Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
( 432-683-4403;
www.petroleummuseum.org
; 1500 I-20 W exit 136, north side; adult/child $8/5; 10am-5pm
Mon-Sat, 2-5pm Sun)
This museum is worth a stop even if you're not utterly fascinated with
the oil business, for it's as much a history and geology museum as a shrine to the promin-
ent local industry (it has a hall of fame and an ironically entertaining 1970s sensibility).
Outside is a big collection of antique oil-drilling equipment. Inside, interactive exhibits
include one in which players can drill their own wells and another that simulates the roar
of a blowout, an oil well gone wild.
Museum of the Southwest
( 432-683-2882;
www.museumsw.org
; 1705 W Missouri Ave; 10am-5pm Tue-Sat, 2-5pm Sun; )
Housed in the 1937 Turner Mansion, itself a work of art, this museum has an art gallery
(admission free), planetarium (shows adult/child $6/4) and a children's museum (admis-
sion $3). Larger-than-life sculptures from the permanent collection dot the tree-shaded
grounds, which were built by oil baron Fred Turner.
MUSEUM
Sleeping
Midland offers more options than Odessa, even if they're all chains. Budget choices are
north of I-20 exit 134; more upscale brands can be found on the TX 250 Loop where it
meets TX 158 west of the center. Note that the energy boom means that prices are high,
selection is low and many places have reduced services due to employee shortages.
Super 8
( 432-689-6822; 3828 W Wall Ave; r $60-120; )
A tidy two-story version of the ubiquit-
ous budget chain. The neighborhood is charmless except for other cheap motels - and in-
dustry. It's north of I-20 exit 134, off Midkiff Rd.
MOTEL
$
Residence Inn
( 432-689-3511;
www.residenceinn.com
;
5509 Deauville Blvd; r $150-300; )
Amid a pleth-
ora of brightly lit franchise restaurants, this extended-stay hotel has 131 units in an attract-
ive, if generic, complex. All come with kitchen facilities and are ideal for families.
HOTEL
$$$
Eating
KD's Bar-B-Q
BARBECUE
$$
