Travel
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Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Rec's for Austin, TX
My husband and I found a ridiculously cheap direct flight to Austin, TX and decided to book it and spend a long weekend there. We've never been and would love to hear your recommendations on places to eat, drink, listen to music, places to see, etc... We have no travel plans other than our airline tickets. We are thinking we want to book a hotel room in the downtown area but that is about it. What about renting a car? Is it a must??
Thanks for your help!!
Re: Rec's for Austin, TX
I also love Salt Lick. I've always thought it was worth the drive to get down there. (Just remember to BYOB!)
In the past people have been able to get some really great downtown hotel deals via Hotwire & Priceline (especially combined with the tips from BetterBidding.com). Back in the day, a lot of the other Knotties on the local board actually booked their post-wedding hotels that way!
I also really like the Congress Avenue bat colony, and I did a bat cruise once when I had an OOT visitor. It was a lot more interesting than I expected!
You should try to catch at least one live music show. What/where depends of course on your music tastes, so look around and see what's on.
The Alamo Drafthouse cinema is one of the things I miss most about Austin. Especially their special events like the "Ultimate" movie experiences and the MST3K-style Master Pancake Theatre shows.
I love Lake Travis, and even though the food sucks and the drinks are overpriced, I still love the view from Oasis. Especially since we lived nearby, it was always a stop when we had OOT guests.
I agree to PPs post about the Salt Lick - delicious! Also Trudy's for the Mexican Martinis, but their food is eh. Maudie's is also great for Tex-Mex. Try the Oasis on Lake Travis, the lake is low, but the views at sunset are still gorgeous. Try their margaritas and some nachos! Next to Hula Hut is a cute coffee shop called Mozarts, which is also right next to the lake. I've also heard the dueling piano bar on 6th street is supposed to be pretty fun!
Enjoy!
Travel Blog
Little Miss Lulu playing on the beach
Don't have the food at Oasis. It sucks...worse than Applebee's/Chili's.
I think you should ABSOLUTELY walk down 6th street a little ways on a Friday or Saturday night so you can at least experience the unique atmosphere, and THEN head over to 4th street to camp out at a bar.
For breakfast, Max's Wine Dive has some awesome chicken and waffles as well as other brunch stuff with mimosas, to boot!
You have some really great suggestions..there is a lot to do, so enjoy!
Thank you all for the wonderful ideas!!! We don't leave until next Friday so if you have any more rec's please throw them out there. I'm pretty sure we will be booking a hotel room through Priceline - we have had great luck with them on all previous times we've used them around the country. Salt Lick sounds like a must - so I believe that will be on our list!! Thanks everyone!
Steps on My Spiritual Journey
Ditto PP, we usually try to check expedia or priceline for good deals in Austin. There is a really nice Hampton Inn at San Jacinto and maybe 4th that has always had good deals and a nice happy hour and full breakfast that was always awesome - this was a great choice for us because we liked the areas we were able to walk to from there.
East 6th street is usually young college kids, but if you head to West 6th youll hit more of the grad school bars, pubs and lounges. Trudy's is closer to campus and would require a drive, but the Margaritas are strong and tasty. And while I really liked Salt Lick, I definitely didn't love the drive out of town to get there. Personally, I prefer Rudy's, which sounds crazy, but is a chain attached to gas stations... the last time we were in town we went there twice - over like 2 days! Ha... If you are looking for something a little more upscale, we tried a bbq place called Landry's in the downtown area during restaurant week a few years back and also really liked it.
Lake Travis is really beautiful and the Oasis used to be a great spot for views - but check out their website before you go. Its become very commercialized over the last two years or so (moreso than ever before). But its probably worth the drive for a first-timer. I don't know if we will be heading back any time soon. The drinks are great, food is sub-par, everything is overpriced, but you are really going for the view.
Also - Amy's ice cream is a local ice cream place - there are a couple locations and it's Cold-Stone esque, but way better. (PS - if you miss either Amys or the Salt Lick, they have both at the airport.)
We go at least once a year because my FI is a UT alum, but I really liked the Texas Tower tour and views of the city. Something cool to look in to.
As for music, last time we visited, it was early fall and basically we just walked down towards West sixth and stood on a corner... at any given location there were at least 3 bands playing on the outdoor/rooftop stages at different bars and we just drifted towards what we liked. You're going to find something, even in February. Have a great time - we love it there!