Things to Do
Things to Do across Austin, TX.
Showing 1–24 of 402 places
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Mueller
Austin
Alamo Drafthouse's Mueller location keeps the chain's signature formula intact: you order food and craft cocktails right from your seat, delivered quietly mid-film, while a strict no-talking, no-texting policy keeps the room focused on the screen. Beyond first-run releases, it's worth checking the calendar for themed screenings, quote-alongs, and the pre-show reels of vintage clips that Alamo curates instead of commercials.
The Paramount Theatre
Austin
Austin's Paramount Theatre sits in a restored 1915 building on Congress Avenue, its neon vertical sign and gilded interior marking it as one of the city's oldest surviving performance halls. Today it hosts everything from touring plays and comedy to a beloved summer classic film series, and it's a regular venue during SXSW and other downtown festivals.
Esther's Follies
Austin
On Austin's busy 6th Street, Esther's Follies stages a long-running musical-comedy revue blending political satire, sketch comedy, and live magic, with a glass backdrop that opens onto the sidewalk so passersby on the street become part of the show. Expect topical, irreverent humor and a vaudeville spirit—and note that performances run later in the week, so check the schedule before you go.
Kalahari Indoor Water Park
Round Rock
Kalahari's Round Rock location pairs an African-themed resort with one of the larger indoor water parks in Texas, kept at a steady temperature year-round so the wave pool, body slides, and lazy river run regardless of the weather outside. First-timers tend to notice the sheer scale of the space and the on-site dining and arcade options, which make it easy to turn a swim into a full day without leaving the building.
Austin’s
Pflugerville
Just off I-35 in Pflugerville, Austin's packs go-karts, bowling lanes, mini golf, batting cages, and a sprawling arcade under one roof, with a bar and grill to regroup between rounds. It's the kind of all-in-one spot families and groups land on for a rainy afternoon or a birthday, where you can bounce from the track to the lanes without ever moving the car.
29th Street Ballroom
Austin
29th Street Ballroom sits in a converted house in the Hyde Park area near the University of Texas, a small, unpretentious venue where you're as likely to catch a comedy set or a folk show as a wedding reception. Don't let the "ballroom" name set expectations for grandeur — it's an intimate, lived-in space, and the close quarters are exactly what regulars come for.
Zach Theater
Austin
Zach Theatre sits along Lady Bird Lake near Austin's Butler Hiking and Biking Trail, staging a mix of Broadway-style musicals, contemporary plays, and original productions across its modern Topfer Theatre and the more intimate, long-running Kleberg stage. It's one of the city's oldest producing theaters, and the box office hours above are worth noting—plan to catch a performance in the evening rather than expecting a daytime visit.
The Long Center for the Performing Arts
Austin
Set on the south shore of Lady Bird Lake, the Long Center is home to Austin's symphony, opera, and ballet, along with a rotating slate of touring acts and community performances. Even if you're not seeing a show, it's worth walking up to the outdoor terrace, where the wraparound view of the downtown skyline across the water is the thing most visitors stop for first.
Blue Genie Art Bazaar
Austin
Blue Genie Art Bazaar is an Austin institution best known for its annual holiday art market, where the warehouse off Airport Boulevard fills with work from hundreds of local and regional artists—everything from ceramics and jewelry to prints and offbeat handmade oddities. The space keeps limited hours outside of its seasonal events, so it's worth checking ahead, as the bazaar really comes alive during its end-of-year run.
Palmer Events Center
Austin
Palmer Events Center sits on the south shore of Lady Bird Lake along Barton Springs Road, a low-slung venue with a distinctive curved roofline that hosts everything from trade shows and conferences to community events like craft fairs and the city's regular gem and mineral shows. Its location puts you within walking distance of Zilker Park and the Barton Springs greenbelt, so it's easy to pair an event here with some time outdoors.
Moody Amphitheater
Austin
Moody Amphitheater sits on the eastern edge of Waterloo Park, a covered open-air venue where the lawn slopes down toward a stage backed by views of the downtown Austin skyline. First-timers usually notice the curving steel canopy overhead, which shades the seating while keeping the show open to the night air.
AISD Performing Arts Center
Austin
Run by the Austin Independent School District, this modern hall in the Mueller neighborhood is built for student productions but also draws touring acts, recitals, and community events to its full-size stage. Visitors will notice the scale right away—it's a proper performing arts theater rather than a school auditorium, with the seating and acoustics to match.
