6 Fun Things to Do Near Dallas, Texas This December

Christmas is quickly approaching, your kids are out of school for winter break, and you are attempting to find ways to entertain them, all while trying to fully embrace the holiday spirit yourself. If this sounds anything like you, then look no further. Dallas has a lot of fun things to do around town, especially during the most wonderful time of the year. Below are some festive ideas to keep everyone engaged with the holiday spirit this season.

• Dallas Zoo Lights Festival

In the evening, once all of the critters are asleep, the Dallas Zoo hosts a massive light display during the holidays. Festivities include the light show itself, a Santa meet and greet, musical performances, fun snacks, and much more! Take a trip with your friends and/or family to go check it out – and be sure to take advantage of some really neat photo ops.

• Lights All Night Festival

This one is for all of the EDM lovers out there. Lights All Night is a two-day dance festival located in Dallas. This year is Lights All Night’s 10th anniversary, so brace yourself for a big blowout bash. Acts include big names like Skrillex and Louis the Child, plus 37 more! This event takes place on December 27th and 28th and is open to those who are 18 and older for general admission (21+ for VIP admission).

• SNOWDAY

This year from December 13th to January 5th, an immersive experience known as SNOWDAY will be held at the Plaza at Preston Center. The event is essentially a wonderland that you navigate through to explore a sense of enchantment and nostalgia, all while snapping a few pictures in the provided photo booths. You even have the option of printing or instantly sharing your photos!

• Holiday in the National Parks: Christmas at the White House

Open until January 5th, this exhibit showcases holiday décor that had once adorned the White House in 2007. Models of historical sites such as the Alamo, Mount Rushmore, and Spanish missions will be incorporated into the exhibit alongside behind-the-scenes photos of Mrs. Bush’s involvement with the National Parks. Be sure not to miss the breathtaking replica of the official White House Blue Room Christmas tree!   

• Holiday at the Arboretum

This year, Holiday at the Arboretum is featuring “The Twelve Days of Christmas” outdoor exhibit. There will be massive gazebos (25 feet tall, to be exact) that will display each of the characters from the original carol (i.e. three French hens, twelve drummers drumming, etc.). The event lasts until December 31st, and from Wednesday to Sunday from 6-9pm there will be over a million lights beautifully illuminating the garden.

• PINSTACK

PINSTACK isn’t just your neighborhood bowling alley. At PINSTACK, you can enjoy a state-of-the-art bowling experience, with lane-side food and beverage service and private bowling areas. You can also enjoy their two-level laser tag arena, arcade video games, and more. They serve the entire DFW metroplex, so pick a day to take your family there this holiday season! If you are feeling especially wild, go ahead and book a group event! PINSTACK has 3 party package options, including Platinum, Gold, and Silver. We’re sure you will find something right up your alley!

Crowd Around: Fun Family Activities for the Whole Crew

It is spring, and the season of family reunions is upon us. If you have ever participated in one, you know what's coming: A deluge of family and the need to keep them all entertained. While finding fun family activities to do with a crowd of relatives may feel almost as difficult as keeping them all fed, there are actually a number of perfect options many of which are right here at PINSTACK.

Fun family activities for the whole crew include foosball (Yes, really).

If you want to keep everybody entertained, foosball at PINSTACK is the way to go. You won't even have to take turns. Here at PINSTACK, we have a 16-person foosball table. That's right, you can fit almost two whole baseball teams around our fun-filled table.

Designed for raucous fun, our huge foosball table promises you fun family activities that can handle a group of almost any size. Put Great-Aunt Maude at the end as a goalie and the over eager teens in the middle where most of the action is. Play the basic rules or adopt some house rules of your own (but no arguing). Take advantage of sibling rivalries by putting fueders on opposite teams, and let any pent up aggressions out on the ball instead of each other.

With a basic premise and lots of action, foosball is ideal for keeping just about anyone entertained. And with a giant table able to house all of your relatives, you will be coming back again and again for a fun family activity for the whole crew. 

Fun family activities for the whole crew include eating. 

That crowd has to eat, and we are guessing you don't want to do the cooking. You will be too busy playing foosball, anyway. Instead, let us turn mealtime into a fun family activity for the whole crew in our restaurant with a banquet room. 

Reserve a table for 10 or less in the main dining area, or plan ahead and reserve a private dining area and banquet room for a larger crowd. There you can have a special event, like a reunion banquet or birthday celebration, or just hang out in privacy. It is the perfect location for your rowdy crew to laugh at inside jokes, tease each other mercilessly, or reminisce about your favorite family memories in a beautiful and quiet space. 

At our restaurant, you will enjoy food that will please everyone in your party. Guaranteed crowd pleasers include Game Time Nachos, our Deluxe Sampler Platter, and any of our handcrafted, seasonally-inspired monthly chef specials. 

Fun family activities for the whole crew include bowling. 

Many sports have a limit on the number of people who can play. Baseball allows for nine. Soccer allows for eleven. But guess how many people can populate the bowling lanes? That's right, as many as you bring. Add to that the ability to create teams, and bowling is starting to look like a fun family activity ideal for the largest group you can gather. 

What else makes bowling a fun family activity? It is ideal for any age, including the octogenarians and the little ones among you. In addition, it is easy to play, easy to score, and pretty universally enjoyed. After all, who doesn't enjoy the chance to knock stuff over and play with a ball indoors?

