic director Ben Stevenson, O.B.E., the ballet brings unprecedented talent, beauty and artistic expression to the stages of Fort Worth's Bass Performance Hall, Dallas' Music Hall at Fair Park and the historic Majestic Theatre in downtown Dallas. Texas Ballet Theater is the resident ballet company for the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House at the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts.
Texas Brahmas Hockey Club
The Fort Worth Brahmas are Cowtown's very own professional hockey team. From October to March, the Brahmas play 30 home games in downtown Fort Worth at their home facility in downtown Fort Worth, the Fort Worth Covention Center. Affordable ticket prices range from $10-$25. For schedule or additional ticket information, please contact the Brahmas office at 817-336-4423.
Texas Motor Speedway
Located near Alliance Airport in north Fort Worth, this 1.5-mile racetrack features 200,000 seats and 200 luxury skyboxes encompassing an area larger than eight Texas Stadiums put together. The track hosts a variety of racing and related events, including NASCAR Winston Cup, Busch, Craftsman Truck and Indy Racing League dates, racing schools and auto shows. In addition to the high-speed entertainment, there are luxury condos and the Speedway Club, which is equipped with a health club and five star dining.
Texas Rangers
In Arlington, baseball’s Texas Rangers made a long-awaited World Series appearance in 2010 at their turn-of-the-century style Rangers Ballpark. The ballpark can seat more than 50,000 spectators and features a Legends of the Game museum.
This unique complex also includes a children's learning center and a four-story office building within the ballpark, and a youth baseball park, a 12-acre lake, and parks and recreation space on the perimeter.
Trinity Railway Express (TRE)
Visitors traveling between Fort Worth and Dallas now find this 35-mile trip between two of Texas’ largest cities as easy as stepping onto a train. The TRE ride from “Cowtown” to “Big D” takes about one hour. Two locations in downtown Fort Worth provide passenger service: the new ITC and the historic T&P Station. Public transportation is available upon arrival at the ITC to shuttle visitors throughout the city.
Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
The Van Cliburn Foundation brings the finest talent in classical music to Fort Worth with piano competitions, annual amateur concert series, and ongoing children’s education programs. The prestigious international quadrennial competition, often called the “Olympics” of classical music, attracts pianists and music lovers from across the United States and abroad.
|
Tourist Information & Brochures | |
Fort Worth Convention & Visitors Bureau
Visitor Information Centers
- iFort Worth - Downtown Sundance Square
508 Main Street
Fort Worth, TX 76102
Monday-Friday: 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.
Saturday: 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
800-433-5747
817-698-3300
- Stockyards National Historic District
130 East Exchange Avenue
Monday-Saturday: 9 a.m. - 6 p.m.
Sunday: Noon - 5 p.m.
817-624-4741
- Fort Worth Cultural District
3401 West Lancaster Avenue
Monday-Saturday: 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Sunday: Closed
817-882-8588
 |
|---|
.gif) |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |