Dance Hall Dreamer

Two-step across Texas on this one-of-a-kind tour of legendary dance halls

Dust off your boots, because some of Texas' top musicians are inviting you on a one-of-a-kind tour of Texas dance halls. Asleep at the Wheel will host the inaugural Texas Dance Hall Tour in 2017, featuring Lee Ann Womack, Dale Watson, Hot Club of Cowtown, the Quebe Sisters, and more.

The week-long tour will take place March 20-26, 2017. There will be a welcome event on the evening of March 20, and guests depart on March 26.

Stops include Twin Sisters Dance Hall in Blanco on March 21, Anhalt Hall in Spring Branch on March 22, Sengelmann Hall in Schulenburg on March 24, and Fair Pavilion in La Grange on March 25; an additional dance hall will be revealed soon. The tour will include a wide variety of daily activities, like two-step dance lessons, Texas-style dinners, visits to distilleries and wineries, and tours with members of the Texas Dance Hall Preservation.

"When I moved to Texas in the early '70s, the dance hall circuit was cookin'. It was where we cut our chops, learned how to entertain and keep people dancing for four hours! There wouldn't be Texas music without our Texas dance halls," says Asleep at the Wheel frontman Ray Benson in a release.

"We are losing these establishments and need to support the communities, like the Texas Dance Hall Preservation, who spend their time and energy preserving these Texas treasures. These still are the breeding grounds of Texas music."

Packages for the week-long event are on sale now. Guests can choose from a variety of packages, some of which include hotels and transportation:

Individual Traveler, $750: concert access, dinner, drinks, and all non-hotel activities for a single person
Independent Travelers, $1,250: concert access, dinner, drinks, and all non-hotel activities for a couple
Cotton Eye Joe, $2,750: hotels, transportation, concert access, dinner, drinks, and all activities for a single person
Texas Two Step, $3,500: hotels, transportation, concert access, dinner, drinks, and all activities for a couple

The tour will sop at Anhalt Dance Hall in Spring Branch.

Anhalt Dance Hall/Facebook

The tour will sop at Anhalt Dance Hall in Spring Branch.

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Turkey Day News

Austin plates up top-30 rank on list of best cities for Thanksgiving

Photo courtesy of RedFarm

Enjoy a whole Peking Turkey at RedFarm in Austin for Thanksgiving.

Austin is sitting at the head of the table as one of the best places in the country to celebrate Thanksgiving this year, a new study has revealed.

Austin ranked No. 30 out of 100 of the largest U.S. cities in WalletHub's annual "Best Places to Go for Thanksgiving" report, published November 12.

The study analyzed each city based on 18 metrics to determine the best places for Thanksgiving, such as the number of pumpkin patches per capita, the average cost of a Thanksgiving dinner, the number of volunteer opportunities, the average weather forecast, and more. The metrics were then organized into five overall categories to determine the rankings.

The category that Austin ranked the highest in was the average weather forecast during the holiday period (No. 4), while the lowest-ranked category was for safety and accessibility (No. 69). Other categories that determined Austin's overall ranking were the number of celebrations and traditions (No. 39), the city's relative affordability (No. 39), and a "giving thanks" rank (No. 59).

Austin restaurants are getting prepared for their big Turkey Day meals, and CultureMap has rounded up a thorough list of all of the local restaurants hosting holiday feasts, from to-go meals, dine-in experiences, and desserts abound.

"The best cities for celebrating Thanksgiving all have an abundance of high-quality restaurants and places to buy festive decorations, and their residents get very excited for the holiday based on their Google search history," said WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo.

By Thanksgiving on November 28, Austin will be fully decked out for the December holidays. Austinites who will have extended family in town during Thanksgiving weekend can take in of all the marvelous Christmas lights brightening the city. The Texas Capital certainly goes all out for the most wonderful time of year.

Elsewhere in Texas, Dallas (No. 5) and San Antonio (No. 7) were the among the top 10 best cities to celebrate Thanksgiving, while Houston ranked No. 15.

San Diego, California (No. 1) topped the overall list of best places to go for Thanksgiving this year, followed by its Golden State neighbors San Francisco (No. 3) and San Jose (No. 4). Atlanta, Georgia (No. 2) rounds out the top five.

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