Make summer in Dallas last by taking part in all the wonderful things to do around the city.
From beachside pop-ups to rockin’ bars, and psychedelic experiences, Dallas is truly popping off this July. Read on to discover 50 splendid things to do this month in the Big D.
1. Head to Dallas Zoo for $1 this month
Dallas Zoo, the oldest and largest zoo in Texas, has announced the return of its annual Dollar Days ticket specials.
Tickets are already being snapped up for the incredibly popular discounted days which will take place on Thursday, July 13, and Tuesday, August 8 so grab them while they last!
More information can be found here.
2. Check out Grand Prairie’s new 60ft water & light show
Having recently opened the new 66,000-square-foot Bolder Adventure Park, Grand Prairie’s EpicCentral has this month added another monumental attraction.
Following in the footsteps of Klyde Warren Park which late last year unveiled its majestic new Nancy Best Fountain and an exhilarating light and water show, 172-acre park in Grand Prairie has opened its own spectacular new water and light show named “Lluvia”.
With up to 60-foot water sprays combined with colorful lights, an exciting soundtrack, and state-of-the-art video projection, the “Vegas-style” water, and light show is reportedly the first-of-its-kind installation in North America.
Shows will take place 7 times a day with daytime water shows running between 11:30 am and 1:30 pm before returning at 5 pm through to when more extravagant spectacles begin as the night nears.
More information can be found here.3. Hit up a Village pool party
Non-residents can now enjoy the stunning pools and gorgeous cabanas at The Village Dallas on weekends all through July and August.
Home to a range of luxurious resort-style pools, as well as a sand beach entrance and a swim-up bar, guests can savor a chef-crafted food menu and specialty cocktails while kicking back in the Texas sun beside the pool or in their own luxury cabana.
More information can be found here.
4. Check out the Edgar Allen Poe speakeasy
Step back in time and immerse yourself in the dark and mysterious world of Edgar Allan Poe. This exclusive speakeasy will transport you to a bygone era as you sip on expertly crafted cocktails inspired by four of Poe’s most beloved stories.
Led by the speakeasy’s lead mixologist and Poe historians, this immersive evening promises to be a chillingly unforgettable experience.
Don’t miss your chance to bring Poe’s tales to life, one sip at a time, and get your tickets for Edgar Allan Poe Speakeasy in Fort Worth!5. Visit the Rainbow Vomit Art Exhibition
Dive into a colorful, immersive art experience at one of Dallas’s top-rated museums! Built by over 15 artists, Rainbow Vomit is an interactive photography exhibit that will transport you to an incredible world of art, light, and sound.
From becoming the hero of your own comic to riding a hot air balloon, the possibilities are endless at this amazing gallery. So call your friends and get ready to add some rainbow to your Instagram feed.
Grab tickets to the Rainbow Vomit Art Exhibition here.
6. Send your senses soaring with a Dining in the Dark experience
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!
Take your date night to the next level or enjoy a surreal experience with friends, tempting your senses with dark surroundings to focus on more important things like exquisite food and wine pairings.
Diners can choose vegan, seafood, or red meat options, enjoying a starter, main entree, and dessert.
Tickets and more information can be found here.
7. Head down to last year’s top-grossing restaurant
Talking of top-tier dining experiences, last year’s top-grossing restaurant in the United States, Komodo, has branched out to Dallas offering a lavish new dining experience in Deep Ellum.
The new restaurant from Groot Hospitality is 5,500 square feet bigger than the original Miami location measuring a whopping 22,500-square-foot.
Situated in the Epic Development, the two-story Southeast Asian-inspired restaurant offers a surefire unforgettable dining experience this July.
8. Enter a 2D cartoon-like world at Dallas’ newest Japanese restaurant
Another place you’ll find a dining experience that you won’t forget anytime soon is at the newly-opened Temakaria in Trinity Groves.
Having opened its doors in mid-May, Temakeria is now welcoming guests to a 2D-themed cafe that has been decorated with monochromatic comic book art creating a cartoon-like setting straight out of an artist’s sketch pad.
9. Dine with divas at Hamburger Mary’s
Another unique restaurant is about to open in the Dallas Fort Worth area that some may have seen in other parts of the country.
