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How It’s Made: The Best Factory Tours in Texas

Been There Done That· Texas

3 Nov

factory tours in texas

In a world full of instant downloads kids might be convinced that the foods and goods that make up their daily life just materialize at the click of a button. A factory tour shows them in the inner workings of a manufacturing plant and the steps it takes to get a loaf of bread or a dollar bill from start to finish. Factory Tours are also a terrific outing with kids because they are often free and even offer samples. As a self-made state, Texas has a long list of factory tours,  proving that there are plenty of great things still made right here in the US of A.   

Bureau of Engraving and Printing

What does a billion dollars look like?  This might be your only chance to find out.  A 45 minute tour of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Fort Worth, TX walks you through the entire paper money printing process. To make the most of the tour, be sure you have a new $10 or $20 bill in your pocket to refer to as you tour.   In addition to the tour, you can explore the interactive exhibits in the museum where they have scavenger hunts written just for kids.  My kids loved using the microscopes to find the hidden pictures on the money. Don’t forget to stop in the gift shop where you can snatch up all kinds of money mementos, including a sheet of uncut money. Tours occur Monday-Friday from 9 am to 2 pm and are free.

bureau of printing and engraving

Jardines Food

No trip to Texas is complete without a sampling of salsa and Jardine’s is the place to taste the spice.   Jardine’s Food, located in Buda, TX (just outside Austin), is not your typical industrial factory.  Located on a sprawling ranch with herds of longhorns and authentic Chisholm Trail chuck wagons, it offers a true Texas experience.   Visitors can watch the entire salsa making process, from ingredients stewing in the pots to packaging.  Of course, spicy samples are available at the end of the tour.  Free tours are available weekdays from 9 am to 4 pm.

Mary Kay Cosmetics

Any story with a pink Cadillac in it has got to be a good one, but a Mary Kay factory tour is especially intriguing.  Little girls who love all things pink will be thrilled with the factory tour in the heart of Dallas, but don’t think this is a ‘No Boys Allowed’ event.  All those tiny bottles whizzing around in a rainbow of colors are fascinating for anyone, and while my boys weren’t really interested in the tour of Mary Kay’s office, they loved the mechanisms in the factory. Tours occur on Monday at 2pm, Tuesday to Thursday at 10:30am and 2pm, and Fridays at 10:30am. Tours are free.

mary kay tour

Mrs. Baird’s Bakery

Is there anything more delicious than the smell of freshly baked bread?  Without spending a lot of dough, you can see the production of hamburger buns and a loaf of bread from ingredients to package.   The smell of the bread will greet you in the Fort Worth parking lot and stay with you through the 45 minute tour.  Don’t worry, though, your patience will be rewarded with a large warm slice of bread, a donut, and a honey bun at the end of the tour. Tours must be arranged online at least two weeks in advance and are free of charge for kids 6 and over.

 

mrs bairds bread

D-Bat Wooden Bats

D-Bat is one of the new kids on the block in producing materials for America’s favorite past time, but they have quickly earned the reputation of being the “hottest bats on the planet.”  The bats aren’t the only thing that’s hot-the factory in the East Texas town of Mount Pleasant is open to the public, but it is also un-air-conditioned.   It’s best to visit first thing in the morning to have a cool trip through the factory where you can watch your own bat turned on the lathe and then personalized with your name. 

Blue Bell Ice Cream

You might have heard that summer gets a little warm in Texas.  Cooling off has never been sweeter than a stop at the Blue Bell Ice Cream Factory in Brenham, TX for a true taste of Texas.  Here’s the scoop: an elevated walkway above the actual factory takes you through the entire ice cream making process in about 30 minutes.  Of course, a scoop of any flavor of your choice waits for you at the end of the tour.  My kids were fascinated to learn how they divide the chocolate and vanilla ice cream perfectly down the center of the carton.  If you want to know the secret, you’ll need to take a trip down South and see (and taste) for yourself.  Tours are conducted from 8-3:30 and cost $5 per person.

Nokona Glove Factory

In far north Texas in the tiny town of Nocona, a staple of America’s favorite pastime is still handmade in America.  Genuine leather baseball gloves are hand made by genuine Americans in a factory planted firmly at the heart of America.   Each glove, over 100 per day, is hand stitched, hand cut, and hand embroidered by employees whose dedication to detail places them in the category of artist. Tours are offered from 8:00 to 11:00 and from 1:00 to 3:00 Monday through Friday

nokona gloves

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« Four Kids, One Hostel, and a Pot of Soup: Our First Hostelling Experience
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Comments

  1. Melisa says

    11/05/2014 at 8:57 am

    Factory tours are among my very favorite things. In Chicago, there are fewer and fewer these days due to liability issues, but my favorite is the tour of Eli’s Cheesecake Factory, which comes with a free slice at the end. 🙂
    Melisa recently posted…The Waiting Is The Hardest PartMy Profile

  2. Johanna says

    08/28/2015 at 10:09 pm

    So cool! We are traveling homeschoolers living in Texas and will definitely be visiting some factories soon. I was homeschooled as a child and still remember touring Blue Bell and the old Imperial Sugar facory in Sugarland. Great memories!

    • Natalie says

      12/26/2016 at 10:34 am

      I grew up on the north side of Houston and am sitting here thinking I can not believe I did not know that the Imperial Sugar factory was in Sugarland!!! And then, I’m thinking…is that why Sugarland is named Sugarland? DUH!!!

      The next time we are home to visit we are headed to the factory. What a fun thing to see! With technology making so many things seem so easy = things shipped from the opposite ends of the earth with just a click, it is GREAT for kid to see how things are actually made. Great learning experience and as you said….you always remember!

      We travel with the family and I blog about it – writing travel guides for the kids. I use sugar as an example when we talk about beaches and sand. That is a great visual for explaining that sand is a SIZE and not a material.

      We visited Blue Bell, too….yummy!

  3. Tammy Schlotter says

    06/02/2016 at 6:01 pm

    Please send me information via mail. My address is 217 Ruslee, LaMarque, Texas 77568

  4. Natalie says

    12/26/2016 at 10:31 am

    Oh, my goodness what a GREAT list! We are new to Austin and I did not realize we had a factory so close. We will definitely be visiting Jardines food soon!

    We travel with the kids and I focus on making trips educational so they really remember and internalize what they explore. You can have a lot of fun and learning in your own back yard, too. The WHOLE world is a classroom!

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