Green Travel in Austin

Habitat Suites Hotel

• 500 Highland Mall Boulevard
• tel:+1 512 467 6000 / +1 800 535 4663 (Toll Free)
• Visit website
• Austin, 78752

Austin Museum of Art

• 823 Congress Ave
• At Ninth St
• tel:+1 512 495 9224
• Visit website
• Austin, 78701

Commons Ford Ranch

• 614 Commons Ford Road
• tel:+1 512 474 9692
• Visit website
• Austin, 78733

Texas Memorial Museum

• 2400 Trinity St
• University of Texas campus
• tel:+1 512 471 1604
• Visit website
• Austin, 78705

Bremond Block

• 700 Guadalupe to 900 San Antonio streets
• Between Seventh and Eighth, San Antonio and Guadalupe Sts
• tel:+1 512 478 0098
• Visit website
• Austin, 78701

Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve

• 805 N. Capital of Texas Highway
• tel:+1 512 327 7622
• Visit website
• Austin, 78746

Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge

• 10711 Burnet Road, Suite 201
• tel:512-339-9432
• Visit website
• Austin, 78758

Jones Center for Contemporary Art

• 700 Congress Ave
• tel:+1 512 453 5312
• Visit website
• Austin, 78701

Mount Bonnell

• 3800 Mount Bonnell Road
• tel:+1 512 499 6700
• Visit website
• Austin, 78702

Known for its beautiful, unobstructed view of the Austin area since the mid-1800s, Mount Bonnell hosts family photos, sunset picnics and romantic marriage proposals on a regular basis. Visitors park at the base of the hill and work their way up nearly 100 stone steps to the wide open outcropping overlooking the southern side of the city and Lake Austin below. A short gravel trail leads slowly downhill and to the left, offering up quiet spots for personal reflection with a clear view of the massive Pennybacker Bridge. Peer left from Mount Bonnell to find the Texas State Capitol and the University of Texas Tower on the University of Texas campus. read more about Mount Bonnell

Town Lake Hike and Bike Trail

• S First Street between MoPac Blvd and Pleasant Valley Road
• tel:+1 512 477 7273
• Visit website
• Austin, 78701

Longhorn Cavern Tour

• P.O. Box 732
• tel:877-441-CAVE
• Visit website
• Burnet, 78611

Zilker Park

• 2100 Barton Springs Rd
• tel:+1 512 477 8672
• Visit website
• Austin, 78746

Zilker Park, Austin's largest urban green space, takes up 351 acres along the southern shore of Lady Bird Lake with Barton Springs Road intercepting the park midway. Grassy fields harbor soccer matches, volleyball competitions and countless Frisbee tosses regularly while the Zilker Playground on the park's southern end, complete with the pint-sized passenger train deemed the Zilker Zephyr, entices Austin's youngest residents. Within the Zilker Park grounds, visitors will find Barton Springs Pool and the Zilker Botanical Garden, as well as seasonal events including the Austin City Limits Music Festival, the annual Kite Festival and the summer music series, Blues on the Green. The Umlauf Sculpture Garden and Museum rests along the park's eastern border. read more about Zilker Park

Boggy Creek Farm

• 3414 Lyons Road
• tel:+1 512 926 4650
• Visit website
• Austin, 78702

Colorado Bend State Park Trails and Tours

• P.O. Box 118
• tel:915/628-3240
• Visit website
• Bend, 76824

Zilker Botanical Garden

• 2220 Barton Springs Rd
• tel:+1 512 477 8672
• Visit website
• Austin, 78746

Located in the heart of Austin, the Zilker Botanical Garden provides a beautiful urban retreat amid 30 acres in the middle of Zilker Park. This free and year-round attraction encompasses seven different garden types—everything ranging from roses and herbs to butterfly-attracting plants and succulents. The Hartman Prehistoric Garden recreates the environment that once existed on this land, including casts of dinosaur tracks found in 1992 that have since been reburied for preservation purposes. An authentic Japanese garden and teahouse add to the serenity of the Zilker Botanical Garden, while an in-house gift shop offers both souvenirs and educational information. read more about Zilker Botanical Garden

