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| The top of the Gaylord Texan Atrium, 12 stories up. 2/4/2019 dwm photo |
At the top is a stained glass star, visible day and night.
Stars are everywhere in this part of Texas, and not just on the helmets of a certain football team.
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| The Gaylord Texan Hotel. Part of it actually. 2/4/19 (dwm) |
Between second and third grade, I went with Mom and Dad on a business trip to New York City. We stayed at the Waldorf Astoria. I remember an evening when the hotel babysitter watched me while my parents went out. I loved the French Crawler doughnuts at the Rockefeller Center.
The other hotel on the top of our list is The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs.
Our family went there for several days because I had a good year of sales - it was spectacular with a view of Pike's Peak out our bedroom window.
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| A view from the main hotel lobby. 2/4/2019 dwm photo |
This is the largest. It has 1,511 guest rooms, 490,000 square feet of meeting space, and 4.3 acres under the atrium glass. There are eight restaurants on the property and an exclusive hotel water park (closed during our visit). It also operates the Dallas Cowboy Golf Course nearby.
As we walked in the main entry, the Alamo stood a couple blocks away. It isn't the actual fort, but a replica of its front wall. A three story bell tower stands nearby and a powerful fountain reaches 6 floors high.
An article in the Dallas Star - Telegram indicates this is the second largest non-gaming hotel in the country.
The large expanse of glass makes it less suffocating, we had a room with a balcony over-looking the outdoor (almost) dining of the Zeppelo their Italian restaurant and a windmill at our end of the atrium.
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| Looking across the widest section of the in-outdoors. (dwm) |
Our first couple days in Texas were warm for us coming from Wisconsin, but cool - in the upper 40s. Even then we felt like we had room to breathe thanks to the natural light.
When the sun shined the last two days - it was amazing (see photo at left).
Live plants and trees are everywhere and a stream with a dozen or more waterfalls runs from one end of the in-outdoors to the other.
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| "The Alamo" is part of the Mission plaza fronting the Lonestar building. 2/4/2019 dwm photo |
My conference was one of several at the hotel and likely the smallest. There was a conference for hundreds of Texas schoolchildren who achieved high grades. In fact, there were two as older students followed younger students for a couple days.
Just down the Convention Center hallway was a huge dance competition with hundreds of their own guests.
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| One of many waterfalls - this one below the main floor of the atrium. (dwm) |
If it weren't for the ALDE conference and the special room rates, I doubt we could make the regular guest list, but it was fun to see how the other half lives.
Life inside the Texan bubble was grand... a small grocery store/coffee shop sold pastries, coffee, and frozen treats. A gift shop sold bowls of breakfast cereal for people who wanted to purchase a pint of milk and eat in their room (Life, Frosted Flakes, and Honey Bunches of Oats).
You can find a FedEx Business office to ship or print or replace that missing piece for a presentation.
If you wanted to - you could stay inside your entire visit.
We didn't eat at all the restaurants - my conference included several meals - but ate twice at the Texas Station Sports Bar and Grill; the Riverwalk Cantina; Zeppole; and got our hot drinks at the Cocoa Bean or Marketplace.
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| The Sante Fe crosses rocky territory - it is one of four Garden style trains in operation. (dwm) |
The center is next to the Relache' Spa - my wife indulged in a session there. Next to it is the indoor pool. An outside pool was open and warm enough to use even at cool temperatures.
If people watching is your thing - there are plenty of places to do it.
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| An abandoned wagon sits in a river canyon. 2/4/2019 dwm photo |
If you are looking for unusual places to shot a selfie - they have those too. Hank, a Texas Longhorn, has stood behind a fence since 2008 greeting curious guests. Hank doesn't make a mess and is always pleasant - taxidermy will do that to a steer.
Next to Hank is a movie set saloon with swinging doors and windows perfect for a group shot on its front porch.
The Glass Cactus club sits on the lake a short, outdoor walk from the main hotel.
That's where our group held its opening night party. The Glass Cactus is a private nightclub setting with a stage for a band, dance floor, and full bars on both levels of the club.
The designers really thought of everything in putting this place together.
Our stayed stretched into five nights including a vacation day so I could watch the Super Bowl instead of missing it due to travel. While the game didn't end the way I hoped, it was fun to watch.
If a reason comes up for us to visit Dallas and spend a couple of days and nights at this part of the Marriott hotel empire - that would be fine with me.
There is plenty to do and lots of places to relax, literally under one roof. There are several cool things nearby, and downtown Dallas a half-hour away.
Not that they need my rating, but I'll give the Gaylord Texan 4.5 out of 5 stars.
At left - the view from the elevator about nine floors up. The Texas Station is at lower left of the photo. The bell tower is on the right side of the picture. 2/4/2019 dwm photo
While our room wasn't near one of the four sets of elevators with a glass wall looking out at the atrium, I did get an opportunity to experience one - it offered an interesting look at the miniature city.
All the features, including a variety of bridges, create an open air feeling which a massive place like this needs. The atrium reminds me of the amusement park inside the Mall of America. The mall is terrific, but adding a glass ceiling is a perfect touch.
On our last day, I walked the resort's outdoor paths.
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| The Riverwalk Cantina creates a San Antonio feel. 2/4/19 (dwm) |
About a mile from the hotel, I located a small herd of real Longhorn cattle grazing and drinking from a water trough pulled from the ground by a working windmill.
On the other side of the hotel is Lake Grapevine. It was formed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1952 by an earthen dam to serve as a reservoir for the North Texas region. It is also a place to fish and pleasure cruise.
The Glass Cactus club sits on the lake a short, outdoor walk from the main hotel.
That's where our group held its opening night party. The Glass Cactus is a private nightclub setting with a stage for a band, dance floor, and full bars on both levels of the club.
The designers really thought of everything in putting this place together.
Our stayed stretched into five nights including a vacation day so I could watch the Super Bowl instead of missing it due to travel. While the game didn't end the way I hoped, it was fun to watch.If a reason comes up for us to visit Dallas and spend a couple of days and nights at this part of the Marriott hotel empire - that would be fine with me.
There is plenty to do and lots of places to relax, literally under one roof. There are several cool things nearby, and downtown Dallas a half-hour away.
Not that they need my rating, but I'll give the Gaylord Texan 4.5 out of 5 stars.
At left - the view from the elevator about nine floors up. The Texas Station is at lower left of the photo. The bell tower is on the right side of the picture. 2/4/2019 dwm photo
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