Hotels near Cotton Bowl Stadium for the Red River Rivalry

Texas and Oklahoma meet at Cotton Bowl Stadium on Saturday, October 10, 2026, with a 2:30 p.m. kickoff, right in the middle of the State Fair of Texas. That puts two of the biggest crowds in Dallas inside Fair Park on the same day.

The catch for anyone booking a room: even the closest well-reviewed hotels are about a mile and a half from the stadium. Below are the 10 closest, how to get from them to the game, and which nights to book early.

The 10 closest hotels for the Red River Rivalry

How we picked the Red River Rivalry hotels

• Distances are measured in a straight line from Cotton Bowl Stadium to each hotel, so the drive or walk is a bit longer.
• Hotels only, each with a guest score of 8.0 or higher. We left out apartments, aparthotels and hostels.
• A few budget motels are closer than anything here, one of them about three-quarters of a mile from the stadium, but their reviews are few or poor, so they didn't make the list.
• We ranked the list by straight-line distance to the stadium, closest first.

Getting to the Red River Rivalry

Cotton Bowl Stadium is inside Fair Park, about two miles east of downtown. Fair Park's own website gives the address as 3809 Grand Avenue, Dallas, TX 75210, but on game day the State Fair runs the gates and lots, so follow the fair's directions.

• DART Green Line. Fair Park Station is on Parry Avenue at the fair's entrance, about 0.4 miles from the stadium. On DART's schedule it's about 4 minutes from Baylor Station, 6 from Deep Ellum Station and 10 from St. Paul Station downtown. MLK Jr. Station, one stop past Fair Park, serves the south side of the grounds.
• Parking. The official State Fair lots charge $25 per space. The fair's parking address is 925 S. Haskell Avenue, Dallas, TX 75223.
• Rideshare and taxis. Drop-off and pickup are on Haskell Avenue toward 4206 Gurley Avenue. The taxi stand is at Pacific and Gurley, just outside Gate 1.

Red River Rivalry vs. the January bowl game

If you searched for Cotton Bowl hotels because of the bowl game, you want a different city.

The Cotton Bowl Classic moved out of this stadium to AT&T Stadium in Arlington and has been played there since January 2010. The 91st edition, a College Football Playoff quarterfinal, is on Friday, January 1, 2027. AT&T Stadium is about 19 miles west of Fair Park in a straight line, so a Deep Ellum or downtown Dallas hotel is the wrong base for it.

Our guide to hotels near AT&T Stadium covers that trip.

When Red River Rivalry hotels fill up

The Red River Rivalry is played during the State Fair of Texas, which runs September 25 to October 18, 2026. So on game weekend you're booking against fairgoers as well as football fans headed for a stadium that holds 92,100.

The Cotton Bowl hosts other games during the fair too: the State Fair Classic between Grambling State and Prairie View A&M was on September 26, and Dallas Trinity FC plays Club Chivas in the State Fair Clásico on October 17.

For the game itself, the nights that matter are Friday, October 9, and Saturday, October 10. If the hotels on the east side of downtown are full, pick anything near a downtown Green Line station. The train does the rest.

Where to stay for the Red River Rivalry, by neighborhood

• Baylor area. Element by Marriott Dallas Downtown East and Home2 Suites are the two closest hotels on the list, both on Gaston Avenue. Home2 Suites is a short walk from Baylor Station, one stop from Fair Park.
• Deep Ellum. The Kimpton Pittman has the best guest score of the three closest hotels and is steps from Deep Ellum Station, two stops from Fair Park. Of the three areas, Deep Ellum has the most bars and live music for before and after the game. More options are in our Deep Ellum hotels guide.
• Downtown. Seven of the ten are downtown, from SOVA on Commerce Street to the Sheraton by St. Paul Station. They're a little farther out but give you the most choice if the east side sells out. See downtown Dallas hotels for more.

The hotels

Element by Marriott Dallas Downtown East 4005 Gaston Avenue, Dallas 8.6368 reviews Closest well-rated hotel to the stadiumPool and pets allowed View hotel → Home2 Suites by Hilton Dallas Downtown at Baylor Scott & White 3301 Gaston Avenue, Dallas 8.5786 reviews Suites with kitchensNear Baylor Station View hotel → Kimpton - Pittman Hotel by IHG 2551 Elm Street, Dallas 9.0528 reviews Deep Ellum, 9.0 guest scoreNear Deep Ellum Station View hotel → SOVA Micro-Room & Social Hotel 2105 Commerce Street, Dallas 8.81,837 reviews Micro-rooms on Commerce StreetNear St. Paul Station View hotel → Hotel Indigo Dallas Downtown by IHG 1933 Main Street, Dallas 8.4668 reviews Boutique hotel on Main StreetNear St. Paul Station View hotel → The Statler Dallas, Curio Collection By Hilton 1914 Commerce Street, Dallas 8.6517 reviews Outdoor pool downtownNear St. Paul Station View hotel → Sheraton Dallas Hotel 400 North Olive Street, Dallas 9.0625 reviews Large downtown hotel, 9.0 guest scoreNear St. Paul Station View hotel → Renaissance Saint Elm Dallas Downtown Hotel 1907 Elm Street, Dallas 8.6423 reviews On Elm Street downtownNear St. Paul Station View hotel → Lorenzo Hotel Dallas, Tapestry Collection by Hilton 1011 South Akard Street, Dallas 9.21,394 reviews Highest guest score on this listJust south of downtown View hotel → Residence Inn by Marriott Dallas Downtown 1712 Commerce Street, Dallas 8.8463 reviews Suite-style rooms downtownNear Akard Station View hotel →

Planning a longer stay? See all our Dallas hotel guides.