Howdy, Texas! My wife and I moved just outside of Austin, Texas at the beginning of November 2021. I signed a 3-month travel contract in Marble Falls at an outpatient clinic at Baylor Scott & White Hospital. I ended up extending that contract for another 3 months because of just how much we loved Austin and the surrounding areas!
We ended up living in Spicewood (a 20-minute commute to work) at Hill Country Lakes RV Campground. We loved this campground! The owners were amazing, the sites were spacious, there was a laundry facility on-site, and The Lighthouse Restaurant & Lounge was one minute away! A great brunch spot that overlooks the Colorado River/Lake Travis and has amazing pancakes, eggs benedict, and more!
There is so much to love about Texas, but Austin specifically is still one of our favorite cities to date. Typically, we tend to avoid larger cities because they can be overwhelming, dirty, and loud. However, Austin was the opposite. Yes, it was lively, but the city was well taken care of, the streets were easy to navigate, and the city offered so much to do! We couldn’t stay away!
AUSTIN, TEXAS
As I mentioned, we couldn’t stay away from Austin! There was so much to do and see that we loved spending our weekends there finding new and exciting things to do, delicious restaurants to eat at, and listening to the live music that filled the city streets.
THE FOOD
Let’s talk about the food. Because Austin had so many great local restaurants, it was very hard to choose where to go. Sometimes we tried local favorites and other times we just stumbled across a new place while walking around. We tried to eat at as many as we possibly could without repeating our favorites, which is very hard! I highly recommend Corner Restaurant, Iron Cactus Mexican Restaurant, Velvet Taco, Burger Bar, The Picnic Food Truck Park, Cooper’s Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que, Juan in a Million, and Zanzibar. There are an overwhelming amount of options to choose from, but I’m sure whatever you choose is going to be a “chef’s kiss”.
THE GAMES
Aside from the food, there was always some fun to be had! Whether that included day drinking while playing mini-golf at Peter Pan Mini-Golf, day drinking and playing arcade games at Cidercade, or day drinking and playing Duckpin bowling at Bull & Bowl. Honestly, there might be too many breweries, distilleries, and cideries in Austin…
THE FUN
When we weren’t enjoying a drink, we loved taking a stroll in one of the many city parks, our favorites being Zilker Metropolitan Park and Butler Metro Park, or soaking up views of the city walking along The Boardwalk at Lady Bird Lake.
At night, we loved going to the Speakeasy where we would enjoy an amateur comedy show and then The Lonestar Souveniers cover band following. It was always a great time and the comedians never disappointed us.
We also took our very first two-step dance lesson, which is a must when you move to Texas, at the iconic Broken Spoke. The dance lessons are only $10 plus your cover charge to get into the bar. Classes do fill up fast so you will want to ensure you arrive early for a spot. Fair warning, it is a very packed dance class and makes for a pretty chaotic experience, but it was fun nonetheless!
DRIPPING SPRINGS
Just outside of Austin, is Dripping Springs. This is a great area to visit for a bachelor/bachelorette party, birthday party, or just the occasional Saturday. We always had a great time checking out the different distilleries/wineries/and breweries. Our favorites were Deep Eddy Vodka Distillery, Treaty Oak Distilling, Suds Monkey Brewing Co., and Jester King Brewery. There are many more, but I suggest you check out Dripping Springs yourself and let us know what your favorites are!
FREDRICKSBURG
Okay, I sense a theme to Texas…lots of drinking!! Fredricksburg, Texas is no different. Another great spot for bachelor/bachelorette parties, wine tours, and more celebrations! That’s because there is an endless amount of wineries, breweries, and distilleries. Each one is different from the last and has a unique style that will make you want to keep coming back. If you hop on Main Street, you can hit a new spot every block. Some of our favorite stops had to be Becker Vineyards, Alstadt Brewery, The Edge, and Barons Creek Vineyards. Let us know what your favorites are in the comments if you’ve been to Fredricksburg!
Our days didn’t always consist of just drinking, sometimes we hiked before we drank…One of the main reasons we visited Fredricksburg was because we wanted to hike Enchanted Rock. Enchanted Rock State Natural Area is 20 minutes outside of downtown Fredricksburg. To enter the park you will need to access a day pass ahead of time. There are no guarantees that you can purchase a day pass on arrival (we would know). So be sure to plan ahead! Once you’re in the park there are 11 miles of trails you could do. However, we just wanted the one, Summit Trail. A challenging climb to the summit of Enchanted Rock with 360 views of the Texas Hill Country below. Definitely worth it!
HIKING IN TEXAS
Typically our weekends are filled with hiking mountains, national parks, or recreational areas. But where we were located made it a little hard to do that. However, we were able to fit in a few short hikes during our time in Texas.
