2026 Waco Travel Guide: must-see attractions, popular food, hotels, transport & travel experiences (updated in March)

#hellochristmas Chip and Joanna Gaines have done it again by transforming the Magnolia Market for the holidays in their fixer upper style. On certain Saturdays they even have a historic Santa Clause you can take pictures with. After stop by Magnolia Press for holiday drinks and hot cocoa. Tip: Don’t forget that magnolia market is closed on Sundays. Magnolia Market is free to visit but you usually will have to pay for parking.

#hellochristmas Fun things to do in Waco for the holidays, all in one easy list you can actually plan around. 1. Magnolia Waco Magnolia Market at the Silos is fully decorated for Christmas with a massive lit tree in the yard, wreaths and garlands throughout the shopping buildings, and seasonal photo spots around the property. The Silos Bakery rotates in holiday themed treats during December, and food trucks stay open in the yard so you can make a full stop out of it. Entry to the grounds is free. Parking is available in Magnolia owned lots and nearby paid lots. It is fully outdoors so plan for weather and walking. 2. Hotel 1928 The library inside Hotel 1928 is dressed for the season with Christmas trees set up throughout the space alongside the floor to ceiling bookshelves. You can grab a cup of coffee from the hotel café and bring it into the library while you relax if staying at the hotel.. 3. Oak & Ivy Holiday Cocktails Oak & Ivy switches over to a holiday cocktail menu for the season alongside their regular lineup. 4. Milk Bottle Cookies Holiday Flavors Milk Bottle Cookies rotates in seasonal cookie flavors during the holidays along with their standard menu. This is a walk up cookie shop with limited indoor seating, so most people grab cookies to go. It is a good stop between Magnolia and downtown or as a dessert run after dinner. Parking is street parking nearby. 5. Sloane’s Holiday Drinks Sloane’s decorates their cocktail bar for the holidays and offers seasonal drink specials alongside their regular menu. They serve both cocktails and mocktails, making it a good group stop. It is an indoor bar with table seating and bar seating and works well as a night cap after dinner downtown. No tickets required and drinks are ordered at the bar.

#hellochristmas The library at Hotel 1928 in Waco has officially gone into holiday mode, and it is one of the coziest spots to slow down this season. The space is lined with floor to ceiling bookshelves. For Christmas, multiple decorated trees have been set up throughout the library, adding warm lights and seasonal touches to the already intimate reading room vibe. You can grab a cup of coffee from the café and view from above. Tip: While technically going downstairs to the library is only for guests staying at the hotel, if you go on a weekday when it’s empty they usually don’t mind.

#hellochristmas Holiday season at Sloane’s in Waco means their limited seasonal cocktail menu is back, featuring a rotating lineup of festive specialty drinks alongside their full regular cocktail list and a dedicated selection of mocktails for anyone skipping alcohol. The decor goes big with Christmas movie posters everywhere and tons of Christmas lights. Some drinks to try include their Peppermint Pup with 20% of proceeds going to the Waco Animal Birth Control Clinic and their Sloane’s eggnog. 📍Location: Sloane’s Waco, 110 N 25th Street, Waco, Texas 76710

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#summervacay I didn’t expect to find mammoths in Texas, but Waco delivered big time. This national monument houses real Ice Age fossils—massive mammoth bones still in the ground, preserved where they were found. The guided tour through the dig shelter was fascinating and air-conditioned, perfect for a summer afternoon. The site is peaceful, surrounded by trees and trails. It’s not just a museum—it’s a living piece of Earth’s ancient past. Great for kids and science lovers. #summervacay

#summervacay This hidden gem was both surprising and fascinating. Waco Mammoth National Monument showcases a real fossil bed of prehistoric mammoths—and it’s covered, shaded, and ideal for a summer learning adventure. A ranger walked us through the site, explaining how these creatures were discovered. I saw full skeletons still embedded in the earth. The museum area was small but informative, and the trails around it were peaceful. Great for curious kids, families, or just escaping the ordinary. #summervacay

#summervacay The Dr Pepper Museum is a quirky, fizzy gem—especially refreshing during summer. As soon as I stepped inside, I was hit with sweet nostalgia and cool A/C. The vintage bottles, ads, and bottling equipment took me back decades. I even made my own soda and watched a live demo. Best part? Getting an ice-cold Dr Pepper float in the old-school soda fountain café. It’s light-hearted, unique, and a perfect stop on a summer road trip. #summervacay

