Travel + Leisure Readers' 15 Favorite City Hotels in Texas of 2024
Find your perfect home base in Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth, or Houston with T+L readers’ top picks in Texas in the “World’s Best Awards” survey for 2024.
It's cliche but true: Everything really is bigger in Texas, including some great, big, stylish, and enormously luxurious hotels that are waiting to welcome you. And while there's plenty of land to roam in Texas — 268,597 square miles, to be exact — its cities are cultural hubs that should not be missed. That includes Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, and the state's capital, Austin, where you'll find world-class dining, festivals, and artistic talent that will leave you in awe by the time you depart. Better yet, examples of all of this can be found inside those very same larger-than-life hotels.
How Voting Works
Every year for our World's Best Awards survey, T+L asks readers to weigh in on travel experiences around the globe — to share their opinions on the top hotels, resorts, cities, islands, cruise ships, spas, airlines, and more. Over 186,000 T+L readers completed the 2024 survey. A total of more than 700,000 votes were cast across over 8,700 properties (hotels, cities, cruise lines, etc.).
Hotels were classified as either resort hotel, city hotel, inn, or safari lodge based on their location and amenities, and they were specifically rated on the criteria below:
Rooms/facilities
Location
Service
Food
Value
For each characteristic, respondents could choose a rating of excellent, above average, average, below average, or poor. The final scores are averages of these responses.
Courtesy of Marriott
What Readers Loved
A fun, funky spirit is what T+L readers were loving most in their favorite Texas city hotels. "Loved this small hotel. Great aesthetic and design," one reader wrote about their favorite spot, Hotel San José, the No. 2 hotel winner for Austin. "Incredibly hip vibe, consistently excellent in all categories but especially their customer service which makes you feel that you are part of a cool family that you can’t wait to see again," another wrote about Hotel ZaZa Houston Museum District, the No. 2 winner for Houston. "Each room is different and a pleasant surprise, pet friendly and quiet. It is convenient to many other cool places — but you also don’t need to leave to have an awesome experience."
And the three winning spots are no different, which include the Hotel Saint Cecilia in Austin, the Hotel Drover, Autograph Collection, in Fort Worth, and the Lancaster Hotel in Houston.
Austin Winner
Hotel Saint Cecilia
Nick Simonite/Courtesy of Hotel Saint Cecilia
Hotel Saint Cecilia offers travelers a retreat inspired by rock and roll legends and literary greats, including Bill Burroughs, Anne Sexton, and Hunter S. Thompson. Each of its five suites, six poolside bungalows, and three studios come with distinctive design and vintage furnishings, along with Rega turntables and Geneva sound systems in each room so you can listen to your favorites all night long. The hotel also aims to keep things ultra cozy with Hästens beds, custom bathrobes, and access to its lush, private grounds, including its lap pool, which makes for quite the quiet oasis in the midst of Austin.
Austin Full List
Reader Score: 96.25
Reader Score: 94.67
Reader Score: 91.64
Reader Score: 90.13
5. Austin Proper Hotel & Residences
Reader Score: 89.68
Dallas-Fort Worth Winner
Hotel Drover, Autograph Collection
Courtesy of Marriott
Travelers to the Dallas-Fort Worth area found one more cooler-than-cool spot to love when they checked into the Hotel Drover, Autograph Collection. "Cowboy Chic! The smell of leather is everywhere," one reader wrote about the winning hotel. "Amazing decor everywhere. Very nice staff. The drinks from the bar are pricey but excellent. Perfect location in the historic Fort Worth Stockyards. Hotel stores and staff are wonderful." Indeed, several readers noted the exceptional attention to detail throughout the hotel, both in the decor and by the staff. "Felt like the team invited me into their home and they took excellent care of everything we needed," another reader noted.
"Cowboy Chic! The smell of leather is everywhere."
T+L Reader
Dallas-Fort Worth Full List
1. Hotel Drover, Autograph Collection, Fort Worth
Reader Score: 93.69
2. Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek, Dallas
Reader Score: 93.29
3. Hotel Crescent Court, Dallas
Reader Score: 92.50
4. The Joule, Dallas
Reader Score: 91.76
5. The Adolphus, Dallas
Reader Score: 91.20
Houston Winner
Lancaster Hotel
Terry Vine/Courtesy of Lancaster Hotel
Readers also adored all there was to offer in Houston this year, including all the details within the city's winning property, the Lancaster Hotel. "Superb luxury boutique hotel next to the theater," one reader noted. "Staff was some of the best. Friendly, efficient and eager to help." Another noted the same "superb service from check-in to check-out," adding the rooms are "impeccable" and filled with "beautiful, classic details." Not to mention the hotel's amenities, including a complimentary gourmet breakfast, complimentary in-room snacks, and a delightful afternoon tea service, all ensuring guests leave feeling like they were the most important person to ever check in.
Houston Full List
Reader Score: 97.64
2. Hotel ZaZa Houston Museum District
Reader Score: 93.57
Reader Score: 89.87
4. The Post Oak Hotel at Uptown Houston
Reader Score: 89.37
Reader Score: 86.84
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