Get in the water

Austinites know how to deal with Texas heat. They spend their summer days plunging into the ice-cold waters of Barton Springs. They hike up the greenbelt with their dogs, kids, guitars, and drums in search of hidden swimming holes. They paddle board on Town Lake (aka Lady Bird Lake), they wakeboard on Lake Austin, and they jump off the cliffs of Pale Face at Lake Travis. When temperatures soar over 90 degrees, there’s no better place to be so don’t forget to pack your swimsuit.

Follow the music

It’s not unusual to hear musicians warming up at any of the aforementioned swimming holes. But when the sun goes down, it’s time to follow that sound to South Congress, Sixth Street, Red River, the East Side, and low-key dives on the city’s outskirts. You can find jazz and blues at iconic watering holes like the Continental Club, the Saxon Pub, the speakeasy-style Eastside Showroom, or the underground Elephant Room. Put your cowboy boots on for Chicken Bingo and live bands at Ginny’s Little Longhorn Saloon, or see some red dirt country at Nutty Brown. Rock, punk, thrash-folk and loud guitars scream at the Mohawk and the Hole in the Wall. There are New Orleans style marching bands, cabaret shows, carny acts and vaudeville squeezed into live sets at many local dives. There is an awesome hip hop and electronic dance scene, along with reggae, rockabilly, folk, bluegrass, celtic, tejano, zydeco, russian-psycho-gypsy rock, and just about any other sound you can imagine. Some of Austin’s best music events include Austin City Limits, Blues on the Green and Shady Grove Unplugged. SXSW is of course an international music mecca, but you can also catch some amazing local bands before and after the mayhem. Be sure to check out HonkTX, which brings marching street brass to the Eastside just as the tourists begin flocking out of the city.

Discover foodie heaven

This town may run on barbecue, fried chicken, pork belly and Lonestar, but it’s also a hotbed of gourmet food trucks and upscale eateries, vegan treats and creative carnivore plates. In fact, during one SXSW, Austin’s own Barley Swine had the pleasure of serving Anthony Bourdain a plate of chicken testicles (really!). You can find beef tongue at Pitchfork Pretty, octopus at El Chipiron, and craft beer, gourmet brats, and wild game at Easy Tiger. There are also cool crossovers like the modern-mexican plates at Cocina ATX, the Franklin BBQ-inspired japanese soul food at Ramen Tatsu-ya, and the french-bistro-meets-American-diner menu at Bonhomie.

Get cultured

Austin is wildly diverse, and as such you can find plenty of places to bask in international culture. You can party with polka-punks and Tejanos at a Conjunto Los Pinkys show. You can jam to international music at the Sahara Lounge. Casa de Luz has monthly music showcases, and the scene at Ninos Rock Pachanga is not-to-be-missed. Resistencia Bookstore has artistic events, bilingual literature and a great selection on indigenous culture. Ballet Afrique is amazing. Next to Rainey Street there is the Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center, which often features art and live performances. There’s the annual Carnaval celebration, as well as Cine Las Americas International Film Festival, where film fanatics can catch indie movies from South America.