By Eric Yule

Fall in Austin, Texas is a magical time of year. There’s something about this time of year that really gets the people going! (And, yes, that’s a Blades of Glory reference). Somehow, our city gets even crazier during the fall from everything there is to do in and around the city. For me, the best things to look forward to for the fall are UT football games, the Formula One United States Grand Prix, Austin City Limits (ACL) and Wurstfest.

Longhorn Football Games

Nothing gets me more excited than the college football season returning in September. The atmosphere on campus and in the city during the week and on game days has a special kind of buzz to it. Unfortunately, the University of Texas at Austin (UT) Longhorns have had a couple of poor seasons in recent years but new head coach Tom Herman is looking to shake things up for UT and the Big 12. Even though Austin is by no means a “small college town”, it certainly feels that way when you wake up on Saturday mornings. Austin is a wonderful city to visit year-round, but nothing beats some great Texas barbeque, ice-cold beer, loud country music, tailgating with your best friends and watching the Longhorns get a ‘W’ on Saturdays in the fall.

Formula One

Every year, in October, Austin is fortunate enough to host the Formula One United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of The Americas. This race is an opportunity that only comes once a year for our city, which is already a great reason to attend. If you love fast cars, competitive racing and live music then this is the event for you. This year the live performers include Justin Timberlake and Stevie Wonder and the race dates are from Oct. 20-22, 2017. Be sure to snag some tickets because if you don’t, you’ll be regretting it all year until it comes back in the fall of 2018.

Austin City Limits

Do I even have to explain myself for this event being on my list? Austin City Limits (ACL) is by far one of the best music experiences you can take in for a whole weekend. It runs for two weekends, Oct. 6-8, 2017 and Oct. 13-15, 2017, so you really have no excuse to miss this music festival. ACL releases a great lineup every year for their event and this year boasts names like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Martin Garrix, Chance the Rapper and many other great and talented artists performing in Zilker Park. Zilker is transformed from a peaceful and social park to a musical safe-haven in the first two weekends of October.

Wurstfest

Now although Wurstfest is technically in New Braunfels, Texas, I still consider this one of the great events to attend during the fall in Austin. New Braunfels is about an hour away from Austin, give or take, but Wurstfest is one of the best beer festivals you can go to around Austin. It’s a 10-day festival that includes lots of beer, polka dancing and tons of sausage… did I mention beer and sausage? I mean, what’s not to love about this festival? This is a great event to just have fun and get loose with the authentic German music and dancing all while drinking beer from all over Texas. The dates for Wurstfest run from Nov. 3-12, 2017 and it’s more than worth the drive to New Braunfels.

This city is alive with energy from tourists and Austinites alike, which make every experience even better. These four fall events are unique and exciting in their own way but make sure you make lifelong memories with everything you do. After all, no one reminisces about all the nights they stayed home and sat on their couch.