Austin, TX
Bluebonnets Austin: 25 Best Places To See Blooms In 2026
Jump To: Central Austin | North Austin | South Austin | East Austin | West Austin
Each spring, spotting the vibrant bluebonnets Austin has in bloom is a quintessential Texas experience. From the historic bluffs of Pease Park to the curated displays at Zilker Botanical Garden, the city offers diverse ways to enjoy these iconic flowers.
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Remember to check out our complete guide to Easter Egg Hunt Austin, Best Summer Camps in Austin, Restaurants with Playgrounds in Austin, Things To Do with Teens in Austin, Spring Break 2026 Camps in Austin!
Bluebonnets Central Austin
University of Texas at Austin
Image credit: The University of Texas at Austin
Discover a hidden gem: stunning bluebonnet displays right on the University of Texas at Austin campus. Explore historic buildings and gardens while enjoying these iconic Texas blooms.
Where: 2515 Speedway, Austin, TX 78712
Operating Hours: Saturday – Sunday CLOSED | Monday – Friday 8:00 am – 5:00 pm
Pease District Park
Pease Park embodies the essence of Austin, with limestone bluffs, shaded trails, and rich history. Discover bluebonnets amidst this 84-acre oasis, restored and maintained by the Conservancy for everyone to enjoy.
Where: 1100 Kingsbury St, Austin, TX 78703
Operating Hours: Daily 6:00 am- 10:00 pm
Barton Creek Greenbelt
Explore the Barton Creek Greenbelt: hiking, swimming, rock climbing, and vibrant bluebonnet displays! Discover multiple entry points along the creek and portions of the Violet Crown Trail within this Austin gem.
Where: 3755 S Capital of Texas Hwy B, Austin, TX 78704
Operating Hours: Daily 5:00 am – 10:00 pm
Texas State Capitol
Explore Texas history and stunning bluebonnet displays at the iconic Texas State Capitol. This granite landmark, a National Historic Landmark, offers tours, exhibits, and a beautiful setting for wildflower viewing.
Where: 1100 Congress Ave., Austin, TX 78701
Operating Hours: Sunday CLOSED | Monday – Thursday 7:00 am – 8:00 pm | Friday – Saturday 9:00 am – 8:00 pm
Laguna Gloria
Experience art and nature in harmony at Laguna Gloria. Explore contemporary sculptures and installations, and enjoy the beauty of bluebonnets in this tranquil oasis, a world away from the city.
Where: 3809 W 35th St, Austin, TX 78703
Operating Hours: Monday – Tuesday CLOSED | Wednesday – Sunday 9:00 am – 3:00 pm
North Austin Bluebonnets
Brushy Creek Lake Park
Brushy Creek Lake Park offers a diverse outdoor experience: a scenic lake, extensive trails, playgrounds, and beautiful bluebonnet fields. Enjoy nature’s beauty and family fun in one location.
Where: 3300 Brushy Creek Rd, Cedar Park, TX 78613
Operating Hours: Daily 5:30 am – 10:00 pm
Bull Creek District Park
Bull Creek District Park offers a blend of adventure and natural beauty. Hike scenic trails, mountain bike, play volleyball, swim in refreshing water holes, and discover vibrant bluebonnet displays in this popular Austin park.
Where: 6701 Lakewood Dr, Austin, TX 78731
Operating Hours: Daily 5:00 am – 10:00 pm
Walnut Creek Metropolitan Park
Walnut Creek Metropolitan Park offers a wealth of outdoor activities: hiking, swimming, biking, sports, and off-leash dog areas. And don’t forget the beautiful bluebonnet displays!
Where: 12138 N Lamar Blvd, Austin, TX 78753
Operating Hours: Daily 5:00 am – 10:00 pm
Balcones District Park
Image credit: Balcones District Park
Balcones District Park offers family fun with a pool, playgrounds, and sports facilities, plus delightful bluebonnet sightings!
