The Atlas Obscura Guide To Texas

378 Cool, Hidden, and Unusual Things to Do in Texas

Updated December 19, 2024

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Unusual Attractions in Texas

Dripping Springs, Texas

Hamilton Pool

An emerald-green grotto just a short trip from Austin.

Museum of the Weird, May 2018

Austin, Texas

Museum of the Weird

Continuing the tradition of the dime museum in style.

Cathedral of Junk

Austin, Texas

Cathedral of Junk

This unique structure in suburban Austin is made up entirely of other people's castaways, and constantly changing.

Uncommon Objects sign

Austin, Texas

Uncommon Objects

One part antique store, one part curiosities hodge-podge.

Fort Worth, Texas

Fort Worth Water Gardens

A modernist landscape of water and sci-fi concrete.

Amarillo, Texas

Cadillac Ranch

A sculpture made of 10 Cadillacs as a monument to the "Golden Age" of the American automobile.

Crowds gather to watch the bats fly out as the sun sets.

Austin, Texas

Congress Bridge Bats

Home to the largest urban bat colony in North America, estimated at 1.5 million bats.

Buffalo Bayou Park Cistern

Houston, Texas

Buffalo Bayou Park Cistern

A 90-year-old underground water reservoir offers a more industrial kind of tranquility.

See All 378 Things To Do in Texas

Cool Places to Eat & Drink in Texas

It's a hidden gem of one of the busiest streets in Houston.

Houston, Texas

The Hobbit Café

A taste of Middle Earth, in the middle of the Bayou City.

Pecan Pie Vending Machine

Cedar Creek, Texas

Pecan Pie Vending Machine

A 24-hour vending machine restocked daily with homemade full-sized pecan pies.

The artesian bottling factory that now houses the Dr Pepper Museum.

Waco, Texas

Dr Pepper Museum

Housed in a century-old building, this museum's dedicated not just to soft drinks, but to the free enterprise system.

Bastrop, Texas

The Gas Station

The pit stop from "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" now serves beef and pork barbecue, not people.

See all 31 Places to Eat in Texas

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Unforgettable Experiences Nearby

Atlas Obscura Itineraries

7 Places to Experience Big Wonder in Texas

Sponsored by Travel Texas

Texas is a wide-ranging, diverse, and expansive state. Even the barbecue you’ll get from one county to another is never the same, and the music sounds a little different in the depths of West Texas than it does in the panhandle. Texas is huge—you’ve probably heard that—and it offers attractions to match its size. We’ve rounded up our favorite places to see the heights and depths of Texas—from its tallest peaks to its heftiest steaks. Put on your ten-gallon hat and your tallest boots, and set out on a road trip that’ll help you get a sense of just how big the state really is.

Explore Texas

Museums 42

Art 36

Architecture 33

Statues 26

Animals 23

Collections 23

Architectural Oddities 22

Sculptures 19

Restaurants 19

Outsider Art 19

Parks 17

Roadside Attractions 17

Unique Restaurants & Bars 6

Places To Stay 3

Texas Leaderboard

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Recent Texas Activity

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Stories About Texas

The black-eyed children, first described in Texas in the mid-90s, have since been seen around the world.

Death as a Child: The Modern Legend of the Black-Eyed Children

First described in Texas in the mid-90s, what are these disturbing figures—and what do they want?

by Emma Cieslik

October 16, 2024

Podcast: Buffalo Soldiers National Museum

An institution dedicated to honoring Black American military history got its start in one man's garage.

by The Podcast Team

February 22, 2024

Podcast: Aurora Alien Gravesite

A small town in Texas has embraced the tale or a visitor from far, far away.

by The Podcast Team

November 30, 2023

Podcast: Texas Painted Churches

These churches might seem unassuming from the outside, but intricate surprises await within.

by The Podcast Team

August 15, 2023

Chef Damian Brockway and his wife, Kornpawee Brockway.

Podcast: Distant Relatives

Tried and true barbecue favorites meet unexpected spices and flavor profiles.

Sponsored by Travel Texas

A brisket bento box at Kemuri Tatsu-Ya reconsiders barbecue’s most iconic cut of meat.

In Texas, Barbecue Has Gone Global

Across Texas, chefs and BBQ obsessives are stretching the limits of brisket, smoke, and sauce.

Sponsored by Travel Texas

Podcast: Chapel Creek Ranch

Join us for a daily celebration of the world’s most wondrous, unexpected, even strange places.

by The Podcast Team

September 14, 2022

Video: Roaming the Salado Sculpture Garden

Salado Creek is guarded by a sculpture of a doomed mermaid, whose tears are said to feed its waters today.

Sponsored by Visit Salado

Lists Featuring Texas

Target Marathon

Prada Marfa.

30 Places to Go Deep in the Art of Texas

Saddle up for the state's ultimate creative road trip.

Including Stonehenge II, Target Marathon, and Robert Bruno’s Steel House

Winter Solstice 2019

The Spiral Jetty

City: under construction - http://raisethestakeseditions.com/basin-and-range/

Double Negative's north trench

A Tour of Spectacular 1970s Art Made From the Landscape Itself

Eight places to witness the incredible ambition of the Southwest land art movement.

Including Sun Tunnels, The Spiral Jetty, and Complex City

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