El Arroyo
Austin
El Arroyo has been an Austin Tex-Mex fixture since the 1970s, but most people know it less for the enchiladas and margaritas than for the sign out front — a roadside marquee whose rotating one-liners have become a local institution in their own right. Settle in on the patio for solid, unfussy Tex-Mex, and don't leave without reading (and probably photographing) whatever the sign happens to say that day.
East Austin Comedy Club
Austin
East Austin Comedy Club sits on a stretch of East 6th Street that's become one of Austin's denser pockets of bars, food trucks, and live entertainment, putting an intimate stand-up room within easy walking distance of a night out. Shows here run on the earlier side most nights, so it's worth checking the schedule in advance—the room leans small, which means seats fill up and the comics work close to the crowd.
The Hideout Theatre
Austin
The Hideout Theatre is a downtown Austin mainstay for improv and longform comedy, with a coffeehouse up front where you can grab a drink before heading into the intimate back-room stage. It's the kind of place where the audience often becomes part of the show, so expect interactive sets rather than a polished script.
Austin Creative Reuse Center
Austin
Austin Creative Reuse is a nonprofit thrift shop and donation center on Wheless Lane where you'll dig through bins and shelves of secondhand craft supplies, fabric, art materials, and odd bits of ephemera, all diverted from the landfill and priced to move. It's part treasure hunt and part community workshop, so it helps to come with an open mind about what you'll find rather than a specific shopping list.
Central Machine Works
Austin
Set in a converted industrial building in East Austin, Central Machine Works leans into its machine-shop past, pairing house-brewed beer with a sprawling outdoor beer garden that fills up once the weather turns warm. It's the kind of spot where you'll find live music and a mix of locals settling in for the evening, though it's worth checking ahead since it keeps limited hours earlier in the week.
Zilker Hillside Theater
Austin
Zilker Hillside Theater is an open-air stage tucked into a grassy slope in Zilker Park, best known for the Zilker Summer Musical, a long-running tradition where audiences spread blankets on the hill and watch a full-scale production under the stars. Admission is free, so plan to arrive early with a picnic and claim your patch of grass before the sun goes down.
RichesArt Gallery
Austin
Tucked into East Austin's gallery-dotted stretch of East 6th Street, RichesArt Gallery blends working art studio, exhibition space, and café under one roof, so a morning coffee can easily turn into an hour spent with the art on the walls. Keep in mind the hours run short and early-week only, so it's worth checking before you head over.
The VORTEX
Austin
The VORTEX is a longtime fixture of East Austin's Manor Road, an independent theater known for original and experimental productions rather than the familiar standards. Arrive early and you'll find more than a stage: the adjoining Butterfly Bar and outdoor courtyard make it as much a gathering spot as a place to catch a show.
Urban Air Trampoline and Adventure Park
Austin
Urban Air is an indoor adventure park where the main draw is wall-to-wall trampolines, but you'll also find ropes courses, climbing walls, a warrior-style obstacle course, and arcade games under one roof—the kind of place built for letting kids (and game adults) burn off energy regardless of the Texas weather outside. It's part of a national chain, so expect a familiar attraction-by-attraction setup with tiered wristbands, and it's worth checking ahead since hours can run shorter early in the week.
Texas Capitol Visitors Center
Austin
Austin's Texas Capitol Visitors Center sits a block south of the Capitol itself, housed in the 1857 General Land Office building—the oldest surviving state office building in Texas and once a workplace of writer O. Henry. Inside you'll find exhibits on the building's history and the Capitol grounds along with maps and information to orient your visit, and it's worth knowing the center keeps shorter hours than you might expect, so plan for a daytime stop.
Ao5 Gallery
Austin
Ao5 Gallery sits in a North Austin strip along Research Boulevard, a contemporary art space that doubles as an event venue and carries work you can actually take home—paintings, glass, sculpture, and jewelry from a rotating roster of artists. It's a quieter stop than the downtown gallery scene, worth a visit if you're in the Arboretum area and want to browse original work without the crowds.
Ground Floor Theatre
Austin
Tucked into the Springdale Road arts corridor in East Austin, Ground Floor Theatre is an intimate nonprofit performance space known for staging original work and championing stories from communities that don't always get the spotlight. You'll find an unpretentious, black-box feel here, with a programming mix that leans toward new plays, local productions, and community events rather than touring shows.