When looking at places to host my bachelorette party we considered several options. I thought I really wanted to go to a beach, but what I wanted more was for all of my girls to be there with me! With everyone coming from different places with different budgets, it made the most sense for us to go somewhere that most of us could drive to. From Dallas, Austin, TX was the best option and turned out to be the most amazing bachelorette party!
We had the best time in Austin, we went out, stayed in, floated on Lake Travis, and partied all day and night. As it turns out, Austin is one of the best places in the country for a bachelorette party! From 6th Street to Rainy St, to Lake Travis, there is a ton to do and experience. There are amazing bars with dancing, and singing, and restaurants with amazing food. If you’re into hiking there are great trails and outdoor activities.
There are so many options it can be tricky to narrow down what to do on a weekend. That is also one of the best parts of an Austin bachelorette is that there is something for everyone! We did a lot of research and googling to find our activities, and most can be done any time of year! I’m not a wild partier, so a lot of our activities were pretty tame, but you could really do them any way you want. Below I’ve compiled the best Austin bachelorette party guide with a ton of great recommendations for things to do and places to go!
How to Host a Bachelorette Party in Austin, TX
Bachelorette Party Planning
You should start planning your bachelorette with your girls around when you send out your save the dates. It sounds early but you need that much time to lock everything down! Thhe planning process can be difficult if you have opinionated friends. I kept most of the planning to myself and my sister/maid of honor. She sent out a survey to everyone asking timing, budgets, and location preferences.
We were planning for nine girls but ended up as seven total people at our max. We had a couple last minute emergencies come up and a few people came in and left as needed, due to other commitments. It ended up being the perfect number. It was easy enough to get reservations and everyone got along. Everyone invited was either in the bridal party or had a close connection to someone in the bridal party (i.e. the best man’s wife), but either way they definitely have to be on the wedding guest list (with the exception of elopements. I will forever stand by that smaller is better for a bachelorette weekend or girls trip.
At the end of the trip, Megan created a spreadsheet with who paid for what and sent out venmo requests and got everyone paid. This worked really well so I replicated it for my sister in law’s bachelorette when she got married.
Bachelorette Party Activities in Austin TX
Rent a Boat
This was my favorite activity we did on the entire trip! Our boat day was the most perfect day. Instead of staying within Austin at Lady Bird Lake or Lake Austin, we traveled about 40 minutes to Lake Travis.
Planning Pro Tip: Take it easy the night before, no one likes a hungover car ride or boat day!
We booked with Good Time Tours and our double-decker boat, Mayhem, had a slide, cooler, and some shade due to the second level which was needed in August in Texas! You can rent a boat most times of year, from early spring to well into the fall, you just may not want get in the water at all times.
We were out on the water for four hours, our boat tied up to others in Devil’s Cove for the afternoon, we floated on the lily pad, listened to music, and rode down the slide. With a boat day, you can get any type of vibe from the day that you want. We were all exhausted and opted for a chill day so we hooked up to the end and didn’t boat hop. You could opt for a tamer experience and not hook up to others at all, or a more exciting time hooking up to another party group!
Choose Fun Decor and Gifts
All of the decor was from my amazing maid of honor and sister, Megan. She was so on top of the planning my bachelorette party and made this the best weekend. She got a set from Amazon and adorable bags, and I got a few gifts from Birdy Grey including custom tumblers, heart sunglasses, and bridesmaid hair ties. A few of us drove in and got to the Air BnB early, and while we were out, my sister came in and decorated to surprise me when we got back.
The bags had customized tumblers, hair ties, and heart glasses c/o Birdy Grey. Megan added a scavenger hunt, make-up wipes, ring pops, Liquid IV, and I grabbed koozies or everyone. The sunglasses ended up being perfect for the lake, since. No one had to wear their nice ones and risk losing them.
Plannning Pro Tip: Keep gifts small, useful, and reusable!
Dance at a Honkey Tonk Bar
Our first night in, it was only me and two other girls and everyone else was coming in later. So, we grabbed dinner at Ma’Coco, a Tex-Mex place, and saw a honkey tonk across the street. We didn’t know at the time, but it was The White Horse, a very popular Honkey Tonk dance hall in Austin.
We watched across the street as we ate dinner as a band went in and set up, followed by all sorts of people from cowboys to pick me girls. I love live music so we deicded to check it out. To our surprise, there was a dance floor and so many people dancing! I grew up a dancer and LOVE to dance, so I was ready to go! We each danced with a few people and had the absolute best time!
Keep It Casual
I’ve seen so many bachelorette parties that go nonstop all day long. daydrinking to out at night, and honestly I just don’t operate that way. Its not my vibe and I wanted a more chill bach. We had the best time keeping it casual, napping, and going with the flow. We had a great Air BnB where we were able to hang out and spend time in between activities.
Bachelorette Party Places in Austin TX
Austin has tons of different neighborhoods, and we ended up in many of them.
Dance the Night Away at The White Horse
As I mentioned above, we popped into The White Horse in the East Austin neighborhood after dinner. We had no idea what we were walking into at the time, but we were so happy we stopped in! It was so much fun and we spent quite a while inside. If you’re hungry they usually have a taco food truck! Like many dance halls, there is a cover, I think it was $10 that night, and don’t forget to tip the band!
Slide into Unbarlievable
On our first night here, there were only three of us, so after the honkey tonk, we ubered over to Rainy St. to Unbarlievable. Since we were a small group, we got in quickly. This was definitely moe of a college bar, but we had such a fun time. It made for a serious hangover the next day, but it was worth it! We chatted with a bachelor party group and danced to the DJ. This bar does have a slide, and we were looking forward to it, but after entering and seeing the crowd we thought better of sliding, and just wandered around.
Sip on Cocktails at The Roosevelt Room
After our boat day, we napped and were ready for a night out. We found a cool cocktail bar called the Roosevelt Room in the historic warehouse district. It was a really cool spot and we were able to all squeeze into this massive booth. We got some snacks and cocktails and some of us stayed there all night, while others went back to the Air BnB.
Sing Along at Pete’s Dueling Piano Bar
I love a piano bar. Pete’s is also in Dallas, but the original is in Austin and has been on sixth street since 1992. If you’ve never been to a dueling piano bar, there are two pianos set up on a stage facing each other. There is live music all night, and you can request songs and they can play just about anything.
Pro Tip: The better you tip, the quicker they will play your song.
When we decided to do. mybachelorette party in Austin, I knew we were going to spend a night here. As soon as we sat down we got a fishbowl to share. We made a reservation ahead of time, so they had my name and that we were there to celebratem my bach. I embarrassed myself as I danced on stage since they ended up calling me onstage a couple of times which was a ton of fun! We submitted song after songs and sang and danced all night long!
Grab a Drink at a Zilker Brewing
None of us were prepared for a wild day out due to the previous night’s activities. After brunch, we walked over to Zilker Brewing for a beer and a calm afternoon. This was a great stop for a casual daytime activity. We did go on a weekday, so it was pretty empty, it may be more exiting on a weekend. I think the quiet environment worked against us because we were already tired. We also had plans to stop at Easy Tiger beer garden, but we all needed a nap before the evening.
Yes, I did ask everyone to wear Kale shirts! You can find more casual bachelorette party outfits here.
Last Day Brunch at Laundrette
Before the last of use left Austin, we stopped at Laundrette for brunch. Laundrette is a converted gas station and laundromat. The food was so good and it has such a cute retro vibe. As you can see from the photo below, we were all exhautsed and sunburnt after a long weekend, but we had the best time, and this was a great way to end it.
