#1 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Downtown Austin (Neighborhood)
West Lake Hills TX
~0.15 miles from Austin city center
Hotels Close to Downtown Austin
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#2 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Austin Public Library
Austin TX
~0.16 miles from Austin city center
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#3 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Austin History Center
Austin TX
~0.16 miles from Austin city center
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#4 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Paramount Theater
Austin TX
~0.17 miles from Austin city center
Hotels Close to Paramount Theater
The Paramount Theatre is a live theatre venue/movie theatre located in downtown Austin, Texas in the United States of America. The classical revival style structure was built in 1915. The building was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on June 23, 1976.
In the Paramount's 90-year history, it has played host to a wide variety of acts ranging from vaudeville legends The Marx Brothers, to the premieres of such films as 1966's Batman and 2005's Sin City.
For over 90 years, The Paramount Theatre has been home to vaudeville, silent movies and "talkies," music, dance, and Broadway shows. Through the years, a cast of superstars has graced its stage; from Houdini, the Marx Brothers, Helen Hayes, Orson Welles, Sarah Bernhardt, the Ziegfeld Follies, the Metropolitan Opera, Lillian Russell, John Philip Sousa, the Barrymores, Lillian Gish, and George M. Cohan to such modern-day favorites as Billy Joel, Willie Nelson, Jerry Jeff Walker, Sarah Vaughan, Lyle Lovett, Gregory Hines, and Mandy Patinkin.
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#5 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Frost Bank Tower
Austin TX
~0.19 miles from Austin city center
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The Frost Bank Tower is a skyscraper in Austin, the state capital of Texas in the United States. Standing 515 feet (157 meters) tall and containing 33 floors, it is the third tallest building in Austin, behind the 360 Condominiums and the Austonian. It was developed by Cousins Properties Incorporated from November 2001 to December 2003. It was the first high-rise building to be constructed in the U.S. after the 9/11 attacks. It was previously owned by Equity Office Properties Trust until its purchase by Thomas Properties and was designed by Duda/Paine Architects, LLP and HKS, Inc. It has the title for tallest logo above ground in the city. The silvery blue color glass facade was first used on the Reuters Building in New York City.
The building was voted the best new building by Austin Chronicle readers in 2004.
Local newspaper columnist John Kelso noted that the tower resembles an enormous set of nose hair trimmers, while the Austin Chronicle, referring to the building's "owl face looking down over the city," claims the skyscraper helps keep Austin "characteristically weird."
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#6 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Austin Museum of Art
Austin TX
~0.22 miles from Austin city center
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#7 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
360 Condominiums
360 Nueces St. Austin TX - 512-477-0360
~0.26 miles from Austin city center
Hotels Close to 360 Condominiums
360 Condominiums is a residential skyscraper at 360 Nueces Street. It is the second tallest building in Austin after The Austonian.
http://360condominiums.com
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#8 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Austin City Hall
Austin TX
~0.27 miles from Austin city center
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#9 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Downtown (Neighborhood)
Austin TX
~0.27 miles from Austin city center
Hotels Close to Downtown
Casual, cosmopolitan, eclectic, five-star, techie, hippie, historic, chic, intellectual, fashionable, artistic, and weird… The adjectives used to describe Downtown Austin are as numerous and diverse as the people who live, work and visit here.
Within a mile of the historic intersection of 6th and Congress Avenue — where Angelina Eberly fired a cannon to save the state archives and instead saved the Capitol — you'll find a treasure of arts, culture and interesting things to do. More than this, you'll find a center where government, education, business and people come together in one of the most energetic, creative yet somehow laid-back cities in the entire country.
Ask the college student who came here 30 years ago (he may be the PhD. candidate waiting your table): there's something about this town. People would rather do anything than leave Austin. It's the best place to live, work, play or develop — whether it's a new mixed-use project, a new nanotechnology invention or even the thesis for that dissertation you've been postponing. There's just something about Austin, and Downtown: As Austin as it Gets.™
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#10 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Governor's Mansion
Austin TX
~0.29 miles from Austin city center
Hotels Close to Governor's Mansion
The Texas Governor's Mansion is a historic home for the Governor of Texas in downtown Austin, Texas. It was built in 1854, designed by prominent architect Abner Cook, and has been the home of every governor since 1856.
