Whenever I'm on a road trip and I see one of those "largest _____ in the world" sculptures, I have…read moreto stop and snap a silly photo. You only live once, folks! Well, the last time I was driving through Burnet on Highway 29 out to the Highland Lakes in no particular hurry, I finally did just that with the whimsical gigantic metal bluebonnet stationed at the Chamber of Commerce Visitor's Center. Only then did I learn that Burnet is known as the "Bluebonnet Capital of Texas". This was early in the morning on a Saturday, before the place opens at 10am, but they had kindly placed a pair of rocking chairs on the front porch and a packet of brochures of area attractions with a map http://www.burnetchamber.org/BurnetBrochure.pdf for those tourists who might need directions in off hours. AT&T data coverage was spotty for me in this area, so I'd imagine that hard copy map might come in handy for some even in this modern information age. Visitor's Center Hours: Monday - Friday, 9 am - 5 pm Saturday, 10 am - 2 pm Burnet is just an hour outside of Austin and a great place to experience "small town Texas" without traveling too far from home. They have the Bluebonnet Festival http://bluebonnetfestival.org/ in April each year, the Rodeo & County Fair in June, the Burnet Tri-Fest in October (with arts, music, and Fort Croghan pioneer-living demonstrations), and of course, all of the nearby lake park activities year round. A day trip drive is no problem, but you can also sometimes take the Hill Country Flyer of the Austin Steam Train Association http://www.austinsteamtrain.org/the-train/locomotives/ from Cedar Park (when seasonal schedules allow).

The Pennybacker Bridge, also known as 360 Bridge, is one of Austin's most notable landmarks and a…read morerequired stop for anyone visiting or living in Austin, TX. The bridge is located at Lake Austin along Loop 360 (the Capital of Texas Highway), the bridge combines a unique structure with sweeping Hill Country views. It is simple in structure yet spectacular when combined with the Lake Austin water views, which never gets old. Today we simply wanted to be one with nature. What a fanatstic starting point! No matter what you call the bridge, one thing that is certain is that you will likely admire the architecture of the rust-colored steel arch design. That weathered looks allows the bridge to easily blend in with the rolling hills and Lake Austin. It is an equally visually appealing structure whether you are driving across it or admiring it from afar. Parking is very limited along Capitol of Texas highway. What spectacular way to start your morning or end your evening!

A quintessential barely-a-hike excursion that is a must-see if in Austin, especially if its your…read morefirst time in the city. Despite it not being my first time here, I always enjoy coming here and taking friends who haven't been. Hiked up here in chanclas and a maxi skirt, so anyone can do this as its only a 0.5 mi hike, super chill. The view is gorgeous, you have the Pennybacker overlooking the river. Not quite as spacious on the trail or as shaded as Mt. Bonnell, but still very much worth a visit as it doesn't take much time at all to take in the views and then descend. There's limited parking at the bottom but there's a stoplight prior to this area so it wasn't hard to enter or exit prior to oncoming traffic.

Longhorn Caverns is a great place to go to see some natural Texas beauty. Our tour guide Emily was…read moreabsolutely amazing. She is extremely knowledgeable, confident, and has great puns! We lucked out and got her on a walking tour but you can normally find her on the Wild Cave Tours. My wife has severe anxiety, Emily was extremely understanding, helped her stay calm throughout the walking tour, and gave our family an unforgettable experience. I couldn't thank her enough for everything she did. I highly recommend checking out these Caves, and if you have the gumption to get muddy, spring for the Wild Cave Tour. Either way you go, it's a great experience!

Pictures don't do this place justice!…read more On this beautiful Saturday, I was seeking adventure! This tour is such an amazing deal. My tour guide Eryn was amazing and so funny. Caves are so interesting and there is so much to learn about them . Longhorn Cavern offer 3 different tour options. The cavern walking tour is just like a casual walking tour. The black light tour is where you wear hard hats and walk with a light. The Wild Cave tour is for the extreme explorers who are okay with tight spaces . I chose the cavern walking tour. I highly recommend shoes that have a tight grip. The gift shop has really good options for keepsakes. Also, if you get thirst drinks are available to purchase. I saw a section for pizza, but it was sold out. I had amazing time during my visit. The cave is beautiful and there is so much to see.

