Top 17 things to do and attractions in Fort Davis

This place beautifully combines history and scenery in one visit. The museum exhibit was especially memorable—seeing toys like spinning tops from my own childhood brought back a wave of nostalgia. It’s a fantastic spot for both learning about the past and enjoying a walk down memory lane. Highly recommend for anyone who loves history, culture, and a touch of personal nostalgia!

This was a great view into the old way military fort! Got to experience from every point! So historic very much enjoyed it! They charge per vehicle & recipt is valid for a week!

Found fascinating and learned some history. Opens at 8 and I recommend coming early if you plan to hike up the trail during summer. Hike is beautiful and views are amazing. If you decide to do hike I recommend wearing pants for thorny bushes along trail.

2 camels were here today as a tribute to the Camel Corps of the late 1850s. Also saw a rattlesnake. The Fort has lots of info, knowledgeable rangers. Enjoyed our visit

I love how well preserved the place is. Very educated. Cool to see how things were back then with the rooms set up and display

Go when it is cool. The history of the post is well depicted, with restorations of the hospital at the top of my list. Excellent exhibits of Buffalo Soldiers and Apaches. Catch them before Trump has them removed.

Fort Davis National Historic Site is one of the best-preserved frontier military posts in the Southwest and a must-visit destination for history lovers exploring West Texas. Nestled in the scenic Davis Mountains, this historic site offers a unique glimpse into 19th-century military life and the role Fort Davis played in protecting travelers along the San Antonio–El Paso Road. With restored buildings, informative exhibits, and stunning views, Fort Davis is a top attraction for anyone interested in Texas history and culture. Plan your visit to Fort Davis National Historic Site today and step back in time!

This is one of my favorite state parks-- the campsites are well maintained and offer shade at the perfect times. The birding experience here is top notch, and I'm not a birder. They have some awesome trails that offer amazing views without too much stair climbing-- my round, sedentary butt still made it up and over the mountains with well placed benches for rest along the hike. This place is wonderful for kids to run around. The star viewing is amazing.

I fell in love with the open skies so I decided to see if I could catch some photos during some weather. Didn't get to hike much sadly, didn't have my rain gear. But I love the views and the interpretive center bird watching area.

Breath taking views and places to go, inn overlooking mountains. There are many places to camp and good eats nearby.

When we got to this park, there was no cell phone signal for Verizon or T-Mobile. These sites were spacious but very unusual. The RV was parked level, but down below our tow vehicle by about a foot. The park focuses a lot on viewing birds and wildlife plus the history of the park was very interesting as we learned about the CCC contributions during the Great Depression. There was a guided star viewing hike available at night. We drove up to an observation point and took lots of pictures down into the valley. The local town of Fort Davis had nothing to really see. The stores and restaurants are closed before two in the afternoon and we’re pretty rustic. There is a refurbished hotel that looks nice.

Great place, easy to check in ($6 per adult), tons of hiking trails, just wish we had more time.

Beautiful views of one of the coolest state parks in Texas! The scenic drive is worth it, any time of day. Make sure you check out both bird blinds / animal observation areas, and take time to appreciate the structures made by the CCC. If you’re lucky you might even see a family of Javelina trotting through! If the Indian Lodge is open, defintely try to stay in the historic part-LBJ and Lady Bird used to stay there too.

A really nice state park with miles of back country trails and the old CCC trail that links to Fort Davis national historic site. Over three days, I had lots of fun hiking all the trails, and also spent some time in the two birding 'blinds'. It was my first time seeing Acorn Woodpeckers and have posted the pic of the pole across from the interpretive center where they are storing their acorns. The two adjacent poles have several woodpecker nests. The park workers were really nice and helpful, and I appreciated the sign-in/sign-out process for the back country, which added a layer of safety for those 12+ mile hikes.

This place has the basic groceries for cooking at home but I decided to custom order a roast beef sandwich with potato salad for dinner instead, and they were both delicious! The sandwich had fresh ingredients and was nicely assembled. A really nice way to end the day after hiking at the nearby Davis Mountains State Park. The employee was very friendly along with a couple locals dining in. I'll definitely stop by again the next time I'm in town.