On June 8, 2008, while midway through a major renovation, the mansion was heavily damaged by a fire believed to be arson
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#11 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Austin Children's Museum
West Lake Hills TX
~0.29 miles from Austin city center
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#12 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Old Bakery and Emporium
Austin TX
~0.31 miles from Austin city center
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Traveler Description: Bakery built in 1876, complete with an old-fashioned oven and wooden baker's spade.
Attraction type: Historic site
http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/parks/bakery1.htm
Address: 1006 Congress Ave Austin, TX 78701
Tel: 512 477 5961
Fax: 512 477 2874
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#13 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Travis County Law Library
Austin TX
~0.34 miles from Austin city center
Hotels Close to Travis County Law Library
Travis County Law Library
(512) 854-4569
314 W 11th St, #140, Austin, TX 78701
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#14 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
O. Henry House Museum
Austin TX
~0.39 miles from Austin city center
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O. Henry, Considered one of America's greatest short-story writers, lived in this house in 1885. As editor of his newspaper "The Rolling Stone" he used San Antonio as the setting of some of his most intriguing short stories such as "A Fog in Santone" and "The Higher Abdication". In 1896 O. Henry moved to Austin, was indicted for embezzelment and spent three years in prison where he used his time productively honoring his craft and memorizing every word in the dictionary.
Hoping to use O. Henry as a role model, Bexar County Cheif Probation Officer Caesar Garcia assigns his probationers as Docents in the O. Henry Museum to fulfill their Community Service. A college scholarship will be awarded to the probationer who best demonstrates a change of attitude and goals in life. The mural on the large wall behind the O. Henry House Museum was painted by a young probationer, John Murphy, whose artistic talents were recognized by Cheif Garcia.
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#15 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Sixth Street
Manor TX
~0.44 miles from Austin city center
Hotels Close to Sixth Street
6th Street is a historic street and entertainment district in Austin, Texas. East 6th Street is the center of the city's live music scene.
6th Street was formerly named Pecan Street under Austin's older naming convention, which had east-west streets named after trees and north-south streets named after Texas rivers (the latter convention remains in place). The area around nearby 4th Street and 6th Street is the heart of the Austin entertainment district. Many bars, clubs, music venues, and shopping destinations are located on E. 6th Street between Congress Avenue and Interstate 35 and many offer live music at one time or another during the week.
E. 6th Street plays host to a wide variety of events each year, ranging from music and film festivals (such as South by Southwest) to biker rallies (such as The Republic of Texas Biker Rally) and the Pecan Street Festival.
Traffic is generally blocked on E. 6th Street and most crossroads from I-35 to Brazos Street on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings (depending on pedestrian traffic), as well as holidays and special events to allow the crowds to walk unfettered to the many venues that line the street. On New Year's Eve, Mardi Gras, and Halloween nights tens of thousands of revelers can walk only one way depending on the side of the street they are on.
The area of 6th Street roughly bounded by 5th Street, 7th Street, Lavaca Street, and Interstate 35 is known as the 6th Street Historic District and was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on December 30, 1975.
The area of 6th Street west of Lavaca is known as the West 6th Street District. It is roughly bound by 5th Street, 7th Street, Lavaca Street, and West Ave. Recently, there has been a growing movement to develop this area as an entertainment district of its own, geared toward the live music crowd.
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#16 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Esther's Follies
Austin TX
~0.48 miles from Austin city center
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Esther's Follies is a modern day vaudeville theatre located on 6th Street in downtown Austin, Texas. The group is named after actress Esther Williams. Acts incorporate magic, juggling, singing, dancing, and sketches on current events. The show is fast paced, and most of the acts incorporate a comedic theme.
The show lasts about one and a half hours with a short intermission, and runs every weekend evening from Thursday to Saturday. 2007 marked Esther's Follies' 30th anniversary of performances. The cast has changed significantly since its inception but still includes the founders, Michael Shelton and Shannon Sedwick, who continue to make appearances during the show.
