AT&T Hotel & Conference Center

The AT&T Hotel & Conference Center has long been one of Austin's best hidden gems, which I say as a former local: I say that as a former professional hotel critic, prior to the internet killing most traditional journalism. I've also stayed there numerous times and had a superlative stay every single time.

Or at least that was the case until my most recent stay: despite being placed in a literally nearly new room – the hotel's undergoing its first major renovation in a decade, and at least at this writing, this site doesn't even have photos of the new room designs yet – the construction noise *from* said renovation was bad enough to drive me out after a single night. Perhaps most bizarrely, I had spotty wifi throughout my stay – in a property literally run by one of the largest, richest wireless companies AND internet providers in America. But yes, I still gave them five stars. I'll explain.

The property's definitely rather unique: I can't think of any other phone companies that run a hotel on the side, plus it was built in large part to cater to affluent UT alumni back in town for various conferences. (Obviously including ones at the hotel itself, but also stuff like SXSW.) It's also one of the few hotels designed by Lake Flato, the state's top architectural firm and arguably the best in the entire Southwest. It's situated directly adjacent to UT, with its iconic tower only three blocks north, and in stark contrast to most standard-issue four-star Hiltons and Hyatts and the like, it has a few aspects more associated with five-star properties, including a fine-dining restaurant on-site and a much-appreciated lack of cookie-cutter design.

I mention all of the above because this was literally only the second time – in a period of 25+ years, including over 800 total hotels – I've encountered an upscale hotel that was being renovated in such an extreme fashion that the noise from it seems audible throughout the entire *property*, including a piledriver sound in my room.

To be clear, this schedule is not how the hotel industry functions in general. Hotels typically make a point of isolating the noise so that almost literally no one staying there can hear it. How? Closing off the entire floor above & below one being renovated is how some do it. Others do a "vertical slice": focusing on a given small set of rooms on every floor, but also a piecemeal process.

I suspect that the hotel would've otherwise closed for the renos – it's not like they need the money, plus they have an additional problem of a new skyscraper going up across the street on the hotel's north end. But I think I know why they may have felt they had no other good option: as it so happens, the Austin Convention Center is in the process of being rebuilt, so nearly every hotel in town with conference rooms is trying to pick up a lot of the slack by reinforcing their own offerings.

All that said: I'm not docking any stars because the property admittedly makes quite a point of noting the possibility of noise disturbances, plus its cumulative rating is only 4.3 stars at this writing. It's not THAT bad, so I'm grading up a bit. Also, the renovation work is scheduled to be completed in the next couple of months – after already being delayed for nearly a year due to various issues – so those reading this after August 2026 likely won't have any of the same problems.

Finally, this mistake was my own, but one side of the property can have an unusual amount of road noise, and is best avoided at any time for those sensitive to it: the south end of the hotel faces the road and gets a fair amount of police & ambulance activity at night, at least if there's a lot going on in the vicinity (and I was there over Memorial Day weekend). This can be easily avoided solely by requesting a room facing the interior courtyard, and those are whisper-quiet. (Without renovations underway, at least.)

To recap: the north end of the hotel faces a construction site, and it won't be done until 2028 or 2029 -- definitely best avoided for noise-sensitive folks. Ditto the south end, which faces a major street. The side facing University Avenue is fairly quiet, and the courtyard-facing rooms are borderline monastic in their lack of noise. While even the hotel's current design doesn't seem particularly dated, the new one is a nice, and clearly upscale, refresh, with custom-made cabinetry & woodwork, and the addition of some subtly nice wallpaper.

But if you're at all concerned about noise, I'd advise checking with the hotel about the renovation situation prior to booking, at least if their website indicates that it's still underway. Even as a heavy sleeper it was loud enough to wake me up, as were several ambulances.

P.S. I have no explanation for the laggy wifi, but it's also anomalous in my experience, and it could definitely be due to all the construction still going on.

Diseño y ubicación

Great beautiful property

Nice rooms, friendly staff. The hotel has all you need. Good breakfast and fairly priced.

Rooms were nice and cozy. AC was cold! Yay!

The hotel was close to the event venue we were going to and very close by to other attractions as well.

I stayed at the AT&T Conference center and hotel which is on the UT Austin campus. The staff were friendly and helpful. The rooms were spacious and the bed was nice and soft. The fitness center has a good selection of equipment and the pool is good for doing naps, but also good for kids as the deepest area is 3feet 6 inches. There are restaurants on site, and you are only 1 mile away from 6th street for great music.

I’m writing this review with a sad and heavy heart today as a warning to other potential guests that are considering a stay here in the next few months. We are multiple time return guests of the ATT center and hotel and have always considered it to be the premier hotel near campus. As parents of a UT student athlete and Longhorn Foundation members, it just made sense and was a serene escape after long sports-filled days. We no longer have confidence in such serenity… but instead a potential disaster waiting to happen for your own visit.

Today as we attempted to check in to our premium King room for the Texas Invitational - we were dismayed that due to construction delays they had no room available for us despite our pre-paid $300+/night reservation. Their efforts to book us a “comparable” room at the Hampton Inn across the street took a turn for the worst as the Hampton had no premium King rooms available. Never mind the Hampton’s dated decor, dark and dank hallways, and the musty smell of moist dust permeating the standard double-queen room we ended up with. This room is certainly not comparable in value, luxury, nor location to our contracted room at ATT.

Make no mistake that this issue lays solely at the feet of the logistical and operations management at the ATT center. No, a musty double-queen at the Hampton Inn does not make us whole, but with no offer of a future comped stay or other compensation to make up for Management’s failure at the ATT center we are left with a poor choice of alternatives. Accept the inferior room paid for with our premium ATT dollars, or risk missing our student-athlete’s track meet as we scramble to find adequate accommodations. With no offer to make this catastrophe right… how can I ever trust the ATT center again. How can you trust the ATT center not to similarly screw you? You can’t.. buyer beware.

First class hotel on UT campus. Stayed there after seeing Springsteen at Moody. Very convenient, spotlessly clean, nice vibe. Great staff-efficient, courteous and helpful.

Went to the restaurant and used valet. Zach thought we overpaid due to being in the restaurant vs normal valet and went to pay us back out of pocket. We got it sorted but this is above and beyond service. Super impressed he saw the potential error and wanted to make it right even at his own expense.

Staying here every time I am in Austin, regardless of how long I will stay here! I enjoy the rooms, luxury feel and convivence to walk to areas that I enjoy!