Great place in Fort Davis, Texas 🇨🇱 to stock up on sundry grocery items. I had a really tasty 😋 made-to-order sandwich (🥪). Staff are super friendly!

Great place to stop when in Ft Davis or the general area for freshly made sandwiches. Vegetarian & Gluten Free bread available. Gluten free items items available in the market for purchase. Friendly atmosphere.

I had the best time here. It’s so genuine and so cute I felt like I was a country girl getting off my shift at the ranch. The “Rachel” sandwich was SOOOO delish 10/10 recommend. The caprese salad had such a juicy tomato I almost shed a tear. Also small shout out to Caleb’s name shirt, who needs name tags anyways?

I rolled into town late Sunday afternoon, and Ft Davis was a ghost town! This place had a deli. I got the chicken salad and broccoli salad. Yum! Very friendly service.

We've gone there for years. Always friendly with good breakfast tacos (get there early) and "homemade" cookies. A actual deli where you can buy deli meats and cheeses by the pound or pre prepared salads, and sandwiches. Usually a lunch special as in sandwich or salad or soup. Convenient and a little of everything food wise. I have to throw in a plug here for 2 other places you may need as the town in so small. Higginbothams for hardware and Lowes...an actual grocery store.

So glad to have this Fort Davis staple! Always a good lunch at a fair price. High quality ingredients and great preparation. Their high quality selection of healthy and interesting grocery items is invaluable as well.

Cool roadside attraction in Fort Davis with an impressive rattlesnake collection. The guy that owns the place has nearly all venomous snakes of Texas in his collection along with a good amount of out of state snakes and some inverts. It'll take you about 15 minutes to slowly make your way through the entire collection. The place is a bit tourist-trappy but then again so is almost everything in Fort Davis. Worth a stop if you're passing through town though.

Neat little stop in the small town of Fort Davis. The museum is small but has numerous rattlesnakes and a few spiders. There are signs over each snake giving you information. You will most likely hear the rattles. Don't be surprised if you find a couple that lunge towards the glass at you (usually the smaller ones). The lady at the counter was friendly. The experience would have been more fun if there was more interaction with staff (instead of walking around alone feeling an awkward silence). It was still neat though. Admission was $5 for adults.

For five bucks this is worth a stop in. I had an hour to burn between dinner and a star party at the observatory. They have a great collection of snakes, spiders and other things to give you nightmares. All the snakes were easy to view. You could probably spend anywhere from 15 min to an hour depending if you just want to look or read every description.

Real fun place if you like snakes, especially rattlesnakes. Kinda small, but plenty to look at. Definitely worth the $5 investment.

Very clean kept snakes. Didn't realize there were so many different kinds of rattlesnakes. They did have a couple of non venomous snakes for sale.

Awesome, quirky, a Ft. Davis staple for us. The owner is super knowledgeable and always a good time to conversate with. Last trip in the Mojave was extra spicy which gave me a great opportunity to teach my kid what a defensive stance in a rattle snake looks like. Always worth a stop in to check out the snakes!

Loved this place so much, but seems like all good things must unfortunately end.

I wanted really bad to give this place 5 stars. I love the look of the place with indoor and outdoor options. There were tables, booths, and a bar indoors. Outdoors had shade and sun, and it felt like it could have a breeze. As to the food, the fish and chips were great. The fires were fresh, but they could use a double fry, so they are more crisp. I did their brisket cheese fries that sounded amazing, but the fries were too soggy, and the cheese was not the best quality for it. I would also say the brisket was too dry. We also had the enchiladas, and they were on par with fast food. I think the burgers and steaks at the tables around us looked great. The service was okay, but they were swamped. So, I'll sum this up to say, if you're in town for more than one meal, give them a try, but maybe focus on the fish and burgers. I did like the drink specials. My beer was cheaper than the tea. :)

Had an amazing dine in experience. Drinks and food were amazing. Our experience was enhanced by the best ever bartender. His name was Kiki. We had a chicken sandwich, chicken strips, cesar salad, margarita and an espresso martini. These were the best drinks we have ever been served and we will definitely be back.

