Texas
Historic Hotels & Inns in Texas
From the Alamo and the River Walk to Galveston’s seawall, the Dallas and Fort Worth skylines and the ranch towns of West Texas: every historic hotel and inn in the state we could verify.
The short answer
San Antonio has the most, with 10 historic hotels and B&Bs on Alamo Plaza, along the River Walk and in the King William district. Beyond it, book The Driskill, cattle baron Jesse Driskill’s 1886 hotel in Austin, or The Adolphus, Adolphus Busch’s 1912 hotel in Dallas. On the Gulf, the 1911 Grand Galvez stands on Galveston’s seawall. In West Texas, stay at the Gage Hotel in Marathon or Hotel Limpia in Fort Davis; in East Texas, the Excelsior House in Jefferson, established in 1858.
Our top picks
Best overall
The Driskill
Built 1886 · Austin
Cattle baron Jesse Driskill's 1886 Romanesque hotel, where governors from Sul Ross to Ann Richards held their inaugural balls.
Best small inn
Hotel Limpia
Built 1913 · Fort Davis
A 1913 stone hotel on the Fort Davis courthouse square, built for 'Summer Swallows' escaping the heat; Harvard astronomers later leased space…
Oldest
Excelsior House Hotel
Built 1858 · Jefferson
Jefferson's 1858 river-port hotel, host to Grant, Hayes and Oscar Wilde, which the hotel says is the oldest continuously operating hotel in…
Most haunted
The Emily Morgan Hotel
Built 1924 · San Antonio
A 1924 Gothic Revival medical tower on Alamo Plaza with gargoyles depicting ailments, now on Historic Hotels of America's 2026 most-haunted list.
Best resort
Grand Galvez
Built 1911 · Galveston
The 1911 Hotel Galvez on Galveston's seawall, financed by local businessmen to revive the island after the 1900 hurricane.
Grand hotel
The Adolphus
Built 1912 · Dallas
Adolphus Busch's 1912 hotel, Dallas's first luxury hotel, where Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip stayed on their 1991 state visit.
Where they are
Where to go
Every historic inn in Texas
| Inn | Town | Built | Rooms | Type | Price | Haunted | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Omni La Mansión del Rio | San Antonio | 1852 | 338 | Grand hotel | – | Yes | Rates |
| The Oge House | San Antonio | 1857 | 10 | B&B | $$ | Yes | Rates |
| Excelsior House Hotel | Jefferson | 1858 | 15 | Inn | $ | Yes | Rates |
| The Menger Hotel | San Antonio | 1859 | 316 | Grand hotel | – | Yes | Rates |
| Claiborne House | Jefferson | 1862–66 | 7 | B&B | $ | Rates | |
| Gruene Mansion Inn | Gruene (New Braunfels) | 1872 | 33 | Inn | – | Rates | |
| The Tremont House | Galveston | 1879 | – | Boutique hotel | – | Rates | |
| The Driskill | Austin | 1886 | 189 | Grand hotel | – | Yes | Rates |
| Mokara Hotel & Spa | San Antonio | c. 1900 | 99 | Boutique hotel | – | Rates | |
| Brackenridge House | San Antonio | c. 1901 | 5 | B&B | $ | Rates | |
| Holland Hotel | Alpine | 1907 | 27 | Inn | – | Rates | |
| The Crockett Hotel | San Antonio | 1909 | 138 | Boutique hotel | – | Yes | Rates |
| The Gunter Hotel | San Antonio | 1909 | – | Grand hotel | – | Yes | Rates |
| The St. Anthony | San Antonio | 1909 | – | Grand hotel | – | Yes | Rates |
| Grand Galvez | Galveston | 1911 | 219 | Resort | – | Yes | Rates |
| The Adolphus | Dallas | 1912 | 407 | Grand hotel | – | Rates | |
| Hotel Paso del Norte | El Paso | 1912 | – | Grand hotel | – | Rates | |
| Hotel Limpia | Fort Davis | 1913 | 30 | Inn | – | Rates | |
