Get Gifting

Check this list twice for holiday gift ideas you can only get in Texas

Make it a wrap on holiday shopping.

Photo by Elena Noviello/Getty

It's time to get a jump on your holiday shopping, and you probably have a varied list of tastes, budgets, and interests to accommodate.

This gift guide takes all that into account, with a wide range of suggestions for an even wider range of friends, family, colleagues, neighbors, babysitters, pet sitters, tutors ... well, you get the idea.

From festive experiences to luxurious getaways, the best presents are right here. You might even finish your shopping early this year, which is perhaps the best present of all.

Photo courtesy of Kimbell Art Museum

Kimbell Art Museum gift membership
Give your friends and family a global art experience this holiday season, with exhibitions that will transport them to Italy, Germany, and the Netherlands. Gift memberships to the Kimbell Art Museum start at only $75 and include members-only tours and conversations, exclusive exhibition previews and happy hours, and discounts in the museum shops, along with free unlimited admission to three major exhibitions over the next twelve months:

Dutch Art in a Global Age: Masterpieces from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
In the 1600s Dutch merchants sailed the globe, sparking an artistic boom in what was the most diverse and cosmopolitan society in Europe. Dutch Art in a Global Age brings your lucky loved ones face-to-face with masterpieces by Rembrandt, Frans Hals, and other 17^th-century Old Master artists. On view now through February 9, 2025.

Modern Art and Politics in Germany 1910–1945: Masterworks from the Neue Nationalgalerie, Berlin
More than 70 paintings from the distinguished Berlin museum show how artists from diverse movements, including German Expressionism, New Objectivity, abstraction, and more, played a role in the political discourse of the time. Also explore how German politics influenced the visual arts, from the last years of the German Empire through World War II. On view March 30–June 22, 2025.

Myth & Marble: Ancient Roman Sculpture from the Torlonia Collection
Your friends will be forever grateful for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience the world’s most important private collection of ancient Roman sculpture. This includes portrait busts of Roman rulers and nobles, magnificently carved sarcophagi, and large-scale figures of gods and goddesses, many of which have not been seen by the public in more than fifty years. On view September 14, 2025–January 25, 2026.

The Play That Goes Wrong at Stage West Photo by Evan Michael Woods

The Play That Goes Wrong at Stage West Theatre
After selling out every performance — plus an extension! — during its wildly successful 2023 run, The Play That Goes Wrong returns to Stage West. This co-production with WaterTower Theatre promises another round of the perfectly orchestrated chaos that had audiences begging for more.

In this masterfully crafted disaster, the Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society attempts to stage a 1920s murder mystery called The Murder at Haversham Manor. What unfolds is a brilliant catastrophe featuring an unconscious leading lady, a corpse that refuses to play dead, and actors who trip over everything, including their lines.

Looking for the perfect way to entertain holiday guests? This show delivers guaranteed laughs for the whole family (PG rating, suitable for most audiences). Give the gift of laughter this holiday season with tickets to this unmissable comedy, running November 29-December 22.

Grapevine ice rink Photo courtesy of Grapevine CVB

Grapevine Peace Plaza Ice Rink
Get festive this season in Grapevine, the Christmas Capital of Texas. Ice skate under the stars and the twinkling lights of a 60-foot live Christmas tree at Peace Plaza Ice Rink, presented by Baylor Scott & White Medical Center – Grapevine. Considered "the Rockefeller Center of the Southwest," this Texas-sized, high-quality ice rink offers a magical skating experience right on Peace Plaza, in front of the stunning Grapevine Main Station. Whether you’re a seasoned skater or trying it out for the first time, there’s nothing quite like gliding on ice surrounded by festive lights, Christmas music, and the sparkle of Grapevine at Christmas. It's $20 per person for a one-hour session (ice skates included), or $500 for a private hour for up to 50 people.

The ice rink is just one highlight this season in the Christmas Capital of Texas, with more than 1,400 events happening over 40 days. After a fun-filled skate, warm up at Harvest Hall and enjoy bites from 10 international kitchens and cocktails at the Holly Jolly Bar at Third Rail. Stroll along Historic Main Street, adorned with millions of twinkling lights, and check off your Christmas list at the locally owned boutiques, check out the art galleries, people watch at the bistros and cafés, and sip wines on the Urban Wine Trail. Make sure you stop at various photo opps along the way, from Hometown Christmas to Toyland.