If you’re hungry in Fort Davis look no further. My husband and I visited with our kids 3 days ago and we are still talking about how delish the chimichurri was on the steak AND on the chicken fried chicken. Our waitress was sweet, Kiki was a gem, and they took great care of us. Thank you!

We’ve been coming to Blue Mountain forever and last night waited over an hour and a half for food that never came because of a private Airstream event. We asked three times about our food but we were told the private event ordered before us. No they didn’t. People on either side of us got their food and they came in an hour after us. We love ya but we won’t be back nor will we recommend you because this is now the second time we have had issues.

Good food. We had their tacos and spinach/artichoke dip. Very filling. Limited space in the bar area. Not sure if there is another room or not.

We had excellent service, delicious food and full tummies after. I would highly recommend coming especially if you are from out of town. My husband had the breakfast burger and I had the best chicken fried steak ever. The chicken fried steak would have been plenty to share a plate. For drinks we had the spicy margarita and the blushing cowboy.

The service is great here and the people are very down to earth. The smash burgers are amazing and the chicken melt great too!

Very friendly gentleman,very informative and knowledgeable! We loved it

Worthy of your time, either for history or the aawwhh of all things classic. When I lived there I would go on just a whim because maybe I was just a few steps away and walking around town , always found something new that I didn't see the first time. The folks there are always kind an willing to answer any questions.

Fantastic museum!! Really enjoyed my visit and would HIGHLY recommend to everyone. The displays, old artifacts, and the quality in which they have been kept and presented are phenomenal. Thanks so much!!!

Nice displays and knowledgeable staff. Worth your time if you love history of the west

Wonderful authentic food! Pork papusas and huaraches with corn n a cup was incredible! We went back 3 times during our stay. Good place that is reliably open.

It really is that good. I frequent Mexico and love street food - this is excellent street food. I have driven here several times from surrounding areas and will continue to do so. It's all good. Yum yum yum.

Oh my god. These might be the best pupusas I ever had. The yucca was cooked to perfection. And they have a whole vegetarian menu. We’re staying in Marfa, and spent the day at Fort Davis and hiked a few trails. This is the best food we’ve had all weekend, and again, maybe my favorite pupusas ever. Recommend. Will go back whenever possible in the future.

The food was delicious! Its my second time eating Salvidorian food and it hit the spot! I didnt enjoy the amount of flies that was around us. Overall, still recommend 👌

This is real deal great food. We had pupusas, tacos, corn, lemondade. All were good. The pupusas excellent. The atmosphere is perfect.

Wonderful place to eat in Fort Davis. We had the brisket tacos and huaraches. Our last meal in town was also here and we tried the empanadas and mexican street corn. Everything was wonderful! Favorites were the brisket tacos and huaraches. Owners were very kind and friendly, we appreciate their wonderful food and wish them the best. Hope to come here again on our next trip!

The food tasted pretty good, it was hot and fresh. They messed up my order, but I choose to eat it as is, which was still pretty good. Even though they were busy the food came out in 15 minutes. This was one of the only places in town open for dinner. Still worth a try.

Rocks. Crystals. Fossils. Metal artwork. Gifts. Jewelry. Engaging owner - especially if you are interested in rocks/fossils and ask him a question. Street parking available. Recommended.

Absolutely love this precious little rock shop!! The owner is super nice and I even befriended the shop cat and dog 😁 very reasonable prices on the rocks and they do take cards, which is a plus for someone like me who doesn't carry much cash.

We had a great experience here. Might have even been my 9 year old son's favorite part of our trip to Fort Davis. He wanted to go back and has been playing his own "rock shop" in his room since we've been back home. A lot of neat selections. My son's both really enjoyed watching the owner cut the geode they just purchased in the back of the shop.