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#17 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Ann W. Richards Congress Avenue Bridge
Austin TX
~0.49 miles from Austin city center
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#18 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Neal Kocurek Memorial Austin Convention Center
E.Ceasar Chavez St. Austin TX
~0.53 miles from Austin city center
Hotels Close to Neal Kocurek Memorial Austin Convention Center
The Neal Kocurek Memorial Austin Convention Center is a multi-purpose convention center located in Austin, Texas, USA. The building is also home to the Austin Toros basketball team with a seating capacity of 3,200.
The Neal Kocurek Memorial Austin Convention Center is a multi-purpose convention center located in Austin, Texas, USA. The building is also home to the Austin Toros basketball team with a seating capacity of 3,200.
The Convention Center encloses 881,400 square feet (81,880 m2). The five exhibit halls combined have 246,097 square feet (22,863.2 m2) of column-free space. There are 54 meeting rooms and two ballrooms, including one of the largest ballrooms in Texas with 43,300 square feet (4,020 m2).
The origin of the convention center goes back to 1983, when civic leaders became concerned that Austin was losing money from potential convention business because the city's current convention facility, Palmer Auditorium, was too small. The Austin city council unveiled a concept for a $35 million convention center as part of a $350 million complex of hotels and parkland on the south shore of Town Lake (now Lady Bird Lake). Resistance to this plan by neighborhood groups near the proposed site and downtown business leaders caused the city to consider several other sites, finally choosing the downtown site near Waller Creek for construction. Financing was provided for by a US$69 million bond sale, approved by referendum on July 29, 1989. The grand opening ceremony took place on July 4, 1992
On September 1, 1999, construction aimed at nearly doubling the size of the convention center from 441,000 square feet to 881,000 square feet began. The grand reopening took place on May 18, 2002.
The Austin City Council changed the name of the Austin Convention Center on July 29, 2004 to honor civic leader Dr. W. Neal Kocurek (1936-2004), who helped rally community support for construction of a convention center for Austin. Kocurek died after suffering a stroke on March 29, 2004. The formal dedication took place on December 2, 2004.
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#19 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Town Lake (Neighborhood)
West Lake Hills
~0.56 miles from Austin city center
Hotels Close to Town Lake
Where the city straddles the Colorado River, 2 dams mark the upstream and downstream ends of Town Lake, the focus of outdoor activity in downtown Austin. If you are planning on spending some time in Austin, make sure you visit Town Lake for hiking, walking, biking, canoeing or kayaking.
Town Lake Metropolitan Park stretches along the banks of the Colorado River from Tom Miller Dam on the west to Colorado River Park on the east. This giant park contains 10.1 miles of hiking and biking trails. The trail around the lake is mostly flat, fairly wide, and very popular. It offers great views of the lake and the Austin skyline. The Town Lake trail has branches off to some of the other great Austin biking and hiking trails - here is a comprehensive list of Austin Trails.
Nearby the trails are plenty of fun restaurants with excellent food, fantastic outdoor patios, and live music. A couple of our favorites which are close to the trail include: Chuy's for Mexican Food, Shady Grove for food and music on the patio, Aussie's for burgers, beer, and volleyball.
For the athlete...
Town Lake Park boasts 17 ball fields for baseball, football, soccer and rugby, and volleyball. The area on the south side of Town Lake from Lamar Boulevard east to South First Street is known as Auditorium Shores, and many concerts and large events are held there. Butler Shores refers to that stretch of Town Lake from the Lamar bridge over the Colorado River to the east bank of Barton Creek.
East of IH 35 favorite spots for large Town Lake gatherings are Fiesta Gardens and Festival Beach, which stretches from IH-35 east to Canadian Street. All along Town Lake, people flock to the hike-and bike trails to walk, jog, bicycle, or otherwise enjoy the beauty of the Colorado River.
Rowing Dock is a Town Lake Austin Parks and Recreation concession whose mission is to promote rowing and other family watersports. We offer rentals, camps, private lessons, classes and memberships.
On the south side...
is the heart beat of Austin's park system. Zilker Metropolitan Park located on Town Lake is locally known as Zilker park. As many "Austinites" will testify to, a favorite spot here is the Barton Creek Swimming Pool. This Natural spring fed pool is over 1,000 FEET LONG!
