Indoor Activities in Austin

The building alone is worth a visit. Dedicated kids' floor with free storytimes, crafts, and STEM activities. Weekly storytimes for ages 0-5 including Spanish sessions. Rooftop garden. Free underground parking.

Touch tanks where kids handle starfish, feed sharks, and pet stingrays. Tropical fish, reptile encounters, rotating exhibits. Plan 2-3 hours with younger kids. Under 2 free.

Texas history from dinosaurs to the space age, three floors of hands-on exhibits and 500+ artifacts. IMAX and 4D theater cost extra but kids love them. Free first Sunday of every month. Under 3 always free.

21,000 works on the UT campus. The Ellsworth Kelly chapel with colored glass windows mesmerizes kids with shifting light. Free Tuesdays. Under 5 always free. Grab a family gallery guide at the front desk.

Natural history museum on the UT campus with dinosaur fossils, Texas wildlife dioramas, mineral collections, and a mounted 40-foot pterosaur. Free on the fourth Sunday of every month. Children 5 and under always free.

Family entertainment complex with go-karts, mini golf, laser tag, bumper boats, batting cages, and an indoor arcade. Pay per activity or buy combo passes. Good rainy-day option. About 15 minutes north of downtown.

Modern park with a large playground, splash pad (seasonal), lake with walking loop, and open lawns. One of the best playgrounds in Austin — climbing structures for all ages. Thinkery children's museum right across the street.

900 capacity, indoor and outdoor stages, three bars. The tiered outdoor patio gives good sightlines from almost anywhere. Books indie rock, metal, hip-hop, and electronic. Anchor of Red River since 2006.

BBQ and live music in the same compound. Outdoor amphitheater holds 2,100 for touring acts; indoor stage is smaller. Sunday Gospel Brunch is a thing. The restaurant is open without a show ticket.

Restored 1915 vaudeville house on Congress Avenue. Now books concerts, comedy, classic films, and touring Broadway. The ornate interior justifies showing up for anything they're running.

Austin's last real dance hall, open since 1964. Chicken-fried steak and cold beer from 4pm, then the floor opens for country, western swing, and honky-tonk. Dance lessons Wed-Sat at 8pm, $10 cash. Cover $10-15 cash. All ages.

Political satire, magic tricks, and live music — running for 40+ years on Sixth Street. Shows are 90 minutes. Typically 7pm and 9pm, multiple nights a week. Extra $5 for center seating.

The original Alamo Drafthouse, Austin-born in 1997. First-run movies, repertory screenings, Terror Tuesday, Weird Wednesday. Food and drinks at your seat. They will kick you out for talking.

On South Congress since 1955. Started as a supper club, now books roots, rockabilly, country, swing, rock, and blues every single night. 200-person room — you're right on top of the performers.

Home of the PBS Austin City Limits tapings — longest-running music series on American TV. 2,750 capacity, about 100 concerts a year across all genres. Good sightlines from every level. 2nd Street District.

Largest university art museum in the country, on the UT campus. 21,000 works. The Ellsworth Kelly 'Austin' chapel — stone walls, colored glass windows — is the thing to see. Free on Tuesdays. Kids 5 and under always free.

Texas history from dinosaurs to the space age across three floors, plus IMAX and a 4D theater. Free first Sunday of every month (H-E-B sponsors it). Kids 5 and under always free. On Congress Ave near the Capitol.

Multi-stage compound on East Sixth — indoor, outdoor, and the Volstead Lounge next door, sometimes all running at once. Psych rock, garage, indie, electronic. Big patio, cheap beer, good food. Where you catch Austin bands before anyone else does.

Basement jazz club on Congress Avenue, open since 1991. Live jazz seven nights a week. You sit at the bar three feet from the trumpet player.

Founded 1975. Stevie Ray Vaughan, B.B. King, and Muddy Waters all played here. The 5th Street location keeps it going with blues, rock, soul, and R&B multiple nights a week.

Free outdoor musical at the Zilker Hillside Theater every summer since 1959. Bring a blanket, sit on the grass. Full Broadway-style production, no charge. Thu-Sun, mid-July through mid-August at 8:15pm.

Independent record store since 1982. Willie Nelson, Spoon, and St. Vincent have all played free in-store shows here. Big vinyl and CD selection plus local Austin music. Outdoor stage for free shows year-round and during SXSW.