JACOB’S WELL
Jacob’s Well is a natural area located in Wimberly, Texas. It’s a unique spring and happens to be the second-largest cave in Texas that is fully submerged. The cave is 140 ft deep and filled with crystal clear spring water. To get to Jacob’s Well, the trail is less than a mile long with an elevation gain of 85 ft. An easy out-and-back trail that will take less than half an hour to complete. Once you get to the Well, you can actually swim in it! However, you will need to make reservations and check the website for updates regarding swimming and trail closures.
PENNYBACKER (360) BRIDGE
Another short and popular hike is Pennybacker Bridge Trail. This trail is only 1/2 a mile long with an elevation gain of 45 ft. It is a heavily trafficked hike but offers great views of the Pennybacker Bridge (aka- 360 Bridge) and the Colorado River. *Do not leave valuable possessions in your car. This is a common area for car break-ins.*
MOUNT BONNELL
And lastly, a whopping 10-minute hike, Mount Bonnell Trail. This loop trail is 1/2 a mile long with an elevation gain of 39 ft. It features great views of the Colorado River and downtown Austin. There are multiple stairs to be climbed during this hike, but overall manageable for most people.
HOOK ‘EM HORNS
You can’t go to Austin and not go to a Texas Longhorn football game. We moved to Texas on November 4th and were cheering on the Longhorns on the 13th. It felt like a right of passage. We were officially Texans. The atmosphere was electric, both before and during the game. Just outside the stadium, the road was completely shut down for an incredible tailgating/pre-game party. There was everything from food, drinks, live music, games, and even a quick meet and greet with Heisman winner, Jamaal Charles. It was an incredible rally among Texas Longhorn fans and I’m glad I got to be a part of it! Hook ’em horns!!
KAYAKING ON LADY BIRD LAKE
If you’re looking for something fun to do I would highly suggest kayaking on Lady Bird Lake! We rented our kayaks from Rowing Dock, however, there are many services in the area that rent out kayaks, paddle boards, and boats. Kayaking during the day was neat because you paddle along the skyscrapers and buildings, under graffitied bridges, and get to experience the city so differently. If you can rent the kayaks all day I would recommend that. This way you can stay for sunset on the water. Once the sun goes down, you know what that means, the bats come out! Unfortunately, we weren’t on the water when we stayed for the bat show, but watching the kayakers and boat tours get so close to the Congress Bridge where hundreds to thousands of bats fly out at night was a show unlike any other!
*The bats are around seasonally from late spring to early fall.* You can find more information regarding the famous Austin Bats here.
THE OASIS
On Lake Travis, in the Hill Country of Austin, Texas, sits The Oasis. A perfect one-stop shop. The Oasis holds gift shops, boutiques, ice cream and coffee shops, breweries, and restaurants. You can spend all day there popping in and out of the stores, having lunch at Oasis Texas Brewing Company, and dinner at The Oasis, all while enjoying the gorgeous view of Lake Travis. Don’t forget to stay for sunset as The Oasis is known to be “The sunset capital of Texas”. People come from all over just to witness the sun going down from the balcony at The Oasis. It is pretty magical!
SAN ANTONIO
San Antonio is about a two-hour drive from Austin, Texas, which means we were able to go twice! There are a lot of interesting things to do and see in San Antonio which made it impossible to do in just one weekend. But, out of everything we did, The River Walk and The Pearl had to be our favorites!
We were lucky enough to visit The River Walk during Christmas time and St. Patrick’s Day. This is one of Texas’ biggest attractions so there was no doubt that during Christmas time it was going to be busier than usual, which it was. However, through all the craziness, we still got to enjoy walking along the river, admiring the boats that floated by, marveling at the lights strung along all the overhanging trees, and even had the best-glazed doughnuts of our life at Durty Nelly’s Irish Pub. It was magical!
If you like to start your day off with a slower morning, I would suggest going to The Pearl. This is a great area if you have kids, dogs, or just want to hang out with friends and enjoy good food. With over two dozen restaurants at The Pearl, there is bound to be something for everyone. In addition, on the weekends there is a farmers market. Local vendors set up around the park and sell farm fresh goodies and unique one-of-a-kind crafts. What’s not to love?
There’s so much to do in San Antonio and out of everything we did aside from The River Walk and The Pearl I would highly suggest The Japanese Tea Garden, The Alamo Plaza, and the San Antonio Missions for your next visit.
TEXAS MURALS
One of the most unique things that Austin specifically had to offer was the murals spread out around the city. Every corner you turned was another beautiful piece of artwork painted on a building. One day I went around town and tried to capture as many as I could. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!
Our time in Texas was truly unlike any other state we’ve traveled to. We probably drank too much, but we sure did have a good time! Because Texas is so large we only got to explore a fraction of it. We’d love to go back and visit Dallas, Houston, and Big Bend National Park. Until then let us know if you have any favorite spots in Texas and we’ll add them to our bucket list! If you have any questions regarding anything we’ve done please feel free to contact us!