Posted: Wed, 14 Jul 2010 02:45 PM - 13,893 Readers

By: HostingCon

Your guide to enjoying Austin during HostingCon.

Visiting Austin next week for HostingCon? Want to get away and experience Austin? Here are some things to do while you’re in town.

1. Bats – no visit to Austin is complete without watching North America’s largest urban bat population ascend for its nightly feeding. Just before dusk, over 1 million Mexican free-tailed bats depart from the Congress Avenue bridge to consume 10,000-30,000 pounds of insects each night.

You can watch the bats from a number of places, but standing on top of the Congress Avenue bridge is the most enjoyable. Just watch out if it’s windy, and don’t touch any bats on the ground.

2. Salt Lick – for a true Texas barbecue experience, make the drive to Salt Lick. It’s BYOB and all-you-can-eat. Just be aware it’s a long drive to get there. 18300 FM 1826, Driftwood, TX.

3. Iron Works – if a car trip isn’t appealing, consider Iron Works BBQ instead, which is literally right next door to the convention center. Be sure to order a cold beer; there’s no air conditioning in this joint. 100 Red River St.

4. Whole Foods HQ – are you a foodie? Fan of Whole Foods? Venture over to Whole Food’s headquarters store at 6th and Lamar.

5. Capitol Building – it’s the largest state capitol building in the U.S., and taller than the National Capitol building in D.C. Be aware that you’ll need to pass through a metal detector to enter the capitol. Unless, of course, you have a concealed handgun permit. Then you can bypass the metal detector and pack heat. Really, there’s a lot of logic to it. 1100 Congress Ave.

6. University of Texas – in the fall, the UT campus is home to 50,000 students and over 15,000 faculty and staff. In the summer it’s a shadow of its regular self, but it’s still worth the visit. You can view the famous Texas tower (which I believe is in the background of the most popular eNom parking template of all time, the one with the cute blond girl), see the football stadium, or visit one of the 7 museums and 17 libraries. Note: tours to the top of the UT tower are closed due to maintenance.

7. Oasis – It’s a bit of a trip, but it’s worth it to experience this view:

8. Hula Hut – if you want to eat on a lake, but not venture out to Oasis, Drive down 5th street to Hula Hut. Great margaritas, lake mex, and breezes from Lake Austin. 3825 Lake Austin Boulevard.

9. SoCo – a short walk or Taxi ride across the Congress Avenue bridge leads you to the trendy shops and boutiques of South Congress, aka SoCo.

10. Go for a jog – strap on your running shoes and head a couple blocks south to Lady Bird Lake (aka Town Lake) for a nice jog around the hike and bike trail. You can also rent bicycles. I recommend this as an early morning activity.

11. Canoe/Kayak – a bit more adventurous? Rent a canoe or kayak and enjoy the lake from on top of the water (hopefully not in it). Rent from Capital Cruises or Zilker Boats.

12. 6th Street and 4th Street – with college out of session and HostinCon taking place early in the week, don’t except a happening music scene on Austin’s famous 6th street during the conference. But you will find a good selection of bands, especially as the week progresses.