Chasing Whimsy in Texas

There's a particular kind of magic that takes hold when the bluebonnets fade and the Texas sun begins its slow, golden stretch toward summer. Call it restlessness, call it wanderlust, call it whatever suits your fancy, but we're calling it whimsy. And this season, we're chasing it across the Lone Star State, one delightfully unexpected corner at a time.

LAKEDAY WHIMSY
ROUNDUP

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There's a particular Texas truth that every native learns young: when the thermometer starts flirting with triple digits and the cicadas hit their summer pitch, the only reasonable response is to point yourself toward the nearest body of water and stay there until the sun gives up. Here, lake day a calling.

Pack the cooler. Cue the playlist. Here's where the whimsy lives when the water calls.

DUDE RANCH WHIMSY

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Whimsy doesn't always arrive dressed in pastels and ephemera. Sometimes it shows up in worn leather and woodsmoke, in the creak of a screen door.

WAXAHACHIE’S CREATIVE CURRENT

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Some towns have to work at charm. Waxahachie was simply born with it. CHECK OUT THE GUIDE »

EL PASO’S DESERT SECRETS

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Out where the Rio Grande bends and the Franklin Mountains rise against a sky so wide it feels almost theatrical, El Paso is creating something that cannot be duplicated. CHECK OUT THE GUIDE »

PEARLAND’S TRAIL OF WHIMSY

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Just south of Houston, Pearland has quietly become one of the most diverse and delightfully surprising small cities in Texas. CHECK OUT THE GUIDE »

WANDER WILD IN PLANO

Tucked just north of Dallas, Plano has quietly cultivated a personality all its own: one part pastoral charm, one part polished sophistication, and entirely worth a weekend of your attention. CHECK OUT THE GUIDE »

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RICHARDSON, A PASSPORT WORTH OF WONDER

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Richardson rewards the curious in the most worldly of ways, where a morning can begin with Arabic coffee and end with an English tea biscuit, with a pottery wheel and a vintage pinball machine somewhere in between. Pack light. Leave room for what you'll find. CHECK OUT THE GUIDE »