Abilene Zoo

Discover the wonderful world of wildlife at the Abilene Zoo! Home to more than 1,000 animals from around the globe, a visit to the Abilene Zoo is filled with fun and excitement for animal lovers of all ages. Get up close and personal with a giraffe at Giraffe Safari. Check out lions, camels, a white tiger, black rhinoceros and other African species, while the king cobra and 70 other reptiles await you in the Reptile House. Meet animals from the tropics in the colorful Caribbean Cove or meet dozens of native species in Elm Creek Backyard.Treat yourself to a hot dog basket and beverage at the Watering Hole and select a souvenir of your visit at the Zoo Store.  Take a tour on the Safari Express Train and a whirl on the Wildlife Carousel.

Ask for coupons and discounts at the KOA office or contact the Abilene Visitor's Center.

325-676-6085

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Frontier TEXAS!

Located in historic downtown Abilene, Frontier Texas is a western heritage center that allows visitors to relive the Old West through the magic of state-of-the-art technology. Frontier Texas brings the frontier to life and lets visitors meet people who played out their lives on the Texas frontier. Frontier Texas also serves as the official visitor center for Abilene and the Texas Forts Trail Region.

325-437-2800

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The National Center for Children's Illustrated Literature

The National Center for Children's Illustrated  Literature exhibits, tours, collects, preserves and promotes original art from  the finest children's literature.  Continuing to inspire and empower children to read and be creative. Through its programming and outreach, the NCCIL will actively promote children's literacy, both art and reading, in the Abilene community and beyond.

The National Center for Children's Illustrated Literature collaborates with award-winning illustrators to produce exhibitions of their artwork that are distinctive, appealing to museum visitors of all ages, and of the highest quality. In addition to this unique artistic partnership, following its debut at the NCCIL gallery, each exhibition travels to museums, public libraries, and galleries nationwide.

325-673-4586

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Adamson-Spalding Storybook Garden

On June 8, 2017, the Adamson-Spalding Storybook Garden was unveiled on the southeast lawn of the Abilene Convention Center with thousands of people in attendance, including the family of Garth Williams. The family traveled to Abilene from Mexico and took part in the ribbon cutting and in the weekend's festivities during the Children's Art & Literacy Festival.The Williams family authorized five sets of sculptures for the garden depicting some of Garth's most iconic characters from best-selling books “Charlotte's Web,” “Stuart Little,” and the popular Little Golden Book “Three Bedtime Stories.” From that book, sculptures were created of “The Three Little Pigs,” “The Three Little Kittens” and “The Three Bears.” Garth Williams was the most revered illustrator of his generation, and these works will be a permanent part of his legacy and Abilene's cultural landscape.

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The Grace Museum

The Grace Museum builds connections through new experiences in art, science and history within the evolving Texas story through exhibitions, programs and collections.

Originally the grandest hotel in West Texas, this historic Mission-revival style building now houses The Grace Museum featuring 3 separate museums included in one admission price.

• History Museum: Life in West Texas from 1910-1945 including authentically recreated period parlors, living rooms and kitchens from times past.
  
• The Children's Museum: Hands-on art, science and technology.
  
• Art Museum: Exhibits of some of the world's finest art.
  

325-673-4587

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Paramount Theater

One of Abilene's most interesting features is the historic Paramount Theatre, located in the heart of downtown. Built in 1930, this magnificent movie palace is a monument to a by-gone time in America, when movie-going was a chief form of entertainment for people of all ages. Restored in 1986 to its original appearance, the Paramount now offers a yearly Film Series, as well as live entertainment on its renovated stage.  The Paramount is a tourist highlight year round. The theatre is open every weekday afternoon from noon to 5:00 pm, and self-guided tours are welcomed. The building is occupied over  200 days a year, seeing an estimated  60,000 people pass through its doors.

325-676-9620

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12th Armored Division Memorial Museum

The 12th Armored Division Memorial Museum holds a rare place among military museums. Our visitors, who tour military museums throughout the United States and Europe, tell us we are the only one dedicated to telling the story of one unit's combat history in WWII. Three floors of photographs, artifacts and personal testimonies of the veterans themselves tell the story of the 12th Armored Division.This museum fills a void in the history of the war in Europe through the stories of a vital but often overlooked Army Division and the roles individual soldiers within it played in winning the battles in France and Germany. The majority of WWII military museums display military hardware and uniforms. They may have a video or two about D-Day or other major battles but they don't tell the stories of veterans from the perspective of the guys who were on the ground. Our photographs show what life was like for members of the US Army during WWII and make our presentation much more personal than the typical military museum exhibit.We tell the personal stories of the men who liberated a concentration camp, what they saw and how it affected their lives. From their testimony, we are able to tell about the Holocaust from a unique perspective. Each year, the eighth grade students from the Abilene Middle Schools visit the museum to learn about the Holocaust, its causes and effects. The museum received a Rural Utilities Service Distance Learning Grant from the United States Department of Agriculture in 2011. This grant provided the equipment needed for the museum staff to provide teleconference/webinar type live programs about the Holocaust and WWII to students anywhere in the country. We are an educational museum as well as a memorial museum to the men of the 12th Armored Division.The museum has a seven part diorama that presents a three dimensional view of the battles at Herrlisheim, France in January, 1945. This professional display depicts the conditions the men of the division encountered as they fought the German Army during the Nordwind Offensive in which the German High Command hoped to recapture Strasbourg and the fuel, food and munitions they so desperately needed to continue the war. The actions of the 12th Armored Division to stop the German forces short of their Nordwind Offensive goals definitely shortened the war in Europe and only this museum tells that vital part of the history of WWII.

