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Post Info TOPIC: Austin/San Antonio
shopgirl82


Chanel

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Austin/San Antonio
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my bf and i will be going to austin/san antonio (and anywhere that's worth traveling that's close to those places). Does anyone have recommendations on


hotels


dining


activities


shopping


 


i know that i want to get sun and will probably rent a bike and do some biking, but that's about it.  we are going mid april.



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"i tell you one lesson I learned If you want to be something in life, You ain't gonna get it unless, You give a little bit of sacrifice, Oohh, sometimes before you smile you got to cry.." -The Roots
lindsayp


Kenneth Cole

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for resturants: definitely go to Chuey's. I'm not sure that's how you spell it, but it's the BEST Tex-mex I've ever had in my life!! Oh, that's in Austin


Bars in Austin: Continental club on S. Congress (Factory People clothing store is just up the street from there), on 6th Street (the BEST location for bars): I think it's called the Ritz- it's got pool tables, pinball machines, foosball, table hockey, etc), crap, can't remember any others, pretty much all the bars on 6th street are good, Emo's for punk music- lots of great punk bars on 6th street just can't for the life of me remember what they're called! Sorry, hope that was somewhat helpful



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joy0302


Kate Spade

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In San Antonio the La Mansion del Rio on the riverwalk is a beautiful hotel, a little pricey but worth it!! Anywhere on the riverwalk is nice though, the Hotel Valencia is also really nice. The riverwalk has a lot of touristy stuff and the Alamo is there. The North Star mall is the best shopping there. There is also Sea World and Fiesta Texas theme park.

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lindsayp


Kenneth Cole

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aaahhh!!! I almost forgot the best thing ever- You HAVE to go to the Salt Lick Barbeque. It's outside of Austin, and it's the best food you will ever eat in your life. I just remembered that, seriously, I want to go back to Austin just ot go eat there again!


Enjoy :)



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lindsayp


Kenneth Cole

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my boyfriend also told me to tell you to stay at the Hotel San Jose on S. Congress in Austin


bars- Casino El Camino, The Speakeasy


resturant- Magnolia Cafe on S. Congress is great food too.


If you need any other recs, let me know and I'll pick my bfr's brain. He lived there for a few years...



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june


Nine West

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Let's see...hotels.  I've stayed in the Driscoll and the Four Seasons here in Austin.  Wouldn't really recommend either of them (for what they cost).  I second the Hotel San Jose idea.  I've never stayed there, but have wanted to (I live in Austin...so not very many reasons to actually stay in hotels here)...it looks really cool and is in a great part of town for dining and shopping...


Shopping - There is lots of good shopping here.  Two areas with a larger concentration of shops are S. Congress area (where Hotel SJ is) and the area around 6th Street and Lamar Blvd.  There are lots of shops scattered throughout the town, but these two areas have several all together.  S. Congress has a great mix of high end and funky shops, plus great restaurants like El Sol Y La Luna and Guero's. 


The 6th and Lamar area has 3 or 4 great high end clothing shops, as well as several design/home/furniture stores, a great local music store (Waterloo Records), a terrific (and huge!) local book store (Book People) and our newest (and gigantic) Whole Foods (which is pretty amazing - lots of outdoor seating, so you could eat there and people watch).  A local ice cream shop (Amy's) is right there, too, for dessert.  If you wander west down 6th street, there is another little enclave of shops just a few blocks down.  There is a cute vintage clothing store, another couple furniture stores and a couple of restaurants/bakeries. 


I don't really keep up with the new bars in town, but in addition to the 6th street area (which is usually pretty much all UT students) there are also several bars on 4th and Colorado, which tends to be more young professional-types...just depending on what kind of scene you want. 


Some good restaurants:  Fonda San Miguel (for actual authentic Mexican food - although pretty $$$), Maudie's (good cheap tex-mex - 3 or 4 locations - my favorite is on Capital of Texas Highway because it's in a cute shopping center with some great shops and also has a nice view of the Hill Country (Capital of Texas is also known as Loop 360 - most streets in Austin have several names), Bitter End (one of my favorite restaurants in Austin - 4th and Colorado), Central Market (actually a Whole Foods-type grocery store, but they have an adjoining cafe that I love for an easy lunch)...many others.  If you have certain types of food in mind, let me know and I can recommend something specific.  Good tex-mex is by far the most common restaurant you can find in Austin - Chuy's, Trudy's, Maudie's, the list goes on and on....


