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Whether you prefer biking, swimming, jogging, hiking, walking or playing sports in varying activity levels, Austin has the facilities to encourage you to go outside and play.

While it’s mostly known for having the most number of music venues per capita in the country, Austin is also a green city – and a green space enthusiast’s dream. The city is home to 250 parks, preserves and greenbelts. Youth summer programs, hiking and biking trails, tennis courts and golf courses are all available to residents and many are maintained by the City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department. Check out the following for the best the city has to offer the Austin outdoor enthusiast.

Town Lake Metropolitan Park contains 10.1 miles of hiking and biking trails, 17 ball fields for baseball, soccer and rugby, volleyball courts, tennis courts and Barton Creek Pool, a 1,000-foot natural spring-fed pool. Catch a show along Auditorium Shores, or meet a friend at Fiesta Gardens or Festival Beach. If you need a break from work or school, relax at UMLAUF Sculpture Gardens, the Botanical Gardens, Austin Area Garden Center and the Zilker Hillside Theater.

If you prefer water sports, check out the Austin area lakes. Comprised of Lake Buchanan, Ink Lake, Lake LBJ, Marble Falls Lake, Lake Travis, Lake Austin and Town Lake, these seven lakes provide excellent bass fishing, boating, golf, water sports and camping opportunities. Lake Austin and Lake Travis offer restaurants and music on the water; Ink Lakes State Park has multiple hiking trails; and the Town Lake Bike Trail is an adventure suitable for the whole family.

For more hiking, the Trail of Trees in Austin offers a fun way of getting exercise while learning about Texas history at the same time, in the form of a variety of native and exotic trees adapted to Texas. Stacy Park Trail of Trees lists 30 species of trees, Zilker Park Trail of Trees offers 28 species of trees and Catherine Lamkin Arboretum Trail of Trees has 35 species of trees.

Just 30 miles west of Austin on FM 3238 is the 232-acre Hamilton Preserve, which includes Hamilton Pool, a spectacular swimming hole that’s a great place to picnic, hike and swim. The sparkling, clear pool and grotto were formed when the dome of an underground river collapsed due to massive erosion. A 45-foot waterfall splashes into the swimming hole surrounded by layers of rock, creating a truly breathtaking oasis in the middle of Texas.

The Austin area is also home to a number of state parks and natural areas. The 3,503-acre Bastrop State Park offers an 8.5-mile hiking trail in the Lost Pines region and is a great place for hiking, backpacking, camping and swimming. Buescher State Park is similar to Bastrop State Park but is generally less crowded. Enchanted Rock State Natural Area is located between Fredericksburg and Llano and has the second-largest granite dome in the country, plus excellent hiking, rock climbing and backpacking facilities. Guadalupe River State Park is a 1,938-acre park with picnic facilities, campsites, a playground, a day-use group facility, swimming areas and more.

For those who want to try something new, consider playing at one of Austin’s five disc golf courses. A relatively inexpensive activity, disc golf is a game in which players throw a flying disc into a basket or at a target, and each player tries to end with the fewest number of throws of the disc. Most courses are free, and there are dozens of additional courses available outside the Austin area.

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