where to travel right now

Book a Taylor Swift tea + 10 more Texas travel ideas for November

The festive fall season has arrived, and with it brings early holiday happenings including makers' markets, light shows, and more. From a bubbly sparkling wine tour in Fredericksburg to a Taylor Swift-inspired afternoon tea in Dallas, there is a slew of fun events to check out in November.

Houston travelers can visit Willie Nelson's Luck Ranch in Spicewood for an art exhibition, wander through a The Nightmare Before Christmas-themed light trail in Austin, or stay local by booking a spa day at a downtown Houston hotel.

Here are our top 11 picks for autumn Texas travel events, hotel news, and more in November.

Throughout Texas

Hiatus Day Spa – with locations in Dallas, Frisco, Plano, Fort Worth, Austin, Houston, and San Antonio – has a new "Get Holiday Ready Package" offering guests a guided experience with discounted services. Guests who book $350 minimum in day spa or med spa services between now and December 31 can receive 15 percent off their first visit, 20 percent off their second, and 25 percent off their third visit.

The Hill Country

Nonprofit trade association Texas Hill Country Wineries (THCW) just debuted its Christmas Wine Affair Passport 2025, which offers individuals or couples complimentary wine tastings and a 15 percent discount on 3-plus bottle purchases at more than 50 participating Hill Country wineries. The passport will be valid from November 24 through December 19, 2025. Passes ($65 for individuals and $100 for couples) and a list of participating wineries can be found on THCW's website.

Luck Ranch, Willie Nelson's 500-acre private residence and event venue in Spicewood, will host Austin-based neon studio Ion Art for seven days of art installations, music, and food. The exhibition, called Surreal Luck, will take place from November 7-9 and 13-16. According to a release, Surreal Luck will be a "dimension-bending neon art experience" that will "reimagine" Nelson's Western-themed Red Headed Stranger movie set. Tickets (starting at $49.50 for single-day GA) can be purchased via Etix.

Neon sculptures by Ion Art Surreal Luck will take place November 7-9 and 13-16. Ion Art/Facebook

A new type of wine experience is bubbling up in Fredericksburg: Invention Vineyards is now hosting sparkling wine tours in a new dedicated production facility. The tours will show off the production space and then guide guests through a progressive tasting, meaning one that takes place at different locations. The sampling will cover two sparkling ones and then a personalized tasting drawing from Invention Vineyards' wines. The one-hour tours are offered daily starting at 11 am, and tickets ($45 per person) can be purchased via heathfamilybrands.com.

Austin

A spooky light trail inspired by Tim Burton's stop-motion film The Nightmare Before Christmas is lighting up Austin's Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center until November 30. The trail depicts the film's iconic Halloween Town and Christmas Town, complete with 3D-printed statues of characters including Jack Skellington, Zero, Sally, and more. The light trail is open Wednesdays through Sundays from "dusk" to 10:15 pm. Tickets (timed entry is $31 for children and $41 for adults, or flexible entry is $51) are available at texasperformingarts.org.

Speaking of light shows: The University of Texas at Austin's 2025 Longhorn Lights show will officially kick off on November 18. The annual tradition transforms the South Mall into a twinkly display of orange and white light stretching through nine miles of campus. The spectacle is free and open to the public, and can be enjoyed from 5-10 pm daily through January 1, 2026.

Oh What Fun!, a new holiday makers' market, is coming to downtown Austin at Republic Square Park starting on November 20 and running Thursday through Sunday until December 24. Local artisans will sell gifts for the holiday season, such as handmade jewelry, ceramics, apparel, candles, and more. The market will also have various food trucks and a holiday-themed bar and lounge. Oh What Fun! will be open from 11 am to 9 pm, and the "What a Wonderful Lounge" will be open until 10 pm.

San Antonio

The Briscoe Western Art Museum is celebrating San Antonio's Native American history and community on Saturday, November 8 for the annual Yanaguana Indian Arts Festival. The event will feature a drum circle, all day crafts, artist demonstrations, live performances, and much more. The festival and admission to the Briscoe Museum will be free and open to the public, and festival hours will run from 10 am to 4 pm.

Yanaguana Indian Arts Festival at the Briscoe Western Art Museum in San Antonio The festival celebrates San Antonio's local Native American community.Briscoe Western Art Museum/Facebook

The Westin Riverwalk San Antonio hotel is offering travelers an early peek at its holiday festivities with its new "Deck the Halls" package. Guests who use promo code "ZJ1" can book their rooms on an entirely Christmas-themed floor with festive Christmas trees in every room, and receive a holiday welcome amenity upon check-in. Interested guests can book between now and January 2, 2026 for stays beginning from November 14 through January 5, 2026.

