Not really a fan of the show, though I have glanced at quite a few episodes on Saturday mornings in Dallas, but only managed to watch a whole episode once or twice.

Does not mean the chicken place is bad, I just don't particularly care for the host of the show or the many attractions that border on being tourist traps :idea:

And I'd still take Fort Worth over Dallas as visitor - downtown in Fort Worth is lively (Dallas not so much), museum district is cool, but there is no Dealey Plaza.

The show is based here in the Austin area, well actually Georgetown. I've bumped into the host when I was working in Georgetown, and he's a nice guy and liked up here. Yea he can be an acquired taste.
I thought Chicken Scratch was kind of an offbeat place to eat. Very casual, like mostly outside, there might have been sawdust on the ground. Nothing was terribly expensive, and the food was very good. I can almost guarantee that you'd be the only foreign visitors there.

From a history standpoint, really nothing compares with downtown Dallas and Dealey Plaza. The Perot Museum is also downtown and worthwhile (yes, that Perot). The GW Bush Presidential Library isn't too far, accessibly by rail, but Uber would be much faster.

Shoot me a PM if you have any specific questions, I live about 2 miles from the Canopy so I know the area well.

Nine hours at DFW. What to do?
 

I'm looking at an itinerary that will have a nine-hour layover at DFW. I'll be taking the overnight flight from South America. I've never been to Dallas before and I know nine hours is too short. I guess I could spend it in a lounge. Or could I go to a mall? What's the biggest mall that's accessible by transit? Will I need to buy a transit card or can I tap my Chase Sapphire Reserve?

Hi,

Here are some ideas

( 9hrs would be enough to go into Dallas city centre)

Your Layover Guide to Dallas (DFW) - The Points Guy

There are a couple of museums relating to Aviation

The AA CR smith museum ( limited opening hours though)
CR Smith Museum
and the flight museum at Dallas Love field

Visit - Frontiers of Flight Museum

Transit details

DART

with its route map

dartrailsystemmap24jan22-1.pdf

Regards

TBS

What is your time in the area from like 9am to 5 pm local time?

from DFW you can easily access a light rail line to get into the downtown Dallas area. I don’t know ifDFW has a baggage hold location.

Probably get a hotel and sleep.

This is what we did on our layover: https://www.jfk.org/

It was easily accessible by light rail from DFW. Very interesting.

We also had a day room at the Sheraton that is adjoining the airport.

Any comments on which Whataburger is better, Term D or E Satellite?

I've been to the one in E (near the AA gates), and it was fine. There is often a line, and it could easily take 20 minutes just to order your food, then another 10 minutes to get it. I think there are only 2 restaurants near those AA gates, so there really isn't much choice. The food was about the same as a regular Whataburger; prices about the same too.

Where are your gates? I certainly wouldn't go out of my way to go to E. But if your connection leaves from there, then sure. I prefer to go to my departing gate and be there early, just in case.

Be aware that the only way to get to/fr E is by the Skytrain (well other than exiting security and taking a car of some sort). The Skytrain is known to break down, and I'd hate to be stuck out near E and have to scramble to make it to A-B-C-D, which are all connected together and you can walk among them (so long as you are ambulatory). A friend of mine was on the train when it broke down while he was transferring from A to D. He was eventually (with everyone else) walked to E, where he then exited security and took a taxi to D, and barely made his connection.

Good info thanks, I ended up not going thru DFW today because of a 12 hour delay out of LGA and rebooked myself direct to my destination instead of via DFW. But I will be going thru DFW in another week or so. I was going to only have a 1 hour 20 minute layover to go from B to C but I had planned on going over to E for Whataburger although part of me was going to go to D and pop into the centurion lounge. I like cutting things close and I am usually in J so it would've made for some fun. Next time.

What is your favourite restaurant in the airport for a sit down meal and some cocktails? Anywhere and any cuisine. Will be there for lunch.

Later this week, I will be arriving into DFW at 10:30AM and leaving at 4PM at the latest to catch a TexRail train to Fort Worth (where I will be connecting to an Amtrak train).

I had planned on activities for the day in Dallas (and I might actually still do them) but with the temps in the mid 90s and the humidity at 85%, I don't think that I will be acclimated to the weather well enough to be doing those activities, so I'm thinking of these options and wanted some input:

1. Get a cheap hotel/motel room near the airport for the ~5 hours
2. Pay to use a third party airport lounge (I will only have an arriving ticket, and won't have a departing ticket, but I can book a refundable ticket and cancel it after entering the lounge if needed) (looking at the reviews for the third party lounges, they don't seem great or worth the price of admission)
3. Find somewhere in the airport to hang out for the 5 hours (I know DFW has lots of food options!)
4. Buy a transit day pass and just ride the trains to kill time. (at least they have air conditioning!) (Yes, I am aware that Tarrant county public transit is free this week!)
5. Some other option I haven't thought of?

Assuming you have luggage to deal with, here's one:
a. Get your TEXRail pass
b. Take the train to Grapevine Station
c. Check your bags at Hotel Vin (adjacent to the station)
d. Explore Historic Downtown Grapevine
e. When too hot, duck into an establishment or back to the Harvest Hall/Hotel Vin
f. Take the TEXRail from Grapevine Station to Fort Worth Central Station/Amtrak when ready

Another option:
Take TEXRail to FW Central Station, check bags at either the Hampton Inn or Hilton, take either (or both):
- (airconditioned) Blue Line bus (free) around downtown FW and explore
- (airconditioned) Orange Line bus (not free but maybe free if Tarrant County Transit/Trinity Metro is free this week) from Bay E to Stockyards and explore there
Return back to FW location where you've checked your bags, pay relevant tip and walk back to FW Central Station and take your Amtrak

Other options can involve going over to the FW Cultural District with multiple museums (recommend at least the Amon Carter), breweries/drinking establishments in and around downtown, go ice cream shop hopping, etc.

If AV geek, there's the FW Aviation Museum and/or Vintage Flying Museum up near Meacham Airport but those will likely involve Uber/Lyft.

There are a few large indoor malls around the area as well if that floats your boat.

David

Thanks for the tips! I will be traveling with a backpack only. I have been to Dallas and Fort Worth before, and have done some of those things, but they might be worth revisiting!