24 Hours in Austin, Texas
Last weekend we made a quick drive to Austin for a friend’s wedding and decided to go a day early so we could visit a few places we’ve been wanting to go.
It seems like every time I actually get a chance to break away long enough to make it to Austin, it’s always for work or just for passing through in a hurry, so we were determined to cram in as many cute places as we could with 24 hours in Austin, Texas this trip.
We stayed at W Austin and it was the perfect central location for getting to and from lots of different places to shop and eat in town.
If it’s at all an option for you to get a city view suite there, I totally recommend it! I almost passed out from happiness when I saw the oversized tub that looks out on the city. I swear it was closest thing I’ll ever get to having my own personal infinite bathtub…
We also has dinner at Trace the first night, which is W Austin’s own restaurant, and it was amazing. I don’t think we put down a fork for a solid two hours. Jared and I both loved their cocktails, and are now convinced they make one of the best old fashioned’s around. You really can’t go wrong with anything you order there.
Good thing we walked some things off by being so close to downtown and Rainey Street, and a a pit stop by Garage Bar was one of them, which is basically just a bar in the middle of a parking garage, which was pretty… interesting!
I was crossing every finger and toe that it would be warm enough for the W Wet Deck, but no such luck. The only upside to it was that it gave us plenty of good reason to hit up as many cute shops as possible-
WHERE TO SHOP
In no particular order, these are some of my favorite shops forlittle sweet nothings and home decor trinkets in Austin, starting with Olive (photo below), Nannie Inez, JM Dry Goods, Love Ding, Take Heart, and Spartan and Uncommon Objects (just don’t go on the weekend unless you want trampled).
WHERE TO EAT & DRINK IN AUSTIN
Not even joking, they really should sell a shirt that says “I ate reallllllly well in Austin, Texas”. They do not take their food options lightly and aren’t above waiting in a super long line for it either (prepare yourself with snacks if you don’t have a reservation already), but these are a few favorites from several trips combined (which you’d have to have unless you just go from meal to meal!)- Qui, Trace, Hillside Farmacy, La Condesa, Sawyer & Co (the cutest mid century diner stop OF ALL TIME, hence all of the retro photos in this post!), Contigo, Josephine House, Houndstooth, Gordough’s (the insane donuts Jared and I got sugar drunk from below), Franklin’s, all things Rainey Street, Justine’s, Perla’s, Sway (get the tom kha!), and Elizabeth Street Cafe.
Austin has so much going for it that it would seriously take a week to eat and see most things, and we’ve only hit very few key places out of hundreds. You can also see Camille’s guide to Austin here with more options for dining and shopping.
We’re actually on our way to Miami for another 24 hour trip as we speak, so be sure to follow along with our travels with #sugarandclothtravels for some our favorite spots and behind the scenes action!
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