It’s the most wonderful time of the year!
Believe it or not, it’s already December. Between the holiday shopping, decorating, eating, and more eating, there awaits a splendid assortment of magical things to do in the city this holiday season. Read on to discover 40 magical things to do in Dallas this December!
1-2. Experience an Amazing Candlelight Concert
Spend your winter in Dallas magically at Fever Originals’ wildly popular Candlelight series in the form of intimate concerts lit by candlelight at breathtaking venues. Get your tickets now for the coming highlights in January:
4-5. Tantalize your Tastebuds at this Dining in the Dark Experience
Ever wondered what it is like to eat in the dark? Eminent psychologists have been advocating dining in the dark as the ultimate taste experience for many years. Studies show that 80 percent of people eat with their eyes; with that sense eliminated, the theory is that the other senses—namely taste and smell—take over to elevate your meal to a whole new level. After donning your blindfold in the darkened, candlelit room, you’ll soon realize that focusing on taste and smell alone can be a truly enlightening experience—provided you’re not afraid of the dark!
6. Immerse Yourself in this Blockbuster Van Gogh Exhibition
Have you ever dreamt of stepping into a painting? Take an awe-inspiring journey into the incomparable universe of Van Gogh, one of the greatest artistic geniuses of the 19th century. Explore his life, his work, and his secrets as never before through cutting-edge 360 degree digital projections, a one-of-a-kind VR experience, and a uniquely atmospheric light and sound show. This impactful experience has already thrilled visitors in Naples, Italy, Brussels, Belgium, and the UK. Become completely immersed in the works of art around you, and feel the shift in reality as you dive deep into the world created by Van Gogh’s brush strokes.
7. Get Your Tickets to this Mad Wonderland Gin & Tea Party
The Mad Hatter, Dormouse, and the March Hare are unleashing teatime mayhem with a brand new experience and taste of Wonderland in Dallas! This trip down the rabbit hole into an immersive wonderland has already won rave reviews for its previous tea parties in Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Miami and London. Your hosts for the evening, The Mad Hatter and his even madder guests, invite you to delight and bewitch the senses as you enjoy a colorful 90-minute cocktail menu. Three tantalizing cocktails await you, each carefully constructed from curious ingredients that’ll befuddle your taste buds. Don’t be late for this very important date, or it’ll be ‘off with your head’!
8. Experience The Sistine Chapel In Dallas
Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition showcases the awe and wonder of arguably one of mankind’s greatest artistic achievements, while allowing its visitors to experience this art from an up-close, life-size, and never-before-seen perspective. Tickets go on sale December 1!
9. Make It Snow at The Adolphus
Feeling a tinge of festive FOMO? Put it to bed at the new pop-up Xmas experience at the Adolphus Hotel, where the lights are twinkling, the fire is flickering, and the festivities are beaming with cheer.
10. Make Your Own Sushi
In this hands-on and interactive cooking class, you will be guided by a highly experienced Chef and learn how to make sushi rolls from scratch. You will cover the basics of cooking and preparing the perfect sushi rice, practice knife skills to prepare the ingredients and make special dipping sauce. And of course, the most fun part – laying the seaweed papers and all ingredients onto the bamboo mat and rolling! Once the rolls are cut and plated, you will enjoy them with the accompanying sauce.
11. Immerse Yourself in Everything Christmas
It looks like Dallas is on the Nice List this year, because Santa is lugging the entire North Pole down to the Gaylord Texas Resort & Convention Center this holiday season. Gaylord Texan’s 17,000-sq. ft. pop-up is now open as a never-before-seen mult-sensory walk-thru exhibit.
12. Treat Yourself to Wagyu and Whiskey
Good drinks, a fine Wagyu steak—all that’s missing is you! Prepare to expand your drink knowledge with other whiskey enthusiasts while getting a first-hand education in hot stone grilling as you learn the art of cooking your own Wagyu steak to your liking. No need to worry if the chef will cook it to perfection, because the chef is you! A variety of whiskeys will also be on hand for each individual to sample. But it’s not just about the whiskey, or the steak: this is an event will help you in making connections that will live beyond that last taste of fine food and drink.
