ExchangeFor the MBA Community at the University of Texas at Austin |
Final Thoughts: Austin vs. Houston vs. Dallas
Thinking of staying
in Texas but don't know where to
settle?
Here's our round-up of offerings in
the three most popular Texas cities
for our MBAs.
| Austin | Houston | Dallas | |
| Successful Business Launches | Michael Dell founded the Dell Computer Corportation in 1984. Schlotsky's opened in 1971 as a small shop on South Congress Avenue. | Men's Wearhouse began in 1973. Compaq creators drew the first portable personal computer on a Houston pie shop place mat in 1982. | Neiman Marcus
opened in 1907. Mary Kay started
a company in 1963 that became the
largest direct seller of skin
care and color cosmetics in the
US. |
| Something to Cheer About | This is one town where college sports trump the pros. Hook ‘em Horns! | The return to Texas of former Longhorn pitching star Roger Clemens makes the Astros the ticket of choice for 2004. | Take your pick–the Cowboys, Stars, and Mavericks all have rowdy fans. |
| THE Weekend | South by Southwest packs the city every March with rising music stars, Hollywood hangers-on and multimedia mavens. | The Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo is the world’s largest rodeo. | During Texas v. OU weekend you're lucky to find a hotel room in the DFW area. |
|
Big
Celebrity, Little Known Native |
Ethan Hawke, Nelly | Patrick Swayze, Jaclyn Smith, Kenny Rogers | Meatloaf, Aaron Spelling, Morgan Fairchild |
|
Outdoor Exercise |
Runners, walkers, and bikers alike love the Town Lake Hike and Bike Trail where they can enjoy the Austin skyline and nearby Zilker Park. | Memorial Park,
one of the largest urban
greenspaces in the U.S. (and surely the longest), offers a stretch of serenity in a traffic-packed city. |
White Rock Lake's
10.7 mile loop attracts Dallas'
diehards. |
|
Amusements |
Does Kiddie Acres count? | Six Flags Astroworld | Six Flags over Texas |
| TV Show | MTV series “Austin Stories” is about three slacker friends, and the Showtime series “Freshmen Diaries,” chronicles the lives of UT freshmen. | A far cry from “ER,” “Houston Medical” followed around real-life doctors, nurses, and patients at Memorial Hermann Hospital. | Dallas hasn't had a show since the 1980s' “Dallas,” a nighttime drama that gave Texas oil millionaires a bad name. |
| Escape from the Summer Heat | Lake Travis, Lake LBJ |
Clear Lake Kemah, Lake Conroe…or there is always Galveston |
Lake Lewisville, Possum Kingdom Lake |
| Size Matters: Population Rank Among U.S. Cities | #16 | #4 | #8 |
—Compiled by Missy Lay
