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Hill Country festival throws eclipse party with camping and Texas bands

Music lovers will flock to Utopia to watch concerts and the eclipse in nature.

Plans are being laid across Texas to watch the eclipse occurring on Monday April 8, when the sky will darken and the sun will disappear except for a glowing backlight.

Utopia, Texas, 340 miles southwest of Dallas, lies right in the center of the eclipse path and will provide a ringside seat via UtopiaFest, the long-running 14-year-old music festival which in 2024 will capitalize on the eclipse with a specially-timed rendition taking place April 5-9. (Previous renditions took place in the fall.)

The five-day festival will be located at the Four Sisters Ranch, a 1000-acre countryside stay with hiking and camping facilities in the Hill Country between Garner State Park and Lost Maples State Natural Area.

The festival offers a variety of passes, ranging from a short three-day pass to the full five days. Every person attending needs one of the following passes:

Sunday-Tuesday, $350
Saturday-Tuesday, $400
Friday-Tuesday, $430
Sterling Pass, $600, spanning the full Friday-Tuesday stay with expedited entry, entrance for any vehicle, premium camp site, and access to Sterling lounge

All passes include free parking and tent camping, with available park-and-unload by campgrounds.

There are also passes if you want to drive in and "car camp" or if you want to bring an RV, with limited power hookups available, and separate passes for kids and teens ($20 to $40). Dogs are an additional $150.

The festival recently released its lineup of nearly 50 acts spread across two stages, dominated by Texas artists including Dallas band The Texas Gentlemen, who will perform on "eclipse day," Monday April 8, along with acts such as Ghostland Observatory, Phoebe Hunt, and The Mighty Orq.

In the U.S., eclipse "totality" will begin in Texas at 1:27 pm (and will end in Maine at 3:35 pm Eastern time, or 2:35 Texas time). Austin funk/soul ensemble Sir Woman gets the honor of performing during the magic moment, says Utopiafest co-founder Travis Sutherland.

This was meant to be the festival's last year, but the announcement hints that the camping festival may return. "We can't wait for one last Four Sisters Ranch party (for now)!" it says.

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Brianna Caleri contributed to this story.

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Airline News

Frontier Airlines adds two new destination cities out of DFW Airport

Frontier Airlines/ Facebook

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Low-cost Denver-based Frontier Airlines has launched nonstop service from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) to two new destinations in Central America.

According to a release, the carrier will offer the following new flights:

Guatemala City, Guatemala (GUA) - weekly
San Salvador, El Salvador (SAL) - 2x/week

With these new routes, Frontier will serve 40 destinations nonstop from DFW, exemplifying Frontier’s impressive network growth as it continues to add more affordable and convenient travel options across the U.S., Caribbean, and Latin America.

The frequency of the flights is a little confusing. Guatemala City is "weekly" which seems to imply "once a week." San Salvador is "2x/week" which seems to imply two flights a week. However, if you try to book a flight to either city, you get all sorts of options, including weekends and a few randomly spaced weekdays. And the flight availability extends only through January.

Frontier Airlines VP of network and operations design Josh Flyr says in a statement that "there’s a lot to be excited about" including their expanding network and their rolling out First Class in early 2026.

Other changes at Frontier include UpFront Plus seating, an upgraded seating option with extra leg and elbow room in the first two rows of the aircraft, with choice of a window or aisle seat with extra legroom and a guaranteed empty middle seat.

To celebrate, they'll offer a fare sale starting at $79. Tickets must be purchased by 10:59 pm Dallas time on December 30, 2025. Sale fares are valid for nonstop travel on select days of the week January 5-April 13, 2026. Blackout dates apply on March 9 and March 31, and from April 1-6. And a 14-day advance purchase is required.

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