Fun things to do in Austin, TX

Bring the Kids in Austin

66 results

Beverly S. Sheffield Northwest District Park

Beverly S. Sheffield Northwest District Park is a relaxed neighborhood escape centered on a small lake and shaded stretches of Shoal Creek. Walking paths, open lawns, tennis courts, a playground, and picnic space make it easy to shape an unhurried visit without the crowds of Austin’s headline parks. Look for ducks and neighborhood birdlife around the water, bring lunch beneath the trees, or add a few casual laps to your day. It is simple, peaceful, and especially pleasant in the morning.

Attractions

Thinkery

Give curious kids room to experiment at Thinkery, Austin's hands-on children's museum in the Mueller neighborhood. Play-based galleries invite families to explore science, technology, engineering, art, and math through water activities, light, motion, building challenges, imaginative play, and programs designed for young learners.

Parks & Trails

Mabel Davis District Park

Mabel Davis District Park packs several distinct local adventures into an easygoing South Austin green space. Its 12,000-square-foot concrete skate park—Austin’s first—mixes a bowl with streetscape features, while the larger park adds a walking trail, seasonal pool, basketball courts, playground, and room to spread out. Watch experienced skaters carve the bowl, bring wheels of your own, or circle the trail while the action unfolds nearby.

Parks & Trails

Barton Springs Pool

Swim in the clear spring-fed water of Barton Springs Pool, an Austin icon set within Zilker Metropolitan Park. The three-acre outdoor pool stays refreshingly cool year-round and is surrounded by grassy slopes for relaxing between swims, making it a classic warm-weather outing for locals, families, and visitors.

Arts & Culture

Creek Show 2026

See Waller Creek become an open-air gallery after dark as Creek Show unveils original light installations created for the Confluence. Local artists, architects, and designers respond to the waterway with glowing structures, playful environments, and surprising perspectives along the stretch between Fourth Street and Lady Bird Lake. The free nightly walk blends public art with restored urban nature, giving families, date nights, and curious wanderers a brighter way to explore downtown.

Attractions

Austin Veterans Parade 2026

Honor military veterans and their families during Austin's annual Veterans Parade along Congress Avenue. Community groups, marching units, civic organizations, and spectators gather downtown for a free morning procession that recognizes service while bringing neighbors together near the Texas State Capitol.

Attractions

Texas Toy Museum

Texas Toy Museum turns a downtown storefront into a colorful time machine filled with action figures, dolls, comics, elaborate dioramas, vintage consoles, and more than 20,000 nostalgic pieces. The admission includes free-play arcade and pinball machines, so visitors can do more than peer through display glass. Adults can relive childhood favorites while younger guests discover decades of pop culture at once.

Shopping & Markets

Austin Card Show January 2027

Austin Card Show gives collectors a whole weekend to search, trade, and compare. Sports cards, trading card games, sealed products, memorabilia, and collector supplies fill the floor, making the show useful whether someone is building a childhood set, hunting a rare single, or learning why modern card culture has exploded. Bring a want list, protect the budget, and leave time for the conversations that make card shows feel like a community.

Arts & Culture

Disney's The Muppet Christmas Carol in Concert

The Muppet Christmas Carol returns as the film screens at Bass Concert Hall while the Central Texas Philharmonic performs its score live. Kermit, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, Rizzo, and Michael Caine carry Dickens' tale from comic mischief to genuine holiday warmth, with music by Miles Goodman and Paul Williams. The live orchestra turns a family favorite into a shared event with theatrical scale. It is an inviting holiday outing for children, nostalgic adults, and families.

Attractions

iFLY Austin

Experience the sensation of freefall without jumping from an airplane at iFLY Austin. After a brief training session, flyers enter a vertical wind tunnel with a certified instructor who helps them float safely on a smooth column of air. Equipment and guidance are included, and first-time experiences are available for guests as young as three. It is a memorable pick for birthdays, family adventures, and adrenaline-loving groups.

Attractions

Peter Pan Mini-Golf

Play a round inside a wonderfully eccentric piece of old Austin. Family-owned Peter Pan Mini-Golf has welcomed generations since 1948 with two outdoor 18-hole courses, hand-painted characters, playful obstacles, and its unmistakable giant Peter Pan and T. rex. The relaxed setup works equally well for family afternoons, casual dates, and friendly group competitions near Zilker Park and Barton Springs Road.

Parks & Trails

Emma Long Metropolitan Park

Enjoy a lakeside getaway without leaving Austin at Emma Long Metropolitan Park. The large park on Lake Austin offers swimming, picnicking, camping, boating access, and wooded trails, including rugged mountain-bike terrain. Reservable day passes help manage capacity during popular warm-weather weekends.

