Good to Know
The Marfa questions visitors and newcomers ask most — seeing the Lights, finding Prada Marfa, the drive in, the Border Patrol checkpoint and the dark skies.
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The Marfa questions visitors and newcomers ask most — seeing the Lights, finding Prada Marfa, the drive in, the Border Patrol checkpoint and the dark skies.
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For who to call and what's open today, see those tools on the town page.
The free Marfa Mystery Lights Viewing Center is about 9 miles east of town on US-90, toward Alpine. It has a parking area, restrooms and viewing platforms, and it's open every night. Come after dark and look southwest, toward the Chinati Mountains.
There's no schedule and no guarantee. Some nights you'll see distant glowing lights that split, hover and fade; some nights nothing. A 2011 study tied many sightings to headlights on US-67 bent by layers of warm and cool desert air — but plenty of people, longtime residents included, have seen lights that headlights don't explain. Either way, dress warm: desert nights get cold even in summer.
No — and it catches a lot of people out. "Prada Marfa" is an art installation, not a store, and it sits beside US-90 about 37 miles northwest of town, near Valentine — roughly a 40-minute drive. You can't go inside; it's made to be seen and photographed from the roadside. Plan it as a short trip of its own, not a quick stop in town.
There's no commercial airport in Marfa. The nearest ones are in El Paso and Midland, each about a three-hour drive. The closest Amtrak station is in Alpine, about 26 miles east, on the Sunset Limited line between Los Angeles and New Orleans.
Either way, you'll want a car once you're here. Marfa has almost no rideshare and very little public transit, and several things you may need — a full grocery run, a hospital, a pharmacy — are over in Alpine. Distances between towns are long, so keep your fuel up.
Probably, yes. Marfa is in the Border Patrol's Big Bend Sector, and there are interior checkpoints on the highways through the region — most notably on US-67 between Marfa and Presidio. Every vehicle stops. An agent asks whether everyone aboard is a U.S. citizen and may walk a dog around the car; for most travelers it takes under a minute.
It's routine, not a border crossing — you aren't leaving the country. Carry a photo ID (and immigration documents if you're not a citizen), answer plainly, and you'll be waved through.
Yes — this is some of the darkest sky left in the Lower 48. Presidio County is part of the Greater Big Bend International Dark Sky Reserve, and on a clear, moonless night the Milky Way is easy to see right from the edge of town.
For a guided look, the University of Texas's McDonald Observatory is in Fort Davis, about 37 miles north. It runs public Star Parties several nights a week (often Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday in summer). Book ahead on the observatory's website, bring a jacket, and give your eyes time to adjust to the dark.
There's no hospital or emergency room in Marfa. The nearest ER is Big Bend Regional Medical Center in Alpine, about 26 miles east on US-90 — roughly half an hour. In any life-threatening emergency, call 911; Marfa EMS responds around the clock and will get you to Alpine.
For the clinic, the ER and after-hours utility numbers, see the Who to Call tool on the town page.
The Get Go on S Dean St is Marfa's in-town grocery — good for day-to-day food, though it's small. For a full grocery run, or anything from a pharmacy, most people drive to Alpine (about 26 miles); the in-town Porter's grocery has closed. Call ahead before you make the trip for a prescription.
The What's Open Today tool shows current hours for the grocery and for the cafés, shops and galleries in town.
Marfa keeps famously changeable hours. Many restaurants, shops and galleries open only Thursday through Sunday, some are by appointment, and a few close for stretches "on vacation" with little notice — it's the rhythm of a small, seasonal town. Midweek and mid-afternoon are the quietest stretches.
Check What's Open Today before you set out, and when in doubt, call ahead — it's the surest way to know.
The City of Marfa runs the town's own water, sewer, gas and trash service, billed through City Hall. There's no curbside recycling; instead the city holds occasional drop-off and collection events for bulky items, tires and the like. For your pickup day, a billing question or the next recycling event, call City Hall — the number is in the Who to Call tool.
Town Tools builds free, public tools for Marfa and towns around the world. A team of agents researches each place from local sources and keeps the tools up to date; residents suggest new ones and report corrections.