A complete experience of the American Southwest is incomplete without a visit to Austin, TX. Austin is a confluence of a quartet of major ecological regions, which makes it an oasis of sorts with elements of the tropics, desert, and some rain. This geographic advantage makes it a flourishing habitat for various flora and fauna, and there is no place that showcases it better than Zilker Park.

The Zilker Park is a recreational area spread over 350 acres of lush greenery. The large size of the park makes it an ideal venue for various events and is home to many attractions, the local favorite being the Zilker Botanical Garden. The botanical gardens in Zilker Park are situated on 31 acres of varied terrain. Located on the banks of the Colorado River, these are separate, independently maintained gardens based of different themes.

For those fortunate to visit the gardens, a must-stop is the Hartman Prehistoric Garden. This garden came to being, with the discovery of over 100 tracks made by prehistoric reptiles and the fossils of an ancient turtle. A major fund-raising and ideation for the theme resulted in the creation of a park with a cretaceous(150 - 0.3 million years ago) flora with ferns, horsetails, liverworts, conifers, palms, etc. There is also a life-size sculpture of an Ornithomimus - a creature believed to have lived in the areas in prehistoric times.

These varied gardens offer a glimpse of various styles of gardening and showcase different specializations in garden-keeping. Visitors need not be baffled by the huge diversity, as guided tours are available to help you understand the diversity and significance of the plant specimens.

There are plenty of events that also happen at the Zilker Botanical Gardens such as the Zilker Garden Festival which is an annual crowd puller. Then there is the Swedish Pioneer Community event happening in the month of August for people interested in visiting this Austin Landmark.

The Zilker Botanical Gardens

http://www.zilkergarden.org/gardens/gardens.html

More on the specialist gardens

http://www.texasoutside.com/botanical.htm

Zilker Botanical Gardens on Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zilker_Botanical_Garden

About Hartman Prehistoric Garden

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hartman_Prehistoric_Garden

Choosing Austin hotels for your vacation can be very efficient for your travel if the room accommodations of your choice are near popular parks near the location. One of the best places to consider on your vacation travel to Austin is Zilker Park. This metropolitan park situated at the heart of the city readily accessible to local residents as well as tourists finding a place to spend their quality time.

1. Exciting Things to Do in Zilker Park

Zilker Park offers many recreational facilities that are suitable for all ages. Some of the notable activities to do while at the park include riding the Zilker Zephyr, visiting the Barton Springs, exploring the Zilker Botanical Gardens and watch programs in the Austin Nature and Science Center. The Science Center also hosts the educational display known as the Splash Environmental Exhibit. Zilker Park also houses the Zilker Hillside Theater and the Umlauf Sculpture Garden and Museum. You may also want to participate on the Austin Sunshine Camp during the summer season.

http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/zilker/

2. Venue for Various Festivals

Most travelers visiting Austin find the lively festivities to be some of the most awaited events held at the Zilker Park. This metropolitan park is an excellent venue for special events such as summer musicals, lighting of the Zilker Christmas Tree, the Barton Springs diving competitions and the popular Austin City Limits Music Festival. You may want to schedule your trip to Austin in line with these festivals.

http://austin.smallplanetguide.com/rentals/index.php?p=zilker_park_austin

The Zilker Park situated at 2100 Barton Spring road is considered to the most popular park in Austin. This park which provides shelter to more than a hundred species of wildlife sits on a three hundred and fifty acre land. It has a wide range of fun activities and special-events which suit both children and adults.

http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/zilker/

This exceptional park is also home to the Zilker Botanical-Gardens which incorporate the Austin Area Garden Center and the Taniguchi Oriental Gardens. Environmental programs are frequently held in this park to provide guests with the opportunity to explore nature.

Explore all the incredible things at this park by taking a scenic twenty five minutes ride on a miniature train through the park. The train makes its rounds around the park after every thirty minutes during weekends and in every hour on weekdays. The admission fee is $ 1.75 for persons under the age of twelve years and $2.75 for adults.

http://www.frommers.com/destinations/austin/A7745.html#ixzz0Qhyi2J81

Find accommodation near this park from the hotel Austin Texas package so that you can have enough time to explore all the good things this park has to offer.

Once you have fixed up your vacation plans with the Austin travel agencies for your trip to the city, you might also want to start planning what you would like to do during your days on your visit to Austin.

For instance of you are a Theater person you might want to spend a cultural night out in the city, the Zilker Park theater would be a perfect outing for you.

- Where is the theater located?

As obvious, the Zilker Hillside Theater is located in Zilker Park

The Barton Springs Pool is located right opposite to the Park

You can follow the link for detailed driving directions to the Zilker Park Theater. This will come in handy especially if you are new to the city.

http://www.asband.org/events/zilker.html

- What makes the Theater special?

They are most popular for the traditional Summer Musicals that they produce dedicatedly every year

They also conduct various training and theater programs and workshops throughout the year

The Broadway Musical is the Theater art form that they have preserved

http://www.zilker.org/aboutztp.html

- Where to find tickets?

You will find tickets and also a schedule of the shows to the Theater online itself.

http://www.theseats.com/venues/zilker-park-tickets.aspx

One of the major attractions for the Austin travelers is the Zilker Park Christmas Lights. You can find most information on the subject in the Austin Travel Guide. Christmas is no doubt the magical time during any year. Both young and old enjoy the festive occasion and celebrations. Trail of lights available at the Zilker Park can make the occasion really exotic. If you wish to have more information about the magical display you can scrape through the Austin Travel Guide.

http://www.ezinearticles.com/?The-Trail-of-lights-at-Ziler-Park&id

http://www.ezinearticles.com/article-tags/zilker-park

Zilker Park Chrismas Lights 2009

- This year the trail of lights will start on 14th December and will continue till 23rd December.

- The timing will be 7.00 P.M to 10.00 P.M daily.

- Trail is over a mile long and it displays Santa's house to reindeer and many more. Details will be available in the Austin Travel Guide.

- A perfect display showcase it keeps the viewer mesmerized.

http://www.articlesbase.com/article-tags/zilker-park

http://www.austin360.com/event/events/Recreation/event

Facilities available during the occasion

While the details will be available in the Austin Travel Guide regarding facilities available on the occasion, you may like to know about the basic amenities. Food is available with the venders present during the occasion. The icing on the cake is the hot chocolate served in the chilly nights. Ordinarily the festival starts with the parade that includes the sleigh of Santa as well as Santa himself.

You will come across giant puppets as well as lots of music. The annual festival begins always by lighting the 155 feet tree or the tower. 3000 bulbs and 180 feet diameter makes the scenario really enchanting and that is why it always finds place in any Austin Travel Guide. It is recognized as one of the top ten lighting festivals in United States.

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/chrismas-in-austin-texas.html