The Magnolia Markets at the Silos in downtown Waco was such a fun and relaxing afternoon!

Waco, Texas has gained plenty of notoriety over the past few years as Chip and Joanna Gaines built their Magnolia Home empire. While this was not my first visit to Waco, I had not been there since all of the farmhouse fame became a thing. Our New Year's visit to this Texas town was the perfect ending to our winter vacation. I planned this portion of our trip to be low key and restful. And, for the most part, it was perfect.

We ended our winter vacation on a high note by visiting a winery on New Year's Day!

Explore Waco, Texas - Our Final Stop on our Winter RV Adventure

Before I get into the details of Waco, planning a trip over the New Year's holiday can be dicey. Some businesses and places of interest are going to be closed. Be prepared for that. For us, this gives us a bit of downtime before we start our journey home. We needed a little break in our trip. But, if you are looking for big-time excitement, every place you visit may not offer those opportunities. Make sure you contact the places you want to visit on these dates ahead of time to ensure they are open or find out about modified hours over the holidays. The Magnolia Markets were no different! And kudos to them! People need time to spend with friends and family. Holiday store hours and times did make planning a little more challenging, but we worked with it and made the most of our time in Waco.

Site 60 was our spot at Flat Creek Farms! It was a pull through spot with a spacious area for lounging and enjoying meals outdoors.

Where to Stay

If you are visiting Waco in your RV, I recommend Flat Creek Farms RV Resort. You are 10 minutes from the action of Waco and the Magnolia Markets. But, you are also in this peaceful little rural area surrounded by nature, views of grazing sheep, while offering all of the amenities that you would need.

We happened to score site 60. I believe that sites 60 and 59 and probably the best sites in the campground. These are large pull-through sites with a view of the little creek and has a large, flat yard space that we enjoyed for meals outside, playing cards and lawn darts.

The view of the creek from our site was lovely and perfect putting our feet up and enjoying coffee of a cocktail.

There is plenty of space to walk your dogs. They have laundry facilities, propane, bathhouses as well as excellent Wi-Fi. But, the outdoor space is what makes this campground amazing.

We set up our outdoor table and had a late New Year's Eve dinner under the stars. It was also the perfect spot to have our New Year's Day brunch. And, later that day the sunset was wonderful. The time to relax and just rest at the end of our trip at Flat Creek Farms was fantastic.

Our New Year's Day brunch was how we started 2022 followed by a fun card game!

Our son loved a good show room and checking out all of the furniture!

What to Do

We loved our visit to The Shops at the Silos. It was not really what I expected, and I'm not sure how to even verbalize what my expectations were. However, the Silos is where you could spend an entire afternoon or day really. Give yourself plenty of time if this is something you want to do. Don't rush it.

On the grounds there are several little shops that you can browse. I thought there was far less inventory or "stuff " than I would have guessed. I was expecting stores packed to the brim with farmhouse-themed items. But, in reality, most shops had a minimalist approach to shopping with select items that were well-curated and placed. The available stock and showcasing of merchandise definitely set the tone for how I shopped and what I actually bought. There are shops with gardening items, clothing, accessories, bath and personal care, men's items, books, home items and even baby goods. We ended up with a plant mister and a set of iron candle holders. I also picked up some hairpins in an accessories shop. I'm not a hug shopper, but I enjoy the action and browsing. So, all of this worked for me.

Give yourself enough time at the Silos to lounge and enjoy the outdoor spaces. It is one of the best parts of the Magnolia empire!

What I think makes this place special are the outdoor spaces that are designed for lounging and hanging out. There are food trucks with plenty of options and tables for eating on the property. You can play a game of catch with balls that are roaming about. Enjoy the afternoon sipping lemonade or sweet tea and listening to the music surrounding you in a beanbag. Play baseball in the little ball field. Or just sit on a bench or other seating area spread around the grounds. Everywhere you look is another nook or area to to kick back and soak it all in. It is family and pet-friendly. All of the outdoor spaces provide plenty of room to spread out, bring your kids to play while you shop, or take a break from the action. I may have loved this aspect the best. The attention to detail and what the grounds offer was my favorite part.