Also not to be missed in this section of the park are several soccer, football, baseball, and rugby fields. While the more relaxed may want to visit the wonderful UMLAUF Sculpture Gardens which features the world famous Farrah Fawcet sculptures that made Charles UMLAUF well known in the mid seventies. One will also find the Botanical Gardens, Austin Area Garden Center, and The Zilker Hillside Theater all in this part of the park.
For the kids in us all...
The miniature train is a must!
On the north side...
of the river people typically congregate where Austin High School, the Austin tennis courts, and a foot bridge over the river are all located together just east of where Loop 1 (MoPac) crosses the Colorado. You can get there from West Cesar Chavez but look carefully for signs telling you where to veer off and cloverleaf around to head south toward the high school. With plenty of space to park, many people begin and end their jaunt for the day here. A concrete gully, typically used as a boat launch, makes it an ideal spot to begin and end a canoe trip, too. Just west of MoPac off Lake Austin Boulevard, one can turn south onto Deep Eddy Avenue to find one of the city's most popular swimming pools and parks. Deep Eddy Pool (472-8546), which is quite large, has a shallow end that is wonderful for children plus lanes at the other end for serious swimming. Pool hours depend on the time of year, so call ahead to find out when the pool is open.
Next to Deep Eddy Pool is Eilers Park, complete with picnic tables, a playground, a sand court, and even an outdoor shower for cooling off after running the Hike-and-Bike Trail that ends at the park.
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#20 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Austin Convention Center
Austin TX
~0.57 miles from Austin city center
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The Neal Kocurek Memorial Austin Convention Center is a multi-purpose convention center located in Austin, Texas. The building is also home to the Austin Toros basketball team with a seating capacity of 3,200.
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#21 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Texas State Capitol
Manor TX
~0.58 miles from Austin city center
Hotels Close to Texas State Capitol
The Texas State Capitol is located in Austin, Texas and is the fourth building in Austin to serve as the seat of Texas government. It houses the chambers of the Texas Legislature and the office of the governor of Texas. It was originally designed in 1881 by architect Elijah E. Myers, who was fired in 1886, and was constructed from 1882–88 under the direction of civil engineer Reuben Lindsay Walker. A $75 million underground extension was completed in 1993. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1970 and recognized as a National Historic Landmark in 1986. It is the largest, but not the tallest, state capitol building in the United States. The Texas state capitol is 308 ft (94 m) tall.
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#22 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Palmer Auditorium
Austin TX
~0.80 miles from Austin city center
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400 South First St, (at Riverside Drive), Austin, TX
Tel: (512) 472-5111
Built in the 1960s, this old building has been home to the annual Austin Record Convention, numerous gun and knife shows, Sami shows featuring arts and crafts, and many high school graduation ceremonies. Cat and dog shows are also popular events as well as music conventions and sports shows. During election time you will find it becomes a central meeting point for ballot collecting and vote tallying.
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#23 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum
Austin TX
~0.88 miles from Austin city center
Hotels Close to Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum
The Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum, is a museum owned by the State of Texas dedicated to telling "The Story of Texas." It is named after former Texas Lieutenant Governor Bob Bullock, who championed its creation. The museum is located at 1800 North Congress Avenue in Austin, a few blocks north of the Texas State Capitol. The museum has three floors of interactive exhibits, a special effects theater, and an IMAX Theatre.
Construction broke ground on April 15, 1999 at a cost of US$80 million. The museum opened on San Jacinto Day, (April 21), 2001.
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#24 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Frank Erwin Center
Austin TX
~0.91 miles from Austin city center
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The Frank C. Erwin, Jr. Special Events Center — usually just The Frank Erwin Center in common usage — is a multi-purpose arena on the campus of The University of Texas at Austin. It is also sometimes referred to as "The Drum" or "The Superdrum", owing to its drum-like appearance from outside (not to be confused with Big Bertha, the large bass drum used by the University of Texas marching band). The facility is primarily the home court for the UT men's and women's basketball programs.
