Thanks for the suggestions everyone!
I'm a photographer so I enjoy pretty outdoorsy/photogenic places as well. Anyone have any suggestions for that?
I'm coming from Tucson 😉
The Barton Creek Greenbelt is probably the best hike nearby Austin. I love hiking and it's my go-to if I want to see something nice. Just keep your expectations straight - Central Texas hiking is not great by any stretch of the imagination. Park at the Mo-Pac/360 trailhead and then go West. If you go Northeast instead, you'll encounter more people and eventually hit Barton Springs, which is a cool "pool" made out of a local spring, but I think for hiking that's not the way to go. Keep in mind this trail gets REALLY crowded in the summer since there's good swimming (wear a swimsuit if you like), so I usually go in the morning to have a more solitary experience.
Other hiking nearby includes McKinney Falls, which might be worth it if you really want to hike, McKinney Roughs, which I don't find to be particularly impressive, and Perdenales Falls, which has like one cool thing and probably isn't worth it.
For beer, Jester King is a great suggestion. They've got a little pizza place as well which is really good. You could probably do some interesting photography there as well since it's out in the hillcountry and is a working farm. Easy Tiger downtown is a cool spot as well. Austin has tons of local breweries and I've been too many of them, and I'd say Jester King is definitely best.
For BBQ, skip Franklins and La Barbecue. They are really good and arguably the best in Texas, but they also have gigantic lines and aren't worth it. You should go to Terry Black's BBQ in Austin, which I think is just about as good and rarely has a line, or maybe stop by Cooper's on your way to San Antonio in New Braunfels (which is an old German town that is also kinda interesting if you're into that). In San Antonio, I've heard good things about 2M Smokehouse but they were closed when I tried to go there. I went to the second best San Antonio place, supposedly, and it was awful, so I'd say to do the BBQ in one of the three I mentioned.
For Tex Mex, you want to try El Dorado or Matt's El Rancho in Austin. El Dorado isn't really Tex Mex but more of new age American/Mexican fusion. It's really, really good. Like truly excellent. You should go out of your way to go to El Dorado. El Rancho, on the other hand, is traditional Tex-Mex that I think is really good. Get the Steak Tampiquena for the best steak in Austin (Austin's steak houses suck from the ones I've been to). If you want Tex-Mex in San Antonio, you want Mi Tierra.
For art, you want to do the Blanton Museum of Art on UT campus. I don't like art, but people who do tend to love it. Right across the street is the Bob Bullock Museum, which is a Texas history museum. It's all within walking distance of the Texas Capitol, which has free tours. Austin doesn't have any really great museums -- you gotta go to Houston for that.
When you drive to San Antonio, stop at Buccee's in New Braunfels. It's just a gas station, but it's worth it. Out of town people are always amazed and amused.
In Austin, there's this awesome restaurant at 45th and Lamar. Great Skillet Quesos and Margaritas.
LOL.
