• Quick Facts
• Did You Know?
• Distances
• Itinerary Suggestions
• Click here to go to group information on over 4,600 hotel and motel rooms, from budget rates to first class, most offered by national chains in Amarillo.
• Click here for Amarillo attraction information.

Quick Facts

Location: At the center of the Texas Panhandle, part of the Great Plains, and the intersection of Interstates 40 and 27 and U.S. Highways 60, 87 and 287.

Climate: Altitude 3,672 ft.; annual precipitation app. 20 inches. The altitude and a constant breeze give Amarillo some of the cleanest air in the country, as well as low humidity. There are four distinct seasons and over 270 sunny days annually.

Population/Size: Amarillo metropolitan area is 229,000 (2004 est.); in 1890 population was 482. The city encompasses 88.4 square miles in both Potter and Randall Counties. There are 908 streets in Amarillo, as well as 58 parks and playgrounds, 4 city swimming pools and 32 miles of jogging trails.

Transportation: Four airlines serve Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport with over 50 daily arrivals and departures- American Eagle, Continental Express, Great Lakes Aviation (connects to United & Frontier), and Southwest Airlines.

Major Industries: Ranching and /Farming , Education, Banking, Oil and Gas, Medicine, and Tourism

Major Crops: Corn, Cotton, Maize, Wheat

Famous Amarilloans: John Ayers - running back, Green Bay Packers; John Bayless - pianist; Cyd Charisse - actress/dancer; Lee Cockrell - Grand Slam rodeo cowboy; Ron Ely - actor (original TV Tarzan); Terry Funk - wrestler; Charles Goodnight - first rancher in the area & inventor of the chuck wagon; Timothy Jenkins - opera singer; Mary Jane Johnson - opera singer; Alex O'Brien - professional tennis player; Brandon Slay - wrestler, Olympic Gold Medal winner; Red Steagall - country/western entertainer; Ryan Palmer, professional golfer; Zach Thomas - football player Miami Dolphins

Did You Know?

• In 1893, Amarillo's population was listed as "between 500-600 humans and 50,000 head of cattle."
• That Amarillo (Spanish for yellow) was named after the yellow sub-soil and the yellow blooms on the area's Yucca plants.
• Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport has the 3^rd longest runway in the world and is designated as an alternate landing site for the space shuttle.
• Some people maintain that during sunrise and sunset in Amarillo, one can see the curvature of the earth, due to the wide open space of the Great Plains.
• That in 1922 the first radio concert ever broadcast was by Amarillo radio station WDAG - one of the first licensed stations in the country.
• That in 1929, Amarillo was a stop on the route of the first, continuous, scheduled air passenger and mail service from the Atlantic to the Pacific.

Distances From Amarillo to -

From downtown Amarillo (junction of Interstate 40 & 27) to-

Itinerary suggestions (reservations and verification for dates & times recommended for all itineraries)

• Past, Present, Future
• Nature Adventures
• Amarillo Arts
• The Old West
• Student/Youth Groups

PAST ? PRESENT ? FUTURE

Day 1- Arrive in Amarillo around noon and hotel check-in. That afternoon visit one of your chosen museums (see list) and have dinner in one of the many restaurants in the city. Click here to go to the restaurant listings.

Day 2- Breakfast at the hotel. Then visit another of Amarillo's fine museums and have lunch along historic Route 66. After lunch stroll along the "Route" and browse in the antique, boutique, and souvenir shops. Then drive to the Cadillac Ranch (don't forget spray paint to leave your name); then head downtown to see some of the historic homes of Amarillo along Polk Street . For the evening, depending on the time of year, take in the Big Texan Opry (Tuesday only) or a show at the Big Texan Cowboy Palace (call for program & times), or attend the epic outdoor musical "TEXAS" in Palo Duro Canyon State Park (summer only).

Day 3- Breakfast at the hotel or Cowboy Morning Breakfast at Elkins Ranch or a chuck wagon breakfast at River Breaks Ranch (reservations needed). Before leaving town drop into Wolflin Village and Wolflin Square for some last minute shopping.

Almost all museums are closed Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year's Day; some are closed Easter Sunday and 4^th of July.

Please call for exact hours and cost

NATURE ADVENTURES
(weather permitting)

Day 1- Arrive in Amarillo by noon and hotel check-in. Enjoy an afternoon visit to the Amarillo Botanical Gardens or hike Wildcat Bluff Nature Center (check for evening programs). Dinner at a restaurant of your choice. Click here to go the restaurant listings.

Day 2- Breakfast at the hotel, and a morning visit to Don Harrington Discovery Center & Space Theater. In the afternoon take a Jeep Tour at Elkins Ranch, drive/hike Palo Duro Canyon State Park , and if it's summer plan to see the musical outdoor epic "Texas Legacies."

Day 3- Breakfast at hotel or chuck wagon breakfast at River Breaks Ranch (reservations needed). Depart Amarillo for Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument or Lake Meredith National Recreational Area. ? continue your trip or return to Amarillo that evening.

AMARILLO ARTS

Day 1- Arrive in Amarillo around noon and hotel check-in. In the afternoon visit the Amarillo Museum of Art. Plan for dinner at one of the many restaurants in the city. Click here for restaurant listings. In the evening ? depending on the time of year ? attend a performance of the Lone Star Ballet, the Amarillo Opera, the Amarillo Symphony, the Amarillo Little Theater, the outdoor musical epic ?Texas Legacies," a concert at the new Amarillo Globe-News Center for the Performing Arts (open early 2006), or one of the great performances in the Broadway Spotlight Series of the Amarillo Civic Center. Make sure to check the new arts calendar at www.artsinamarillo.com for more information.

Day 2- Breakfast at the hotel and departure or take time to visit one of the many galleries in the city.

THE OLD WEST

Day 1- Arrive in Amarillo and hotel check-in. Choose your attractions/events: the Cowboy Roundup and Chuckwagon Cook-off (June only), the Big Texan Opry (Tuesdays) or a show at the Cowboy Palace (summer only), go shopping for western gear.

Day 2- Get up early to go to the Cowboy Morning Breakfast at Elkins Ranch or the Chuckwagon meal at River Breaks Ranch, check out the Amarillo Livestock Auction (Tuesdays) and stay for lunch at the Stockyards Cafe. Or go to one of the fantastic equestrian events held at the Amarillo National Center , i.e. rodeo, team penning, cutting, steer roping, etc.

Maybe you'd like to attend the Cowboy Poets Gathering at Cal Farley's Boys Ranch (June) the whole day or attend a performance of Indian Dances (weekends) at the Kiva Indian Museum & Performance Center. Dinner at the restaurant of your choice. Click here to go to the restaurant listings.

Day 3- Breakfast at the hotel and last minute shopping.

STUDENT/YOUTH GROUPS

Day 2- Breakfast at the hotel; then visit the Discovery Center & Space Theater, Kwahadi Kiva Indian Museum, Amarillo Zoo or American Quarter Horse Museum. Lunch at a restaurant of your choice, and spend the afternoon at "Splash Amarillo" Water Park, Putt Putt Golf or Sports World. If your stay includes a Tuesday night, try dinner at the Big Texan Steak Ranch & Opry.

Day 3- Depart Amarillo