Fort Worth to Austin road trip: Distance, drive time & best stops

Planning a Fort Worth to Austin road trip itinerary

The Fort Worth to Austin drive connects the cowboy capital of Texas to its coolest city.

Fort Worth fully embraces its status as a cow town, with the Stockyards district full of cowboy heritage. And cowgirl heritage, as the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame shows off.

It’s also a place that knows how to have a shamelessly good time, with Billy Bob’s Texas Honky Tonk famously big on the yee-has and line dancing.

Other good Fort Worth experiences include a Stockyards food tour, electric bike BBQ tours, historic pub crawls and ghost tours.  

Great Austin experiences include ebike tours taking in the city highlights, haunted pub crawl walks and segway tours.

Forth Worth to Austin distance and driving time

By car, the distance from Fort Worth to Austin is 191 miles. That makes for a driving time of around two hours and 55 minutes. The quickest route is down the I-35.

The best stops to add to a Fort Worth to Austin road trip itinerary are the Waco Mammoth National Monument, the Brazos River and the Kissing Tree Vineyards.

Fort Worth to Austin drive: Waco Mammoth National Monument

To the west of the I-35, the Waco Mammoth National Monument is home to the biggest ice age Columbian mammoth fossil find anywhere in the world. The skeletons of 16 mammoths – a nursery herd – were found her in an archaeological dig that started in 1978.

Guided tours of the site take place every 30 minutes – just rock up and join the next departure.

Fort Worth to Austin road trip stops: Brazos River in Waco

The Brazos River runs through Waco, and the best way to see the city is on a morning or sunset boat tour. The cruises depart from next to McLane Stadium, and take in several city attractions, including Baylor University, the enormous Waco Suspension Bridge and Cameron Park. The latter is the best place in Waco for spotting the local wildlife.

Book your Waco boat tour, or search for other Waco experiences.

Best stops on a Fort Worth to Austin drive: Kissing Tree Vineyards

A short detour off the I-35 between Waco and Temple, Kissing Tree Vineyards in Eddy is a boutique winery with an emphasis on hand-crafting its wines. The tasting room is open every day except Sundays.

Austin, Texas.
Austin, Texas. Photo by David Whitley/ Best3Stops.

More Fort Worth road trips

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More Austin road trips

Abilene to Austin | Austin to Albuquerque | Amarillo to Austin | Arlington to Austin | Austin to Baton Rouge | Dallas to Austin | Denton TX to Austin | Austin to Destin FL | Austin to El Paso | Austin to Fredericksburg | Frisco TX to Austin | Austin to Galveston | Houston to Austin | Indianapolis to Austin | Irving TX to Austin | Austin to Jacksonville | Katy to Austin | Little Rock to Austin | Lubbock to Austin | Memphis to Austin | Austin to Midland TX.

Nashville to Austin | Austin to New Braunfels | Austin to Odessa TX | Oklahoma City to Austin | Austin to Orlando | Plano TX to Austin | San Angelo to Austin | Austin to San Antonio | Austin to San Marcos | Austin to Santa Fe | Austin to Tampa | Tyler TX to Austin | Wichita Falls to Austin.