| The Ashton Hotel | Fort Worth | 1915 | – | Boutique hotel | – | Rates | |
| Hilton Fort Worth | Fort Worth | 1921 | – | Grand hotel | – | Rates | |
| Magnolia Hotel Dallas Downtown | Dallas | 1922 | – | Boutique hotel | – | Rates | |
| The Stoneleigh | Dallas | 1923 | – | Grand hotel | – | Rates | |
| The Emily Morgan Hotel | San Antonio | 1924 | – | Boutique hotel | – | Yes | Rates |
| The Stephen F. Austin Royal Sonesta Hotel | Austin | 1924 | – | Grand hotel | – | Rates | |
| The Tarpon Inn | Port Aransas | 1925 | – | Inn | – | Rates | |
| Gage Hotel | Marathon | 1927 | – | Inn | – | Rates | |
| Drury Plaza Hotel San Antonio Riverwalk | San Antonio | 1929 | 368 | Grand hotel | – | Yes | Rates |
| The Sinclair | Fort Worth | 1930 | – | Boutique hotel | – | Rates | |
| The Plaza Hotel Pioneer Park | El Paso | 1930 | 130 | Boutique hotel | – | Rates | |
| Hotel Settles | Big Spring | 1930 | 65 | Grand hotel | – | Rates | |
| The Statler | Dallas | 1956 | 159 | Grand hotel | – | Rates | |
| Stagecoach Inn | Salado | 1960 | – | Inn | – | Rates | |
| Le Méridien Fort Worth Downtown | Fort Worth | 1970 | – | Boutique hotel | – | Rates |
Price is a typical nightly rate: $ under $200, $$ $200–349, $$$ $350–549, $$$$ $550+. Rates vary by season; check the inn for exact prices.
Elsewhere in Texas
Built 1858 · Classical Revival · Jefferson · Inn
Excelsior House Hotel
Why stay Jefferson's 1858 river-port hotel, host to Grant, Hayes and Oscar Wilde, which the hotel says is the oldest continuously operating hotel in Texas.
The ghost story The hotel's own page says guests have reported unexplained noises and cold spots in Room 215, which it links to a story about Steven Spielberg. It also says some have seen a headless man on the second floor and a woman in black carrying a baby. These are presented as guest and staff stories.
Good to know Breakfast: available
Built 1862–66 · Greek Revival (modified, front-gabled) · Jefferson · B&B
Claiborne House
Why stay A Greek Revival house built between 1862 and 1866, bought by Capt. V. H. Claiborne in 1871 and now a seven-room B&B with a full Southern breakfast.
Good to know Breakfast: included
Built 1872 · Victorian (Eastlake detailing) · Gruene (New Braunfels) · Inn
Gruene Mansion Inn
Why stay Henry D. Gruene's 1872 house next to Gruene Hall, in the town later named for him, with rooms in the house and its restored outbuildings.
Good to know Breakfast: available
Built 1879 · Galveston · Boutique hotel
The Tremont House
Why stay The 1879 Leon & H. Blum dry-goods building in the Strand, opened in 1985 as the third hotel to carry Galveston's Tremont House name.
Good to know Breakfast: available · Parking: on-site paid · Pets welcome
Built 1886 · Romanesque · Austin · Grand hotel
The Driskill
Why stay Cattle baron Jesse Driskill's 1886 Romanesque hotel, where governors from Sul Ross to Ann Richards held their inaugural balls.
The ghost story Travel Texas reports that the grand staircase is said to be haunted by a young girl and that Room 525 reportedly holds the spirits of two brides who died on their honeymoons twenty years apart. These are reported legends.
Good to know Parking: on-site paid · Pets welcome
Built 1907 · Spanish Colonial Revival · Alpine · Inn
Holland Hotel
Why stay Cattleman John R. Holland's 1907 hotel on the Sunset Limited line, enlarged by Trost & Trost in 1928 and once Alpine's civic center.
