The Best of Austin Weekend Guide!

Everything’s Bigger in Texas, Even Your Weekend Getaways!

Austin Texas is such a unique city that blends classic texas style with an artistic twist! You’ll find plenty to do outside during the day and spending some time on the water to stay cool is a must! and then come night the city comes alive with live music and an impressive nightlife scene. I spent a summer in the Austin area and consolidated my favorite things for an awesome weekend getaway to enjoy the best of Austin!

Where to Stay

Austin is an easy city to get around, and staying centrally is important so you can branch out and explore different areas. Austin is spoiled with choice with so many AMAZING hotels to choose from! Nice weather year-round gives way to beautiful outdoor spaces for guests to enjoy and a pool is a must to beat the Texas heat!

The Austin Motel: Located on the very trendy South Congress street, this iconic hotel is so fun and quirky which sets a perfect tone for your trip to Austin! When the weather is nice and warm, their cool retro pool has a lot of fun events, like dive-in movies where you grab a floaty and catch a classic flick! The poolside bar is also a plus and the location is awesome

The LINE Austin: This boutique hotel has amazing views from all sides. The super chic P6 lounge faces the Colorado River and the pool is a great hang out spot to keep cool! The rooms are beautiful, and the service is top notch. You get luxury amenities here with boutique hotel service and its affordable. Did I mention the location is walkable to everything? book this place!

What To Do

Rainey Street: A must do while in Austin is check out the charming Rainey Street for food and drinks! The historic street is lined with adorable bungalow houses that have turned into very cute restaurant and bars! The old trees provide nice shade to sit outside and enjoy the atmosphere. Try the classic Banger's Sausage House & Beer Garden for great beer and food, and it’s a huge space so you won’t have to wait long here! The street transforms at night into a vibrant nightlife scene too so don’t write it off as just a place for food!

Texas Capitol: In the heart of the city sits the beautiful Texas Capitol. It’s free to go inside and walk the grounds, and its definitely worth taking a tour and learning about the history if you have time!

Experience 6th Street: Austin has amazing live music and also great comedy! 6th Street comes alive after the sun sets and the club doors open! Antone’s is a great spot for live music and they have hosted Blues legends over the years. Vulcan Gas Company has become a hot spot for live comedy shows lately too! 6th Street is also home to the coolest speakesy, Midnight Cowboy! Follow the link to make a reservation in advanced and enjoy a really special night in Austin!

Barton Springs: This natural spring fed pool is a beautiful place to cool off right in the city! Enjoy the crystal clear water with views of the city and eat a picnic and sunbath in the grass.

Ginger tip: You do have to pay admission to enter Barton Springs, but just below the pool where the same water flows down is “Barkin Springs” where all the locals go to hang out, drink some beers, and its dog friendly too! You cannot bring alcohol into Barton Springs if that helps form your decision

South Congress Street: This is a hipster area of Austin with unique shopping and really good food. Allen’s Boots is a long time Austin staple for western apparel. Joann’s Fine Foods has great food in a retro diner atmosphere, great cocktails too! And the Austin Motel is worth checking out even if you aren’t staying there! They offer pool passes for the day and also often have events going on. Stick around and head to the Congress Avenue Bridge at dusk to catch an impressive display of bats crossing under the bridge! It’s worth looking up the estimated time that they will start their evening flight so you time it right!

Learn to Two-Step at Broken Spoke: This was such a fun Texas experience for us. Texans might be tough but they let loose on the dance floor, and you will see people of all ages too! Head to Broken Spoke and dance on the floor where so many legends have before you, like Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson!

Eat BBQ: Eating good barbeque is a must while in Texas. We tried a lot during our 6 weeks there and even after waiting in a longggg line for the famous Franklin BBQ we kept coming back to Cooper's Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que because the meat was incredible! The brisket is out of this world, and you pick out what meat you want in line which was fun - try a little bit of everything! The location of Cooper’s is also right downtown so you can easily fit it into your itinerary. We also tried Stubb’s BAR-B-Q that was very good, and their sauce has become famous nationwide! We enjoyed their outdoor area too

What to Pack

Enjoy your adventure in Austin!