Celebrating in style

Dallas sparkles on list of best U.S. cities to celebrate Christmas

Christmas Tree at Galleria Dallas ice skating

There's nothing small or dim about Christmas in Dallas.

Photo courtesy of Galleria Dallas

The most wonderful time of the year is here, and WalletHub has added to the spirit of the season by releasing its list of the best places to celebrate Christmas. Four Texas cities are in the top 25 — with Dallas on top.

The financial website ranked the 100 biggest cities in the U.S. in five broad categories, weighing everything from affordability to Christmas-friendliness. This year, Dallas has moved up two spots, to No. 10 overall.

Dallasites already know that it’s the perfect place to spend the holidays, but let’s let WalletHub reiterate. The website says that “typical Christmas activities include shopping, dining out, and attending holiday events,” and Dallas has it all — just look at our guides to local restaurants for Christmas dining and spectacular Christmas lights.

We rank an impressive 12th for shopping and 13th for traditions and fun (which includes Christmas events per capita). Dallas is also 15th for observance (churches per capita and share of Christian population). Unfortunately, costs have skyrocketed, and we’re now at 43rd in that category, but compared to other big cities, that’s not so bad.

Other North Texas cities have trouble competing. Fort Worth comes in at No. 49, while Plano lands at No. 62, and Garland is all the way at No. 92. We do, however, have some room for improvement in the generosity category, for which we rank No. 40.

The other top Texas cities for Christmas are Houston (No. 16), Austin (No. 20), and San Antonio (No. 23). And the very best places to spend the holiday, according to the report, are Orlando, Las Vegas, and New York.

wallethub holidays

Turkey Day news

Dallas eats up top-5 rank on list of best cities for Thanksgiving

Photo courtesy of Razzoo's

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Dallas is sitting at the head of the table as one of the best places in the country to celebrate Thanksgiving this year, a new study has revealed.

Dallas ranked No. 5 out of 100 of the largest U.S. cities in WalletHub's annual "Best Places to Go for Thanksgiving" report, published November 12. The city made a huge leap over its 2023 ranking as No. 17, and remains the highest-ranking Texas city.

The study analyzed each city based on 18 metrics to determine the best places for Thanksgiving, such as the number of pumpkin patches per capita, the average cost of a Thanksgiving dinner, the number of volunteer opportunities, the average weather forecast, and more. The metrics were then organized into five overall categories to determine the rankings.

The category that Dallas ranked the highest in was the number of celebrations and traditions (No. 2), and the average weather forecast during the holiday period (No. 9), while the lowest-ranked category was for safety and accessibility (No. 82). Other categories that determined Dallas' overall ranking were affordability (No. 60), and a "giving thanks" rank (No. 26).

Dallas restaurants are getting prepared for their big Turkey Day feasts, and CultureMap has rounded up a thorough list of all of the local restaurants hosting holiday feasts, from brunch to dinner.

"The best cities for celebrating Thanksgiving all have an abundance of high-quality restaurants and places to buy festive decorations, and their residents get very excited for the holiday based on their Google search history," said WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo.

By Thanksgiving on November 28, Dallas will be fully decked for the December holidays. Dallasites who will have extended family in town during Thanksgiving weekend can take in of all the marvelous Christmas lights brightening the city. Dallas-Fort Worth goes all out for the most wonderful time of year.

Across North Texas, three Dallas-area cities also made big improvements from their 2023 rankings. Irving moved up 10 spots to claim No. 19 this year, and Garland jumped up 21 spots on the list as No. 34. Arlington made the biggest improvement in the region, moving from No. 78 last year to No. 55 this year.

Meanwhile, Plano and Fort Worth slipped in the rankings, falling into No. 44 and No. 45 in 2024, respectively. Plano previously ranked No. 38 in 2023, and Fort Worth was No. 36.

San Diego, California (No. 1) topped the overall list of best places to go for Thanksgiving this year, followed by its Golden State neighbors San Francisco (No. 3) and San Jose (No. 4). Atlanta, Georgia (No. 2) rounds out the top five.

dallas fort worth thanksgiving wallethub rankings