Is Austin Safe for Solo Female Travelers?

Couple travel

Austin is cool place to visit. Only 2.5 hours away from Houston and has completed different vibe. It is university city with lots of young students. Located by the lake Austin it has parks and trails around it. And multiple activities to choose from.

Solo travel

I really enjoyed spending time in Austin. The city is beautiful and clean. There's a lot of trees, it's very green. Even buildings look great. I've been hiking the Ann an Roy Butler hike which makes a loop around the colorado river and Ladybird lake. It was really pleasant. You'll see a lot of wildflowers and animals: turtles, squirrels, birds. You can also see bats at night. If you want to, you will find there places to rent kayaks and paddles. The capitol and the cathedral are really stunning. If you like to hike i would definitely recommend to go to McKinney Falls SP. It's a few minutes out of town. The place is worth it. You can go there to walk or swim, have a picnic... There's a lot of wildflowers there too and the staff is really kind and helpful. Be careful if you go to 6th street at night. I didn't feel very safe there. There's a lot of strange people in the area. I stayed at FIREHOSTEL. The persons working there are rudes and i had problem with my reservation. There's a bar inside the place what makes it very noisy at night. I would prefer a more quiet place outside downtown. I use the bus system to move in town. The ticket for one ride costs 1.25 dollars but if you take a day pass you'll have to pay only 2.5 dollars and it will allow you to make unlimited rides during 24h. I tried to use the app CAPMETRO to buy passes with my phone, but never reach to activate it, so maybe it's safer to buy it in the bus. There are good places to buy food, i would recommend Trader Joes and Whole foods market. I hope it will help. Wish you to spend good moments there if you're coming.

Solo travel

Austin is such a cool city! Lots of music in bars and restaurants, there was a lot going on in the evening/night. I would recommend visiting South Congress (shops), Mount Bonnell (it’s a hill with a beautiful view over Austin and pretty houses) and to cross the 360 Bridge by car. I felt very save there. I got there by Car, so it was easy to get around, public transportation is not that good. I would have loved to stay a little longer, but I guess two days is enough to see most of the things there. I also visited the mural (Greetings from Austin) it’s at 1720 S 1st St, Austin, TX.

Austin is safe if you stick to the touristy areas. Even then, as a woman, I wouldn't suggest going out and partying on 6th Street alone, ever. Even going with a group it can be dangerous. The gun violence has gotten worse over the years, and it's not worth it. It's a lovely place to see in the daytime and I feel safe walking alone during the day. St night, keep aware of your surroundings and your head on a swivel.

Safe enough for me to wander on my own. I'm always watchful. Many seem unbothered. Public transportation is okay. Some may speak to you if you're a beam of light with openess, as I am! People will leave you alone if you prefer not to speak. Overall, I have friendly encounters with easygoing locals + travelers.