Arlington (Texas)

Arlington is in the Prairies and Lakes region of Texas. With a city population estimated over 359,000 it is Texas' 7th largest. It is third largest city in the Dallas / Fort Worth Metroplex. This city is south of the sprawling DFW International Airport.

Understand

The city was founded in 1875 and is named after Lee's Arlington House (of present-day Arlington County, Virginia). After the arrival of the railroad in 1876, Arlington grew as a cotton-ginning and farming center, and incorporated in 1884. The city could boast of water, electricity, natural gas, and telephone services by 1910, along with a public school system. By 1925 the population was estimated at 3,031, and it grew to over four thousand before World War II.

Large-scale industrialization began in 1954 with the arrival of a General Motors assembly plant. Automotive and aerospace development gave the city one of the nation's greatest population growth rates between 1950 and 1990. Arlington became one of the "boomburgs," the extremely fast-growing suburbs of the post-World War II era. U.S. Census Bureau population figures for the city tell the story: 7,692 (1950), 90,229 (1970), 261,721 (1990), and 359,467 (2004 estimate). DFW Airport opened in 1974 which also contributed to unparalleled growth in the region.

Get in

By plane

All the major American carriers, and many international ones as well, provide scheduled passenger service into the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport [6], located about 12 miles north of the city on Hwy. 360.

By train

• There are two Amtrak [7] routes which serve Dallas/Fort Worth, the Texas Eagle between San Antonio and Chicago, and the Heartland Flyer between Fort Worth and Oklahoma City. The closest stations are in Dallas, Fort Worth, and Cleburne.
• The Trinity Railway Express (TRE) travels between Dallas and Fort Worth, through Arlington without stopping.

By car

Well served my major highways, if you are coming from Texas or an adjoining state, you will more than likely arrive via a major interstate highway. East/West Interstate 20 is located directly south of town. North/South Interstate 35, which splits to an east (35E) and west (35W) highway near Waco, are within a few miles of the city.

By bus

Arlington has a Greyhound bus terminal located in the center of town.

• Greyhound Bus Lines, 2075 E. Division St., 817 461-5337, [8].

Get around

Surprisingly for its population, Arlington has no bus city system, so you will need a car.

See

• Johnnie High's Country Music Revue, [9].
• Legends of the Game Baseball Museum and Children's Learning Center
• Louis Tussaud's Palace of Wax and Ripley's Believe It or Not!, [10].
• River Legacy Living Science Center, [11].
• Texas Rangers Baseball at The Ballpark in Arlington

Do

• Six Flags Over Texas
• Six Flags Hurricane Harbor
• Planetarium at University of Texas Arlington, [12].
• Arlington Skatium
• Putt-Putt Entertainment, [13].
• Dyno-Rock Indoor Climbing Gym, [14].
• Jumping Party, [15].
• Spare Time Lanes Bowling Center
• Cowboys Stadium, (http://www.dallascowboysmaps.com/), ☎ (817) 892-4161, [1]. At last! The new Cowboys Stadium in Arlington has arrived. Don't miss the inaugural year.

Learn

• University of Texas at Arlington [16]

Buy

• Build-A-Bear Workshop, [17].

Shopping malls

Many hotels with shuttle service will offer rides to the closest mall.

• Parks at Arlington, 3811 S. Cooper St.
• Arlington Highlands, I-20 and Matlock Road, [18].
• Festival Discount Mall, 2900 E. Pioneer Parkway.
• Six Flags Shopping Mall, 2911 E. Division St.

Eat

Budget

• Chelsea's Tea Room & Boutique

Mid-range

• Arlington Steak House, 1724 W Division St., 817. 275-7881.
• Bobby Valentine’s Sports Gallery Cafe, 4301 S. Bowen, [19].
• Bucknloon, 3517 S. Cooper, 817 466-2825, [20].
• Cafe Acapulco, 4001 W Green Oaks Blvd, Ste 121, 817 572-4471.
• Campo Verde, 2918 W Pioneer Pkwy.
• Catfish Sam's, 2735 W Division St., 817 275-9631, [21].
• No Frills Grill, Three in the Metroplex, [22].

