This weekend you can see monster trucks, follow Robin Hood through the Sherwood Forest, play laser tag all night long, eat an insane amount of salsa and much, much more.

Here are our Top 10 Austin Family Events…

Friday:

— See giant trucks pummel through obstacles at the Toughest Monster Truck Tour at the Cedar Park Center at 7:30 pm. Tickets start at $14 and you can get free passes from O’Reilly Auto Parts locations to the pre-show Pit Parties where you’ll have the opportunity to get up close to the monster trucks and get photos and autographs from the drivers. Get tickets here.

— Teens can have one last summer hurrah at the Back to School Lock-In at Blazer Tag. Ages 13 – 18 can play all-night laser tag, participate in dance contests and try to win awesome prizes with trivia games and raffles. Cost is $21.95 per person, $16.95 per person for a group of 10 or more (must be purchased together) and you can buy them here. Drop off is at 11 pm Friday night and pick up is 7 am Saturday morning.

— The circus is in town! Ringling Bros. presents Built to Amaze! with performances at the Frank Erwin Center throughout the weekend. See it Friday at 7:30 pm. Tickets start at $15 and you can buy them here.

Saturday:

— Save a ton of money on boutique clothes (for the whole family) and other goods at Le Garage Sale, open from 11 am – 6 pm at the Palmer Events Center. Admission is $10, you can buy tickets online or at the door (cash only). Boutiques and brands are slashing prices and loading up their clearance racks to bring you one heck of a shopping event!

— Celebrate our 1.5 million-strong Mexican free-tailed bat colony from 4 pm – midnight on the Congress Ave. Bridge with live music, vendors, costume contest and more, at Bat Fest. Bats will emerge sometime between 7 – 8:30 pm but you can party in the name of our beloved bats for much longer! Tickets are $10 and you can buy them here or at the gate, kids 8 and under are FREE!

— See The Legends of Robin Hood at the Scottish Rite Theater at 11 am or 1 pm. The Sherwood Forest Faire has brought their Robin Hood show to the stage! Live archery, live music and shenanigans from Robin Hood and his merry men make this a must-see. Tickets are $7 – $10 and you can buy them here. To find out why we loved this show, read our review.

— Enjoy free snow cones made with homemade syrup from 10:30 – 11:30 am at the End of Summer Bash at La Pâtisserie. Families will even learn how to make their own syrups! Must RSVP by emailing [email protected] so that they can plan accordingly!

Sunday:

— Sample hundreds of salsas and hear live music from Latasha Lee & The Blackties and others at The Austin Chronicle Hot Sauce Festival, going down at Fiesta Gardens from 11 am – 5:30 pm. Admission is FREE with 3 healthy & non-perishable food items for the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas

— Ballet Austin invites you to Come Dance! and enjoy a free day of dance classes in Ballet, Bollywood, Brazilian, Hip Hop, Hula, and much more, including a variety of kids classes! Check out the schedule and make plans to dance your Sunday away.

— Dress up your little princesses and climb aboard the Austin Steam Train for the Princess Flyer, departing at 2 pm. Riders will enjoy a train ride to Bertram, tea and biscuits, and plenty of photo opportunities! Kids are welcome to bring their favorite doll or stuffed animal along for the ride. Families and their princesses will enjoy a 3-hour ride through Hill Country and a 15 to 20-minute layover in Bertram to tour the 1912 train depot. All seats are reserved and pre-assigned by the ticket agent. Tickets are $25 – $40 and you can buy them here. For more info on what to expect, read our review of the Saturday Evening Express.

 

Have fun!