Built 1911 · Spanish Colonial / Mission Revival · Galveston · Resort
Grand Galvez
Why stay The 1911 Hotel Galvez on Galveston's seawall, financed by local businessmen to revive the island after the 1900 hurricane.
The ghost story Travel Texas reports the hotel is said to be haunted by the 'Lovelorn Lady', a bride whose life was cut short after her fiancé died. It is told as local lore.
Built 1912 · Beaux Arts (French Renaissance detailing) · Dallas · Grand hotel
The Adolphus
Why stay Adolphus Busch's 1912 hotel, Dallas's first luxury hotel, where Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip stayed on their 1991 state visit.
Good to know Parking: on-site paid · Pets welcome
Built 1912 · Chicago School / Beaux Arts · El Paso · Grand hotel
Hotel Paso del Norte
Why stay Zach White's ten-story brick and terra cotta 'dream hotel', designed by Trost & Trost to be fireproof and completed in 1912.
Built 1913 · Fort Davis · Inn
Hotel Limpia
Why stay A 1913 stone hotel on the Fort Davis courthouse square, built for 'Summer Swallows' escaping the heat; Harvard astronomers later leased space here.
Good to know No elevator · Pets welcome
Built 1915 · Italianate / Renaissance Revival · Fort Worth · Boutique hotel
The Ashton Hotel
Why stay Built in 1915 for the Fort Worth Club near Sundance Square and a hotel since 2001, with the 1890 Winfree Building next door as banquet space.
Built 1921 · Chicago School / Renaissance (terra cotta detailing) · Fort Worth · Grand hotel
Hilton Fort Worth
Why stay The 1921 Hotel Texas, where John F. Kennedy spent his last night and gave his last address on the morning of November 22, 1963.
Built 1922 · Beaux Arts / Renaissance skyscraper · Dallas · Boutique hotel
Magnolia Hotel Dallas Downtown
Why stay The 29-story 1922 Magnolia Petroleum tower, which the hotel says was Dallas's first skyscraper and the first U.S. high-rise with air conditioning.
Good to know Parking: on-site paid · Pets welcome
Built 1923 · Beaux Arts (Renaissance per NPGallery); Dorothy Draper-designed penthouse · Dallas · Grand hotel
The Stoneleigh
Why stay The 1923 Stoneleigh Court, an 11-story residential hotel the hotel says began luxury high-rise living in Dallas, reopened in 2026.
Built 1924 · Beaux Arts · Austin · Grand hotel
The Stephen F. Austin Royal Sonesta Hotel
Why stay T. B. Baker's 1924 Beaux Arts hotel on Congress Avenue, planned as 'The Texas' but named for Stephen F. Austin in response to local interest.
Good to know Pets welcome
Built 1925 · Port Aransas · Inn
The Tarpon Inn
Why stay Founded in 1886 in an old barracks; the main building is a 1925 rebuild after the 1919 hurricane, and FDR fished for tarpon here in 1937.
Good to know Pets welcome
Built 1927 · Marathon · Inn
Gage Hotel
Why stay Trost & Trost's 1927 hotel for cattleman Alfred Gage, whose ranching operation of more than 600 sections was the largest in the Trans-Pecos.
Built 1930 · Art Deco (zig-zag and Mayan motifs) · Fort Worth · Boutique hotel
The Sinclair
Why stay Wiley G. Clarkson's 1930 Art Deco office tower with zig-zag and Mayan motifs, named for an early tenant, the Sinclair Oil Company.
Built 1930 · Art Deco / Pueblo Revival · El Paso · Boutique hotel
The Plaza Hotel Pioneer Park
Why stay A 19-story Trost & Trost tower of 1930, one of Conrad Hilton's first high-rise hotels, where Elizabeth Taylor briefly lived in the penthouse.
