tourism news
Dallas flies into top 10 on new list of best summer travel destinations
Here come the tourists.
Not even triple-digit heat will deter tourists from visiting Dallas this summer, a new survey from WalletHub has confirmed. The Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metro has climbed into the No. 10 spot on the personal finance website's list of the "Best Summer Travel Destinations" in 2025.
The report annually ranks 100 U.S metros based on attractions, safety, activities, weather, local costs, and travel costs and hassles. Factors that determine each city's ranking include flight costs, the number of affordable restaurants with high ratings, crime rates, and more.
The Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford metro area in Florida is the No. 1 most sought after summer travel destination this year.
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington has made a huge leap from its former No. 29 rank last year, and it ranked No. 45 in 2023.
Here's how WalletHub broke down Dallas' ranking in each of the six main categories:
- No. 13 – Local costs rank
- No. 21 – Attractions rank
- No. 29 – Activities rank
- No. 41 – Weather rank
- No. 43 – Safety rank
- No. 50 – Travel costs and hassles rank
Dallas ranked the highest in the local costs category, proving that the city's affordability is a major benefit for visitors as well as locals. There's surely no shortage of things to do in the city, from dining at highly acclaimed steakhouses or checking out fun plays and musicals.
But there's so much more that goes into choosing the right place for a memorable summer trip, says WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo. Creating and sticking to a vacation budget that considers all costs of a trip, such as meals and local transportation costs, is a good place to start.
"[C]hoosing a destination that’s not only entertaining but also affordable is important when travel, dining and activity costs have surged so much in recent years," Lupo says. "It can also allow you to have a longer, more relaxing trip."
The study's scope isn't just limited to just Dallas proper, which also means tourists may flock to popular suburbs like Plano to explore its shopping opportunities, or visit a quirky new toy store in Lewisville. It also includes Arlington, home of the new National Medal of Honor Museum.
Other top Texas summer travel destinations
Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown (No. 5) was the only other Texas metro to earn a spot in the top 10 summer travel destinations, while San Antonio-New Braunfels ranked 18th.
Surprisingly, El Paso (No. 31) ranked four spots ahead of Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land (No. 35). The final two Texas metros that earned spots in the study are Corpus Christi (No. 80) and McAllen-Edinburg-Mission (No. 97).
The top 10 best summer travel destinations in 2025 are:
- No. 1 – Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, Florida
- No. 2 – Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Alpharetta, Georgia
- No. 3 – Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-Virginia-Maryland-West Virginia
- No. 4 – Urban Honolulu, Hawaii
- No. 5 – Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown, Texas
- No. 6 – Cincinnati, Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana
- No. 7 – Salt Lake City, Utah
- No. 8 – Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Delaware-Maryland
- No. 9 – Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, Florida
- No. 10 – Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas
