This realistic List of Best Places helps you pick the top house museums to visit in Austin, Texas.

Austin, Texas is the capital of the Lone Star State. The city has a surprising number of historic landmarks that you could explore. Historic mansions, farmhouses, studios, cottages, and villas await you in Austin.

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Few (if any) people think of Austin, Texas when discussing house museums. In most cases, this is a completely logical conclusion. There are a handful of reasons that support this point of view.

Austin is a much younger city than Boston, New York City, and Washington, D.C. The older the city is, the more time there was to build something. Older houses are more likely to have vintage items, too.

Wood was, and still is, the main building material in Texas and the Southwest. Even if there were notable mansions in the South, a handful of them burnt down over the years.

This is not a problem in New Jersey and the Northeast. Stone and brick are common building materials up north. They tend to survive natural disasters somewhat better.

But the Capital of Texas managed to beat all odds. There are so many historic house museums in Austin that you cannot visit them all in one day.

There is never enough time to see all museums in the Capital of Texas. This List of the Best House Museums to Visit in Austin, Texas covers the top historic buildings.

1. Neill-Cochran House

• Address: 2310 San Gabriel St, Austin, TX 78705.
• Hours: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday to Sunday.
• Admission: $10 per adult.

The Neill-Cochran House is the best house museum to visit in Austin, Texas. This 1855 mansion on West Campus leads all other house museums in the Capital of Texas by a country mile.

There are plenty of historic items in this Greek Revival mansion. Where else would you see three parlors? The limestone Slave Quarters show the hardships that the servants had to endure in the 19th century.

The museum strikes a balance between preserving history, displaying art, and bringing the community together. Any visit to the Neil-Cochran House is always a delight, full of pleasant surprises and findings.

The museum offers both self-guided and docent-led tours. The former tours cost $10 per adult. Guided tours cost the same but have a $60 minimum. The only catch: you need to arrange this tour in advance.

2. Elisabet Ney Museum

• Address: 304 E 44th St, Austin, TX 78751.
• Hours: 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday to Sunday.
• Admission: free.

The Elisabet Ney Museum is the second best house museum to visit in Austin, Texas. This 1892 building is a castle in the middle of Hyde Park. Formosa was a home and studio of a famous sculptor.

This fact makes the Elisabet Ney Museum both an art and house museum. Art lovers could enjoy sculptures and paintings. There is a handful of statues, busts, medallions, and other works on display.

Architecture and history geeks would appreciate local building materials in use at Formosa. Limestone walls and cedar staircase are a sight to see. All three floors of the museum are open to the public.

You could climb the spiral staircase all the way to the tower. Take a walk through the native prairie to Waller Creek afterwards. You could do it all without paying a single dollar. Museum admission is free.

3. Flower Hill Urban Homestead

• Address: 1316 W 6th St, Austin, TX 78703.
• Hours: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on weekdays.
• Admission: by appointment only.

The Flower Hill Urban Homestead Museum is the third best house museum to visit in Austin, Texas. This 1877 historic house has potential to be the best house museum in the city. Just see for yourself.

Flower Hill is one of the oldest single family homes in the Capital of Texas. It has enormous grounds. There was even a small lake at this property at one point. And flowers bloom on this hill every spring.

The fully furnished mansion is being renovated. It is high time the museum restores the house to its beauty. Time took its toll on Flower Hill in a form of rusty railings, wall cracks, chipping paint and plaster.

There is no set tour schedule. You could try your luck and arrange a guided tour with the museum. Prices are about $12 per adult. Without an interior tour, Flower Hill Urban Homestead loses some of its appeal.

4. Pioneer Farms

• Address: 10621 Pioneer Farms Dr, Austin, TX 78754.
• Hours: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (summer) or 5 p.m. (rest of the year) Thursday to Sunday.
• Admission: $8 per adult.

You might be surprised with the choice of Pioneer Farms as one of the best house museums in Austin, Texas. Since when have farm houses and cabins become the golden standard in house museums?

Do not jump to conclusions too soon. Jourdan Bachman Pioneer Farms deserves its place among the best house museums in the city. It is a collection of historic houses from all over Central Texas.

You should spend the most time exploring the rooms of the 1859 Bell Farmhouse. You probably do not expect to see Ladies Room and Parlor with pianos on a farm. Get ready to have your mind blown away.

There are 7 other house museums at Pioneer Farms for you to explore. But none comes close to the Bell Farm in beauty. Adult admission is $8 for a self guided tour. There are discounts for youth and seniors.

5. French Legation

• Address: 802 San Marcos St, Austin, TX 78702.
• Hours: 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday to Sunday.
• Admission: $7 per adult.

French Legation State Historic Site is among the best house museums to visit in Austin, Texas. This museum protects an 1841 historic mansion that was once an diplomatic outpost of France.

You should visit French Legation to learn more about this former embassy during the times of the Republic of Texas. In fact, the latter topic take the center stage when visiting this house museum.

There are very few furniture pieces and historic items inside the Legation House. A handful are newer replicas like the Detached Kitchen. As result, it is hard to tell what items dates back to the 1840s.

French Legation is open to self-guided tours of the mansion and grounds. Adults could visit both for $7. Beyond the usual discounts, teachers, first responders, and families pay less for museum admission.

6. Mayfield Cottage

• Address: 3505 W 35th St, Austin, TX 78703.
• Hours: 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.
• Admission: free to explore grounds, $1,350 for an event in the cottage.

The Mayfield Cottage is a somewhat surprising addition to the list of the best house museums in Austin, Texas. Yet, these doubts have little to do with the age or beauty of this 1870s building.

Like the Legation House, the Mayfield Cottage does not have a ton of historic items inside. Even worse, you could only see the interior if you rent it for an event. No guided or self guided tours are available.

Scenic park grounds help the Mayfield Cottage save its spot. Peacocks and peahens go next to turtle and koi fish filled ponds. A community flower garden is blooming almost year around with few breaks.

The park trails bring you to Lake Austin, a bell, and a limestone tower. This incredible variety of sights rivals a handful of the best botanical and rose gardens. But you could visit Mayfield Park for free.

7. Driscoll Villa

• Address: 3809 W 35th St, Austin, TX 78703.
• Hours: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. (Thursday) or 3 p.m. (Wednesday, Friday to Sunday).
• Admission: $10 per adult, free on Thursdays.

The Driscoll Villa is one of the best house museums to visit in Austin, Texas. This 1916 house is part of The Contemporary Austin – Laguna Gloria museum. In fact, the villa is a byproduct to most gallerygoers.

This Italianate mansion is an exhibit and event space now. As a result, there are almost no historic furniture pieces inside. Still, the current role does not do this building nearly enough justice.

Windows and balconies are the highlights of the Driscoll Villa. On the bright side, you do not need to rent the mansion to see its interiors. Enter it whenever Laguna Gloria is open and no event is taking place.

It costs $10 per adult to visit Laguna Gloria. If you are flexible with the time of your visit, go to the Driscoll Villa on a Thursday. Free admission and a free guided tour of the museum are worth waiting a few days.

8. Charles Umlauf Home & Studio

• Address: 605 Azie Morton Rd, Austin, TX 78704.
• Hours: 10 a.m. (weekdays) or 11 a.m. (weekends) to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.
• Admission: $7 per adult, sculpture garden only.

The Charles Umlauf Home & Studio closes the list of the best house museums in Austin, Texas. It is the second home and studio and a third art museum on this list. Austin seems to attract creative people.

This stone house on a hill is one of the youngest buildings on this list. But this is not the reason for its somewhat low position. The Charles Umlauf Home & Studio remains off limits to the general public.

You could only get a glimpse of this historic house when visiting the Umlauf Sculpture Garden and Museum. A regular admission to the garden with bronze and cast stone sculptures is $7 per adult.

Here is to hoping that the museum opens the Home & Studio to visitors at some point. It could turn into another highlight for UMLAUF, just like the Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio near Chicago, Illinois.

Takeaways: Best House Museums to Visit in Austin, Texas

Austin, Texas is an unlikely city to have a lot of house museums. But its warm climate, beautiful Hill Country nature, and art scene have been attracting people over the past 185 years.

This led to a creation of a number of lavish mansions and notable single family houses. As time passed and property taxes became unaffordable, a few of these historic houses turned into museums.

You might think that you would be driving between similar old houses. This could not be further away from reality in Austin. Most of the house museums in this city have very different look and feel.

They range from Greek Revival mansions and limestone castles to wooden cottages and farmhouses. A former embassy, apothecary, and sculpture studios are all in the Capital of Texas.

You need a car to tour all the best house museums in Austin, Texas within one action-packed weekend. Short opening hours make it the only way to reach the museums well before their closing times.

It is also important to find a place to stay not too far from the sights. Only the Charles Umlauf Home & Studio is south of the Colorado River. And just Flower Hill and French Legation are south of 9th Street.

As a result, it makes little sense to stay south of the river. Downtown Austin and UT Campus are also out of consideration unless you are fine with extra fees for parking. That leaves Arboretum and Domain.

Thankfully, there are plenty of places to stay in both areas. Check out Residence Inn by Marriott Austin Northwest/The Domain Area and Homewood Suites by Hilton Austin NW near The Domain.

Take a look at this Video List of the Best House Museums to Visit in Austin, Texas. And visit the YouTube channel for the latest videos.

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Safe realist travels!