Described as “an open-air bar and grille for open-minded people” Hamburger Mary’s is known for its flamboyant dining experience and range of tasty food.
Founded over 50 years ago in San Francisco in 1972, the vibrant bar and grille has built a reputation for its frequent events and entertainment such as “Dining with the Divas” drag shows and charity “HamBingo Mary’s” as well as karaoke, trivia nights, and more.
Now all of that can be enjoyed in Dallas’s Oak Lawn neighborhood when it opens at the start of July.
10. Board the largest party barge in Texas
One of the best ways of enjoying the warming weather is, of course, by spending as long as you can on or next to any lake you can find.
Luckily down at Lynn Creek Marina there is one lake plan that will surely stir up excitement in any Dallasites down for an adventurous day on the water.
Enjoy the ultimate lake day on the largest party barge in the state complete with slides, lounge chairs, giant coolers, and a BBQ just 30 minutes south of Dallas
11. Enjoy a sunset paddle experience
If you’re looking for an aquatic activity that is a bit more tame and suited to couples and quieter occasions then a sunset paddle might just be for you.
You and your loved one can glide across the tranquil waters of Lake Lewisville, basking in the beauty of the lake while drinking in the romantic glow of the sunset.
With the choice of paddleboards, kayaks, or canoes and top-quality equipment you’ll be fully prepared as you head out on the water.
To add a touch of culinary delight, savor a delicious charcuterie board when you’re back on shore.
Get your tickets for Couples Date Night – Paddle Experience at Lake Lewisville here!
12-16. Marvel at the magic of a Candlelight Concert
With better weather comes new events and experiences that we’ve not been able to enjoy for several months. One of these is open-air concerts which offer an enchanting combination of flickering candles and melodic sounds.
Fever Originals’ wildly popular Candlelight series concerts are taking place in extraordinary indoor and outdoor venues all over the city this July so rain or shine there is always an option whatever the weather.
Here are some of our favorite Candlelight concerts taking place this month:
- Candlelight: A Tribute to Radiohead at Frontiers of Flight Museum on July 5
- Candlelight: The Best of Hans Zimmer at Frontiers of Flight Museum on July 6
- Candlelight: The Best of Metallica and Schubert at Frontiers of Flight Museum on July 19
- Candlelight: The Best of Joe Hisaishi at Venue Forty50 on July 21
- Candlelight: A Tribute to ABBAat Edison’s on July 28
Can’t decide? Gift a loved one a Candlelight Concert with a Candlelight gift car.
Choose from concerts featuring jazz, rock, pop, classical music, and even movie soundtracks in spectacular venues around Dallas or any other city in the U.S. throughout the year.
See the full list of candlelight concerts taking place in Dallas here.
17-18. Attend a concert beneath the stars
Concerts Under the Stars is another terrific outdoor musical experience taking place on Wednesdays this month.
Both Amy Winehouse Under The Stars at Sky Blu Rooftop Bar on July 12 and 90’s Mixtape: Date Night Nostalgia Under The Stars at Sky Blu Rooftop Bar on July 26 provide two enchanting events this month.
19. Relax with yoga, namast’ay for the goats
With the weather heating up there are plenty of things happening in Dallas’ wonderful outdoor spaces. Another outdoor experience worth doing is this cuddly iteration of yoga.
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 baby goats bouncing around.
20. Cuddle up at East Dallas’ new cat café
If you like kicking back with some four-legged friends, you’ll be happy to hear that East Dallas now has an adorable new cat café.
As both a casual café and a place for potential parents looking to adopt, Whiskers and Soda is the perfect place for any feline fanatics wanting to kick back with a cup of coffee and mingle with some furry friends.
Operating in partnership with animal rescue and adoption agency A Voice for All Paws (AVAP), where Caroline is president, Whiskers and Soda ensures the cats are fully vetted and in the most relaxed environment to hang out with humans.
Read more about Whiskers and Soda here.