The staff is incredibly friendly, and the check-in process couldn't be easier. The train cars are…read moreimpressively clean and well-kept, and we really enjoyed learning about the history behind the ride. It's a unique and nostalgic experience that takes you back in time. While I do wish the views along the route were a bit more scenic, the overall experience was still absolutely worth it and I would gladly do it again. If you're looking for something different to do around Austin, please support this train. It's a special kind of adventure you don't find every day.

Being a train enthusiast I was a bit excited to go on the "Noth Pole Flyer" out of Bertrum TX on…read moreDecember 13, 2025 with my two grandkids and thier parents, six people in total. So this is a grandparents perspective. Upon arrival to the depot area, there is no indication of event parking as the lighting was very poor at 6:15 at night. The web site mentioned free parking but had no maps of the area. What I saw coming from the east, was a long row of cars parked in a Hodge podge fashion along the tracks. We ended up parking by the library across the highway. (Short walk with a light to cross with). I'll mention this again later. I came across a small sign in the middle of a crowd that says "no alcohol, no weapons licensed or otherwise." Would be nice to know before this Texan shows up armed. So had to run back to the car to secure my weapon. Ehh, minor inconvenience. BTW, the rules are on the web site. We pick up our tickets at will call and wait. The train comes up and parks. The engine was a short haul/swicher unit, no steam, with very beautiful vintage passenger cars. My family's car just happened to stop right in front of us, #41. We boarded and it was like going back in time. We found our seats easy enough. However, keeping in mind, either people were a lot taller and thinnier back then, or they have tall tables and do like airlines and add extra tables. It was tight. Little wiggle room for an adult. If you are in the window seat, you get to look forward and to the side. You cannot turn around to see what is behind you. If you adjust your seat, you are bumping the person behind you. And trust me, every car is packed. Being a night trip, there is nothing to see outside. So bring stuff for the kiddos to do and snacks and drinks. The two hour trip is loud. Kids are loud, and you have adults talking over the kids. My train enthusiast self went on an exploring expedition through a lot of the other cars. Some like mine had 4 person tables, others 4 person commuter recling seats with no tables. Some had one bathroom available others had two. I stood between two cars and just watched the scenery go by. It was a refreshing change to the snot-monsters noise in my car. The endless coco was good. Very hot. Eventually a minstrel came out and started some interactive Christmas carols. Pretty good. Simultaneously, a balloon guy came out making hats and the sorts for the kids. Then out came the forgetable part, a story teller. Hard to hear, not well versed in the story and choppy in her reading. Alas, Mrs Clause with some very different tasting, highly addictive cookie for everyone, saved the day. The highlight of the adventure was Santa. The staff had his appearance very organized and orderly. Each table had a chance to take photos with the big guy. The most unimaginable gift was given. A wooden train whistle to about 15-20 kids, my own grandkids included. Imagine if you will, about 30 minutes left in the trip with the incessant "tweet-tweet-tweet" penetrating that one nerve that goes from your ears to your feet and makes your spine want jump out of the window. Now, after a engine switch from one end to the other delay, we headed into the depot. We didn't exit the way we got on. We got on the depot side (city side), and exited on the parking lot side. Well that's fine and great. But if you park on the city side, you are blocked by the train with only two ways to get to your vehicle. Oh yes, I said a bunch of nasty, nasty cuss words. You either wait for a full train to disembark and hope they let you walk through, or, you walk around the shortest part of the train and back to the crossing light I mentioned earlier. So that's the trip review. But now to the staff. Man those cats get 5-stars. Friendly, informative and in character. I can't imagin doing that trip 5-6 times a day. They made an otherwise blah trip much, much nicer. This is a one time experience with kids. Maybe, someday, my wife and I will try a romantic trip through hill country or something like that.