Be sure to visit the shop just to meet the owner Sue along with the shop cat Black Magic Woman and the Chihuahua, Stella. All the beautiful jewelry and rocks are just a bonus.

Wonderful selection of rocks and fossils. I never leave empty handed. The owners Jim and Sue are so friendly and knowledgeable. It's great to find a piece and get a story to go with it. Definitely will be back the next time I pass through.

Really cool and unique jewelry, decorations, rocks, fossils and yard art. The owners are super nice and knowledgeable about the history and different fossils. Reasonable prices. Well worth the visit.

Very friendly older couple. She also owns the rock shop in Balmorhea. Interesting minerals and polished stones as well as the ability to select one's own geode which is then sawed open. Fun experience!

No very friendly people in this small town, the police was even worst. Next time I go to the area I will go directly to MARFA just 24 miles south. The only nice place the state park and the observatory, otherwise I am not coming back. Marfa in the other hand, the people were very helpful and friendlier, the food is excellent and on top you can drive 10 minutes to see the Marfa lights at night.

It's continuously saddening and incredibly heartbreaking that the lack of integrity in our government officials and local police has become normalized. It isn't becoming or honest to be part of a smear site that personally calls out a local publication. With that behavior, you've weakened your status as honorable and trustworthy. An incorrect way to conduct a county and a disrespect to its residents.

Cool stop to sightsee!

Fair and Honest Judge

It was okay. Discouraging though for our younger kids and especially our 9 year old who is very interested in astronomy to not have really any engagment or observation of equipment. The day tour is just a lecture so not really worth it with pictures and info readily available on YouTube. No real value in making the trip to see just the outside of buildings and view from the mountains especially for kids 6, 9, 11, 16 with me.

Don't ask if they have a veteran's discount, apparently the lady at the front doesn't like it. Definitely make reservations or all you can do is get a general admission self guided tour. And you'll see nothing but the Observatory lobby, and the telescope lobby. The views outside are nice tho.

This is our second time at McDonald Observatory and we stayed for the afternoon telescope tour. Recommended Reservations. 1. Solar viewing at 1pm. 2. Telescope tour at 2pm. 3. If a weekend night there are usually Star Parties after sunset. The visitor center has a nice amount of astronomy and Telescope info. Allow about an hour just for this, before or after your tours.

Choice place to learn about astronomy. The drive to and from is very scenic. Tours are available, star parties, the visitors center has a wealth of information, displays, and videos explaining all aspects of the observatory. I have been here several times and it never disappoints. My recent visit was for a star party and it was excellent.

Leading astronomical research facility open to the public through a visitor center that hosts star viewing parties. Friendly, knowledgeable volunteers and staff make it welcoming and a learning experience. Scenic drive up into the mountains too! Make sure to reserve ahead of time for the star parties.

Enjoyed the lecture and visual details about the sun. The telescope tour was worth the time. Lots of good info on how they operate and it's fun to see how to manipulate the telescope as well as the room it's in.

Don’t bother unless you’re able to book the “Star Party”. The general admission ($3) only gets you to 2 small lobbies of the telescopes, a view of the outside of the HET, and the gift shop. The views up/down the mountain to get there were sadly the best part.

A must see when near Fort Davis! The cactus museum was really special. Didn’t get to do hiking this time, but wish we had.

Absolutely magnificent! Give yourself plenty of time because there is so much to learn and see! The staff are welcoming and knowledgeable.

If you like cactus, this is the place! Very nice trails with plants identified and spots to sit and reflect. Nice visitor center with space to sit down, relax and enjoy the view. Somewhat handicap accessible. The trails are pea gravel and on a gentle grade. If you are on wheels, you should have fat tires or it will be tiresome to traverse. Mining heritage exhibit is nice too. Would be good for the kids. I’m told the actual hiking trails are spectacular, with views to match.

Lovely botanic gardens with lots of cactus. If you like desert plants this is a paradise.

