The Annual Swiss Avenue Historic District Home Tour – commonly called the Annual Mother’s Day Home Tour – is the matriarch of all home tours in Dallas, and rightly so. Swiss Avenue Historic District (SAHD) was Dallas’ first historic district, and Swiss Avenue was the city’s earliest grand neighborhood.
In addition to its designation as an official Dallas Landmark District, Swiss Avenue is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. On the regional level, it is the finest example of an early 20th century neighborhood in the Southwest according to the SAHD. The eclectic mix of architectural styles run the gamut from Mediterranean, Spanish, Spanish Revival, Georgian, and Mission to Prairie, Craftsman, Neoclassical, Italian Renaissance, Tudor, and Colonial Revival.
This year’s tour will showcase five of the era’s most popular styles, including a romantic Spanish Revival; an Italianate Mediterranean Villa; a pristine Mission Revival; a Prairie Foursquare with unique Georgian influences; and a Progressive-Style Prairie Foursquare.
The tour offers the opportunity to step inside these treasured homes and get a first-hand look at the interior charm and detail that owners have historically preserved throughout decades. On Saturday only, the tour also includes Munger Place Church, a historic Gothic sanctuary built by noted architect C.D. Hill.
The weekend-long 46th annual celebration of moms and Dallas history is slated for Saturday, May 11 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday, May 12 from noon to 6 p.m. at Savage Park, which is located about halfway down Swiss Avenue between Bryan and Parkmont. Complimentary air-conditioned minibusses will be available to shuttle tour-goers to and from the park and tour homes. On Sunday, a Mother’s Day brunch is scheduled with entertainment by a live jazz ensemble, and brunch attendees are urged to make reservations in advance.
Besides the home tour, the festive two-day event is filled with activities for the entire family – ranging from an open-air art fair, vintage auto display, children’s activity area with a kid-sized railroad, and live entertainment on Swiss Avenue to a speakers’ series, free horse-drawn carriage rides, freshly prepared food, ice-cold beverages, and much more.
Tickets to the tour are $30 in advance and $35 during the event, and children 12 and under are admitted free. Advance tickets can be purchased online at or in-person from Talulah & HESS at Skillman-Live Oak Shopping Center or Tom Thumb Stores at Mockingbird & Abrams, Gaston Avenue near Grand, Villanova Drive in Preston Center, Snyder Plaza, Oak Lawn Avenue, East Lovers Lane at Matilda, and the new Uptown location.
Advance ticket sales end at 6 p.m. on Friday, May 10. During the tour, tickets can be purchased at any of the homes on tour and at Savage Park.
Want to attend for free? Stay tuned to Daltxrealestate.com for an exclusive ticket giveaway!
