Landing at Waco Regional Airport in Waco puts you right in the middle of things, with places like Dallas, Austin, and Temple all close by. Waco sits on the Brazos River midway between Dallas and Austin, a college town with a cowboy past and a renovated downtown that draws crowds to its silos and food trucks. The feel is friendly and Texan, with cliffs and trails along the river, Baylor green and gold everywhere, and a sense that the city is enjoying its second act.

Standout experiences around Waco: - Shop and snack at Magnolia Market at the Silos, the hub of downtown's revival - Taste the original soda at the Dr Pepper Museum, where the drink was invented in 1885 - See Columbian mammoth fossils in place at Waco Mammoth National Monument - Hike or bike the trails and limestone cliffs of Cameron Park - Walk the 1870 Waco Suspension Bridge across the Brazos - Learn frontier law at the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum - Catch a Baylor game or tour the campus and its bear habitat - Tour Balcones Distilling, maker of Texas single malt whisky

Waco is an easy stop between the big cities. Temple and Belton Lake are about a half hour south, Austin is roughly an hour and a half southwest, and Dallas and Fort Worth are about the same distance north. Order a Health Camp burger and shake near the Circle, or find a kolache at a Czech bakery in West, just up the highway. Spring brings wildflowers along the Brazos and fall brings football weekends downtown.