325-677-6515

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Taylor County History Center at Buffalo Gap (Historic Village)

Visit the past in this village of 18 historic structures that offer a visible link to early West Texas, ranging from an 1875 log cabin, a 1926 service station, the original Taylor County Courthouse and jail, along with a rich collection of Indian artifacts and frontier forearms. Enjoy living history programs on the weekend, guided tours on weekdays.

325-572-3365

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Fort Phantom Hill

Visit the ghostly ruins of this 1851 Army post. As you walk among the dozen chimneys and three buildings you almost hear the soldiers going about their daily routine. Today Fort Phantom Hill is part of the Texas Forts Trail , a 650-mile highway tour of historic Texas forts in West Central Texas.

325-677-1309

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Dyess Air Force Base

Dyess Air Force Base is the sole training center for B-1 bomber crews. It houses an Air Combat Command wing with three B-1B and two C-130 Squadrons. Visit the Dyess Visitor Center for an overview of the base and its history. To tour the outdoor Linear Air Park with its 31 planes from WWII, the Korean and Vietnam Conflicts, and Operation Desert Storm, contact Dyess Public Affairs at 325-696-5609 or 325-696-2863.
no walk-in tours available, entry request must be filled out at least 30 days prior for entry request.

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Texas Forts Trail

The Texas Forts Trail Region, one of the state's ten heritage trail regions, is comprised of 29 counties in Central West Texas. The “Trail” is a recommended 650-mile driving route within the region that features a Spanish presidio and eight historic frontier forts. Throughout the region, visitors are invited to experience the culture of our region – the Jumano and Comanche Indians, Buffalo Soldiers and buffalo hunters, and cowboys and ranchers, and to learn about the history of our region – the struggle between the settlers and the Indians, the importance of cattle drives, how the railroads helped bring civilization to the area, and much more!

For more information, see www.texasfortstrail.com and check us out on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram.

325-660-6774

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Adventure Cove

A pirate of the high seas, Adventure Pete was following a treasure map that took him deep into the Big Country. Here is where he discovered an oasis abundant in treasure. Pete, along with an assembly of close friends, quickly settled into a life of fun in the sun at Adventure Cove with the quest to share their treasure with the citizens of Abilene.  At Adventure Cove, families will get to enjoy a leisure pool with a zero-depth beach entry, a lazy river, a pair of water slides, a covered patio, and a new bathhouse. The facility has been designed with the future in mind, providing space to eventually add features and expand the lazy river.

325-676-6484

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Putt-Putt Fun Center

Daily Specials
DO IT ALL ARMBAND
Unlimited Putt-Putt
12 Game Room Tokens
2 Batting Tokens
$12 + tax per person
Putt-Putt Golf INFLATION BUSTER PRICING!
1-Game Ticket | $6 per person + tax
2-Game Ticket | $8 per person + tax
3-Game Ticket | $9 per person + tax
12-Game Ticket | $35 + tax
(This ticket may be shared. Unused games never expire.)
If you have questions, please call us at: 325-692-7596
Game Room
Save $1.25 and buy 25 Tokens for just $5.00!

325-692-7596

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Maxx Air Trampoline Park

MAIN ATTRACTIONS  At 30,000 square feet of entertainment we've got something for everyone!The Ninja Course is a fun-filled, physical challenge that is constantly evolving! Our interchangeable obstacles allow us to create new and exciting courses for participants to challenge themselves on at no added cost.Launch yourself into a 30' by 36' airbag from a seven-foot-high platform jump, angled trampoline, or flat-box trampoline.With wall-to-wall trampolines, you'll be hard pressed to touch them all! In fact, make that a goal, come out and bounce on every trampoline. Thousands of square feet of fun await you!

Get a full-body workout ducking, dodging, and diving on our high-tech trampoline courts. Bound and rebound between the trampoline floor and the trampoline walls. Give your body a new freedom of movement not possible with games played on fixed courts.

325-704-2547

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Drive in Theater

Town & Country Drive-in movie theater, a piece of history is alive and well in Abilene, Texas. If you have not been to a
Drive-in movie theater now is your chance. Double feature movies.

325-677-9899

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Diamond Back Golf Club

Diamondback Golf Club opened on November 1, 1999, and was designed, built and is operated by 1971 Masters Champion, Charles Coody who resides in Abilene, Texas.

Situated on 220 acres of rolling terrain with Lytle Creek meandering through the golf course, many beautiful, scenic views are created by the natural changes of elevation.

"It was my goal to build a public golf facility that is always maintained in excellent condition and one which could be enjoyed by all levels of golfers. I believe we are accomplishing that goal," states Coody.

Dale Douglas, Gil Morgan, Tom Purtzer, Tony Jacklin, Bob Charles, Doug Tewell, Howard Twitty, Chi Chi Rodriguez, Lou Graham, and Tommy Aaron are just a few of the golf professionals from the Champions Tour that have played Diamondback. All have stated that, because of its excellent condition, a professional tournament could be held at Diamondback with little preparation.

The par 71 course will play to almost 7,000 yards from the championship tees; 6,525 from the regular tees; 6,025 yards from the legends tees; and 5,025 from the forward tees.

The greens are seeded with Dominant Plus strain of bent grass while the fairways, tees and rough are Tifway 419 Bermuda grass.

Twelve acres of practice facilities, which include approximately 75,000 square feet of teeing area, a 10,000 square foot practice putting green, and a 2,500 square foot pitching green with two sand bunkers offers a great environment for someone to improve their short game skills.Diamondback Golf Club is an 18-hole Abilene golf course open daily to the public.

325-690-9190

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Abilene Bowling Lanes

Family fun at the local bowling alley!

325-692-5100

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