The Best Texas Travel Destination For Retirees

With retirement comes the opportunity to spend one's days traveling and making day trips to places that you may not have been previously able to find time for when you were working. Being one of the largest states in the continental United States, Texas has everything from luxurious spa towns, quaint villages with weekly farmers markets, vast stretches of natural reserved land, historic landmarks, and hip urban cities full of 5-star restaurants.

Fredericksburg

The town of Fredericksburg, Texas, located only 70 miles northwest of San Antonio, is a medium-sized town with a population of around 11,000 people. The town was founded in 1846 by German immigrants and was named after Prince Frederick of Prussia. The town historically has been affectionately referred to as "Fritzburg" and is known as the birthplace of the "Texas German" dialect from the German immigrants who preferred not to learn English when they were settling here. Today, the town is known as being the peach capital of Texas, and people from miles around visit the town in Summer to stock up on the town's delectable peaches, which are blessed by a combination of elevation, sandy soil, and climate in order to grow their famous fruit. On top of this, the town is a popular site for 5-star spas such as The Hydration Haus and Med Spa, as well as bed-and-breakfasts in order to accommodate tourists, like the Behr House Bed and Breakfast. The town's German influence can be seen even in the names of these modern businesses, and there is an abundance of German-Austrian restaurants to be found, such as Otto's German Bistro, the Auslander, and Der Lindenbaum. And, of course, being a Texan town, there is also an assortment of Mexican or 'Tex-Mex' style restaurants to choose from as well, like Mamacita's Restaurant.

Big Bend National Park

Located in western Texas, near the border with Mexico, Big Bend is known as the largest protected stretch of Chihuahua desert ecology in the United States. The famous Rio Grande runs through the park, serving as the border between the American park and the Mexican flora and fauna protection reserve known as the Cañón de Santa Elena. While the park is known for its extensive hiking and backpacking trails, it also offers extended scenic driving routes and interpretive guided tour programs led by Park Rangers. The park is also recognized as a Gold-Tier International Dark-Sky Zone, meaning that the area is so free of almost all light pollution that the entire breadth of the stars in the sky, including the Milky Way, can be appreciated unabated on clear nights. The National Park Service has also determined that Big Bend has the darkest skies in all of the contiguous United States, making it the best place in the country outside of Alaska to see stars.

Lake Livingston

Lake Livingston is a man-made reservoir north of Houston. Lake Livingston State Park lies on its eastern shoreline, and the massive Sam Houston National Forest is directly south of it. Despite being a man-made lake, the reservoir is still a popular destination for fishing, birding, and boating. Lake Livingston Park also boasts two RV parks, a number of campsites, and idyllic picnic locations. There are also daily interpretive programs with park rangers for those interested in guided ecological tours. One should be warned, however, that alligators are also known to call this lake home, so be wary while you relax near the water.

Galveston

Galveston is a resort city that lies on an island port in the Gulf of Mexico, just off the coast of Texas city. Despite being a prominent shipping port town, most of Galveston's economy is centered around tourism. Among its draws are a number of museums, ranging from the Galveston Railroad Museum to the Lone Star Flight Museum, so whether you're an enthusiast of transport via land or sky, you've got options. There is also the Moody Gardens Botanical Park, which is a non-profit conservation center that includes an Aquarium housed within a pyramid, as well as another glass greenhouse pyramid, which contains rainforest plants. The park also boasts a golf course and a hotel. Galveston is also known for the downtown strip, which is known as "The Strand," which consists of historical Victorian-era buildings housing everything from Mexican and seafood restaurants to antique shops to an opera house and movie theater.

Corpus Christi

Corpus Christi is the eigth most populous city in Texas, it is known for its museums and for its watersport recreation. Despite being a city, Corpus Christi is also known as a top destination for bird watching due to it lying in what's known as the "Central Flyway," a massive migratory route for traveling birds, and is the source of Corpus Christi's nickname as "America's Birdiest City." No matter what time of year, a vast and diverse array of bird species can be seen roosting or passing through the city, from herons, owls, wrens, geese, swans, waxwings, gulls, and more. Another popular attraction in the city is the USS Lexington, a retired WWII aircraft carrier that now serves as a museum. It is docked at the city's north beach, just a short walk from the Texas State Aquarium.

San Antonio

The second largest city in Texas and one of the oldest, San Antonio is known to tourists as the home of the Alamo. The city was founded as a Spanish colonial outpost, and changed hands between the Spanish Empire and the Mexican Republic before becoming a part of modern-day Texas. Lying not far from the Alamo is the famous San Antonio river walk, a confluence of the city's waterways and stone pedestrian paths, lined with restaurant patios and is one of the city's most popular tourist attractions. If you want to experience the scenic riverways but don't feel up for a walk, private boat tours are also available. Also lying along the river walk is the Briscoe Western Art Museum, which houses art and artifacts centered around the culture and history of the American West.

Wood Lake

For retirees who don't wish to venture into noisy, bustling, traffic-heavy cities, Wood Lake is located only an hour away from San Antonio, near the town of Gonzales. The lake was a man-made reservoir, and in 2016, after a substantial rainfall, one of the reservoir gates failed, and most of the lake property was drained. Where the lake used to lie is now overgrown with a forest. But the Guadalupe River, which fed into and out of the lake, still flows through the area. On its shores lies the Lake Wood recreation area and campground, which can accommodate both tent campers and RVs. The river is known to provide excellent fishing and is known to be home to largemouth bass, catfish, sunfish, and white crappies; on top of that, the river is a popular canoeing, swimming, and tubing spot.

Kerrville

The city of Kerrville, which lies along the Guadalupe River, is known as both a recreational hub and as a prominent community for retirees, with over 30% of the population being at retirement age. There are a number of parks and golf courses within the town limits, as well as a non-profit plant sanctuary that sits along the river and is known to offer guided educational tours. There is also a folk music festival every summer known as the Kerrville Folk Festival, and they are also host to the Texas State Arts and Crafts Fair.

Texas is known as a popular state for retirees to migrate to when their working years are done, and it is clear why. Whether you wish to fill your retirement soaking in art and history in the form of visiting museums, or you want peace and quiet surrounded by nature, there is a diverse array of options for any and every kind of senior to be had within the sprawling state of Texas.