Where: 12017 Amherst Dr, Austin, TX 78759
Operating Hours: Daily 5:00 am- 10:00 pm
Great Hills Neighborhood Park
Tucked away in northwest Austin, Great Hills Neighborhood Park offers a beautiful hill country escape. Explore 80+ acres of natural beauty, hiking trails, and delightful bluebonnet displays, along with playgrounds and picnic areas.
Where: 10700 Floral Park Dr, Austin, TX 78759
Operating Hours: Daily 5:00 am – 10:00 pm
Champion Park
Champion Park offers open space, dinosaur bone castings, and gorgeous bluebonnet displays! Enjoy playgrounds, fitness areas, picnic tables, and climbing boulders in a beautiful setting.
Where: 3830 Brushy Creek Rd, Cedar Park, TX 78613
Operating Hours: Saturday – Sunday CLOSED | Monday – Friday 8:00 am – 5:00 pm
Beverly S. Sheffield Northwest District Park
Discover a pleasant park at Beverly S. Sheffield Northwest District Park. Enjoy a pool, basketball court, and picnic areas, along with nice bluebonnet sightings.
Where: 7000 Ardath St, Austin, TX 78757
Operating Hours: Daily 5:00 am- 10:00 pm
Mayfield Park
Mayfield Park: an oasis of historic gardens, peacocks, and bluebonnets. Escape the city and discover towering palms, lush greenery, and vibrant wildflowers, all within a tranquil rock-walled sanctuary.
Where: 3505 W 35th St, Austin, TX 78703
Operating Hours: Daily 5:00 am – 10:00 pm
Bluebonnet Austin – South
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
For the ultimate bluebonnet experience, head to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. Conveniently located near Austin, this center offers labeled displays, abundant photo opportunities, and a comprehensive introduction to Texas wildflowers.
Where: 4801 La Crosse Ave, Austin, TX 78739
Operating Hours: Daily 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Mary Moore Searight Metropolitan Park
Discover a park with something for everyone at Mary Moore Searight Metropolitan Park. Enjoy trails, sports, fishing, disc golf, and lovely bluebonnet sightings.
Where: 907 W Slaughter Ln, Austin, TX 78748
Operating Hours: Daily 5:00 am – 10:00 pm
St. Edward’s University
Image credit: St. Edward’s University
Explore St. Edward’s University, a campus with inviting walking trails and lovely bluebonnet sightings. Enjoy the natural beauty and tranquil atmosphere.
Where: 3001 S Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78704
Operating Hours: Saturday – Sunday CLOSED | Monday – Friday 8:00 am – 5:00 pm
James A. Garrison District Park
Relax and play at James A. Garrison District Park. Enjoy the pool, playgrounds, and sports facilities, all while spotting beautiful bluebonnets.
Where: 6001 Menchaca Rd, Austin, TX 78745
Operating Hours: Daily 8:00 am- 9:00 pm
McKinney Falls State Park
Experience the beauty of McKinney Falls State Park. Hike trails, swim in creek pools, explore historic sites, and find stunning bluebonnet fields, all within Austin’s city limits.
Where: 5808 McKinney Falls Pkwy, Austin, TX 78744
Operating Hours: Daily 8:00 am – 10:00 pm
Zilker Botanical Garden
Interconnected themed gardens, including the Japanese Garden and Prehistoric Garden, are linked by accessible paths at Zilker Botanical Garden. Don’t miss the stunning bluebonnet displays in spring.
Where: 2220 Barton Springs Rd, Austin, TX 78746
Operating Hours: Daily 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
East Austin Bluebonnets
Mueller Lake Park
Image credit: Mueller Austin
With ample parkland, all residents in the Mueller neighborhood live within 600 feet of green space. Open to the public, this park hosts community events and is a prime spot for Austin’s bluebonnet season.