For those who are able to go on a weekday, it is very nice to be able to get tickets with a wide…read morevariety of available seats. We have never add a problem there. We are grateful for the senior discount.

Great theater to see movies. Very comfortable…read more Came at 9 AM. Stale popcorn. Must have been leftover from last night. No popcorn smell at the concessions. I should be more alert! Downgraded. I wonder about the other food during off peak times.

My family and I decided to go play mini golf at the Memorial minigolf and museum. We went on a…read moreMonday at around 2:00 pm. Luckily the weather was in the 70s which was really nice for a January day. We drove up and parked easily. We then went to pay the rate for 4 adults, got our clubs, chose our golf balls, and we were off. There were a few people there with families on the course but we basically had the course to ourselves. It was a course with a practice spot and then 18 holes to play. It was very informative and fun. There were stands at each hole with a set of photos and historical information. Plus the actual course had slight slopes, and a few fun obstacles. After golfing we went inside the small museum. There were several artifacts and some historical information to look at and read about. On a side note they have two bathrooms with soap and running water which is a positive. Overall it was a fun afternoon on a nice day. The mini golf course is fun and informative. The museum is small and interesting. If you like history and mini golf this would be a good place to visit and play on a nice day.

Gorgeous mini-golf course! The family had a blast. The WW2 theme is fun, educational, and the…read moremuseum is filled with items from neighbors in the community. Our kid wants to have her birthday party there and my wife's office is looking to plan an event especially with the mini disc golf course. The new bar/indoor dining is family friendly and there's a new food truck with DOLE WHIP, sandwiches, fries, burgers, and Mediterranean food.

$5 (1$ online fee) for each and my son wanted to watch Michael movie on his birthday celebration…read more What a deal!!! The large popcorn was $5 as well :) It was my son who looked this place up and I was a little hesitant at first as I didn't want to go somewhere where it's not maintained and not clean. The seats and the theater was actually clean! Nice reclining seats, it took a while before I was able to figure out how the buttons work but I felt like I was laying down while watching the . Will come here more often now I know they have a day for deals once a week!

This theater is next to Special Noodle. It happens to be one of the theaters showing Guillermo del…read moreToro's Frankenstein. They have an online booking system, and also a box office. Online booking is very simplistic. You can select seats. As far as I can tell, if you purchased online, you can go in and scan the barcode that's located in the confirmation email with one of the people at the concession stand. For theater setup, it's not stadium seating. But there is a subtle slope downwards. Lighting is a bit dark. Identifying your seat requires you to look at the small unilluminated letter on the side of the seat next to the aisle, and then to look for the number printed part way down the arm rest. The screen is slightly elevated, views seem to be fine no matter where you sit. The seats recline. I was a bit confused at first about the controls, but the controls for your seat are on your right, two sets of "open" and "close". Sound and visuals were totally fine, and tickets are affordable. They also seem to host film festival events here.

Took an e-bike tour today with Toby! What a Great time…read more Terrific route and Austin facts. Great guy! Even his recommendation for Matt's El Rancho for dinner was the bomb! Five Stars for sure!

Great place to rent bikes! The guy behind the counter gave…read moreus all the info we needed & helped us get in & out quickly. It had a small town & mom & pop feel! They rent a wide variety of bikes including beach cruisers, hybrid bikes, mountain bikes, road bikes, tandem bikes, and electric bikes. They also offer tag along bikes, kids' bikes, and accessories like trailers and kids' seats. Prices seemed great, too!

Found this place on Yelp while visiting Round Rock, and it ended up being a great time. The arcade…read moreselection wasn't huge, but the mini golf area was really cool and challenging and a lot of fun. One thing that stood out was how clean everything was--especially the restrooms, which I think says a lot about a business. The staff was incredibly friendly and attentive, and the music created a great atmosphere. Overall, we had a blast and would definitely come back.

This is such a fun fun place for kids and adults alike! The setting inside is completely dark with…read morevibrant neon lights and signs. There's an arcade, spook-tacular mini golf with a neon colored ball and laser tag. It's also a great spot for hosting kids birthday parties.