21. Enjoy paella & wine on an outdoor patio
Enjoy a glass of Sugar Ridge Wine while enjoying paella without leaving Dallas. Observe how Ryan Fussell Chef-Owner, Gnocchi Dokie prepares this delicious Spanish specialty dish while sipping on a glass of wine produced on the Dallas property.
Get your tickets now to Paella & Wine on the Patio at Sugar Ridge Winery in Dallas!22. Taste premium whiskeys learn to make the perfect jarcuterie
Learn more about the tricks of the trade in the world of whiskey with a talk-through with experts this month. Taste an array of whiskeys, including premium whiskeys from around the world to limited edition craft whiskeys that you can’t find at your local liquor store.
During the tasting, indulge in making a jarcuterie (charcuterie but in a jar) with premium meats, cheeses, and vegetables. The best will be in with the chance of winning a prize!
Read more about it here.23. Let loose at Bolder Adventure Park
Time to come back to the real world, and wake that body up with a real taste of the action at the new Bolder Adventure Park.
A short drive down to Grand Prairie, thrill-seekers of all kinds can find an array of activities across a 66,000-square-foot air-supported dome.
Rain or shine, two via ferrata courses, rock climbing, zip lines, tubing slides, synthetic ice skating, bumper cars, paintballing, a six-story free fall experience, and much more promise an exhilarating day out for friends or family with different levels of adventure for all.
More information can be found here.
24. Check out the new Activate Games experience in Plano
If physical challenges float your boat you might also be interested in Activate Games. The indoor, interactive gaming experience, has just opened a new location in the Dallas-Fort Worth area offering an exciting new futuristic form of entertainment and competition.
Fusing technology and physical activity, the Winnipeg-based company has a wide range of high-tech, real-life games. Hundreds of combinations of live-action challenges have been designed to test physical and mental agility pitting teams against each other in one to three-minute face-offs.
Those interested in a casual night out or a fierce competition against friends can now head down to Plano for a live-action gaming experience like no other.
25. Check out the world’s biggest esports arena
Swap that blindfold for a VR set and reignite your reactions with a trip down to the biggest virtual reality esports arena on the planet.
Located 30 minutes north of Dallas, the new Esports Virtual Arenas (EVA) outpost in Flower Mound is their first in the United States and offers a groundbreaking new form of esports that transports gamers into massive arenas to face off against other players in epic battles.
More information can be found here.
26. Kick back in an AMC movie theatre
All those running through flowers might make you just want to kick back for a couple of hours and why not do that in a state-of-the-art AMC movie theatre?
With awards season having just highlighted so many fantastic movies of all kinds from all around the world, picking something to see shouldn’t be a hard task.
Whether it’s a rainy afternoon or a special date night, all the best critically-acclaimed creations, comedies, action flicks, and everything in between can be enjoyed at a discount in Dallas, and nationally, with an AMC black ticket.
Grab discounted tickets to a movie showing here.
27. Head out to Frisco to one of the biggest libraries in the state
An enormous new state-of-the-art library has just opened in Frisco after two years of construction. Located inside a warehouse built in 1998 for rocket construction, the $62 million project offers a 157,000 square feet space that is now one of the biggest in the state.
With 40-foot floor-to-ceiling glass windows, the new library is swamped with natural light and boasts a terrace, a second-floor mezzanine, a community event room, quiet reading rooms, and plenty of other gathering spaces for different ages and purposes.
One of the library’s most exciting new features is its striking centerpiece “Rexy”, a full-size model of a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton that greets kids in the children’s area.
28. Cozy up in the nooks of this bookish coffee shop
For all the people out there who have ever been shushed at a library – this place is for you. At the Funny Library Coffee Shop, guests are encouraged to crack up as much as they are to crack open one of its many books.
For all the people out there who have ever been shushed at a library – this place is for you. At the Funny Library Coffee Shop, guests are encouraged to crack up as much as they are to crack open one of its many books.
Shelved inside the ground floor at the Virgin Hotels Dallas lies the Funny Library. Part coffee shop, part library, part Kubrick set a la A Clockwork Orange, Funny Library offers Dallasites a hyper-stylized escape from the hustle and bustle.