Austin Promenade Tours

• 5100 Trading Bend
• tel:+1 512 498 4686
• Austin, 78735

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

• 4801 LaCrosse Ave
• tel:+1 512 292 4200
• Visit website
• Austin, 78620

What began as an inherent interest of former First Lady Lady Bird Johnson turned into a thriving Austin attraction, the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. The public botanical garden introduces visitors to the beauty of wildflowers and other native plants and natural landscapes through experience and education. Stroll through the 16 unique gardens, the Ann and O.J. Weber Butterfly Garden, the sprawling South Meadow or relax along the Erma Lowe Hill Country Stream. Knowledgeable docents teach inquisitive ones about the many roles of indigenous plants, as well as conservation techniques including fire ecology and native green roofs. For a more in-depth look at the former First Lady and her husband, visit the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum on the University of Texas at Austin campus. read more about Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Austin Steam Trains/River City Flyer

• Fifth Steet at Comal
• (Plaza Saltillo)
• tel:+1 512 477 8468
• Visit website
• Cedar Park, 78767

Hamilton Pool Preserve

• 24300 Hamilton Pool Road
• tel:+1 512 264 2740
• Visit website
• Dripping Springs, 78640

Located approximately 30 miles southwest of Austin, Hamilton Pool Preserve is a nature lover's paradise with swimming, hiking and bird watching outside the city limits. Unlike Barton Springs Pool located conveniently in central Austin's Zilker Park, visitors to Hamilton Pool Preserve traipse a quarter-mile along a shady trail to the grotto-lined natural pool. Created thousands of years ago when the dome of an underground river collapsed due to long-term erosion, the historic swimming hole is decorated with a stunning 50-foot waterfall plunging over limestone outcroppings. Hamilton Pool Preserve also harbors the golden-cheeked warbler, a rare and endangered bird that lives among the area's mixed Ashe-juniper and oak woodlands. Make an appointment for a guided tour for an in-depth explanation of all that the area has to offer. The trail to the pool is fairly short (1/4 of a mile) but does include a series of rock steps. Good hiking shoes are recommended. Visitors with physical disabilities should call ahead to pre-arrange assistance. Parking is limited, and the pool is very popular so go early and stay late. Drinking water and other concessions are not available. Guided tours are available. Take Highway 71 west through the town of Bee Cave and turn left onto FM 3238 (Hamilton Pool Road). Travel 13 miles to the Preserve entrance, which will be on your right. read more about Hamilton Pool Preserve

Wink Restaurant

• 1014 North Lamar Boulevard
• Ste E
• tel:+512 482 8868
• Visit website
• Austin, 78703

Ann Richards Congress Avenue Bridge

• 100 Congress Ave
• tel:+1 512 478 0098
• Austin, 78701

Though it may look like your average overpass, Ann Richards Congress Avenue Bridge houses one of Austin's natural wonders—the world's largest urban bat colony. From March through November, approximately 1.5 million bats consider this simple structure their summer home. The Mexican free-tailed bats take flight nightly at dusk, consuming nearly 20,000 pounds of insects with each evening meal. Just ten blocks south of the Texas State Capitol and a mile north of the popular South Congress Avenue shopping district, this fascinating sight draws thousands of intrigued watchers to both sides of the Ann Richards Congress Avenue Bridge, as well as just below on the southeast bank of Lady Bird Lake (previously known as Town Lake.) Parking in the area can be cumbersome, so head down early with plenty of time to get in place for the spectacle. read more about Ann Richards Congress Avenue Bridge

Leaf

• 419 West Second Street
• tel:+1 512 474 5323
• Visit website
• Austin, 78701

Lone Star Riverboat

• Riverside Drive and South First Street
• (between the Congress and South First Street Bridges)
• tel:+1 512 327 1388
• Visit website
• Austin, 78716

Barton Springs Pool

• 2101 Barton Springs Road
• Zilker Park
• tel:512-867-3080
• Visit website
• Austin, 78704

The water in Barton Springs swimming pool hovers around 68 degrees year-round, which means that it feels cool -- even cold -- in the heat of summer. It feels relatively warm in winter, though, and a few rugged souls swim there every morning, regardless of the weather. If you're more into lounging than exercise, there's a part of the massive pool dedicated to floats and floaters. On the hillsides surrounding the pool, you will see a snapshot of Austin culture. There's usually a group of twentysomethings kicking around a hacky-sack ball, a sixtyish man doing yoga, and (kid warning) a woman of indeterminate age without her top. Occasionally, a drum circle forms at the top of the hill. Guitars are almost as common as smart phones. On summer days when the temperature can soar above 100 degrees, this is the only reasonable place to be. read more about Barton Springs Pool

Eastside Cafe

• 2113 Manor Road
• tel:512 476 5858
• Visit website
• Austin, 78722-2437

Casa De Luz

• 1701 Toomey Road
• tel:+1 512 476 2535
• Visit website
• Austin, 78704