2 Best Sights in Fort Davis, West Texas and the Panhandle

Fort Davis National Historic Site

Fodor's choice
Fort Davis (also the city's namesake) provides a history lesson on this late 1800s region, with exhibits and many original buildings preserved. You can spend hours touring the sprawling grounds, which include barracks, the post hospital, the visitor center, and servants' quarters.

McDonald Observatory Visitors Center

Fodor's choice

Check out exhibits, examine sunspots and flares safely via film, or peer into the workings of giant research telescopes. Guided tours of the domed observatories are given several days a week following programs at 11 and 2. After nightfall, the observatory offers star parties (usually Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday). Online reservations are required for all public programs. It's a beautiful 15-mile drive from Fort Davis to the visitor center, at 6,235 elevation.