Round Top is an important American cultural happening that’s up there with Burning Man, Art Basel Miami, or New York Fashion Week. Its genre – defined too narrowly – is antiques. What it’s really about is design, art, style, and, increasingly, cuisine.
You’ll hear that Round Top is a sprawling antiques show. Centered on the tiny town of Round Top, Texas, the event actually spans several towns strung along the 2-lane State Highway 237, most importantly Warrenton to the south. It’s held at a great variety of independent venues – open fields, single buildings, or campuses of buildings and outdoor spaces. Here sellers from far and wide open up shop temporarily. This all happens every March and October, with a smaller fair in January. The upcoming show in October 2025 is 15 days long.
This decentralized live event is absolutely infused with Texas scenery, style, and culture. That’s fundamental because Texas is a big brand and a whole vibe. Texas was one of only a handful of US places with cojones big enough to declare itself a country, isn’t that right? Driving into the March show, you’ll see galaxies of orange and purple wildflowers carpeting the grassy medians, shoulders, and fields. In October and even in March, South Texas can be a summerland where you wander and shop in barns and historic dance halls with their doors flung open. And then there’s the people – and what they wear.
Round Top’s antiques sellers aren’t the condescending characters you’ve met on other shopping trips. Their welcomes are warm and sincere. There’s no dress code, but many sellers and shoppers celebrate Round Top by dressing for it. They’re styled like cowboys, bohemians, and artists, their self-expression thrumming with creativity, joy, and freedom. And it’s contagious. Just like that, your corporate job in the big city lifts away. That’s why some people come to Round Top and literally run away with the circus, becoming antiques dealers or moving here to open shops, restaurants, and inns.
The sellers who create this moveable feast deserve recognition. They are an exceptionally talented community with significant clusters from Austin, Dallas, and Houston, but also farther flung places like Atlanta, Chicago, and Los Angeles. Their collective effort is a national marketplace for antiques, new furniture and home decor, and original art. If you’ve never experienced Round Top, you’ll be amazed by the depth and breadth, the beauty and the singularity of what’s for sale at this shopping party.
You'll find how-to Round Top articles and blog posts online by publications, designers, and influencers. They tend to include a short list of five to ten places to shop, typically venues hosting tens or even hundreds of sellers. They rarely showcase or even reference the sellers themselves. It’s like saying shop Abbot Kinney or don’t miss the Marais without recommending a single shop. And this approach is insufficient to describe Round Top’s vastness, where sellers reportedly number in the thousands.
Then there’s the magazine published by RoundTop.com which you'll encounter for the first time at the show. It’s got loads of good information including a complete schedule and many maps. But this magazine doesn’t cover all of Round Top all at once, and it doesn’t include the seller-level reporting that’s been missing.
Most people learn Round Top by attending many shows over many years. Given the scale, even experts with many notches in their belts must have their blind spots – places they’ve never been, things they’ve never seen. Because learning-by-doing is romantic but it’s not efficient. And you may not have the time, money, or commitment to learn Round Top this way.
I set out to write an information-packed, overall guide inspired by books on topics like travel and wine. First and foremost, this is a consumer's guide to Round Top. I’m not a designer or a dealer, and I’ve experienced Round Top the way you will – as a tourist and a shopper. In this book, I’ll take you beyond the venues to introduce you to the sellers who curate and make what sells at Round Top. The seller profiles I created are the first broad mapping of vendors across venues, styles, time periods, and merchandise categories. Importantly, I haven’t been paid or comped in any way for my recommendations.
The goal of this guide is to inform and prepare you so that your trip to Round Top is less haphazard wandering, and more purposeful journeying. If you’re Round Top-curious, I describe its all-you-can-eat bounty so you can choose wisely. If you’re shopping for specific pieces suitable to a house type or architectural style, I direct you to the sellers who have what you’re looking for. And if you’re an expert, I inspire you to visit new-to-you sellers off your beaten path. I hope this guide inspires you to experience Round Top and enhances the experience you have there.