Drink

• Fox and Hound Pub and Grille, 1001 NE Green Oaks Blvd, (817) 277-3591‎, Fun place to shoot pool and throw darts.
• Septembers, 2401 East Lamar Blvd (1 Block from Hwy 360 in the Hilton Arlington Texas), ☎ 817-630-3322, [2]. 4PM - 12AM/Open till 2AM Weekends. A great place to listen to music, play darts, watch sporting events on our multiple TVs. The best known bar in Arlington. Join us for Football PreGame Fan Fests. (32.761484,-97.067578)

Sleep

• Wingate Inn Arlington, 1024 Brookhollow Plaza Dr.,Arlington, TX 76006 (Email : [email protected]), ☎ 817-640-8686, [3]. Visit the Wingate Inn Arlington Fun Central, a modern Arlington, Texas hotel for business and vacation that offers spacious rooms and suites, meeting facilities and free high-speed internet.

Budget

• Microtel Inn & Suites Dallas/Arlington (Oak Village)[23] 1740 Oak Village Blvd., Tel: (817) 557-8400.

• Days Inn Arlington 1901 West Pleasant Ridge, Tel: 817-557-5828 [24].

Mid-range

• AmeriSuites Dallas/Arlington, 2380 East Rd to Six Flags, 817 649-7676, [25]. Rooms have microwave and refrigerator, separate workspace and free internet. Free hot breakfast, on-site meeting rooms, fitness center and outdoor swimming pool.

• Courtyard Dallas Arlington by the Ballpark, 1500 Nolan Ryan Expressway, ☎ 8172772774, [4]. Only eight miles from DFW Airport, with easy access to I-30 and HWY 360. Minutes from Six Flags Over Texas and Hurricane Harbor. $129-$159.

• Hawthorn Suites Arlington-DFW South, 2401 Brook Hollow Plaza Drive, 817 640-1188, [26].

• Holiday Inn Express-Six Flags, 2451 E. Randol Mill Rd (Off of Hwy 360 and Randol Mill Rd near I-30 as well), ☎ 817-640-5454, [5]. checkin: 3PM; checkout: 12 p.m.. Smoke free. Complimentary breakfast, free Wi-Fi internet, 24-hour shuttle service to and from the DFW airport and nearby shopping and dining within 5 miles. Outdoor pool and spa. $89-$179. (32.749161,-97.065522)

Stay safe

Arlington is a generally safe town, though the areas of Dalworthington Gardens, Pantego, and the areas north of IH-30 are MUCH better developed and safer than other parts of the city. Six Flags Over Texas, Hurricane Harbor water park, Rangers Ballpark in Arlington and the Dallas Cowboys' new stadium are situated in a highly modernized, pleasant location along IH-30; as you travel immediately south from there, the area is quite industrialized and deteriorated. One would be wise not to venture through East Arlington on foot at night. The 'danger zone' essentially is surrounded by IH-30 to the north, IH-20 to the south, Cooper Street/FM 157 to the west, and State Hwy. 360 to the east.

Immediately east of 360, however, lies Grand Prairie, a highly industrialized and increasingly 'slummy' part of the Metroplex. If you are going to the horse races at Lone Star Park, or seeing a show at the adjacent Nokia Theater, you will not run into any problems, as these venues lie north of IH-30 and are quite isolated from the rest of Grand Prairie. As with East Arlington, just be very careful walking anywhere at night in Grand Prairie. To the south of Arlington sits Mansfield, which was rated as one of CNN/Money Magazine's "Best Places to Live" in 2007, and notsurprisingly is one of the safest areas in all the Metroplex.

Located on the north side of IH-20, Arlington's main shopping centers - The Parks at Arlington Mall and newly-built Arlington Highlands mall - are very safe zones that are constantly bustling with people due to all the restaurants and commerce in this area.

If you are visiting the campus of UT Arlington during the day you shouldn't run into any problems, though after hours (even before sundown) assault and robbery are not uncommon on the campus outskirts, particularly south and east of campus. As mentioned before, West Arlington (Dalworthington Gardens and Pantego) are by far the safest areas of the city, though they are mostly residential.

Cope

• Kadampa Meditation Center Texas , 609 Truman Street, +1 817-460-2781, [27]. Offers relaxation meditations and meditation classes to increase inner peace.

Get out

Routes through Arlington

Midland ← Fort Worth ←	W  E	→ Dallas → Shreveport
I-20 ← Fort Worth ←	W  E	→ Dallas → Grand Prairie

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