Where: 4550 Mueller Blvd, Austin, TX 78723
Operating Hours: Daily 5:00 am – 10:00 pm
Roy G. Guerrero Colarado River Metro Park
Enjoy strolls along well-maintained trails, relax in picturesque picnic areas, and take advantage of the park’s convenient river access. Notably, the park is also renowned for its beautiful displays of bluebonnets during their blooming season.
Where: 400 Grove Blvd, Austin, TX 78741
Operating Hours: Daily 5:00 am – 10:00 pm
Rosewood Neighborhood Park
Rosewood Neighborhood Park offers a variety of amenities, including a swimming pool, basketball court, and picnic areas. During bluebonnet season, visitors can also enjoy scattered displays of the iconic Texas wildflowers.
Where: 2300 Rosewood Ave, Austin, TX 78702
Operating Hours: Daily 7:00 am – 9:00 pm
Boggy Creek Greenbelt
Explore the Boggy Creek Greenbelt, a haven for outdoor enthusiasts. Enjoy hiking along its trails, discover the tranquil beauty of the creek, and admire the springtime bloom of bluebonnets.
Where: 1114 Nile St, Austin, TX 78702
Operating Hours: Daily 5:00 am – 10:00 pm
Bluebonnets in West Austin
West Basin Wilderness Preserve
A partnership between Travis County and St. Edward’s University safeguards 227 acres of stunning Hill Country terrain at Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve, a key component of the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve. Explore 2.5 miles of trails, engage with the Wild Basin Creative Research Center, and experience the seasonal spectacle of blooming bluebonnets!
Where: 805 N Capital of Texas Hwy, Austin, TX 78746
Operating Hours: Monday – Friday 7:00 am – 5:30 pm | Saturday – Sunday 7:30 am – 5:30 pm
Commons Ford Ranch Metropolitan Park
The park’s hiking trails wind through three distinct areas—prairie, canyon, and chaparral—providing varied scenery. In springtime, the park comes alive with a colorful array of wildflowers, most notably the iconic Texas bluebonnets.
Where: 614 N Commons Ford Rd, Austin, TX 78733
Operating Hours: Daily 5:00 am – 10:00 pm
Emma Long Metropolitan Park
Emma Long Metropolitan Park provides open spaces, campsites, boat ramps, reservable picnic areas, and a beach entry swimming area. Bluebonnets also grow within the park during their blooming season.
Where: 1600 City Park Rd, Austin, TX 78730
Operating Hours: Daily 7:00 am – 10:00 pm
Looking for more? See the upcoming Weekend Events in Austin.
Lacey is a freelancer and Austin local who’s always on the hunt for new restaurants to try, fun activities to do, and local events to attend. She loves sharing her discoveries with others through her writing and hopes her work encourages both visitors and locals to be active in the community. When she’s not writing, you can find her exploring one of the city’s many hiking trails with her Blue Heeler, Oreo, getting lost in a good book, or dancing the night away to some house or techno beats at one of her favorite rave spots.
Texas Capital Bank has inked a lease at 415 Colorado in downtown Austin, and is set to move its San Jacinto Center branch into the building.
The Dallas-based bank is set to occupy the entire 17th floor and parts of the 16th floor of the 47-story building, according to the Austin Business Journal. 415 Colorado is mixed-use, and its 110,000 square-feet of office space is now 50% leased. Its residential portion, over 420,000 square-feet with 328 luxury apartment units, is 86% leased.
Stonelake Capital Partners, which built and owns the building, has an office in the building. Edelman, Tree Line Capital Partners, and Valterra Partners are notable tenants at 415 Colorado, according to the outlet.
Stream Realty’s Randy Cooper and Craig Wilson represented Texas Capital on the lease, according to the outlet.
Stonelaker recently abandoned plans to redevelop 504 East 5th Street, just five blocks west of 415 Colorado. Stonelake did not comment on why it was abandoning the East 5th Street project, which used to be the site of downtown staple Carmelo’s Italian Restaurant. After scrapping the plans to build a 37-story apartment tower in 2025, Stonelake listed the half-acre property.