$6.50/adult was the cost when I went SEP 2022 Great place to get outta the city at. There's four different hiking trails that vary in difficulty. There's a botanical gardens of native species. In the gardens, they have a cactus greenhouse as well. Right before the gardens, there's a bird blind. Trails are well marked. Thank you all at the visitors center for the info. Extremely insightful as to what I should be keeping my eyes peeled for. They mentioned that there were aoudas (?) and mainly birds out. Though when I was leaving, I was told there was a bobcat sighting. I asked about snake 'n' other little critters that can cause harm if I'm not paying attention. They informed me that they're not common at all-- especially during mid-day. The visitors center has a gift shop. A ton of books that are geared towards outdoors, the Chihuahuan desert, and plants. They have stickers, cups, shirts, field guides, 'n' more. There's a bathroom, a water fountain, and a station to refill water bottles. Drinking tap water is safe-- per what I was told. My water bottle was too big to fill at the station so they let me use the tap in their kitchen. I did not see the mining exhibit this time around. Nor did I walk through the gardens to see what's changed. The trails were where I went What I found really cool is how they're trying hard to be as renewable as possible. Their lights are powered by a solar panel on grounds. They also redirect rain water to help increase biodiversity.

Really cool place! Highly recommend. We spent about 5 hours there hiking and checking out the gardens and green house. Nice visitor center. Very helpful staff. You must do Clayton's overlook trail. Cool 360° display of mountains and volcanic history. Easy trail. We hiked the outer loop trail which starts with Modesta canyon, then winds around Lions head and past the old quarry. Then it brings you to Claytons overlook. Overall around 2.5 miles moderate to strenuous. The hardest part was going down and up through the canyon. The greenhouse was awesome, over 200 species of cacti. The mine museum was very interesting as well nice displays of different types of ores and old mine equipment. I can't think of any negatives at all.

The Botanical Gardens are stunning. Plan for at least 2 hours to see all of the exhibits. This is a photographer’s dream. Check out my pics please. The hiking trails are rugged, take the hikes seriously and wear sturdy boots if you have them. Pack lots of water and enjoy the wilderness.

My favorite winery/vineyard in Texas. Forget the hill country, West Texas is definitely where it's at. Everything about this winery is lovely from the friendly staff/owner, the beautiful setting, the very reasonable prices and the amazing wine! They have adorable dogs/a cat that hang around the winery and love to hangout with guests while they're eating/wine tasting. There's a small food truck that serves very tasty food to compliment the wine. The vineyard itself is wonderful and has some interesting history with even better views. I cannot stress enough how this is a MUST stop place for anyone going to west Texas.

Lovely little winery out in the desert. I had the red wine flight and loved them all, though the Heraldic Red and the Malbec were standouts. Couldn’t leave without buying some bottles to take home and share with friends. The staff was very accommodating to our large dog, who loved meeting the sweet resident dogs, Rocky and Moose. Great experience! We can’t wait to visit again on our next trip to west Texas.

Interesting and quite the surprise. Enjoyed a lovely rain shower while tasting the red varieties of wine. Good Highly recommend taking the time.

A cozy place in the Davis Mountains. Unexpected awesome food truck! Brie, Apple and Fig Jam Sammies were to die for. Fabulous wine top it off! Oh and the folks are mighty friendly too. I'll be back!!

What a wonderful experience. They are normally only open on the weekends, but extended their hours for spring break. We are sure glad they did. Wine is excellent. We enjoyed the Jack Rabbit red. Then, we ordered a Flat Iron Cheeseburger ( I think that's what it's called) and it was the best burger I've ever had. They work hard at using local products, which I really like. The burger had a bacon jam that is made by a local and it really added flavor to the burger. Uniquely delicious. 😋 If you are in our near Ft. Davis, you've got to stop by!!

Cutest little place that will satisfy your craving for wine and burgers. Delicious food and drink with a scenic view. We highly recommend.

Absolute must visit when in the area. Laid-back with great wines. We shared a bottle of a recently released “Griffin Red”. Chef’s kiss. Mmmm.