Good to know Parking: on-site paid
Built 1930 · Art Deco · Big Spring · Grand hotel
Hotel Settles
Why stay Will and Lillian Settles' 1930 oil-money tower, once the tallest building between Fort Worth and El Paso, reopened in 2012 after decades closed.
Built 1956 · Mid-century modern (curtain wall) · Dallas · Grand hotel
The Statler
Why stay William B. Tabler's 1956 Statler Hilton, the first major hotel built in Dallas in nearly three decades, with 159 hotel rooms below apartments.
Good to know Parking: on-site paid · Pets welcome
Built 1960 · Frontier vernacular (1860s inn); mid-century motel resort (1960) · Salado · Inn
Stagecoach Inn
Why stay Rooms are in 1960 motor-court buildings added by the owners of the 1860s Chisholm Trail inn, which is now the restaurant.
Good to know Pets welcome
Built 1970 · Mid-Century Modern · Fort Worth · Boutique hotel
Le Méridien Fort Worth Downtown
Why stay Preston Geren Jr.'s 1970 annex to the Hotel Texas, added to its National Register listing in 2014 for its role in reviving downtown.
Good to know Parking: on-site paid
No inns match that filter.
Ways in
Themes in Texas
San Antonio, from the Alamo to King William
Three historic hotels stand in the Alamo Plaza Historic District: The Menger, opened in 1859; The Crockett, a 1909 Odd Fellows lodge and hotel; and The Emily Morgan, a 1924 medical tower. On the River Walk, Omni La Mansión del Rio fills an 1852 school that became a hotel for HemisFair ’68, and the King William district has two B&Bs in historic houses, The Oge House and Brackenridge House.
Galveston and the Gulf
Galveston businessmen built the Hotel Galvez, now Grand Galvez, in 1911 to revive the island after the 1900 hurricane. The Tremont House fills an 1879 dry-goods building in the Strand, a National Historic Landmark district, and takes its name from a hotel first opened in 1839, the year Galveston was founded. In Port Aransas, The Tarpon Inn was founded in 1886; its main building is a 1925 rebuild after the 1919 hurricane.
Dallas and Fort Worth towers
Dallas has The Adolphus (1912), the city’s first luxury hotel; the 29-story Magnolia Petroleum Building (1922), now the Magnolia Hotel, with the Pegasus on its roof; The Stoneleigh (1923), built as a residential hotel; and The Statler (1956). In Fort Worth, John F. Kennedy spent his last night at the 1921 Hotel Texas, now Hilton Fort Worth, and The Sinclair fills an oilman’s 1930 Art Deco office tower.
West Texas ranch and railroad hotels
In Marathon, Trost & Trost designed the 1927 Gage Hotel for rancher Alfred Gage. In Alpine, cattleman John R. Holland’s hotel stands on the Sunset Limited rail line, and in Fort Davis the 1913 Hotel Limpia was built for ‘Summer Swallows’ escaping the heat in the mile-high Davis Mountains. Oil money paid for the 1930 Hotel Settles in Big Spring, and El Paso has two more Trost & Trost hotels, the Hotel Paso del Norte (1912) and The Plaza Hotel (1930).
Road trip
Salado to San Antonio, inn to inn
Salado
Start at the Stagecoach Inn, where rooms are in 1960 motor-court buildings and the 1860s Chisholm Trail inn is now the restaurant.
Austin
Stay at The Driskill, Jesse Driskill’s 1886 hotel near 6th Street, or the 1924 Stephen F. Austin on Congress Avenue.
Gruene
Stop at the Gruene Mansion Inn, Henry D. Gruene’s 1872 house next to Gruene Hall, which the inn calls Texas’s oldest dance hall.
San Antonio
Give San Antonio two nights. Pick an inn on Alamo Plaza, on the River Walk or in King William from our San Antonio guide.