During the pandemic, office space in Austin saw a rush of demand from tech companies relocating from California to the Texas state capital. That has slowed, and net absorption of office space in Austin was negative in 2025.
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Austin and its stellar park system were just ranked the fifth-best in Texas, according to the newly released ParkScore Index.
Every year, land conservation nonprofit Trust for Public Land rates the park systems in the 100 largest American cities with regard to their accessibility, equity, acreage, investment, and amenities.
On a national level, the best park systems are located in Washington, D.C. (No. 1); Irvine, California (No. 2); Minneapolis (No. 3) and St. Paul (No. 4), Minnesota; and Cinncinati, Ohio (No. 5).
Austin’s No. 47 ParkScore ranking in 2026 is a solid improvement over last year’s No. 54 rank.
The organization attributes much of the city’s progress to numerous recent new parks in South Austin and downtown, which have dramatically increased the percentage of residents that live within close proximity of a park — a crucial metric in the report’s methodology. Currently, 76 percent of Austinites live within a 10-minute walk of a park, compared to 68 percent last year.
“Ten years ago, only 48 percent of Austin residents lived within a 10-minute walk of a park,” a release said. “The city’s dedication to opening new parks in park-deficient neighborhoods is paying off.”
Austin also spends far more to maintain its park system — a three-year average of about $236 per resident — than the national average $154 per resident. The Austin City Council is currently considering a $260 million bond investment that would benefit the local park system and Austin’s Parks and Recreation Department.
Elsewhere in Texas, Plano and Frisco in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex boast the best park systems in the state.
Molly Morgan, the Texas State Director and Associate Vice President of Trust for Public Land, said in the release that Texas’ high-scoring performance in the annual index has proved that it is making park accessibility a statewide priority.
“Cities across the Lone Star State are making serious investments, opening new parks, partnering with school districts, and closing gaps that have existed for decades,” Morgan said. “They’re showing what’s possible when Texas gets serious about parks.”
Morgan added that there’s still more work to be done to increase park accessibility to the 9 million Texans that don’t have a park within a 10-minute walk of their homes.
Here’s how the rest of Texas stacks up in the national ranking:
- No. 13 – Plano
- No. 30 – Frisco
- No. 38 – Dallas
- No. 45 – Arlington
- No. 58 – Fort Worth
- No. 61 – San Antonio and El Paso (tied)
- No. 64 – Garland
- No. 69 – Houston
- No. 71 – Irving
- No. 72 – Corpus Christi
- No. 77 – Laredo
- No. 96 – Lubbock
AUSTIN (KXAN) – Severe thunderstorms are moving through Central Texas Thursday evening. Here is the latest forecast from the First Warning Weather team.
Here are the main headlines:
Thursday
9:04 p.m.: KXAN viewer Tiffany Morgan sent in this photo from Pflugerville.
8:29 p.m.: KXAN’s Andy Way is in Georgetown and sent in this photo of the orange sky.
8:14 p.m.: KXAN’s Madison Myers is in Marble Falls tracking the storms and sent in this video.
8:00 p.m.: See Austin area rainfall totals here.
7:30 p.m.: Low Water Crossing #6 7748 Spicewood Springs Rd in Austin is closed.
7:22 p.m.: Oncor is reporting a power outage in Taylor affecting almost 1,500 customers. The full Oncor outage map can be found here.
7:11 p.m.: Austin Energy is reporting one power outage affecting 1,500+ customers in west Austin, north of Emma Long Metro Park, in the Glenlake neighborhood.
7:06 p.m.: Multiple road closures are being reported in Marble Falls.
- 800 Blk Ave L Between Broadway St. & Ninth St.
- 1300 Blk Broadway St (Childress Park) Between Ave L & Ave N
- 800 Blk Main St. Between Broadway St. & Ninth St.
6:49 p.m.: A Flash Flood Warning is in effect for northwestern Blanco, southwestern Burnet and southeastern Llano until 9:45 p.m. Life threatening flash flooding is possible with this storm.
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