Travel Guide: Austin, San Antonio, & Houston (Texas)
We are back to some airplane lunacy/ blogging as I’m currently in the air, en route from Houston to Vancouver! I just wrapped up a 12 day vacation in Texas, where we visited Austin, San Antonio, and Houston. While the vacation is still fresh in my mind, I wanted to give y’all a rundown of my overall trip. I’ll also share my favourite restaurant and experience from each city so you can add these ideas to your personal destination guides as well.
First things first, Southern hospitality is SO REAL and I am here for it. I pride myself on being naturally smiley + approachable (at least in Vancouver standards), but Texans were on a whole new level. I feel like someone would have given me the shirt off their back if I truly needed it, which says a lot. I was at Gus’s World Famous Fried Chicken fumbling for coins to pay for my takeout chicken and the cashier - bless her soul - was the sweetest lady who patiently waited for me to count my change. American bills are already a tough nut to crack given that they’re all the same colour, so I already felt anxious about holding up a non-existent line, but she never rushed me.
Here is how we split our time:
July 27 to July 31: Austin, TX
July 31 to Aug 4: San Antonio, TX
Aug 4 to Aug 8: Houston, TX
austin, tx
I have loved Austin ever since I binge watched Season 6 of Queer Eye. I loved the culture, the fashion, and the energy. Being a budding tech hub doesn’t hurt its case either ;)
It’s one of those cities that has been on my list to visit, but is not at the top of the list as I gravitate toward international destinations when I have extended time-off. However, with an increase in disposable income and a curiosity to experience new cities, I’ve realized that 4 days is a good amount of time for a short getaway if I’m able to extend a long weekend. I took a 5 day trip to Toronto in April for a mix of work and play and although it felt too short in the moment, it was also the perfect duration in hindsight as it left me wanting more.
Austin is truly the perfect city for a young professional with an abundance of restaurants, nightlife, activities, and entertainment. You can get by on foot and with car share if you’re taking a vacation here, which is fantastic.
Favourite restaurant: Everything was good, but nothing was amazing, so I can’t confidently say that I had a favourite. Don’t get me wrong, the ambiance and service in the restaurants we visited were consistently high, but the food didn’t wow me as I never left a restaurant feeling like I wanted to come back or that I would recommend it to others.
Favourite experience: Pete’s Dueling Piano Bar OR bat watching tour with Live Love Paddle OR shopping on South Congress Ave OR riding a Lime scooter for the first time…?!?! Clearly, I had an epic time.
san antonio, tx
I love a balance of cringey, touristy things and off the beaten path experiences in every city I visit. San Antonio did a spectacular job of offering both. Downtown San Antonio has a beautiful riverwalk with some iconic tourist attractions: Bubba Gump Shrimp, Ripley’s Believe It or Not, Rainforest Cafe, and gift shops that are open until 11pm. The Alamo also houses an important piece of Texas’ history as a historic Spanish mission and fortress compound.
Favourite restaurant: My travel partner, Ken, found Cuishe Cocina Mexicana, a hidden gem of a tequila + mezcal bar with an insane weekday happy hour (2-7pm) deal featuring 1/2 priced straight agave spirits served neat… it was such a unique experience and so gentle on the wallet! However, the elote at Domingo was TO DIE FOR. I would go back for that elote.
Favourite experience: Hands-down, my first ever live jazz experience at Jazz, TX. I generally prefer music with lyrics but the Adam Carrillo Quartet featured a saxophone (lead), piano, double bass, and drummer, and it reminded me of how powerful instrumental music can be as it evokes thoughts and memories that are hindered by lyrics.
Here’s a snippet of Fly Me to the Moon… I will never recover from this moment. Future husband, please take note. “I See the Light” from Tangled is also a special one. sobs happy tears
houston, tx
I thought things were far apart in Austin and San Antonio, but I was wrong. Things were SO SPREAD OUT in Houston and the city was clearly designed for vehicles given the road infrastructure and lack of general care for sidewalks. A 15 minute walk in Vancouver is relatively interesting due to the variety in greenery, shops, and the fact that there are things to look at. A 15 minute walk in Houston is just… flat and boring. We would pass a few large restaurants, huge intersections, and a strip mall. All in the same, flat beigey-beige.
However, I will admit that I didn’t give Houston a fair shot as we didn’t rent a car until the last day of our trip and at this point, I was already so drained from being on vacation (first world problem, yes). I actually took 1.5 days to just rest and do “Doro” things, which included horizontal time on the couch with multiple documentaries, lounged hard at a coffee shop, went to an 8:30a pilates class, and took a long walk along the Buffalo Bayou. It was a beautiful solo date in Houston. Ken went to bars and the NASA Space Centre but I just didn’t have it in me knowing that I wouldn’t have time to refill my tank back in Vancouver as I was already running on fumes.
And that is okay! The point of vacation isn’t to see and to do everything, even if you feel inherent pressure to do so. What’s important is that you do the things you want to do without fear of judgement and without feeling the need the justify those actions to the people around you, because at the end of the day, this is YOUR vacation.
There are still things I want to see in Houston, like visit and eat my way around Katy Asian Town, nightlife in Midtown + EaDo, and check out the many museums! But we’ll save it for a future trip (or if I ever end up staffed on a project in Houston).
Favourite restaurant: Lucille’s for the chicken fried steak and chili biscuits… also the spinach at Turkey Leg Hut.
Favourite experience: Honestly, it was all the horizontal time I got lounging at home and the pilates classes that I took. I was just so drained from being on vacation and adjusting to new cities + the heat (yes, a first world problem and I acknowledge that) that I needed to take a step back and incorporate some rituals that I have back home, like #DOROTIME and #SlowSundays.
All in all, a fantastic trip. I cannot wait to go back to Texas and see Dallas next time.
Is it true? Is everything bigger in Texas?
Yes, yes indeed.