Houston

The JW Marriott Houston Downtown hotel has added four new rejuvenating treatments to its seasonal spa menu running through the end of 2025. The packages include: The "Holiday Relief Package" ($99 for 45 minutes), a jetted thermal soak and a neck, back, and shoulder massage; the "Warm & Cozy Massage + Foot Treatment ($175 for 70 minutes), a Swedish massage paired with a guest's choice between a foot treatment or a mini facial upgrade; the "Merry & Bright HydraFacial Package" ($185 for 50 minutes) which includes a HydraFacial and HydroJelly mask; and a "Comfort & Joy Body Treatment" ($209 for 80 minutes) which includes a full-body exfoliation and Texas winery grape-infused wrap. Spa services can be booked online.

Dallas-Fort Worth

Every Saturday and Sunday in November, Dallas' esteemed Hotel Crescent Court will host a Taylor Swift-inspired afternoon tea featuring a multi-course menu of savory bites, sweet treats, a curated selection of teas, and optional champagne or mocktail pairings. Live music will set the tone for a whimsical experience in the hotel's Beau Nash cocktail bar. "The Life of a Showgirl SwifTEA" can be booked at 11 am, 12 pm, or 1 pm, and tickets ($53.98 for children and $117.51 for adults) can be purchased via Eventbrite.

Courtesy photo

Swiftees won't want to miss the Taylor Swift Tea at Dallas' Hotel Crescent Court.

holidays dallas travel fort worth austin hill country san antonio houston vacation hotels spas

Now hear this

New Texas museum shines spotlight on Tejano music history

Totally Tejano Hall of Fame and Museum, San Antonio, tejano music

Photo by Edmond Ortiz

Roger Hernandez serves as board president of the Totally Tejano Hall of Fame and Museum.

For a city that proudly calls itself the capital of Tejano music, San Antonio has long been missing a permanent place to honor the genre’s pioneers and preserve its history. That gap officially closed In December with the opening of the Totally Tejano Hall of Fame and Museum at 1414 Fredericksburg Rd.

The music couldn’t have found a better steward than its founder and board president. Roger Hernandez has had his finger on the pulse of Tejano music for decades. His company, En Caliente Productions, has provided a platform for countless performing artists and songwriters in Tejano, conjunto, and regional Mexican music since 1982.

Hernandez says his wife, who ran a shop at Market Square years ago, would often get questions from visitors about the location of a physical Tejano music museum, a thing that simply did not exist. In 2022, he banded together with friends, family, and other local Tejano music supporters to make the nonprofit Hall of Fame a reality.

“I decided I've been in the music scene for over 40 years, it's time to do a museum,” Hernandez recalls.

Hernandez says a brick-and-mortar Tejano music museum has long been needed to remember musical acts and other individuals who grew the genre across Texas and northern Mexico, especially those who are aging. Recently, the community lost famed Tejano music producer Manny Guerra and Abraham Quintanilla, the renowned Tejano singer/songwriter and father of the late superstar Selena Quintanilla-Perez. Both deaths occurred roughly one week after the Totally Tejano museum opened to the public.

“They're all dying. They're all getting older, and we need to acknowledge all these people,” Hernandez says.

The Totally Tejano Museum — named after Hernandez’s Totally Tejano Television Roku streaming — has 5,000 square feet of space packed with plaques, photos, promotional posters, musical instruments, and other memorabilia honoring the pioneers and stars of the beloved genre. Mannequins wear stage outfits from icons like Laura Canales and Flaco Jimenez, and a wall of photos remembers late greats. Totally Tejano Television plays legendary performances on a loop, bringing the exhibits to life.

The newly opened Totally Tejano Hall of Fame and Museum includes a growing collection of memorabilia. Photo by Edmond Ortiz

Hernandez says the museum will soon welcome permanent and rotating exhibits, including traveling shows, a Hall of Fame section, and an area paying homage to Chicano music crossovers, such as the late Johnny Rodriguez, the South Texas singer-songwriter who blended country with Tex-Mex music. Plans call for the organization to hold its inaugural Hall of Fame induction in February 2026.

Eventually, a 2,000 square feet back room will be converted into additional display space and host industry gatherings, community symposiums, and record and video release parties. The museum also plans to add a gift and record shop and a music learning room where visitors can listen to early Tejano music and browse archival photos. Hernandez is already talking with local school districts about educational field trips.

Much like Tejano itself, the museum is a grassroots production. Hernandez and fellow board members have used their own money to rent, renovate, develop, and maintain the museum space. The board also leads the selection of the Hall of Fame honorees and curates the exhibits.

Hernandez has been heartened by the museum’s reception, both from media outlets and music fans around Texas and beyond.

“We had a radio station come in this morning from Houston to interview us,” he says. “People have come in from Lubbock, Texas. We have had people from Midland, Texas. We have another person who emailed us who’s coming in from New York. People are learning all about us.”

That includes many of the musicians who helped shape the genre. Johnny Hernandez, Sunny Ozuna, Elida Reyna, and Danny Martinez from Danny and The Tejanos are among the luminaries who have already graced the halls.

The Totally Tejano Hall of Fame and Museum is now open 10 am-6 pm, Tuesday-Sunday, and closed Monday. Admission is free, but donations are encouraged. Fans can call 210-314-1310 for more information.

san antonio tejano music museums hall of fame music openings