Welcome to Dallas!

Known as “Big D,” this city enjoys sharing personal warmth with all who care to partake, and if things seem bigger in Texas, that definitely goes for Dallas, the state’s top visitor destination, encompassing 384 square miles. In many ways, Dallas suburbs, once viewed as mere satellite areas, are now distinct entities. Moreover, Dallas and Fort Worth, once separated by nearly 30 miles of barren land, are now linked by housing subdivisions, business parks and assorted industrial projects. Ever since oil was found 100

miles east, Dallas (which has never had a working oil well of its own) has been a drilling industry hub. Reeling with the assassination of President John F. Kennedy on a downtown street in 1963, Dallas went on to enjoy the success of its Dallas Cowboys and larger than life entrepreneurs such as reformer Ross Perot and cosmetic queen Mary Kay Ash. The State Fair of Texas has opened annually at the same location in Dallas’ Fair Park since 1886. With 69 million square feet, the Dallas Market center is the world’s largest wholesale merchandise mart, and North Park Center, the nation’s first covered shopping mall, claims the largest-grossing Dillard's and Neiman Marcus – once again serving as a reminder that Dallas is truly the Big D.