Austin, Texas

Par Social Travel
Jan 6, 2023
3 min read

Early November 2022, I went on a weekend getaway to Austin with a friend. Upon arrival, I can see why Austin has become such a popular vacation spot. It is filled with amazing nightlife, food, libations and retail experiences.

We elected to rent a VRBO, Natiivo, rather than staying at a hotel. Natiivo is located near Rainey Street. It was an excellent location. The condos are beautiful and the building has a rooftop pool, gym and coffee shop.

I arrived early and walked to Royal Blue Grocery to grab some drinks and food. It is a convenient five minute walk from Natiivo.

The next morning we traveled to downtown Austin and ate brunch at the famous Driskill Hotel, 1886 Cafe & Bakery.

Following breakfast we walked to 2nd Street for some shopping. 2nd Street has unique shops, like Stella Austin, and chain shops to explore.

Our next stop was Fareground for a beverage. Fareground is a one-stop shop with food, drinks and shopping. We then ventured over to South Congress, also commonly known as SoCo, taking in more shops. I highly recommend checking out Prim and Proper and Imogene + Willie (also has a location in Nashville). We stopped at Torchy's Tacos for tacos and queso and it did not disappoint.

After a rest back at Natiivo, we hit Rainey Street for the night. We ate dinner at Anthem. Anthem is a Tex-Asian Pub. It has a amazing decor and food. We also sat next to a certain Austin-native retired tennis player that made our meal more exciting.

Prior to leaving for Austin, everyone that had previously been told me we had to go to bars on Rainey Street. Most of the bars are old homes that have been converted into bars. Also, slides for whatever reason seem to popular in the bars situated on Rainey Street. We enjoyed libations at Unbarlievable and The Tipsy Alchemist. The Tipsy Alchemist has absolutely delicious crafted cocktails

On our second day in Austin we saw some sites. For breakfast we went to a food truck called, Biscuits + Groovy. Biscuits and gravy are my breakfast vice. I recommend trying The Aretha.

Our next stop was Barton Springs. Although we had pretty warm weather for early November, we were not brave enough to venture in the springs.

We also walked through Zilker Botanical Gardens which was really beautiful.

If you know anything about Austin, you know that it is famous for it's BBQ. One of the top recommend BBQ spots (from our uber drivers) was Terry Black's BBQ. When we are arrived there was a huge line winding outside but don't let that deter you because it was worth the wait.

After a busy morning we relaxed at the rooftop pool at Natiivo and took in the views of the city. Our last night we had a bat tour scheduled in downtown Austin with Lonestar Riverboat Cruises. We happened to be on the last bat tour of the season. We learned the history of downtown Austin and South Congress Bridge. Although I am not a huge bat lover it was amazing to see.