Beyond the inns
Signature tours in Texas
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Context
History and architecture
Texas’s historic hotels follow its money. San Antonio has the oldest buildings: the Spanish founded its mission and presidio in 1718, and the Mengers opened their hotel beside the Alamo in 1859, a year after the Excelsior House opened in the river port of Jefferson. Cattlemen built The Driskill in Austin in 1886 and, later, the Holland Hotel in Alpine and the Gage Hotel in Marathon. After the 1900 hurricane, Galveston built the Hotel Galvez to bring visitors back. In the cities, towers followed: The Adolphus in Dallas in 1912 and the Hotel Texas in Fort Worth in 1921. Oil money then built the Magnolia Petroleum Building in 1922, and the Sinclair Building and the Hotel Settles in Big Spring in 1930.
Questions travelers ask
What is the oldest hotel in Texas?
Of the inns we list, the one with the earliest start as a hotel is the Excelsior House in Jefferson, established in 1858, which calls itself the oldest continuously operating hotel in Texas; the Texas Historical Commission calls it the oldest hotel in East Texas. The Menger in San Antonio opened in 1859 and bills itself as the oldest continuously operating hotel west of the Mississippi. The oldest building is Omni La Mansión del Rio’s, begun in 1852 as a school, but it has been a hotel only since 1968.
What is the most haunted hotel in Texas?
There is no official ranking. Historic Hotels of America’s most-haunted lists have featured three San Antonio hotels, The Menger, The Emily Morgan and The Gunter, and Travel Texas, the state tourism office, reports ghost stories at The Driskill in Austin and the Grand Galvez in Galveston. The Excelsior House in Jefferson tells its own. These are stories guests and staff tell, not documented fact.
What are the historic hotels in Dallas and Fort Worth?
Dallas has four we list: The Adolphus (1912), Magnolia Hotel Dallas Downtown (1922), The Stoneleigh (1923) and The Statler (1956). Fort Worth has four: Hilton Fort Worth, the 1921 Hotel Texas; The Ashton Hotel (1915); The Sinclair (1930); and Le Méridien Fort Worth Downtown, the Hotel Texas’s 1970 annex.
Are there historic hotels in West Texas?
Yes, six we list: the Gage Hotel in Marathon (1927), the Holland Hotel in Alpine, Hotel Limpia in Fort Davis (1913), Hotel Settles in Big Spring (1930), and in El Paso the Hotel Paso del Norte (1912) and The Plaza Hotel Pioneer Park (1930). Trost & Trost designed or enlarged all of them except the Limpia and the Settles.
Where are the best historic bed and breakfasts in Texas?
Most of the state’s historic stays are hotels. For a B&B, try San Antonio’s King William district, with The Oge House and Brackenridge House, or Jefferson, where Claiborne House is a Greek Revival home built between 1862 and 1866, with seven rooms.
How we chose these inns
Every place on this page is at least 50 years old, holds a credential we can check (National Register listing, a listed historic district, landmark status, or Historic Hotels of America membership), and takes bookings today. We verify each one against primary sources before it goes on the list, and last checked this list in October 2026. Read our criteria.