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#25 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Blanton Museum of Art
Austin TX
~0.94 miles from Austin city center
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The Blanton Museum of Art at The University of Texas at Austin is one of the foremost university art museums in the country, and has the largest and most comprehensive collection of art in Central Texas. The museum welcomes and engages all visitors by offering personal, extraordinary experiences that connect art and ideas, reaching within and beyond the university to stimulate the thriving, creative community that is Austin, Texas. The Blanton's permanent collection of more than 18,000 works is recognized for its European paintings, an encyclopedic collection of prints and drawings, and modern and contemporary American and Latin American art.
Located at the intersection of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Congress Avenue, the museum is across the street from the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum and is adjacent to downtown Austin.
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#26 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Clarksville (Neighborhood)
Austin TX
~1.06 miles from Austin city center
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Clarksville is a city in Red River County, Texas, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 3,883. It is the county seat of Red River County.
Clarksville is the birthplace of:
John Edward Williams, author of the National Book Award fiction co-winner for 1973 Augustus and of the novel Stoner.
Euell Gibbons, author of cookbooks and foraging guides, proponent of natural diets, and television personality popular in the 1960s and 1970s
J.D. Tippit, a Dallas police officer who was shot and killed by Lee Harvey Oswald a few hours after Oswald assassinated President John F. Kennedy.
Barney Cannon (1955-2009), a Country music deejay long associated with radio station KWKH in Shreveport, Louisiana, got his start in Clarksville in 1972, as a 17-year-old announcer.
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#27 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center
Austin TX
~1.07 miles from Austin city center
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The Harry Ransom Center is a library and archive at the University of Texas at Austin, specializing in the collection of literary and cultural artifacts from the United States and Europe. The Ransom Center houses 36 million literary manuscripts, 1 million rare books, 5 million photographs, and more than 100,000 works of art. The Center has a reading room for scholars and galleries which display rotating exhibitions of works and objects from the collections.
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#28 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
George Washington Carver Museum
Austin TX
~1.24 miles from Austin city center
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In 1939, Carver received the Roosevelt Medal for Outstanding Contribution to Southern Agriculture enscribed "to a scientist humbly seeking the guidance of God and a liberator to men of the white race as well as the black." In 1940, Carver established the George Washington Carver Foundation at the Tuskegee Institute. In 1941, The George Washington Carver Museum was dedicated at the Tuskegee Institute. In 1942, Henry Ford built a replica of Carver's slave cabin at the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village in Dearborn as a tribute to his friend. Also in 1942, Ford dedicated the George Washington Carver Laboratory in Dearborn.
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#29 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
Darrell K. Royal - Texas Memorial Stadium
Manor TX
~1.28 miles from Austin city center
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Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium (formerly just War Memorial Stadium, Memorial Stadium, and Texas Memorial Stadium), located in Austin, Texas, is home to the University of Texas Longhorn football team. The current official stadium seating capacity of 100,119 currently makes the stadium the largest football venue by seating capacity in the state of Texas, the largest in the Big 12 Conference, the fourth largest non-racing stadium in the United States and the NCAA, and the seventh largest non-racing stadium in the world.
While DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium has the largest seating capacity in the state of Texas, the NFL Dallas Cowboys' new stadium, Cowboys Stadium, has an overall capacity of 111,000 due to a seating capacity of 80,000 plus party plazas capable of accommodating up to 31,000 standing spectators.
The stadium attendance record of 101,297 spectators was set on September 19, 2009, when Texas beat Texas Tech 34-24.
The stadium has been expanded several times since its original opening. The University's most recent project, a $27 million expansion and renovation project to the south end zone facilities, was completed in August 2009. For the 2009 season, 4,525 permanent bleacher seats were constructed, which allowed the stadium to become the first football stadium in Texas capable of seating in excess of 100,000 persons and brought the stadium to its current seating capacity.
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#30 of 30 Things To Do in Austin
University of Texas Tower
Austin TX
~1.29 miles from Austin city center
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The Main Building (known colloquially as The Tower) is a structure at the center of the University of Texas campus in Austin, Texas. The Main Building's iconic 307-foot (94 m) tower has 28 floors and is one of the most recognizable symbols of the University, as well as the city.
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