For more information on all the experiences in the Christmas Capital of Texas, including Gaylord Texan Resort’s ICE! and Meow Wolf’s The Unreal Winter, and to book a getaway at one of Grapevine's 20 hotels, visit ChristmasCapitalofTexas.com.

A Lone Star Murder Mystery Dinner & Show at Billy Bob's Texas Photo courtesy Billy Bob's Texas

A Lone Star Murder Mystery Dinner & Show at Billy Bob's Texas
A night you won’t forget comes complete with a delicious dinner and dessert, a well-stocked cash bar, and a side-splitting show.

Immerse yourself in an award-winning, 90-minute, murder mystery dinner theater performance set in the 1880s of the Wild West of Texas. Test your investigation skills and solve the murder mystery, then take photos with the cast after the show to round out a great night of fun.

Tickets to a murder mystery show are the gift that is sure to make long-lasting memories. Show dates are Saturday, December 28, and Tuesday, December 31. Space is limited, so make sure to get your tickets soon.

Holiday espresso martini Photo courtesy of Valencia Hotel Collection

Valencia Hotel Collection Holiday Packages
Make this season truly unique with two exclusive packages crafted to bring a touch of holiday magic to your stay. Experience the charm of the boutique hotels located in Austin, College Station, Las Colinas, Lubbock, and San Antonio, each offering a distinctive blend of luxury, style, and warm hospitality.

The Holiday Sweets package invites you to relax in luxurious guest room accommodations and savor two praline-infused signature holiday cocktails or mocktails, perfect for setting a festive mood.

For a more indulgent experience, The Sweet Holiday Escape package includes guest room accommodations, a delightful holiday breakfast at the hotel restaurant, and two praline-infused cocktails or mocktails to make your stay even sweeter.

Whether you’re looking for a festive retreat or a cozy getaway, these packages offer the perfect blend of seasonal warmth and luxury in the inviting atmosphere of these boutique hotels. Celebrate the season in style and book your holiday escape today.

Elevate your holiday gifting with the luxury of Valencia Hotel Collection. Choose eGift cards for memorable stays or shop Valencia at Home for signature scent candles and sprays, bedding, and more.

gift guide shopping holidays promoted

Death Penalty

Tarrant County man gets death for murder of convenience store owner

Tarrant County Sheriff's Office

Christopher Turner

A man received the death penalty for his 2020 cold-blooded execution of a convenience store owner.

According to a release from the office of Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney Phil Sorrells, a Tarrant County jury sentenced Christopher Karon Turner, 48, to death on November 20 for executing convenience store owner Anwar Ali during a robbery. Tarrant County Assistant District Attorneys Charles Boulware and Allenna Bangs represented the state.

On March 27, 2020, at around 6:15 am, Turner, a convicted felon, wore a surgical mask and a glove and entered the Super Big Country Mart in an unincorporated area of Tarrant County south of Fort Worth. There, he held a gun to the back of Anwar Ali, the 62-year-old store owner, and walked him through the store.

Ali did everything Turner demanded, including opening the cash register to give him money. And yet Turner forced Ali into the bathroom and onto his knees, and shot him in the neck. Ali was discovered, dead in the bathroom, about an hour later.

Turner fled the store in Ali's Toyota minivan with the money from the register and Ali's wallet. In the van, he found more than $50,000 cash in a black bag. Over the next few days, Turner went on a shopping spree, buying cars, jewelry, drugs, clothes, and more. He and others used cash and a credit card that belonged to Ali.

Turner fled to Colorado where U.S. Marshals arrested him. On his body they found a firearm which was determined to be the murder weapon.

"This was a premeditated, cold-blooded murder," Boulware told the jury. "From the moment he was charged with this crime, he has tried to escape responsibility."

Bangs noted that before this trial began, Turner obtained the names of jurors and their telephone numbers, and gave them to an inmate charged with murder. At the trial on November 20, as Bangs addressed the jury, Turner tried to hold up a sign to the jury but was handcuffed by Sheriff's deputies who removed him from the courtroom, while he yelled out "she lied."

Ali came to the United States from Pakistan decades ago to pursue the American dream. Ali's son, Hussein, spoke in the courtroom after the death penalty was announced. "Thank you for giving us justice," Ali said. "I hope there are no more devils like this person."