At the tip of Texas lies the biggest American city on the Mexican frontier. The name of this city is El Paso. It has a desert kind of landscape which means that it has a variety of flora and fauna. The city is also rich in cultural attraction. It can be confusing for a first-timer to pick which place is worth visiting and which one is not worth your precious time.
Therefore we are here to help you. There are a number of places that tourists can go to but we always believe and go after the best ones. There are museums and so much to see. Let us stop wasting our time and get into the main part of the article.
10 Top-Rated Tourist Attractions in El Paso
There are many places that you can visit when you are on a tour of El Paso. We have done the research for you and we have written this article for you. This article lists all the 10 Top-Rated Tourist Attractions in El Paso. You can give each of them a visit if you have the time. Or you can just go visit the spots that grab your attention and interest. Make sure that you go through the entire article first though. So without any further delay let’s get right into this article.
1. Plaza Theatre
It stands at the heart of the downtown area of El Paso. It is a rich reminder of the city’s musical past. It was constructed in 1930 but it was destroyed later and then rebuilt in 2006. This place has some of the best live entertainment that the city has to offer. The theatre is built in Spanish colonial revival style.
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You will simply find the architecture of the building beautiful and too stunning for words. There are painted stars on the ceiling and the addition of mosaic floors and antique furniture just adds to the atmosphere of this place. The plaza hosts a number of performances nowadays. See if you can catch any one of these shows.
2. Franklin Mountains State Park
You can see the outline of the Franklin mountains from El Paso. It is a great recreational site for all the people of El Paso as well as the tourists. The locals are of course included too. The Franklin Mountains State Park is at the north end of the city and it stretches up to 27,000 acres. It is a venue for mountain climbing and rock climbing. This park is a great area for watching and observing wildlife. The Wyler Aerial Tramway offers a superb view of the desert region surrounding the city. You must not miss it.
3. El Paso Mission Trail
The El Paso Mission Trail is of great cultural heritage. It is a surviving Spanish mission station in El Paso. It is a great way for tourists to connect with history. A highlight present here is the Ysleta Mission. It is consecrated in 1682 and is considered the oldest such structure in El Paso. You will also find the Socorro Mission built-in 1691. Yes, there are many other cultural highlights that are present around the mission. You should definitely check this out once.
4. El Paso Museum of Art
We had to include this beautiful place in the list. If you are an art enthusiast then you must visit the El Paso Museum of Art. This museum has more than 7,000 pieces from the history of art. It has current art as well as art from the 12th century. There are American, Mexican, and European collections of art. They are all extremely spectacular and stunning. Different kinds of art are present in this museum. We can go on and on about the beauty of this place but we don’t want to spoil anything. You should go out there and check the masterpieces for yourself. It is going to be one hell of a tour.
5. El Paso Zoo
This is a very entertaining tourist site. It gives the chance to families visiting the place to have a view of the animals of Africa and animals of Asia. A large number of big and small creatures are exhibited here so you can spend your entire day here admiring the animals and not get bored. The zoo has adventure programs where tourists can get close to sea lions, monkeys, tortoises, etc. There are other fun activities to do around the zoo either. You should definitely go check this one out if you love zoos.
6. The National Border Patrol Museum
This museum is not so grand as most museums tend to be. But do not judge a book by its cover. This museum has the finest history of American border patrol in the area. A large collection of patrol vehicles like the rudimentary boats, motorcycles, and jeeps are present here. They also display sophisticated helicopters and other aircraft in this museum. Of course, they are all related to border patrol. Weapons, uniforms, badges, photos, artworks are some of the other things that you can find in this museum.
7. Magoffin Home State Historic Site
This 19 room abode home state was constructed in 1875. It was built in territorial style and it has 3 wings to boast about. Each wing is constructed in different periods throughout history. The house was built for one of El Paso’s leading families. It has original furniture, textiles, and photos. The décor is Victorian in most parts and there are splendid paintings too. You can go and visit this absolutely gorgeous place. We personally loved this so much. Stepping here will feel like stepping back in time. They offer guided tours too if you are interested in knowing more about the history.
8. El Paso Museum of Archaeology
Yes, we know that this is the third museum we have included in our list and no we can not guarantee that this will the last museum we speak about either. This is present in the north of the city at the base of the Franklin Mountains. This museum is free and open to everyone. It has an auditorium where programs and speeches are hosted. It has 5 acres of land surrounding the main facility which has several walking trails for the tourists. It is a beautiful place with a beautiful sight. You must surely include this in your must-visit list.
9. Fort Bliss and Old Ironsides Museums
Don’t kill us, please. Museums are an important part of this city’s culture and heritage. It is important to place to know your history at. We know that half the places we mentioned are museums but they are all different from each other vastly. They deal with different things. This was established as a US Army post in the mid 19th century. It also served as a base during the civil war. This serves as a site for museums as well as a combat training center for allied forces. We especially find defense and military artifacts displayed in the museums. If you are into this stuff then you can go visit the area.
10. Centennial Museum and the Chihuahuan Desert Gardens
This was built to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the independence of Texas from Mexico. The natural and cultural history of the southwest and Mexico is displayed here. The museum has several exhibits which may be permanent or changing.
The Chihuahuan Desert Gardens are also a beautiful spot to visit. It has 809 species of native plants. They also have specifically themed gardens. The museum has changing exhibits dealing with archaeology, ethnology, geology, and paleontology, as well as the arts and science.
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Conclusion
We hope that you liked this article. We have tried our best to provide you with the 10 Top-Rated Tourist Attractions in El Paso. The sights and the places that we have mentioned in this article are all excellent tourist spots. We have kept in mind every kind of person and chose the best 10 tourist spots for you.
All kinds of people will at least find one location of their liking. Thank you so much for giving this article a read. We do hope that you recommend this article to others too if you are satisfied with it. Thank you once again and have an excellent time and experience with your tour! Safe traveling.
