Located near the United States-Mexico border and heavily influenced by both sides of the line, El Paso’s area was inhabited for thousands of years before either nation came into existence. Now the city offers an intriguing cultural cocktail, containing a village thousands of years old and food/artwork influenced by both sides of the border. Give our guide a look to discover some of El Paso’s highlights.
Your El Paso Daycation Destination Guide
- Food – Being so close to the border, there’s a Mexican flavor to many of the restaurants, amongst the best of which are La Poblana Restaurant, Dominguez Mexican Food Restaurant, and Los Bandidos De Carlos & Mickey’s. For those who prefer other styles, there are a number of Italian restaurants, including Monteleone’s Ristorante, as well as dining options Puerto Rican, American, seafood, and Chinese.
- Parks – Franklin Mountains State Park offers beautiful desert vistas upon which to feast your eyes, and the opportunity to go camping, climbing, and hiking all without leaving the city. Keystone Heritage Park and the El Paso Desert Botanical Garden is another site to delight nature lovers with its botanical gardens and wetlands, as well as the remains of an ancient village.
- Museums – Aficionados of art may be intrigued by the El Paso Museum of Art, which houses modern artworks in a quintet of galleries and mingles the city’s cultural heritage of American, Mexican, and European influences. The nearby El Paso Museum of History explains centuries of border life through artifacts, narratives, photos and videos. Some of the other museums in the city are the Wigwam Museum, the Holocaust Museum, the Fort Bliss Museum, and the International Museum of Art.
- Zoo – El Paso Zoo is home to hundreds of species of animal, with its inhabitants originating from various continents. Lions, giraffes, zebras, elephants, tigers, and bears can all be seen. There’s also a large playground, if the kids still have energy to burn.
Seven Fun El Paso Facts
- The El Paso region has been inhabited by humans for thousands of years.
- The city was incorporated in 1873.
- El Paso’s elevation is 3,800 feet (1,200 meters) above sea level, and contains North Franklin Mountain which rises to 7,192 feet (2,192 meters) above sea level.
- El Paso is home to the Franklin Mountains State Park which is the largest urban park in the United States (24,000 acres, or 9,700 hectares).
- Keystone Heritage Park includes an archaeological site and is home to one of the oldest villages in the United States.
- The city plays host to the Sun Bowl, the second oldest bowl game in the United States (after the Rose Bowl).
- El Paso was ranked in the top three safest large cities (in the United States) for almost two decades, after which, 2011-14, it was considered the safest large city in the country.
