Austin Convention Center
Austin Convention Center
4
What people are saying
ItchyFeet
By ItchyFeet
Understaffed and mediocre food
3.0 of 5 bubblesSep 2022
I was here the last week of August 2022 with a group of about 4000 people. Several of the meetings were in large hall #3,4 and 5. The decorations seem to be very minimal unlike previous conventions we’ve had at multiple cities around the country. The food was all served with paper plates and often times with plastic utensils which just seemed completely ridiculous. I can only imagine that they don’t have dishwashers or kitchen staff but I have no idea. The first three nights were literally almost identically the same meal. It was a buffet with no sit down plated meals which is what we always have every year at our honor dinner. The same meal we had every night was a dry beef, a chicken that was mostly moist and either a salmon or a red snapper. There was never any really good vegetables. One night there was grits which most people thought was very strange to have for a group of 4000 people another night there was some kind of mixed vegetables but they were hard and not cooked well at all. Our group has a very ethnically diverse group and I saw a couple of the Jewish attendees yelling at the staff which is obviously not appropriate but clearly the meals that were prepared for Hindu and Jewish attendees were not prepared correctly and those people were completely unhappy as well As far as the convention center goes, it’s a standard convention center with cement floors and the typical round tables for 10 people with chairs. The lighting at times was a bit funky because as I was sitting in a chair to eat there were spotlights that were shining directly in my eyes as opposed to someplace they should’ve been shining. Overall not at all pleased with a week in the Austin convention center. They are probably grossly understaffed but that’s not my problem and maybe they shouldn’t have conventions if they don’t have a staff to do their job. The best part about the week was going to see the Texas state capital building and the LBJ museum which are both very interesting. Other than that I have no reason to come back to Austin.

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ItchyFeet
Camarillo, CA11,084 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2022 • Business
I was here the last week of August 2022 with a group of about 4000 people. Several of the meetings were in large hall #3,4 and 5. The decorations seem to be very minimal unlike previous conventions we’ve had at multiple cities around the country.

The food was all served with paper plates and often times with plastic utensils which just seemed completely ridiculous. I can only imagine that they don’t have dishwashers or kitchen staff but I have no idea.

The first three nights were literally almost identically the same meal. It was a buffet with no sit down plated meals which is what we always have every year at our honor dinner. The same meal we had every night was a dry beef, a chicken that was mostly moist and either a salmon or a red snapper. There was never any really good vegetables. One night there was grits which most people thought was very strange to have for a group of 4000 people another night there was some kind of mixed vegetables but they were hard and not cooked well at all. Our group has a very ethnically diverse group and I saw a couple of the Jewish attendees yelling at the staff which is obviously not appropriate but clearly the meals that were prepared for Hindu and Jewish attendees were not prepared correctly and those people were completely unhappy as well

As far as the convention center goes, it’s a standard convention center with cement floors and the typical round tables for 10 people with chairs. The lighting at times was a bit funky because as I was sitting in a chair to eat there were spotlights that were shining directly in my eyes as opposed to someplace they should’ve been shining.

Overall not at all pleased with a week in the Austin convention center. They are probably grossly understaffed but that’s not my problem and maybe they shouldn’t have conventions if they don’t have a staff to do their job.

The best part about the week was going to see the Texas state capital building and the LBJ museum which are both very interesting. Other than that I have no reason to come back to Austin.
Written September 1, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Alex
Richmond, UK62 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2019
The Convention Center is centrally located and we had an event for 3500 people. It was well set up and all had a good time. To be honest I wasn't thrilled by the food. Otherwise it was clean and neat.
Written September 21, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

EricAndKarin
Ameland, The Netherlands237 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2019 • Business
Enormous convention center, but not very sophisticated. Several levels, not all rooms are logically setup or numbered. Main halls are enormous but that is also the reason they are quite impersonal. Otherwise nothing wrong with it: clean, enough room, decent.
Written April 15, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

M1chaelaD
Lynn, MA30 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2017 • Business
Attended SXSW edu and found the convention center to be a solid home-base for the week's learning activities. Was frustrated at times that some stairwells and elevators did not service all floors, but overall found the venue bright, open, and accomodating. The conference organizers certainly did a great job maximizing all the meeting space available!
Written April 4, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Cathleen264
Calgary, Canada33 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2016 • Solo
I attended the SXSW Music conference in March 2016. I believe that this is the largest event of the year that the convention center holds so it was a little bit crazy in there (with respects to crowds). What I liked was that it was bright, with a lot of natural light, felt airy, and had a large number of restrooms. The convention rooms were a good size and I didn't have any issues with them at all. I would have rated this higher except that it was hard to find a space to charge my cellphone. This was very evident by the number of people sitting on the floor by an outlet just to charge their phone. As well, the price of the food in the convention center is way over-priced. If attending a full day conference, stop and pick something up instead of buying it there.
Written April 2, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

gregbodenair
Boston, MA35 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2015
I attended a conference here back in June 2015 and the venue was a great one for attendees - very easily accessible to public transportation, parking, restaurants and lots of area hotels to choose from. Austin is a very fun city and having the convention center close to points of interest made my conference experience all the more appealing.
Written September 21, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Zachary C
3 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2022
was here for my 1st Austin RTX hosted by Rooster Teeth, was Amazing, place kept clean and tidy, Air Con was lovely and cool as it should be, can't wait to go again
Written July 8, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

howardb801
Carversville, PA11 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2021
Everything one needs from a convention center. Well maintained, and friendly staff. Much of it is new.
Written June 19, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Lynn K
Appleton, WI6 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2020
Clean and spacious. The convention center downtown is convenient to hotels and parking. They have a nice area to grab a cup of coffee and relax.
Written March 1, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

The World is My Oyster
Orlando, FL21,657 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2019 • Business
Spent 3 days as an exhibitor there this past weekend for the NCSS Conference, and really enjoyed the location, staff, and floor plan. Staff was very friendly, and bathrooms real clean.
Written November 25, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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