Hotel Review: East Austin Hotel

A weekend in Austin, Texas is the perfect getaway for Houstonians. Every time I go to our state capital, I discover SO MANY new places! Earlier this month, we spent two nights at the East Austin Hotel to celebrate Kyle’s birthday. Austin was such a fun min-vacation that made the birthday celebrations special since we couldn’t throw a *true* party here in Houston due to COVID. Here’s a recap of our weekend and a review of the East Austin Hotel.

Where we stayed

The East Austin Hotel is a boutique hotel located on the east side of 35 in a super cute neighborhood with lots of walkable spots. The hotel is adorned with bright murals, retro mid-century modern design, and plenty of bright colors. The hotel has the Upside Bar (rooftop bar), Sixth and Waller (on-site restaurant), and Pool Bar. Popping into reception was such a treat because I was greeted by the staff’s adorable French bulldogs.

Inside the hotel, we got a room on the third floor overlooking the pool. The bathroom had stunning pink tilework, fluffy towels embossed with “AUSTIN” and a bright striped robe and tunic. Pretty much everything in the hotel room was for sale–the robes, towels, sandals, pool bag–so we had to be extra careful to make sure everything returned back to the room after a day at the pool.

I did love the spacious balcony connected to the room. I felt like I was staying in an airbnb or apartment with the comfortable furnishes, funky lighting and chairs and even live plants inside the room.

The hotel did a good job of being proactive about COVID. I always wore my mask around the property. To use the pool, you needed to make a reservation ahead of time so they can monitor capacity. When at the pool, everyone was assigned certain pool chairs.

Beyond the wonderful pool weather, I loved how walkable the East Austin Hotel neighborhood was. We spent our weekend walking to 6th Street, Rainey St., and tons of restaurants in East Austin. This convenience was super important because because I’m still not comfortable with calling Uber. Although we did take a @lime scooter once, which was pretty fun.

Click here to book a room at the East Austin Hotel.

Where we ate

Austin overflows with incredible restaurants of every cuisine, style, and ambiance. I rarely repeat food spots when I visit because there are always so many incredible new places to try. In normal Austin fashion, but especially now because of COVID, definitely make sure to call ahead for reservations. I like to book patio seating and be proactive with servers to sit on the edge of dining areas to stay extra safe.