The Austin Companion

1.5 million bats pouring out from under a bridge at dusk, live music on every corner, and breakfast tacos worth planning a morning around --- Texas's proudly weird capital, with room to make it yours. The Austin Companion's signature chapter takes on a question most visitors never think to ask: How 1.5 Million Bats Became Austin's Biggest Tourist Attraction. A 1980s bridge renovation accidentally created the perfect bat habitat, and what started as a public health panic became one of the city's most beloved rituals.