On top of an increasingly dynamic culinary scene (starring food trucks, BBQ joints and the choicest farm-to-table restaurants), Texas’ state capital has earned a reputation as the ‘Live Music Capital of the World’. South by Southwest and Austin City Limits are the two main festivals of note, but you can also catch live country, blues and rock performances every night in the myriad bars and clubs about town. Another attraction is the pink marbled, Revival-style Texas Capitol building which, at over 300 feet tall, overshadows its Washington D.C. counterpart.

Austin is very much an outdoorsy city, with miles of much-loved cycling, walking and jogging trails. Take a kayak out on Lady Bird Lake or head next door to swim in the refreshing, spring-fed waters of Barton Springs Pool.