King Noodle Chinese Restaurant 🍚🥢, the interior decoration of the restaurant is clean and novel, the dining space looks very large, we took out shrimp and shredded pork fried rice and fried buns. The fried rice here can be ordered in pairs or triples, and the price is not expensive. You can choose the ingredients according to your own preferences, which I think is great. The fried buns are also delicious. The skin is thicker, unlike Shanghai fried buns which have thinner skin. The bottom is fried crispy and there is delicious gravy when you bite it. It is very satisfying. Name: King Noodle Address: 1230 N Valley Mills Dr Suite #700, Waco, TX 76710 Time: Monday to Thursday 11:00-21:30 (closed on Tuesday); Friday to Saturday 11:00-22:00 Price: US$10-/0 #waco #texas #JanuaryGoodPlaces2025

The Mammoth Park in Waco is currently being excavated, with students funded by Berry University assisting in the excavation. Buying the entrance ticket will include a 30-minute tour. The explanations given by the tour guide are lively, interesting and informative. For example, mammoths migrated to Texas in pursuit of food 🌿, and stone pillars need to be left behind when digging fossils so that the age of the fossils can be calculated from the stone layers. You can learn more about the ecology of mammoths and the relevant knowledge of digging fossils. It is very cool and entertaining! Filming time: 10/07/2024 Name: Waco Mammoth National Monument Address: 6220 Steinbeck Bend Dr, Waco, TX 76708 Time: 09:00-17:00 Tickets: $5 #Waco #德州 #texas #fossil #mammoth #mammothfossil #edutainment #nichetravel #aircon is so cool

Since we were planning to travel south, we chose to stay in Hyatt Place hotels along the way. Located in the Hyatt place in Waco, as soon as we entered, we found that the room we stayed in had been completely renovated. Overall, it was much newer than the previous one we stayed in. The room was also very clean, refreshing and comfortable! But the room space is obviously much smaller. Although there is a sofa, there is no bar, the table is also relatively narrow, and there is no microwave. We also stayed here for four nights. The advantage of this Hyatt Place is that it is located next to a plaza. In the afternoon, you can walk directly to the plaza restaurant next door to eat and enjoy the beautiful sunset of Texas. It is very leisurely. Shooting time: 10/02/2024 Name: Hyatt Place Waco - South Location: 5400 Bagby Ave, Waco, TX 76711 Price: US$100-US$150 #waco #texas #德州 #accommodation #2024Travel Review

Magnolia Market🌸, a popular tourist spot with a rural farm style, has two huge oil drums as its landmark, which were renovated by celebrities in 2015. Magnolia Market has its own brand of furniture stores, restaurants, coffee shops☕️ and dessert shops, and there are also many food trucks to choose from. You can spend an afternoon leisurely. There is a lawn in the middle, where many parents and children have picnics 🧺, and some parents bring their children to play games on the lawn. Magnolia Market is elegantly decorated and very photogenic. Although it is a private attraction, you don't need to buy tickets, and there is free parking nearby, making it a great choice for a holiday picnic! Filming time: 10/07/2024 Name: Magnolia Market Address: 601 Webster Ave, Waco, TX 76706 Time: 09:00-18:00 (Closed on Sundays) Tickets: Free #Waco #德州 #texas #netbeautifulplace #netbeautycheckin #Americanruralstyle #ruralstyle #2024TravelReview

Dr Pepper Museum THE HOME OF DR PEPPER WACO, TX WACO must be the hottest small city around Dallas. Admission is $10, including a small cup of soda. The museum is not large, displaying soda bottles from various periods, advertisements, etc. There is also a set of old soda production machinery and an old well, which is very interesting

Nine pictures tell you how to enjoy Magnolia market? Magnolia is a market that combines entertainment, shopping, dining, and playing games all in one, and I really recommend it. There are also many snacks, and my favorite is the solo dessert with a lemon flavor that's not too rich. The key point is that this market is really photogenic.

waco texas is where i stayed on this particular trip for work. it has been an interesting time here. the town is pretty slow due to baylor college students being off for the summer so no students mean no business me lots less traffic. it easy to get around cause there us no traffic. the hotel im in is kinda shabby. me refrigerator does not get cold, my shower was spraying water in the floor and my roolet would not flush. someones dog left dog poop along the third floor hall and the damn dog keeps barking thru the night. other than all of that it is on ok trip booked by trip.com and im going to be using them again#wecreate