There are loads of wonderful things to do in Austin, and no single collection is completely comprehensive. So we're giving you four links to popular events calendars and city guides—click them all and you might get just an inkling of everything there is to do in town. Make sure you build some time into your schedule for exploring!

Austin Chronicle
Austinist
austin360.com
design*sponge’s Austin guide

And if you want to make like a local, check out this list of favorite haunts from Austinite Stephanie Friedman.

Food
Central / Downtown Austin
Lamberts  Downtown. BBQ. Go.
Moonshine  You will drink out of a mason jar. You will like it.
Fino  Order the Fried Goat Cheese with Red Onion Jam & Honey appetizer or don’t come crying to me.
Clay Pit  In the mood for delicious Indian food?

South Austin
Guero’s  Have some margaritas and tasty tex-mex. Popular with presidents.
Uchi  It wins all the awards. Don’t you want to go?
Homeslice  Best pizza in Austin. The best.
Threadgills  75 years and counting. Get your southern comfort food here.

North / Central Austin
Asti  In the scenic Hyde Park neighborhood. Seasonal Italian menu. Great food.
Fonda San Miguel  You will wish you lived here. Buy the cookbook once you finish your meal.
Chuys on 183  Ask for the jalapeno ranch dip with your chips and salsa. Then don’t be surprised when you can’t finish your meal.

East Austin
Eastside Café  Very vegetarian friendly and you can tour their garden before or after your meal.
El Chilito  Walk up. Eat right.
Hoovers  Southern cooking is their specialty.

Dessert (yes, it gets its own category)
Amy’s Ice Cream  The servers are almost the best part.
Hey Cupcake  Don’t you want to buy a cupcake from an airstream trailer?
Mandola’s gelato  You’ll think you’re in Italy.
Big Top Candy Shop  For the kid in you.

Bars
Driskill Bar  Lots of cowhide, a piano bar, fancy drinks and maybe you’ll see the ghost that haunts the hotel.
Donn’s Depot  Have you ever two-stepped in an old train car?
Broken Spoke  “Through these doors walk some of the best dancers in Texas.” Get in touch with your inner Honky Tonk.
Ginny’s Little Longhorn  Make some time for Chicken Sh*t Bingo on Sunday.
Club deVille  The drinks are strong. Now you’ve been warned.
4th street  Lots of choices, post-college crowd.
6th street  Lots of choices, mostly college kids.
Halcyon  If you need some coffee between your drinking. Or order the s’mores at your table.

Shopping
Parts + Labour  Go Local. It’s like if Etsy were a store on South Congress.
Allens Boots  How else will they know you went to Texas?
Book People  Where you can buy your “Keep Austin Weird” t-shirt.
Waterloo Records  Where you can buy the CD of the band you saw the night before.
Tesoros  Folk arts and crafts.
Central Market  If you believe a grocery store can be a destination.
Whole Foods flagship store  80,000 square feet of foodie goodness.
Austin Farmer’s Market  Need something fresh to eat on your plane ride home?
Austin Handmade  The online shop for local art and handmade goodies now has a gallery/retail space.

Things to Do
Lady Bird Wildflower Center  Bring your macro lens.
Round Rock Express  See a minor league baseball game.
Swimming! It will be hot. You will need to cool off. Visit Deep Eddy or Barton Springs Pool.
Zilker Park Boat Rentals  Kayak or canoe. Keep an eye out for turtles.
Hike and Bike Trail  Did you pack your running shoes?
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema  Enjoy the AC with your pint while watching a pic.
Bats at the Congress Street Bridge  Lots and lots of Mexican free-tailed bats.
AMOA  Austin Museum of Art.