Hotel at a Glance: Lajitas Golf Resort & Spa

This 27,000-acre Texas resort has room for horseback riding, golfing, and skeet shooting. You can even get pampered at a holistic spa. Big Bend National Park is just around the corner—it encompasses more than 750,000 acres of Chihuahuan desert with mountain peaks and segments of the Rio Grande River.

• Giddy up! Go horseback riding along the hill-studded banks of Comanche Creek, right near the Mexican border.
• Championship 18-hole golf course designed by Lanny Wadkins; the par-72 course features a 500-yard driving range and mountain views
• Eat your heart out: Candelilla Cafe, one of the onsite restaurants, serves authentic Southwestern fare made with fresh herbs and veggies.
• Agave Spa: Treatments include aromatherapy body wraps and rejuvenating facials infused with papaya and pineapple.
• Cool off in one of several outdoor pools.

Lajitas, Texas: Old-West Town near Big Bend National Park

At close to a million acres, Big Bend National Park is large enough to contain the entire state of Rhode Island. The park commands most of southwest Texas and is cut through by the Rio Grande. Visitors can hike along 150 miles of trails—keep your eyes peeled for native birds—or visit after twilight to see the limitless stars overhead.

Lajitas lies near the edge of this popular natural attraction. The town derives its name from a Spanish phrase meaning “little flat rocks”—an apt appellation given the landscape. The town remains an eccentric Wild West outpost; in fact, for many years, its unofficial mayor was, no joke, a drunken goat named Clay Henry III. Compared to the cowboy days, downtown is relatively quiet. A handful of buildings lets the landscape take center stage, situated more than 2,000 feet above the Rio Grande. The space is so wide open and the sky so crystal clear that stargazing is not surprisingly one of the most popular pastimes here.

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