Activities - It's fun to go to the top of the UT Tower (at least, as a 2-time UT grad, it was fun for me)...there is a great view of Austin and the surrounding Hill Country.  If you have time for a day trip, there are lots of cute surrounding towns in the Hill Country to visit.  If you want to get sun, you can head to Barton Springs - a natural spring-fed pool with lots of grassy areas to hang out - or to an area lake.  There are lots of trails around town for biking...but I'm not one to know much about them.  And, of course...being the self-proclaimed "Live Music Capital of the World"...the best activity is going out to hear live music.  Some good local legend-type places to hear live music:  Continental Club, Antone's, Broken Spoke, Austin Music Hall, The Backyard, La Zona Rosa, Stubb's....


Hope that helps!  Enjoy Austin! 



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shopgirl82


Chanel

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thanks soo much for your recommendations!  it will really make our vacation soo much better.  i was wondering about wine tours, if anyone has gone on them?  also, we want to go to the oasis for drinks, but have heard the food is not great.  is there a place for dinner around there?  and of course we have heard of AMY's...so we will be visiting there for some yummy ice cream (now you know why we want to go biking?!).  once again, thanks sooo sooo much.  i knew i could count on the st girls.



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"i tell you one lesson I learned If you want to be something in life, You ain't gonna get it unless, You give a little bit of sacrifice, Oohh, sometimes before you smile you got to cry.." -The Roots
june


Nine West

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I haven't been on any wine tours...there are a couple wineries in the Hill Country area...but honestly, I haven't found any Texas wine that I like.  I'm sure a tour of the winery could be fun though, even if the wine isn't terrific, I just haven't done any...


Yes, you heard right - the Oasis' food is not good.  But the view over the lake is pretty, esp. at sunset, so drinks there will be fun.  I'm trying to remember what else is out there (it's been a while since I was there) and seems like there is a Carlos and Charlies-type place nearby....but not positive.  I would personally head back into town for dinner, especially if you plan to go out after dinner...


 



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shopgirl82


Chanel

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thanks so much again for your post.  i think you're right about heading back after drinks.  i'm pretty sure that the wines probably aren't the best, but regardless, it might be fun doing that for a day.  i appreciate all the feedback, and i might tap your brain again before the trip. 



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"i tell you one lesson I learned If you want to be something in life, You ain't gonna get it unless, You give a little bit of sacrifice, Oohh, sometimes before you smile you got to cry.." -The Roots
june


Nine West

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Certainly....I'm glad to help!  I love Austin, in case you can't tell...  :)


Just let me know if you want any other suggestions...



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CRM


Nine West

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You mentioned bike riding... Town Lake may be an ideal place for that... It is close by downtown and I think that you can rent kayaks if you are into that as well.

Foodwise: Ruth's Chris for Steak... it is downtown
My husband and I love Rocco's.. I think they just opened a new one downtown (Italian Food)
Trulucks is also wonderful but expensive and is located downtown

Places to stay: I would stay at Barton Creek Resort, but it isn't in the downtown area. If you are interested in golfing or tennis it may be worth it.

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shopgirl82


Chanel

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ladies, i just wanted to say a big thanks for helping with my vacation...i listened to a lot of your suggestions, so i wanted to post and say that your time posting/helping me, weren't unnoticed.  the vacation was so fun and sooo nice. 


some places that i went: chuy's (yummy), someplace with Cactus in the name (resturant, but we sat on the roof deck for drinks).  drinks at the oasis, stubbs for bbq (wish we could've made it to salt lick)  amy's for ice cream (three times....i had a sore throat ).  and speakeasy which i loved loved loved.  so romantic, great jazz.  spent a lot of money at by georges.  and of course all the bars on 6th street.  we also did the hill  country wineries and have lots of yummy bottles of wine.  some outlets on the way to san antonio (san marcos), luchenbach (had a beer there),guerne, and the riverwalk/alamo in san antonio.  it was fiesta so there was an awesome parade.


finally, the best news....my bf is thinking seriously of moving to austin!!  eventhough i just moved to chicago (which i love), i have always wanted to move to warm weather.  i have no ties to austin, but i love living different places.  he lived in dallas for six years and has family there, and my career, fortunately, allows me to get a job anywhere...


anyways, i'm super jazzed right now....and wanted to say thanks so much for the suggestions.



__________________
"i tell you one lesson I learned If you want to be something in life, You ain't gonna get it unless, You give a little bit of sacrifice, Oohh, sometimes before you smile you got to cry.." -The Roots
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