12-13. Sashay Away to a Drag Show Extravaganza
Texas’ most entertaining and well-known drag show is seen on Saturday nights in downtown Fort Worth. Head on over to Red Goose Saloon and witness great costume, great music, and great performances coming together in one of the most highly-rated drag shows in the US. Join host Patrick Mikyles and unleash your inner diva at this extravaganza you just will not want to miss!
- You don’t want to miss out on one of the most FUN & DIVERSE Drag Brunches in the metroplex! There will be a very special performance by Pangina Heals from season 3 of Rupaul’s Drag Race along with other guests Rose Gold Blunt, Lana O’Hara and more! DJ Magic will also be there keeping the vibes going while you and your best gals tuck into a delicious brunch! Get your tickets today.
14. Throw a Rager on a Bicycle in Deep Ellum
Ever seen these rowdy party bikes rolling through your neighborhood? Here’s your opportunity to hop on. This party bike tour takes you through historic Deep Ellum while stopping at all the best bars! You’ll get exclusive drink specials at all the bars, as well as plenty of drinks on board this bar-on-wheels. The bike holds up to 15 people, with a minimum of six passengers required to book.
15-17. Sneak Into a Speakeasy
There’s something special about speakeasies. The secretive, vicarious forbidden feel of transporting back to the prohibition make imbibing cocktails all the more tantalizing.
- Hope you’ve been reading this quarantine, because you’re going to need your book smarts to get into the Rare Books Bar. In order to gain entry into this Frisco speakeasy, visitors must dial the librarian and ask for a classic piece of literature.
- The only sign post at this bar takes the form of two ambiguous As on a door in a crusty alleyway behind Henry’s Majestic. For those that can get past the initial sketch factor, however, a warm-lit cove of tantalizing libations await
18-19. Sweetin’ Up at Dallas’ Best Bakeries
Treating yourself in the pandemic has become something of a lifestyle rather than a once-in-a-blue-moon event. If you need a sweet pick-me-up, or want to share the love, these Dallas bakeries have got all the goods.
- Withdraw for the Sprinkles Cupcakes’ ATM – Sprinkles is a small-batch bakery that whips up everything from decadent cupcakes to delicious ice cream.
20. Enjoy a Drink on the Patio
Enjoy the cool, crisp temperatures while you can, Dallas. Get out and about this fall at the city’s many great patios! Be it a sprawling, boot-stomping backyard or a rooftop vista with a view, there is a swell of wonderful outdoor venues to savor the season.
21. Make Merry at These Yuletide Pop-Ups
Festive harborers of all things cheerful, Miracle and Sippin’ Santa pop-ups, are coming back to Dallas to usher in the most wonderful time of the year.
22. Get Your Tickets To The Wine Train
We’re just over halfway through November yet the holidays are going full steam ahead. Soon, the City of Dallas will be filled with lighting spectacles, seasonal pop-ups, and immersive festivities for everyone. For a truly unique Christmastime experience, hop aboard the adults-only Christmas Wine Train in Grapevine, the Christmas capitol of Texas.
23. Enliven The Ultimate FRIENDS Experience
This new immersive experience brings the FRIENDS™ set to life with two floors of interactive activities, irresistible merch, original props, and nostalgia-packed rooms recreated from the hit ‘90s series. The exhibit features over 10 rooms with a series of set-pieces so you and your friends can recreate the show’s funniest sketches in its most iconic sets, including Joey and Chandler’s apartment, Monica and Rachel’s kitchen, Central Perk, and the famous fountain and couch as seen in the series’ intro.
24-25. Sing (and Drink) From the Rooftops
Nothing quite says “living the highlife” like clinking glasses on a city rooftop. Touch the sky this season with a brunch, evening, or nightcap on the most jaw-dropping rooftops in Dallas.
- New York-based RH, formerly known as Restoration Hardware, has opened its first Texas outpost with a luxurious three-story establishment complete with a glass-encased rooftop restaurant.
