What do you need to know before coming?

Barbecue is king and tacos are queen

There are so many local spots throughout the city and beyond. Do I have my favorite spots? Yes, but I will let you be the judge over your own journey.

Cool down in our natural springs

Our 100-degree temperatures in the summer may shock you at first. When it’s too much to bear, you can always flock to Barton Springs, Deep Eddy, or Hamilton Pool Preserve to cool off.

You’ll definitely need a car

Our public transportation is a little bit behind our city's growth, so the closer you are to downtown the better. We have a light rail that will take you all the way to North Austin and back to Downtown.

Traffic is a nightmare

Plan on taking some yoga or meditation classes so that you have additional patience for traffic jams.

Live music

Austin is known as the Live Music Capital of the World. I guess you could say that our culture is heavily influenced by music.

It’s rapidly changing

Some locals feel that their city is changing too much; that it’s getting too crowded and the the cost of living is increasing too rapidly, and they are pretty vocal about it. The truth is that in any expanding city, there will be growing pains. Change is not always easy for people.

Tech is blowing up in Austin.

We’ve been nicknamed Silicon Hills because of the technology companies that are moving here and the Hill Country which is located to the West of Austin. Some of the big giants like Google, Facebook and Amazon have made a home here.

Tons of festivals

We are all about celebrating creativity from local events like the Pecan Street Festival and our internationally known events including South by Southwest and Austin City Limits.

Energy and Life

It's a college town, and our 20-somethings add a fountain of youth to our city. If you are not a fan of noise or the Texas Longhorns, you can easily find some peace and quiet outside the city center.

It’s a foodie town

With all of the delicious options from fine dining to local Tex-Mex, delectable food is everywhere.

You'll drag yourself off the couch.

Fitness is a big deal in Austin, and we've been named one of the fittest cities in America; enjoying more than 220 parks, lake activities like paddle boating and kayaking, hiking bike trails and gym galore. There are plenty of options.

Adventures for days

There’s Formula 1 racing at the Circuit of the Americas which will give you such a thrill; not to mention awesome concerts and pro soccer games as well as family friendly events.

Austin is still in Texas

Things can get a little weird here, but Austin is still in Texas which means southern hospitality, sweet tea, conservatism, and no liquor on Sundays.