Where to Live
- Downtown 鈥� New, but expensive, high-rise apartments and condos with plenty of bars, restaurants, shopping, music venues, the hike-and-bike trail along Lady Bird Lake, and even two of the city鈥檚 best movie theaters at your
- South Congress 鈥� A walkable area close to downtown with lots of apartments and houses for rent, as well as bars, restaurants, coffee shops, music venues and funky
- East Austin 鈥� One of the fastest growing neighborhoods in Austin, with apartments, loft condos, duplexes, and older homes. Housing prices have been rising steadily in this area, reflecting its up-and-coming status, as restaurants, bars, shops鈥攁nd hipsters鈥攈ave flocked to the
- Mueller 鈥� An urban village on the site of an old airport with newer apartments and homes, as well as restaurants and shopping located 10鈥�15 minutes from
- Bouldin Creek 鈥� Walkable neighborhood adjacent to South Congress with a mix of older and renovated duplexes and homes and plenty of restaurants, coffee shops and boutiques.
- South Lamar 鈥� A mix of apartments and multi-use developments, as well as Austin landmarks such as the Alamo Drafthouse movie theater and the Broken Spoke dance
- Hyde Park 鈥� An eclectic mix of families, college students and young professionals populate this area just north of the UT campus with duplexes and There are plenty of coffee shops, restaurants, and small boutique shops within easy walking distance.
Other areas to consider include the central neighborhoods near MoPac/Loop 1 (Tarrytown, Rosedale, Enfield, Clarksville and Rollingwood) and other neighborhoods in Central Austin (North Loop, Brentwood, Crestview, Allandale), but these areas tend to be a bit more expensive and more 鈥渇amily-friendly鈥� than those noted above.
Affordable homes and apartments can also be found in lovely communities located north of Austin (Round Rock, Pflugerville, Cedar Park) and south of Austin (Circle C, Oak Hill), which would put you anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour to Downtown (depending on traffic, of course
听 Popular Activities
- Live music venues: There鈥檚 always live music of almost every genre in Austin.
- Alamo Drafthouse: Shows popular first鈥� run movies and smaller arthouse films, during which you can order a variety of food and drinks. The Alamo also hosts sing-alongs, quote-alongs, TV watch parties and other fun events.
- First Thursdays on South Congress: Local vendors set up tents and extended hours for restaurants and shops. And of course 鈥� there鈥檚 always live music!
- Nightly bat watching on the Ann Richards Bridge: Come see the world鈥檚 largest colony of Mexican freetail bats feast on bugs at sunset. An annual Bat Fest is held on the bridge each August when the colony is at its peak population.
- Festivals: Popular festivals held throughout the year include:
- Sound on Sound Fest (November): music and comedy
- SXSW (March): interactive, educational, film and music
- Urban Music Festival (March): music
- Fusebox Festival (April): art, theater and music
- Moontower Comedy and Oddity Fest (April): comedy
- Austin Wine and Food Festival (April): wine and food
- Fantastic Fest (September): film
- Austin City Limits Music Festival (October): music
- Texas Book Festival (October): books and authors
听
- Formula One U.S. Grand Prix (November): The only stop in the U.S. on the global Formula One racing circuit attracts folks from all over the world. It was held at the Circuit of the Americas racetrack.
- Armadillo Christmas Bazaar (December): Local artisans of all types set up booths to sell their wares as unique holiday gifts. Beer, wine and mixed drinks and live music also featured.
- Trail of Lights (December): An annual Austin tradition, thousands of holiday lights illuminate Zilker Park
- Zilker Kite Festival (March): Hundreds of kites fill the sky over Zilker Park.
- Eeyore鈥檚 Birthday (April): In the true spirit of 鈥淜eep Austin Weird鈥� this annual event in Pease Park downtown involves costumes, drum circles, general mayhem and all sorts of fabulous people- watching in honor of Winnie the Pooh鈥檚 downtrodden pal.
- Pecan Street Festival (first weekend in May and last weekend in September): Huge arts and crafts festival set up on Sixth Street downtown
Fun Outdoors
- Ann and Roy Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail at Lady Bird Lake: More than 10 miles of beautiful trails surround both sides of Lady Bird Lake on the southern edge of downtown.
- Barton Creek Greenbelt: 7.2 miles of trails for hiking, biking and walking, as well as opportunities for rock climbing, just 10 minutes from downtown.
- Mount Bonnell: Climb 106 steps to the hilltop park with some of the best views in Austin.
- Zilker Park: More than 300 acres with dozens of trails, picnic areas, multi-use fields, botanical gardens and much more.
- Barton Springs Pool: Within Zilker Park, Barton Springs is a manmade pool fed by a natural spring that stays at an average of 68 degrees year-round.
