Texas Highways Presents Annual Big Bend Issue
Beloved national park has plenty to offer adventurous travelers
AUSTIN – Luxury and adventure in the Big Bend region grace the pages of Texas Highways’ February issue. Readers will discover the majestic and rustic Gage Hotel in Marathon. This vintage, yet fashionably updated hotel located on the edge of Big Bend National Park, first opened in 1927 and has been painstakingly restored.
Travelers wanting to experience the mysterious Marfa Lights may choose to stay at El Paisano. The Spanish Revival-style hotel opened in 1930 and once hosted Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson and James Dean.
Also in the February issue, Texas Highways contributor Laurence Parent takes readers on a powerful visual tour of six hidden canyons of Big Bend National Park. According to Parent, “the region’s smaller canyons also have much to offer the adventurous traveler.” The feature delivers tips on how to safely navigate through each canyon as well as some tricks to help even the most experienced hikers.
There’s much more in the February issue, including the Buffalo Soldiers National Museum located in Houston; the “Daytripper’s” guide to Mason; Big Bend Brewing Company in Alpine; and Grey Mule Saloon in Fort Stockton, a designated Texas Historical Landmark, where travelers will find a wine bar and tasting room for Texas’ largest winemaker, Mesa Vineyards.
Throughout 2015, readers also are invited to submit nominations for their favorite Texas comfort food dining establishments. Nominations will be collected over a period of several months and the Top 40 dining destinations will be revealed in a single Texas Highways issue next fall. Votes and suggestions can be submitted at texashighways.com or letters@texashighways.com Submissions also may be mailed to P.O. Box 141009, Austin, TX 78714-1009.
Subscribers began receiving the February issue on Jan. 17; the digital edition was released on Jan. 19; and the hard-copy issue is on sale today at hundreds of newsstands statewide, including H-E-B, Target, Walmart, Randall’s and Barnes & Noble.
About Texas Highways magazine
Founded as a travel magazine in 1974, Texas Highways magazine has been inspiring travel in Texas for 40 years. Today, Texas Highways has 200,000 subscribers and 400,000 monthly readers across the United States and around the world.
A 2014 economic impact study conducted by Strategic Marketing & Research Insights, approximately 54,000 trips by Texas Highways subscribers can be directly attributed to the magazine over the past two years. In addition, subscribers who already planned to take trips were influenced to extend their visits as a result of reading the magazine. For every dollar spent on operating costs, Texas Highways magazine returns $63 in travel revenue and $3.47 in tax revenue.
Texas Highways’ mission is to encourage travel to and within the state. According to estimates from the Texas Office of the Governor, Economic Development and Tourism division, travelers to and within Texas in 2013 spent more than $67.5 billion, an increase of 3 percent over 2012. This directly supported 601,000 jobs and generated $4.7 billion in state and local taxes.
To learn more about Texas Highways, visit www.texashighways.com.
Find out more at txdot.gov. “Like” us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.