A benefit to living in Austin is that it’s a great location to be able to visit a lot of different places in the state. We’re only 3 hours-ish from Dallas and Houston, an hour and a half to San Antonio, within an hour or two of several cute small towns, and, finally, an hour and a half to Waco, TX. Depending on your age, interests, and hobbies, you’re familiar with Waco for several different reasons. The reason a day trip to Waco popped up on the itinerary for my sister’s most recent trip is because of her love of Dr. Pepper - and an unseasonably chilly summer day in Texas that kept us from tubing in the Comal River. Here’s a description of our day trip itinerary and my overall review!
Steal our itinerary (all walkable from one another):
- Visiting the Dr. Pepper Museum (+ Make-A-Soda experience)
- Lunch at Terry Black’s BBQ
- Sweet tea break at Magnolia Market
- Book shopping at Fabled Bookshop & Cafe
Transportation + Parking
My sister and I had our day trip on a Thursday. It was about an hour and a half drive from north Austin to Waco on a Thursday morning. (Prepare yourself for I-35 and the never ending construction in Waco.) Our first stop of the day was the Dr. Pepper Museum. Across the street, there was a paid parking lot that was $10 for 5 hours (our full day). This worked perfectly for our itinerary, and our plan to walk around to each activity. There is street parking available and other lots around the area, but I will pay for convenient parking, and $10 was a deal!
Dr. Pepper Museum
Our first stop of the day was the Dr. Pepper Museum! My sister is a Dr. Pepper addict, so when we needed to pivot our plans for the day, I knew this was the perfect option! It’s $12 to enter the self guided museum, and since this museum is run by a non-profit (not corporate Dr. Pepper), you’re welcome to provide an additional donation to help with their museum curation and education. Depending on the type of museum goer that you are, the museum exhibits in the main building will take about an hour to walk through. The second building houses the Soda Fountain, a small additional exhibit, and the Make a Soda experience. Your admission to the museum includes a free soda at the Soda Fountain or $1 off of a float. I recommend the float! The Dr. Pepper Float might have been my favorite part of the visit!
We also signed up for the Make-A-Soda experience. (Helpful tip: sign up ahead of time because the slots do sell out! While you can’t buy your ticket to the museum ahead of time, you can book your Make a Soda experience ahead of time, and you can plan your visit around the time slot you were able to sign up for.) Make-A-Soda is $20/person, and you get to create your own flavor of Dr. Pepper in a classroom setting. The experience was… fine. Would I do it again? No. Is it worth $20? Probably not. The experience is more of a “walk up to someone and be handed a cup of flavor” instead of a science experiment or unique experience. The experience involves standing up and sitting down at tables in a classroom. Mind you - the classroom area is small, and when all seats are taken in the area, it’s a tight squeeze to stand up to grab your flavors and seal your bottle. I don’t know what I was imagining when it came to this experience, but it felt very underwhelming to me. If you do it, make sure to drink your Dr. Pepper within a few hours! We tasted our sodas before sealing them, and mine tasted good at that time, but then I opened my bottle a few days later, and my soda was not good anymore!
Stop by the gift shop before you leave! The merch is fine, but nothing to write home about. The only reason I spent a decent amount of money there is because my dog’s name is Pepper, and they had a lot of merchandise for the “I’m a Pepper” campaign, so I had to get quite a few items with that phrase. Before you leave, make sure to have fun with all of the photo ops outside of the museum, including the world’s tallest Dr. Pepper bottle!
Terry Black’s BBQ
This is self explanatory. I don’t care what the Austin foodies or the haters say - Terry Black’s is awesome! It’s good BBQ, consistently good, and just really delicious, basic Texas BBQ, which is what I and any guests that visit me want! While the unique BBQ concepts are great (check out Austin for that), there are times where you just want a good ole Texas day and good ol’ Texas BBQ. If you’re in the mood for that in Waco, grab it for lunch!
On a Thursday afternoon in July, there was no wait for Terry Black’s around 1pm. We quickly made it through choosing our sides and getting our meat cut, and we spent about 30 minutes eating. It’s delicious and also a quick lunch if you’re on a schedule!
An additional lunch option for your Waco day trip is Union Hall food hall, which is right next to Terry Black’s! I still haven’t visited (yet), but it has so many options for meals and snacks, and there’s something for everyone! This is what I would have grabbed if I had been alone, but because my sister was visiting and wanted all the Texas specific food, we hit up BBQ.
Magnolia Market
Disclaimer: I’m not a part of the fandom of all things Magnolia Market/HGTV Star Obsession. BUT the reason we visited the Magnolia Market during this day trip was because I had been once before (8+ years ago), and I remembered having one of the best sweet teas ever - so, of course, we had to go try to find that! The market has changed so much since I last visited! When I went there in 2018, they had a bakery (that had you lining up outside in the heat), a seed store, a large souvenir store with no AC, and a few food trucks. They’ve now expanded so much, which includes many more specific storefronts (instead of one large store), A CHURCH, more food and drink options, a large green space where people were playing games, …and the large store with no AC is still there. Inside that store is the photo booth, which I forced my sister into. Alabama Sweet Tea Company, my favorite thing from my first visit, was thankfully still there, so I got to enjoy a refreshing sweet tea while walking around and looking at everything that’s new.
My sister and I spent about 30 minutes in the market. Our main goal was the sweet tea - and then the photo booth once we discovered it - which didn’t take up much time. I would suggest 30 minutes to an hour in the market, depending on if people in your group want to shop, want to eat, or want to sit in the shade and relax.
I still don’t recommend Magnolia Market as a destination. (Don’t make a trip to Waco JUST to go visit the market.) But it’s a great addition to a day trip as a midday snack, drink, and relaxing break.
Fabled Bookshop & Cafe
Our last stop of the day before heading back to Austin was Fabled Bookshop. I’m an avid reader, and I always want to visit new bookstores in any area that I’m visiting. While Fabled was super cute, I was very underwhelmed by the selection. As a dedicated romance reader, their romance section took up two columns of a wall length bookshelf. Most of the romance section was chick lit, not actual romance, and, of course, the only staff pick in the section was Heated Rivalry. Y’ALL. I’d love some unique opinions please! The positive side of that is that there are a lot of staff picks posted throughout all the genres in the shop, and I love that they have their staff contribute with their opinions. (Even if I don’t agree with their romance opinions.)
While I didn’t approve of the lack of romance representation, I was able to find two really beautiful, unique editions of The Great Gatsby, which made my day! My sister also found a book that she was excited about, and she loved it! If this bookshop can get my sister addicted to a book, then I approve!
A Day Trip to Waco, TX? Totally worth it!
As someone who drives Austin to Dallas (and back) on I-35 regularly, I’m a huge hater of Waco. But when it’s your destination for the day, it’s a fun day trip! The food was great, the activities were fun, and it was very relaxing and an easy day for anyone. We left around 9:30am, arrived at 11am, left around 2:45pm, and were home just after 4pm. While this was our back up plan for when the weather wasn’t perfect for tubing, this is a day trip plan that I would add to any guests’ main itinerary from now on! I don’t think the Dr. Pepper Museum is something that’s going to hold someone’s attention for more than one visit, but I would totally go back with other guests and enjoy a Diet Dr. Pepper Float while they strolled around the exhibits. If you’re visiting Austin or Dallas for a long weekend or several day long visit, grab a car and make a quick drive to Waco for the day!
If I missed a fun activity or great place to eat in Waco, I’d love to hear your suggestions in the comments! I’m always adding new places to my “To Visit” list, and I’d love to incorporate your suggestions into my next visit.
Happy Day Tripping!
-Alana