I consider myself very lucky when it comes to the women in my life. One particular group of boss ladies that I adore was my first team that I worked with at the company I am at. We didn’t realize how truly special our team was until we all moved to different ventures and opportunities in the organization. But never fear, we built life-long friendships that we keep alive through regular meet-ups and a yearly GIRLS TRIP!
This past year’s trip was especially fun and located in the weird city of Austin, Texas! If you are thinking of a girls trip or of visiting Austin, this guide is perfect for you to have the best weekend! I’ll cover where to stay, what to eat and things to check out. Continue…
WHERE TO STAY IN AUSTIN
While there are many options and great locations, where you stay in Austin is a very important decision to make. For a girls weekend where we were likely to partake in an adult beverage or two, we wanted to be somewhere that was easily walkable or a short Uber/Lyft ride to the happening spots. We stayed pretty much right in downtown Austin close to 6th street. We kept it simple and found an AirBnB that fit all of us comfortably. Since we didn’t plan on spending much time in the room besides to sleep, we didn’t get too fancy so we could spend our money on the more important things (like food and drinks).
This location let us walk to local coffee shops in the morning, take a short Uber to dinner, walk to the river or to hop on a scooter over to Rainy street for a night out. I highly recommend that you try one of these – SO FUN!
WHAT TO EAT & SEE IN AUSTIN
Now that you have a place to hang your hat at night, it’s time to fill your belly and Austin has some amazing food!
Our first night, we chose to go fancy. We took a short Uber ride over to Barley Swine where we had an early reservation for a dinner from their tasting menu. I highly suggest that you splurge here and enjoy every bite.
Also, make sure to try the “Can I Chick It? (Yes you can)” cocktail that has a fried chicken garnish for a little added flair!
Once back to our downtown location, we headed over to some of the LGBTQ bars for a night cap – you can’t go wrong with this for a girls trip – so much fun!
Day two we decided to venture out, stretch our legs and explore. A short walk north of where we stayed led us to the beautiful Capitol building of Texas. After taking some photos with the lovely live oaks and basking in the sun, we decided we had earned a donut.
Voodoo Donuts has the largest and wildest donut selection that I have ever seen. It’s worth at least walking in just for the smell but please try a donut while you’re there – it won’t kill you.
Once we had our sugar levels back up, we walked in the opposite direction toward the Colorado River. We took a lovely saunter along the river where we saw wildlife, folks enjoying watersports like rowing, several runners and doggies on walks.
It didn’t take long until we had yet again worked up an appetite for brunch. Looping right around from our walk, there is a quaint part of town with adorable homes where you’ll find one of the best brunches around at the Launderette. You must get a homemade biscuit and their Paloma-inspired brunch drink called the Better Bird. Each of us ordered something different and no one went wrong here, so just go for it!
Once we got our brunch buzz started, we ventured over to Rainey Street for a little porch sitting and beer sipping. There is so much happening here and one of my favorite things about Austin is all of the dogs that people bring out with them! It’s basically heaven for a dog lover.
This is where our first-time “scootering” occurred (is that what it’s called?) and I can’t tell you how much fun we had figuring out how to ride those while going up and down the street to check things out. We decided that Rainey Street was where we would come back to for the evening once we cleaned up.
I won’t make any singular reco for Rainey Street because the best thing is to start walking and see what peaks your interest. We had a nice mix of backyard games like giant Jenga, porch swinging while listening to 90’s rap, some dancing and front porch sitting while eating the world’s best chicken sandwich from a food truck in the front yard of one of the bars. Just let the night take you!
And if your sweet tooth sneaks back up on you, check out the late night mini donut food truck called Little Lucy’s. (we managed to convince the server that it was my 21st birthday – he played along nicely).
Sunday morning was our final Austin time and before we left, we checked out Barton Springs Municipal Pool, one of the coolest nature-meets-man landmarks I have ever seen. It’s worth taking the time to swim or do yoga in the park beside this amazing watering hole – and it might just help you recover from all the amazing food and drinks you’ll surely have in Austin 😉
There you have it, the ultimate guide to a girls trip in Austin, Texas.
If you have anything to add, drop it in the comments below.
We have chosen Asheville, North Carolina as our 2020 girls trip destination – so taking suggestions for that as well 🙂
Happy trails,
Diana
Ranch n' Business 