The Silos are located in downtown Waco. Parking was a challenge due to the ongoing construction work when we were there. The large church adjacent to the property offers parking at a paid fee. You might want to opt for this to get a better parking space. There are also lots of other shops and places to visit in this area. But, since we were there on New Year's Eve, much of this was closed.

Valley Mills Winery is about 30 minutes from Waco, and offers a relaxing setting to enjoy wine and snacks.

The grounds at Valley Mills Winery is lovely!

One hidden gem in this area is the Valley Mills Winery. I planned ahead, and this was our New Year's Day outing. The grounds and views are spectacular. Two of our favorite wines were the Cinsaut Rose and the Albarino. They offer tasting daily from 12 to 6. Everything was low key and very much about just enjoying the view and sipping some wine.

It's about a 25 minute drive from the Flat Creek Farms RV Resort. I thought it was well worth the trip, and I would encourage anyone traveling to Waco to make a stop here!

You can snack on charcuterie or flatbreads while having some wine and taking in the view. The staff was friendly and knowledgeable. Spending a quiet, sunny afternoon here was just how to start the new year as well as soak in a great view before heading back to Mississippi.

Where to Eat

I feel like this is the area where we may have missed the most in Waco. The only meal we ate out while there was at the food trucks at the Silos. We did enjoy this experience, and I love a good food truck. It made the most of our short time in in the city, and I was not disappointed. We are in a season of our life where our son is just as happy with a cup of chili from a food truck as a fine dining experience. I'll take that as a win.

However, if you can get a reservation at the Magnolia Table, everyone recommends this. Some days of the week, they don't take reservations. But contact them ahead of your visit to see if you can reserve a table for your group. The wait times are really long otherwise. I didn't want to commit to a long wait for a table on a day that we were already short on time. So, if you are short on time like us, grab a bite at the silos and make for more time there!

The cupcakes from the Silos Baking Company is worth the wait in line! Carve out some time to do this!

I planned to do a lasagna dinner for us outdoors for us on New Year's Eve Night. While at the Silos, I grabbed some cupcakes at the Silos Baking Company. Maybe grabbed is the wrong word here. I actually waited in line for about 30 minutes for those cupcakes. Even though I ordered a strawberry cupcake, I ended up with Lemon Lavender. It was amazing. It was worth the wait and every single calorie. Just get in the line and let your folks play or lounge in beanbags while you buy some amazing treats to enjoy. They offer several standard treats as well as seasonal ones that you can purchase in a seasonal sampler box.

The sunsets in Texas always seem spectacular. This was the view from our campsite in Waco.

Final Tips

In Texas, you can enjoy balmy 80 degree weather in the winter. It can also quickly change! On New Year's Day, it was 82 degrees in the afternoon. The temperature dropped 50 degrees by the time we went to bed. We woke up to 22 degrees, a frozen spigot and a camper rocking in 35 miles per hour wind gusts! The wind and cold can be jarring. Be prepared.

Because of the wind and cold, we did a quick drain of our tanks and got on the road that last morning. We were planning to go as far as Vicksburg, MS that day and knew we were facing more freezing temps when we arrived there. This was not really how we anticipated on wanted to end our trip. I think the consistently warm weather on our trip had lulled us into this warm blanket where we forgot it was actually winter. But, we woke up to a rude awakening the day we started home!

What I do advise is having a spare container of water handy that you can heat in an electric kettle or on the stove. This will allow you to pour over your spigot and thaw it out. I also recommend having a heated water hose and wrap your pipe if the temps are going to be consistently cold or drop well below freezing overnight. These things can make a big difference.

Find out more about our other two stops on our winter vacation. We started in New Orleans before heading over to Fredericksburg. If you want to know more about other places we have camped in our RV, be sure to check out our Camping Map!

Until next time...happy camping!

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