Better places to go

Dallas flops on new list of best U.S. summer travel destinations

Travelers will be avoiding Dallas this summer.

Maybe a staycation isn't in the future for Dallas locals this summer — at least according to a new report by Forbes Advisor.

The report listed the best and worst cities for summer travel and Dallas did not fare well, coming in as the No. 13 worst summer travel destination in the nation.

The study, published June 1, compared 43 of the most populous U.S. cities across 16 metrics in three major categories: City experience, air travel experience, and driving experience.

Dallas earned an overall score of 57.20 out of a total 100 possible points. At least it beat Jacksonville, Florida which earned a perfect (and dreadful) score of 100 points to solidify itself as the No. 1 worst vacation destination for summer travel.

This is how Forbes breaks down Dallas' ranking across the three key dimensions:

37.98 – City experience score
50.06 – Air travel experience score
70.03 – Driving experience score

Major factors that brought down Dallas' scores include the city's extreme weather (AKA, the unforgiving Texas heat) combined with a higher-than-normal number of damage claims at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport and Dallas Love Field Airport, according to the report.

"Dallas’ two major airports have the sixth highest number of property loss and damage claims during the summer (1.3 per 100,000 domestic passengers)," the report said. "The city also has the seventh highest number of extreme temperature days in the summer (76 on average)."

Those were enough to sink Dallas as a destination for Americans planning to take a vacation trip.

Go Houston
While Dallas was ranked among the worst summer travel destinations, Houston climbed up to No. 10 on Forbes' ranking of the best summer travel destinations in the country.

"Visitors to Houston enjoy the lowest median hotel price during the summer ($122.33 per night) and the city’s two major airports reimburse the second highest percentage of summer property loss and damage claims in full (52.4 percent on average)," the report said.

San Antonio (No. 20) and Austin (No. 24) also fared better than Dallas in the overall rankings, showing that Central Texas is a far better place to be during the summer when it comes to statewide vacations.

Texas travelers may want to consider going out of state to places like Minneapolis, Minnesota, which was ranked the No. 1 best summer travel destination in the U.S.

The top 10 best U.S. summer travel destinations are:

No. 1 – Minneapolis, Minnesota
No. 2 – Long Beach, California
No. 3 – Washington, D.C.
No. 4 – Seattle, Washington
No. 5 – Omaha, Nebraska
No. 6 – San Diego, California
No. 7 – San Francisco, California
No. 8 – Columbus, Ohio
No. 9 – Chicago, Illinois
No. 10 – Houston, Texas

Forbes Advisor determined each city's ranking based on travel experience data from Expedia, Tripadvisor, The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, AAA, The U.S. Census Bureau, and more. Metrics included a city's crime rate; median hotel prices during the summer season; the percentage of delayed, canceled, or diverted flights during the summer; among others.

The full report can be found on forbes.com.

dallas houston austin san antonio reports forbes travel summer summer vacation

Downtown News

Dallas convention center re-do will shut down DART stop for 3 years

Courtesy photo

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Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) is about to shut down its stop at the Convention Center Station for the next three years.

The agency is being forced to close the station to accommodate the city of Dallas' construction and redevelopment of the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center. As part of the project, the station will be closed for the duration of construction, which is currently estimated at three years.

The Convention Center Station is a stop on both the Red and Blue lines, and the shutdown will affect anyone traveling to or from southwest Dallas. North Dallas, Plano, Rowlett, and Carrollton will thankfully be spared.

Rail detours
Riders who previously used the Convention Center Station will be directed to nearby alternative stations at Cedars or EBJ Union. DART has prepared clear signage, rider alerts, and bus connections to support customers and make navigating the closure as easy as possible.

Bus detours
Routes 28 and 106 will maintain regular service outside of downtown. Within downtown, instead of taking Lamar to the Convention Center, the bus will turn left on Young Street, right on Akard Street, right on Marilla Street where the Akard and Marilla bus stop is located (stop number 20685).

Outbound, routes 28 and 106 will turn left on Young Street, right on Lamar Street and then proceed on their regular route.

Layover at Akard and Marilla: Passengers deboard at Cedars Station and take the special South Dallas GoLink to bus stops at Akard and Marilla or to EBJ Union Station.

Route 224 will operate a detour going inbound. Inbound trips will come downtown via Elm and continue to Houston, turn left on Commerce and continue to Harwood. It will then turn left to go to the East Transfer Center where it will layover. Outbound trips will originate from the East Transfer Center and operate a regular route out of downtown.

Layover at East Transfer Center

Passengers arriving by train can deboard at Convention Center Station to board route 224.
Another option for passengers is to deboard at Akard Station, then board 224 at Elm and Akard.

Route 383 East Transfer Center is your final stop. 383 will not continue past this station. This route will be discontinued on February 02, 2026.

DART will implement a new GoLink Zone for Convention Center Station customers that will only provide service for trips originating at EBJ Union Station, Cedars Station, or the substitute bus layover location on Akard and Marilla and terminating at one of those locations.

The service will operate 7 days a week, from 5 am to midnight. Customers using this GoLink Zone may only travel between these three designated points.

All changes will be reflected online and in the GoPass app for the duration of construction.

downtown transportation