If you want to enjoy some classy bowling for a crowd, stop by PINSTACK. We offer sleek, modern lanes, lane-side food and beverage service, and all the space you need for a crowd. In addition, we offer a private bowling area, where you can enjoy a bowling party, bowling-themed event, or just a private area for your group to bowl together. Fun family activities for a crowd don't get much better than a night of bowling at PINSTACK. 

Fun family activities have to include everyone if you have a crowd to entertain. And while that might make you feel as if your options are limited, the truth is that, at PINSTACK, there are lots of things to do for your group. Whether you want to enjoy scratch-made food at our restaurant, celebrate a special event in our banquet room, enjoy a round or two of bowling, or cozy up to a giant foosball table, we have the crowd pleasers you need for even the largest family. 

Fun and Flirty Date Night Ideas at Our Fun Activities Venue in Las Colinas

While February 14 might be THE date night of the year, there are 364 other evenings that you can put to romantic use. That is a lot of potential for creating fun connections with the guy or gal you are interested in. It's also a lot of pressure: Can you fill an evening with fun and flirty activities that don't have your date sighing, "Not again!"?

We are confident in your date making capabilities. And we are confident that our fun activities venue in Las Colinas has all the ingredients you need to whip up a date night to remember. Here are a few of our ideas for fun, flirty, dates right here at our fun activities venue in Las Colinas.

Fun and flirty date idea 1: Turn ordinary bowling into a VIP experience at our fun activities venue in Las Colinas.

Bowling is a pretty casual and not-so-unusual date idea (it also happens to be a great date idea, if you want something relaxed and fun that almost anyone can enjoy). However, finding time to have a conversation over the noise of other bowlers, or making your date feel special in the middle of a crowd can be difficult.

Instead, if you want to add an element of fun and flirty to your average game, consider coming to our fun activities venue at Las Colinas and turn an evening of bowling into a more exclusive experience. What goes into a VIP bowling experience at PINSTACK? Our VIP bowling area includes 8 lanes, separated from the regular bowling lanes at our venue, where you can enjoy all the fun of bowling, minus the crowd and noise. Add in some lane-side food and beverage service, where you can enjoy our from-scratch menu right next to the bowling lanes, and you have the perfect exclusive experience to make your bowling date extra special.

Fun and flirty date idea 2: Make drinks a sophisticated experience at our fun activities venue in Las Colinas.

Drinks are a great way to ease into getting to know that certain special someone. Short, casual, and low commitment, they still leave an opening to extend the date into dinner if things go well. However, things aren't likely to progress that far if you don't impress at the bar. And we can guarantee that any average bar, average beer, or average cocktail isn't likely to score you the points you want.

Instead, add sophistication to your date and create a fun and flirty feel at our fun activities venue in Las Colinas with a trip to our bar. There, we offer a variety of local craft beers that rotate seasonally. If beer isn't your (or your date's) thing, we also offer a wide variety of wine imported from California, Italy, and even France, and signature cocktails designed to impress because of their creativity and flavor. Combine that with an upscale atmosphere, and the chance to venture into our fun activities venue or from-scratch restaurant afterward, and you have the perfect recipe for a fun and flirty cocktail date.

Fun and flirty date idea 3: Set an indoor rock climbing challenge you can only complete together.

Indoor rock climbing makes a great date idea, especially for a first date. Fun, different, and interactive, it is way more creative and flirty than dinner and a movie. However, you can take this date idea to the next level at our fun activities venue in Las Colinas by using the time to set challenges you have to complete together.

For example, maybe you want to challenge each other to reach the top for the first time ever. A race to the top might just be the motivation you need to reach that milestone. Even if you are accustomed to climbing all the way, you can always use our timers to see who can make it to the pinnacle the fastest.

As an added bonus, make sure the loser has to pay up. We recommend taking on the cost of appetizers, dinner, or dessert in our from-scratch restaurant. Or, paying up for a round of video games or laser tag in our fun activities venue in Las Colinas. We are guessing that might be a good way to get out some pent up energy after a competitive climb up our 28-foot wall.

Fun and flirty date idea 4: Ditch dinner in favor of brunch at our fun activities venue in Las Colinas.

Dates mean setting aside an evening for fun, right? Well, sometimes. But if you want to think outside the box, you might want to ditch the stereotypical evening event in favor of something earlier--like brunch. Here at our fun activities venue in Las Colinas, we have crafted a mouth-watering brunch menu available on the weekends that will have you and your date wondering why you've never given romance a try earlier in the day.

Now, getting up too early is definitely not flirty or fun, so make sure you embrace a genuine brunch instead of breakfast. Ours is offered between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. to give you lots of time to rest up after a long week. Once you arrive, choose from creative and delectable meals, like the pancake tower oozing with sweetness or the kale and quinoa salad for the healthier minded among us. Add in a Mimosa Carafe or the Bloody Mary Bar, and you will be well on your way to enjoying the type of fun and flirty date that will start your weekend off right.

Fun and flirty should be your goal for your dates this year. Create that kind of atmosphere at PINSTACK's fun activities venue in Las Colinas. We recommend embracing a VIP bowling experience, a sophisticated drinks experience, an indoor rock climbing challenge, or a deliciously fun brunch experience. Whatever date idea you choose, you can be sure that at PINSTACK, you have access to the variety, quality, creativity, and fun that you need to create a date you will both remember.