Days 1 and 2 | Wichita Falls, Mineral Wells

Wichita Falls gets its name from the Wichita tribe, the oldest group of American Indians in the area. It’s home to Sheppard Air Force Base, one of the city’s largest employers and headquarters for the European NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training Program. Visit the Heritage Center, located on the base and perfect for military and aviation buffs. The Wichita Falls Railroad Museum honors the city’s history as a major transportation hub of the past.

Tour the restored 1908 Wichita Theater and Opera House, then end the day with a stop at Arrowhead State Park with its more than 100 miles of shoreline along the Wichita River and new equestrian and hiking trails.

In Mineral Wells, pay tribute to the city’s namesake with a taste of its healing mineral waters at the Famous Mineral Water Company, where you can learn about its history right where the water is bottled. In fact, in 1910, Mineral Wells was the largest shipping point for mineral water in the South, producing more than three million bottles.

Shop the city’s historic district, especially North Oak Avenue and N.E. First Street, before heading to Abilene via Texas Highway 4–named one of “Texas’ Top 10 Roads,” a twisting, turning roadway through the beautiful scenery of the Palo Pinto Mountains and Palo Pinto Lake.

Days 3 and 4 | Abilene, San Angelo

Abilene’s cowboy culture is clearly evident at Buffalo Gap Historic Village. See the city’s first county courthouse, jail, and Western and Indian artifacts, and then experience it for yourself at Frontier Texas!–a new downtown attraction that features multimedia presentations on life in the Wild West.

The city is also making improvements to its famed zoo (more than 800 animals), including a new Creepy Crawler center for reptiles and amphibians, a new South American Trails exhibit area, the Elm Creek Backyard project to educate visitors about native area wildlife, and the Wetlands Boardwalk to house alligators, waterfowl, and flamingos.

In San Angelo, learn about the city’s history at Fort Concho, a frontier outpost and historic landmark on the Texas Forts Trail with more than 20 original buildings open for tours. From the fort, take the tree-lined El Paseo de Santa Angela, a historic trail that connects the fort to San Angelo’s historic homes district.

Explore the Concho River Walk downtown with its six miles of jogging/walking trails, flowing fountains, amusement park, and nine-hole golf course. Later, shop for “concho pearls,” the fresh-water pink, purple, and lavender pearls from West Texas mollusks available at local jewelry shops.

Days 5 and 6 | Sonora, Mountain Home, Kerrville

Just south of San Angelo is Sonora, a rugged town known for the Sonora Caverns, which have been called some of the best “live” caves in the Southwest. Choose one of the several daily tours. One tour takes participants 60 feet underground to explore the caves and marvel at their crystal-like stalagmites, stalactites, and other natural formations.

Leave early the next day for Mountain Home and the Y.O. Ranch. You’ll see the country’s largest collection of roaming exotic creatures, including 19-foot-tall giraffes, zebras, red-necked African ostriches, Australian emus, East African wildebeests, South American rheas, and Texas Longhorns, of course. Take the daily 10 a.m. photo safari to snap some pictures, and then stay overnight at the lodge or at another of the ranch’s many accommodations.

In Kerrville, site of the long-running Kerrville Folk Festival, held annually in May and June, visit the Museum of Western Art to view paintings and sculpture that celebrate the spirit of the Old West. End the day with hiking and a dip in the Guadalupe River at the 500-acre Kerrville-Schreiner Park. Take Texas Highway 16 to Bandera, a route that Texas singer Lyle Lovett calls “one of the prettiest roads in Texas” because of its limestone streams, rock outcroppings, lush meadows, and tall oak trees.

Days 7 and 8 | Bandera, Laredo

Bandera is known for its dude ranches, which corral both kids and adults with group activities, hearty cowboy-style meals, riding, roping, and more. Try the Dixie Dude Ranch, founded in1937. It’s Bandera’s oldest and gives guests a real cowboy experience on a working stock ranch.

Learn more about the “Cowboy Capital of the World” with a bit of history at the Frontier Times Museum, dinner on the saddle-topped stools at the Old Spanish Trail restaurant, and a night out at one of Bandera’s honky-tonks.

Start your tour of Laredo at the Republic of the Rio Grande Museum. From there, take the Heritage Trolley tour, which will deliver you to Laredo’s other points of interest.

Shop for souvenirs in the Old Mercado area with its charming shops and markets, or walk across International Bridge #1 to Nuevo Laredo. Just after Convent Avenue, you’ll run into Guerrero Avenue, where you’ll find shops, markets, and other entertainment. Grab a bite to eat, and then shop for Mexican tiles, pottery, authentic silver jewelry, colorful Mexican blankets, and toys.

Later, catch a show at the Laredo Entertainment Center, or enjoy a margarita and great Tex-Mex food at one of the city’s many specialty Mexican restaurants.