Attractions

Despite its laid-back image and small size, Fort Worth abounds with sights, sounds, and things to do. Whether you're a cowboy, aesthete, or historian -- or just plain folk -- Fort Worth, an enjoyable and relaxed city that's also remarkably well organized for visitors, should prove entertaining. There are three distinct parts, each a couple of miles from one another: the Stockyards National Historic District, the focus of the city's cattle-raising and livestock auction legacy as the cow town of the cattle drives north in the 19th century; newly revitalized historic downtown Fort Worth, a beautifully laid-out, clean, and renovated core; and the Cultural District, a world-class museum, arts, and architecture center with the superlative Kimbell Museum (perhaps Texas's finest art museum), the Amon Carter Museum of Western Art, and the fantastic new Modern Art Museum. We'll take them in that order, though where you start should be in accord with your interests in either art or a living museum of the Old West.

Plenty of attractions in Fort Worth are free; pick up the flyer "Everything Free to Do in Fort Worth" at the visitor center if you want to see how much you can do for no money.

Coupon Discounts -- Visit the Fort Worth Convention & Visitors Bureau website for money-saving coupons at major attractions, including the Stockyards, Museum of Science and History, Cowgirl Museum, and Billy Bob's Texas, as well as the airport shuttle. Go to www.fortworth.com/16coupons/16coupons.shtml and print out any of more than a dozen coupons.

A Water Break

Take a breather at the refreshing Fort Worth Water Gardens, designed by the famed architect Philip Johnson -- 4 acres of water (19,000 gal. per minute) cascading over cement and into five pools. At Commerce and 15th streets, downtown, call tel. 817/871-7699 for more information.

The Grapevine Vintage Railroad

To jump into the turn-of-the-20th-century Old West character of the Stockyards, don your best Western duds and hop aboard the Grapevine Vintage Railroad. The 100-year-old steam train of the Tarantula Railroad (purchased from Walt Disney and affectionately called "Puffy" by locals) -- and its diesel brethren -- make the Trinity River Run, a 1-hour trip from Stockyards Station to 8th Avenue in Fort Worth, and another travels along the Chisholm Trail to the Cotton Belt Depot in historic Grapevine, Texas. The 1896 steam train runs on Saturday and Sunday, the 1953 vintage diesel on Friday. April through August, the trains run from Thursday to Sunday only; other months they run Friday to Sunday (but there is no service in Jan). The train trip to Grapevine is more involved and interesting (as well as more expensive) than the one that ends in Forth Worth. The name Tarantula stems from a tale in the late 19th century, when a local newspaperman's plans for rail lines were derided as looking like "the legs of a hairy tarantula."

Call tel. 817/410-3123 or visit www.grapevinesteamrailroad.com for exact schedules and the running status of the steam train. To 8th Avenue, the train leaves the Stockyards on Saturdays at noon and Sundays at 3pm (round-trip $10 adults, $9 seniors, $6 children ages 3-12). To Grapevine, the train leaves the Stockyards Saturdays at 2pm and Sundays at 4:45pm, arriving in Grapevine an hour and 15 minutes later (round-trip $20 adults, $18 seniors, and $10 children ages 3-12).