29. Put your problem-solving skills to the test with an escape game
Located in Grapevine Mills Mall, The Escape Room Dallas offers a one-of-a-kind, premium adventure experience. Once you arrive, a dedicated game guide will take you on your adventure and help you as needed.
You will have exactly 60 minutes to escape. Follow the clues and solve puzzles with your team to complete your mission together. Choose to play one of four uniquely immersive games such as Gold Rush, Prison Break, The Heist, or Playground. You may or may not escape… but you’ll definitely have fun!
Get tickets to The Escape Game Dallas: Epic 60-Minute Adventures here!
30. Try an indoor skydiving experience
With a new season comes new dreams, new objectives, and things to tick off our bucket lists. One thing that always finds itself on bucket lists worldwide is skydiving. Now, we’re not saying jump out of a plane in the winter skies above Dallas, but we are saying give it a go in a state-of-the-art indoor skydiving center to get a taste of what it is like and why it is such a popular ‘do before you die’ activity.
At iFLY Dallas, a premier indoor skydiving facility powered by a state-of-the-art vertical wind tunnel, you can experience free-fall conditions, feeling the adrenaline rush as you float at wind speeds reaching 130 to 175 mph (209 to 282 kph).
The stable wall-to-wall airflow keeps you from falling off the column of air, and your instructor will be on hand at all times to guide you. No experience is necessary, and afterward, you can take home a personalized flight certificate!
Grab tickets to an indoor skydiving experience here.
31. Check out the new Portillo’s
It’s very unlikely you’ve not heard of Chicago’s famed fast-casual restaurant Portillo’s. After opening in 1963 as a small hot dog stand, Portillo’s has since flourished into a Midwestern treasure of national recognition.
Locals and tourists alike now flock to locations around the Windy City to taste the all-beef Vienna hot dogs that have helped shoot the Chicago-style hot dog to fame.
If you’re a fan, or you’re eager to see what all the fuss is about, you’re in luck as Portillo’s has just opened its first Texas location.
Located in The Colony, the iconic Italian beef sandwiches and hot dogs are now obtainable just 30 minutes north of Dallas!
32. Travel back to the ’80s at FlashBack RetroPub
Some of us weren’t around in the ’80s, but that doesn’t stop us from the feeling of vivid nostalgia we have for new wave hits, technicolored-patterned jumpers, and all the zaniness the decade had to offer.
For those who were around in those simpler times, games that are today seen as extraordinarily plain and primitive compared to today’s digital depth were portals to unchartered territory.
Hours and hours were spent contesting those most competitive cutting-edge classics that were so beautifully basic.
In Dallas’ Bishops Arts District old gamers can take a trip down memory lane, or simply a journey back in time at Flash Back Retro Pub in Oak Cliff.
More information can be found here.
33. Sneak into a stylish speakeasy
There’s something special about speakeasies. The secretive, vicarious forbidden feel of transporting back to the prohibition or entering an establishment only known to the few in-the-know fellow attendees makes imbibing cocktails all the more tantalizing.
Here are a few of our favorite speakeasies in and around Dallas:
- Rare Books Bar is a bookish speakeasy that requires a password via phone booth to enter. Read more about it here.
- Atwater Alley is a dimly lit and old timely yet enchanting den hidden near some dumpsters behind Henry’s Majestic. Read more about it here.
- Room 520 at the SOVA Hotel is an intimate speakeasy adorned with Japanese-inspired decor selling six unique Kyoto-styled cocktails from the confounds of one secretive hotel room. Read more about it here.
34. Sink your teeth into the best cuts of meat in the city
Dallas is well-known for its unbeatable selection of steakhouses. Whether you’re in the mood for a succulent melt-in-your-mouth filet or a juicy ribeye, the city’s iconic steakhouses won’t disappoint.
From classic ambiance to modern interiors, each steak restaurant brings its own unique flavor to the table. Expect high-quality cuts of meat served up with signature sides, and perfectly paired fine wine to create an unforgettable culinary experience.
We’ve rounded up our best steakhouses in Dallas which you can find here.
35. Dine royally up in the clouds
Savor the high life this winter by escaping the city streets to the Monarch Restaurant high in the sky. 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.
[Featured image from Shutterstock]