Sonora, Texas is the ideal place to stop on a Texas roadtrip–it’s halfway between Houston / El Paso as well as San Antonio / Big Bend, offering tourists affordable motels and (of course) a Dairy Queen! It’s also famous for the Sonora Caverns, which make a beautiful and interesting break from the road if you need one. Some friends and I stopped in Sonora recently on our way to Big Bend, and here are the top five things we wish we had known about the area before we visited. Read on to help plan your trip to (or through) Sonora, Texas!

Disclaimer: Please note that all information included here is as of December 2017 and may have changed.

1. Sonora can be a speed trap, so drive the speed limit!

Sonora, Texas, sits right at the junction of I-10 and US-227 and is a notorious speed trap area in West Texas. (In 2014, for example, Sutton County (where Sonora is) had the highest number of speeding tickets issued to drivers going over 100 mph in the state despite the fact that it had less than 4000 residents at the time. Speeding citations are a valuable source of revenue for the county.)

The speed limit in West Texas is 80 mph, and there’s no 10 mph “wiggle room” out there, so set your cruise control and DON’T SPEED.

2. Motels in Sonora are affordable and plentiful, so don’t bother with looking for an Airbnb.

There were almost no Airbnbs available in Sonora and the hotel rooms were fairly affordable (ranging from $70-80 for the night), so we ended up staying at the SureStay (a Best Western hotel). We also booked our trip somewhat last-minute and had no problem getting a room.

Road Trip Soul tip: mention the Sonora Caverns when you’re booking and you can get a 10-20% discount at some of the hotels in town (SureStay, Comfort Inn, Day’s Inn).

3. If you’re going to the Sonora Caverns, buy your tickets ahead of time, arrive early, and leave your jackets and bags in the car.

You should absolutely check out the Caverns if you’re coming this way. I’ve been in more caves than the average person and can honestly say that the Sonora Caverns is one of the most beautifully-decorated commercial caves I’ve ever seen.

If you’re going to go to the caverns, arrive early to get your name on the list for a tour and plan to leave anything bulky (such as purses or jackets) in the car. Our tour guide warned us it would be hot in the cave and insisted we leave our long-sleeve shirts behind so we’d be comfortable. This was an exaggeration, and I would have been fine leaving my flannel shirt on for the tour. The tour guides have a weird system where you leave your jackets in the gift shop and they move them to the cave exit for you to pick up on your way out, but there was a lot of confusion about which pile of coats belonged to which tour, and I never did find the shirt I left behind.

 

Road Trip Soul tip: buy your tickets for the Sonora Caverns online ahead of time to save $1.25 per ticket.

4. Either bring your own food (and coffee) to Sonora or manage your expectations accordingly.

The #1 restaurant recommendation for Sonora seems to be the Sutton County Steak House, which currently has 3.5 stars on Yelp.  There are a couple of Tex Mex places (and one taco place), but none have rave reviews. We ended up going to La Mexicana, where the food was not great but cheap and the service was terrible, which is about what we expected going in. None of us got food poisoning, so no complaints here.

If you’re a coffee aficionado, bring your own beans and french press, because the only coffee available in town seems to be from Tres Amigos, a gas station right off I-10. I ended up using the coffee and coffee pot in our motel room, although I did add my own almond milk.

Road Trip Soul tip: if you’re looking for an easy breakfast to make and eat in a hotel room, consider some Hearty On-the-Road Overnight Oats.

5. If you’re looking for something a bit more upscale in the Sonora area, consider the JL Bar Ranch and Resort, a five-star resort just 15 minutes east of town.

With 16 luxury cabins available for corporate and group retreats, the JL Bar Ranch and Resort also offers unique dining experiences to the public on Thursdays for dinner and Sunday brunch. Plates range from $30-$35 a plate and reservations are required.

We didn’t partake, mostly due to the face that we were rocking our overnight oats for breakfast the whole trip. Mmmm…..

Have you been to Sonora, Texas? What other things should people know when planning a roadtrip to (or through) town? 🙂

 

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Check out the other Road Trip Soul guides that are available. Hover over a heart to see the location name, then click the “Guides” link to see everything I’ve written about that place.

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Looking for more? Click here for my write-up on our day in the park, including pictures! Plus check out my Pinterest board on Sonora Texas for more information and interesting tidbits: