Dallas–Fort Worth convention centers and trade show venues

Our guides cover four. The Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in downtown Dallas has 304,250 sq ft open in Halls A–C while the rest is rebuilt. The Hilton Anatole, about 2.5 miles north, has its own Trinity Exhibit Hall of about 73,000 sq ft and 1,606 rooms. The Fort Worth Convention Center in downtown Fort Worth has 252,226 sq ft of exhibit space within 716,000 sq ft total. The Gaylord Texan Resort in Grapevine, near DFW Airport, has a 180,000 sq ft exhibition hall, three ballrooms and 1,814 rooms on one property.

From our Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas, Hilton Anatole, Fort Worth Convention Center and Gaylord Texan Resort guides

The Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center at 650 S Griffin St, though it is mid-rebuild. Halls A, B and C stay open with 304,250 sq ft (100,155, 100,155 and 103,940 sq ft) plus Ballrooms A and C. Halls D, E and F, including the 203,000 sq ft column-free Hall F added in 2002, are being demolished. The new center will have about 750,000 sq ft of contiguous exhibit space, due in 2029 per the city or 2030 per the venue.

From our Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas guide

Right-to-work. Texas law applies at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, the Hilton Anatole, the Fort Worth Convention Center and the Gaylord Texan, so your full-time staff can assemble the booth; in Dallas, Teamsters still handle all freight inside the convention center, and extra labor at the Anatole is union, ordered from the decorator. The exclusives are services, not booth labor: drayage goes through the designated contractor, and electrical, rigging, internet and catering go through each venue or its providers. The show kit carries the current list.

From our Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas, Hilton Anatole, Fort Worth Convention Center and Gaylord Texan Resort guides

Yes. Full-time staff may build their own booth at all four Metroplex venues; Dallas kits, including a Freeman kit at the Hilton Anatole, say full-time employees may set their own exhibits without the union. Check your kit. You still order electrical and rigging through the venue's designated providers; at the Anatole, Encore handles all rigging. Covered and multilevel exhibits need fire department plan review in Dallas and Fort Worth, and the Gaylord Texan approves covered booths and permits cooking and vehicles.

From our Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas, Hilton Anatole, Fort Worth Convention Center and Gaylord Texan Resort guides

Our guides plan about $100 per hundredweight at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, with a 200 lb minimum and standard surcharges, about $100 at the Hilton Anatole, about $100 at the Gaylord Texan through the resort's contractor, and about $90 at the Fort Worth Convention Center. These are Purple planning rates for 2026 and 2027, not published tariffs. Your exhibitor kit has the actual rate.

From our Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas, Hilton Anatole, Fort Worth Convention Center and Gaylord Texan Resort guides

Either works at most venues; the show kit names the warehouse, its deadline and the direct-to-show target date. The Hilton Anatole is the exception: it cannot receive or store freight before set-up day, so use the advance warehouse unless your kit names a move-in-day window. Our countdowns plan the advance warehouse deadline about a week before move-in at the Dallas and Fort Worth convention centers, and about five days out at the Gaylord Texan. Our drayage estimators price on-time and late routes separately, so check which case your shipment falls into before it leaves.

From our Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas, Hilton Anatole, Fort Worth Convention Center and Gaylord Texan Resort guides

In Dallas, our guide lists organizer-confirmed 2027 shows in Halls A–C: the Dallas Franchise Show (Jan 30–31), Cabinets & Closets with Wood Pro Expo Texas (May 18–20), FAN EXPO Dallas (Jun 11–13), the Dallas Build Expo (Aug 25–26) and the Southwest Veterinary Symposium (Sep 30–Oct 3). The Hilton Anatole hosts the Parking Industry Expo (Mar 29–Apr 1), ICES Dallas, NAVIGATOR, the TASSP Summer Workshop and the International CHARGE Syndrome Conference in 2027. Fort Worth runs home and consumer shows in winter and spring and conferences in spring and fall. The Gaylord Texan hosts association conferences in spring and fall. The Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo is at the Will Rogers Memorial Center, not the convention center.

From our Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas, Hilton Anatole, Fort Worth Convention Center and Gaylord Texan Resort guides

The 1,001-room Omni Dallas Hotel, opened in 2011, is listed as linked to the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center by skybridge; check the route during construction. The Hilton Anatole and the Gaylord Texan are themselves the hotel, with 1,606 and 1,814 rooms on site. Fort Worth has no attached hotel in our guide; downtown Fort Worth hotels within walking distance are the standard block, and the arena redevelopment plan includes a new hotel.

From our Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas, Hilton Anatole, Gaylord Texan Resort and Fort Worth Convention Center guides

It depends on the venue. Dallas Love Field is about 6 miles from the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in a straight line, while DFW International is about 16 miles from it with more routes. Love Field is about 4 miles from the Hilton Anatole and DFW about 14. DFW is about 25 to 30 minutes from downtown Fort Worth and about 10 minutes from the Gaylord Texan in Grapevine.

From our Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas, Hilton Anatole, Fort Worth Convention Center and Gaylord Texan Resort guides

The Fort Worth Convention Center is the mid-size option, with exhibit halls our guide sizes for shows of 200 to 500 booths and 41 meeting rooms totaling 58,849 sq ft. At the Gaylord Texan, the 50,000 sq ft Texas Grand Ballroom and the 32,200 sq ft Lone Star Ballroom take smaller exhibits on carpet. In Dallas, the open part of the convention center has Ballroom A (26,992 sq ft) and Ballroom C (19,224 sq ft) and meeting rooms on Levels 1 and 3 for tabletop formats. The Hilton Anatole's Trinity Ballroom (45,000 sq ft, 28 ft) and Chantilly Ballroom (28,400 sq ft, 29 ft) also take expos.

From our Fort Worth Convention Center, Gaylord Texan Resort, Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas and Hilton Anatole guides

Yes. The Dallas City Council voted in February 2022 to move toward replacing the building, and in February 2026 the city began demolishing Halls D, E and F. Halls A, B and C keep running shows. The new 2.1 million sq ft center, with about 750,000 sq ft of exhibit space, is due in 2029 per the city or 2030 per the venue, and the DART Convention Center station stays closed until then. Fort Worth is changing too: its 1968 arena is being replaced with more than 50,000 sq ft of new exhibit space. Both guides say to confirm hall availability and access before booking.

From our Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas and Fort Worth Convention Center guides

In Dallas, address freight to Hall A, B or C and booth number, send trucks to the 1225 Canton Street dock entrance, and expect construction detours. At the Hilton Anatole, nothing goes to the hotel before set-up day, and the Atrium and Tower mezzanines connect only by stairs. In Fort Worth, confirm dock access around the arena construction. At the Gaylord Texan, confirm dock hours, keep forklifts and heavy builds in the concrete-floor hall, and plan for move-out the same evening. Self-install crews can start on their own schedule once the docks open.

From our Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas, Hilton Anatole, Fort Worth Convention Center and Gaylord Texan Resort guides