Sources (99)
- Omni La Mansión del Rio: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- The Crockett Hotel: www.ksat.com
- Omni La Mansión del Rio: www.historichotels.org
- Omni La Mansión del Rio: www.tshaonline.org
- The Oge House: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- The Oge House: ghostcitytours.com
- The Oge House: www.nobleinns.com
- The Oge House: www.tshaonline.org
- Excelsior House Hotel: npgallery.nps.gov
- Excelsior House Hotel: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- Excelsior House Hotel: theexcelsiorhouse.com
- Excelsior House Hotel: theexcelsiorhouse.com
- The Menger Hotel: www.historichotels.org
- The Menger Hotel: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- The Menger Hotel: www.historichotels.org
- The Menger Hotel: www.mengerhotel.com
- Claiborne House: www.claibornehousebnb.com
- Claiborne House: npgallery.nps.gov
- Gruene Mansion Inn: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- Gruene Mansion Inn: gruenemansioninn.com
- The Tremont House: www.thetremonthouse.com
- The Tremont House: www.nps.gov
- The Tremont House: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- The Driskill: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- The Driskill: npgallery.nps.gov
- Grand Galvez: www.traveltexas.com
- The Driskill: driskillhotel.com
- The Driskill: driskillhotel.com
- The St. Anthony: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- Mokara Hotel & Spa: pre-www.omnihotels.com
- Brackenridge House: www.brackenridgehouse.com
- Brackenridge House: services.arcgis.com
- Holland Hotel: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- Holland Hotel: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- Holland Hotel: www.thehollandhoteltexas.com
- The Crockett Hotel: www.historichotels.org
- The Crockett Hotel: npgallery.nps.gov
- The Crockett Hotel: www.historichotels.org
- The Crockett Hotel: www.crocketthotel.com
- The Gunter Hotel: npgallery.nps.gov
- The Emily Morgan Hotel: www.historichotels.org
- The Gunter Hotel: www.historichotels.org
- The Gunter Hotel: www.historichotels.org
- The St. Anthony: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- The St. Anthony: npgallery.nps.gov
- The St. Anthony: www.visitsanantonio.com
- Grand Galvez: www.grandgalvez.com
- Grand Galvez: npgallery.nps.gov
- Grand Galvez: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- The Adolphus: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- The Adolphus: npgallery.nps.gov
- The Adolphus: www.adolphus.com
- Hotel Paso del Norte: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- Hotel Paso del Norte: npgallery.nps.gov
- Hotel Limpia: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- Hotel Limpia: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- Hotel Limpia: www.hotellimpia.com
- The Ashton Hotel: www.theashtonhotel.com
- The Statler: www.historichotels.org
- The Ashton Hotel: www.historichotels.org
- The Ashton Hotel: www.historichotels.org
- Hilton Fort Worth: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- Hilton Fort Worth: npgallery.nps.gov
- Hilton Fort Worth: www.historichotels.org
- Magnolia Hotel Dallas Downtown: npgallery.nps.gov
- Magnolia Hotel Dallas Downtown: www.magnoliahotels.com
- The Stoneleigh: www.stoneleighhotel.com
- The Stoneleigh: npgallery.nps.gov
- The Stoneleigh: dallasinnovates.com
- The Emily Morgan Hotel: www.historichotels.org
- The Emily Morgan Hotel: www.emilymorganhotel.com
- The Emily Morgan Hotel: www.historichotels.org
- The Stephen F. Austin Royal Sonesta Hotel: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- The Stephen F. Austin Royal Sonesta Hotel: www.sonesta.com
- The Tarpon Inn: npgallery.nps.gov
- The Tarpon Inn: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- The Tarpon Inn: www.thetarponinn.com
- The Tarpon Inn: www.thetarponinn.com
- Gage Hotel: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- Gage Hotel: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- Drury Plaza Hotel San Antonio Riverwalk: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- Drury Plaza Hotel San Antonio Riverwalk: npgallery.nps.gov
- Drury Plaza Hotel San Antonio Riverwalk: ghostcitytours.com
- The Sinclair: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- The Sinclair: npgallery.nps.gov
- The Sinclair: www.thesinclairhotel.com
- The Plaza Hotel Pioneer Park: npgallery.nps.gov
- The Plaza Hotel Pioneer Park: www.plazahotelelpaso.com
- Hotel Settles: hotelsettles.com
- Hotel Settles: npgallery.nps.gov
- Hotel Settles: www.historichotels.org
- Hotel Settles: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- The Statler: thestatlerdallas.com
- Stagecoach Inn: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- Stagecoach Inn: www.historichotels.org
- Stagecoach Inn: stagecoachsalado.com
- Stagecoach Inn: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- Le Méridien Fort Worth Downtown: atlas.thc.texas.gov
- Le Méridien Fort Worth Downtown: www.historichotels.org
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