Day Trips (R) from Austin

For local travelers looking for an experience in their own backyard, Day Trips (R) from Austin is the essential guide to things to see and do around Austin-from Waco's Texas Ranger Hall of Fame to Museum of Handmade Furniture in Braunfels. With a population of nearly 700,000, and a metro area of 1.7 million and growing, America's #1 College Town (Travel Channel) is an ideal starting point for these and other activities:

* Do something sweet: Visit Blue Bell Creamery in Brenham to see the making of ice cream and you can enjoy a free scoop at the tour's end.


* Do something wonderful: Take a ride on a miniature train for a tour of Texas's largest petting zoo, and have your mind bent in the Anti-Gravity House at Wonder World in San Marcos.


* Do something outdoorsy: Vacation at one of the many dude ranches that dot the landscape around Bandera for horseback riding, cookouts, fishing, hiking, and even country-western dance lessons.