26. Experience Wonderful Christmastime at The Arboretum
Do you feel like the past two years owe you a little more cheer before the end of the year? Come and collect your merriment at the Dallas Arboretum starting this week, where the arboretum is lighting up their garden and gazebos with dazzling displays of Christmas lights.
27. Satisfy Your Sugar Cravings At This Sweet Cocktail Bar
If you like your drinks as cute and sweet as you are, the Sweet Tooth Hotel is your boozy new sanctuary. Yesterday, the offbeat art venue and bar launched their new Stay Sweet Candy Bar, with a cocktail program influenced by the likes of Starburst, gummy bears, and all your favorite candies.
28-29. Take Your Sweetheart To The Most Romantic Restaurants In Town
If you’re looking for somewhere sultry to dine out or have a drink this season, these local establishments will set the mood.
- The hidden speakeasy behind a dumpster – much less sketch than you think.
- A darkly romantic Tulum-inspired coctelería – Deep Ellum oasis with mezcal-mixed libations and serious mood.
30. Visit Llama Castle
Tucked in the North Texas countryside is the charming town of Royse City. There dwells a castle. It is no ordinary castle, mind you. In this Irish replica castle abides a fellowship of frolicking llamas, who await travelers and enthusiasts alike, to take them on hikes and learn of their llama ways.
31. Beat The High Score At This Retro Arcade
We weren’t around in the 80s, but that doesn’t stop us from being nostalgic for new wave-style synth pop, campy horror movies, fluorescent jackets, and an underground bustling arcade culture. If you want to wreck it like Ralph, grab your Walkman and head down to the National Video Game Museum in Frisco, home to their “Pixel Dreams” retro arcade.
32. Enter a Xmas Explosion at This Tex-Mex Restaurant
There’s no such thing as having too many holiday lights. Neither is there such a thing as having too many fajitas. Do Christmas, but make it Tex-Mex at Campo Verde in Arlington for the most festive fajita experience you’ll have all year.
33. Glamp In The Stars
New resident Texan, Elon Musk, promises that humans will land on Mars by 2026. If you can’t wait that long, you can spend a few nights at Basecamp Terlingua, an other-worldly glamping experience that integrates the future with the past, giving its visitors the impression of luxury camping in the cosmos.
34. Eat The Best Tacos In Town
35. Visit the Spa Castle
Spa Castle in Carrollton is like the amusement park version of a spa, only instead of rides they have Himalayan salt rooms and hydrotherapy pools. The innovative spa blends together traditional Asian and European styles to create a fun and luxury experience all on its own.
36. Do Yoga with Adorable Baby Goats
Like meditation, yoga is a practice of centeredness and concentration. It’s a discipline of balance in the face of stress and adversity — that which may be difficult to do when resisting the urge to snuggle one of the herd of baby goats bouncing around.
37. Smash the Champagne Button and Ferris Wheel Cupcakes
Stylish, glitzy, and vividly pink, the XOXO Dining Room in Dallas offers one of the most dazzling and photo-ready dining experiences in town. Whether its the cupcakes served in Ferris Wheels, striking pop-art, twinkling chandeliers, or bright XOXO wall, the dining room and lounge is Dallas’s go-to place to smash that champagne button – seriously, XOXO has champagne buttons.
38. Dine Royally
Savor the high life this fall at Monarch Restaurant. Perched on the 49th floor of The National, Monarch is designed with floor-to-ceiling windows, giving restaurant-goers the chance to dine on their wood-fired Italian dishes with an epic view of the city.
39. Stroll Through Graffiti Alley
When strolling through Cowtown, if you’re going to make any detours, be sure to wander into its beautiful, larger-than-life Inspiration Alley – a gallery painted with wall-size murals that will make your jaw drop and eyes pop!
40. Play Your Tarot Cards Right
What does your future hold? Jacob Mayfield has created an experience that is both approachable and mystical. Using Skype, you can schedule an individualized reading that is not only entertaining and insightful, but is shockingly accurate!