Swim year-round in a beautiful, natural pool fed by underground springs. Discover restaurants with personalities as interesting as the food. Be energized with an evening spent listening to jazz, blues, country or rock. When you’re in Austin, you can hear them all during a single evening stroll along historic 6th Street.A sunny climate and idyllic setting on the edge of the beautiful Texas Hill Country make Austin a bonanza for outdoor activities. Enjoy Zilker Park, located in the heart of Austin, offering more than 400 acres for activities including soccer, volleyball, summer theater, and miles of hiking and biking trails. A quick hike up Mount Bonnell rewards the climber with spectacular hilltop views of the city and area lakes. The area’s diversified chain of lakes starts about 70 miles to the north and ends at downtown Austin. The nearby upper Colorado River area is the winter nesting grounds for a growing population of native Bald Eagles.The bridges that span Austin’s Town Lake are home to one of the largest bat colonies in North America. Each summer evening more than 1.5 million Mexican freetail bats fly up and down the Colorado River, devouring hundreds of tons of insects annually from the local area. Be part of an unforgettable experience when the bats fly at dusk.Austin’s Hot Spots:
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Barton Springs – Three acres in size, the pool is fed from underground springs and water temperatures remain a constant, cool 68 degrees year-round.
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Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum – From rare artifacts to interactive displays, the Bob Bullock Museum creatively tells the story of Texas.
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Warehouse and Sixth Street Entertainment Districts – Four blocks of Fourth and Fifth Streets comprise the Warehouse District. The buildings have been renovated from warehouses to trendy, distinctive hot spots. Austin’s Sixth Street is widely known for its unique blend of dance clubs, live music venues, restaurants, and bars.
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Congress Avenue Bats – Only in Austin will you find millions of bats and thousands of humans all hanging out under the same bridge every night. Austin boasts the largest urban colony of Mexican free-tail bats in North America with a population of 1.5 million. The sunset exodus of the bats creates a nightly spectacle from March through October.
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Town Lake Hike & Bike Trail – Ten miles of trails border Town Lake in downtown Austin and serve as a social hub for runners, walkers, and cyclists.
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The Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library – The life and legacy of LBJ are on exhibit at the nation’s most visited presidential library.