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The Fort Worth Dickies Arena will open its doors sometime in November. (Photo courtesy Visit Fort Worth)
From the upcoming opening of the Dickies Arena to the launch of Dash, an all-electric circulator, Fort Worth is ready for some big changes to its meetings scene. Organizers will have more event venues to choose from, while visiting attendees will have more places to stay and more options when it comes to restaurants and nightlife. Plus, attendees will be able to better navigate the destination using the new eco-friendly bus system. Beginning Sept. 22, four electric Dash buses will connect downtown Fort Worth’s bus and train terminal to the cultural district.
For planners looking to host a meeting in Fort Worth, we’ve rounded up some of the best places to stay, meet, and eat in the city.
Where to Stay
Coming soon, the Sinclair Hotel is housed in the historic Sinclair Building, an art deco gem constructed in 1929. The 164-room boutique hotel is one of Marriott’s “hotels of the future,” featuring cutting-edge technology integrated throughout the property. And Marriott’s new Springhill Suites offers 170 “urban Western” themed rooms in the historic Stockyards — which features shops, restaurants, rodeos, and cattle drives. The suites are near the city’s popular Sundance Square, with dining and entertainment options, and other attractions.
The Stockyards are currently undergoing redevelopment, including the addition of Hotel Drover. This rustic resort is in its second phase of construction and is expected to open in spring 2020. Also on the horizon for next year is the new 252-room, 16-story AC Hotel in downtown Fort Worth.
Where to Meet
From art galleries to historic Western properties, Fort Worth is full of unique venue options. Adjacent to the Will Rogers Memorial Center campus, the 14,000-seat Dickies Arena, opening this fall, will offer a new venue option for meeting organizers. Nearby, the historic Will Rogers Memorial Coliseum serves as a major equestrian venue. For event planners looking for more historic options, there’s The Ashton Depot, a century-old venue featuring the property’s original stained-glass windows, barrel-vaulted ceilings, and marble floors.
Ten minutes from downtown Fort Worth is the Whiskey Ranch, nestled on 112 acres of a historic golf course. And for meeting organizers looking for a more contemporary setting, there’s Artspace111, an art gallery, and the Botanical Research Institute of Texas, an education and research facility available for private events and tours. Other unique event venues include Shipping & Receiving Bar, offering a lounge, outdoor stage, and warehouse-style event space accommodating up to 1,000 people, and Lola’s, a rock club featuring an indoor music venue and a 1,000-capacity outdoor stage and bar.
Where to Eat
In addition to its growing food truck scene, Fort Worth is famous for its barbecue. New barbecue spots include Derek Allan’s Texas BBQ, with central-Texas-style ribs, brisket, and sausage, and Flores Barbeque, which combines traditional barbecue with Tex-Mex cuisine. For Mexican food, there are taco spots like OMG Tacos, featuring SoCal and Tex-Mex flavors; Juanito’s Taqueria, which has been a local favorite for 20 years; and Austin City Taco Co., serving traditional tacos and unusual combinations, like a salt n’ vinegar taco with fried shrimp and crushed salt and vinegar chips.
For post-meeting cocktails or team-building events, Fort Worth is home to locally owned distilleries that offer group tours. Acre Distilling, Black Eyed Distilling, Firestone & Robertson Distilling Co., Blackland Distillery, and Trinity River Distillery offer small-batch bourbons, whiskeys, gins, and vodkas, and provide a unique backdrop for off-site events. And a good way to explore everything Fort Worth’s food and spirits scene has to offer is by taking a tour — with options including distillery tours, beer tours (on foot or by bike), and taco tours.
Fort Worth offers something for everyone. And with recent and upcoming updates, meeting attendees are even more likely to fall in love with the destination. Planners interested in hosting an event in Fort Worth can work hand-in-hand with Visit Fort Worth, the destination’s visitors and convention bureau, to help bring dream meetings to life.