Nightlife & Music

Glenn Miller Orchestra: In the Christmas Mood

Step into a holiday ballroom when the Glenn Miller Orchestra fills Bass Concert Hall with big-band sparkle. More than 18 musicians and singers bring the ensemble's unmistakable swing to timeless Glenn Miller favorites and warmly reimagined songs of the season. Brass, reeds, close harmonies, and elegant showmanship make this afternoon concert feel nostalgic yet alive—a polished December outing for music lovers, families, and anyone ready to trade holiday rush for irresistible rhythm.

Attractions

Austin Central Library

Browse six floors of books, art, technology, and public space at Austin Central Library. The downtown building features reading rooms, a rooftop garden, gallery, cafe, event spaces, children's areas, and sweeping city views, making it as rewarding for architecture lovers and remote workers as it is for readers.

Sports & Fitness

Statesman Capitol 10K 2027

The Statesman Capitol 10K brings runners, walkers, spectators, and neighborhood cheer squads together for one of Austin’s defining spring mornings. The downtown course rewards participants with city views and a lively finish festival where local food, music, recovery stations, and family activities keep the celebration going. Whether you are chasing a personal best or joining friends for the tradition, it makes a grand tour of Austin feel like a party.

Attractions

Inner Space Cavern

Travel beneath Central Texas on a guided journey through Inner Space Cavern, a living limestone cave hidden below Georgetown. Tours wind past dramatic chambers, delicate formations, flowstone, and evidence of prehistoric animals while guides explain the cavern's geology and discovery. With a steady underground climate and several tour styles, it offers families and curious explorers an unforgettable natural attraction just north of Austin.

Parks & Trails

Zilker Botanical Garden

Wander through 28 acres of themed landscapes at Zilker Botanical Garden, a peaceful green space near downtown Austin. Visitors can explore rose, cactus, herb, and Japanese gardens, cross footbridges and streams, and see prehistoric-inspired features in the Hartman Prehistoric Garden while enjoying seasonal color.

Parks & Trails

Walnut Creek Metropolitan Park

Choose from miles of interconnected natural-surface trails at Walnut Creek Metropolitan Park in North Austin. Hikers, mountain bikers, trail runners, and leashed dogs share wooded routes and creek crossings, while the broader park also provides sports fields, a playground, picnic areas, and seasonal swimming facilities.

Arts & Culture

ABC Kite Fest 2027

Austin skies turn into a moving gallery at ABC Kite Fest, a long-running spring gathering in Zilker Park. Families bring kites of every size, from classic diamonds to elaborate flying sculptures, then spread out for music, hands-on activities, food, and plenty of room to watch the color overhead. It is an easygoing Austin tradition built for a picnic blanket, a breezy afternoon, and a little friendly kite-flying competition.

Arts & Culture

Bullock Texas State History Museum

Follow the story of Texas across three floors of artifacts, immersive exhibits, films, and rotating galleries at the Bullock Texas State History Museum. Located near the Capitol and UT campus, this Austin museum brings the state's people, cultures, industries, conflicts, music, and larger-than-life history together under one roof.

Parks & Trails

Pease Park

Explore limestone bluffs, shaded trails, open lawns, and creative play spaces at Pease Park near downtown Austin. The renovated Kingsbury Commons area includes a treehouse observation pod, splash pad, nature play, basketball, and gathering areas, while the Shoal Creek trail offers an easy green route through the city.

Sports & Fitness

2026 Texas Longhorns Home Football Games

Wear burnt orange and join the roar at DKR for seven Texas Longhorns home games in 2026. The Austin dates are Sept. 5 vs. Texas State, Sept. 12 vs. Ohio State, Sept. 19 vs. UTSA, Oct. 17 vs. Florida, Oct. 24 vs. Ole Miss, Oct. 31 vs. Mississippi State, and Nov. 21 vs. Arkansas. From Bevo Boulevard and Smokey the Cannon to the Longhorn Band and more than 100,000 voices, each Saturday delivers a stadium-sized dose of college football tradition.

Arts & Culture

Texas Book Festival 2026

Join readers and writers for a free literary weekend surrounding the State Capitol. Hundreds of authors participate in conversations, readings, signings, cooking demonstrations, children's programs, teen sessions, and bilingual events, while exhibitor tents and food trucks create a lively downtown campus. The range is the magic: families can meet picture-book creators, devoted fans can hear major novelists, and curious visitors can discover ideas they never expected to explore.

Attractions

Zilker Holiday Tree 2026

Watch one of Austin's most joyful landmarks flicker to life beneath a historic moonlight tower. The 155-foot Zilker Holiday Tree wraps more than 3,300 colorful bulbs into a glowing spiral that invites visitors to stand underneath, look up, and take a dizzying holiday spin. Opening night adds live music from the Austin Civic Wind Ensemble and the official lighting ceremony, while the tree remains illuminated nightly through New Year's Day for free family visits and festive photos.