Happy holidays

Austin lands on the nice list of best cities to celebrate Christmas in 2023

Austinites love the annual Trail of Lights.

Photo courtesy of Austin Trail of Lights

No matter how much Austinites spend on gifts, the spirit of Christmas lies not in presents under the tree but in spending quality time with loved ones. Austinites won't have to travel far to experience the best Christmas in Texas this year either – the Texas capital landed at No. 31 in a new national list of the best cities for celebrating Christmas in 2023.

The report by WalletHub ranked the 100 most populous cities across five categories: Christmas traditions, holiday observance, generosity, shopping, and costs.

Austin was the second highest-ranked Texas city thanks to its heap of holiday happenings. From local restaurants putting their all into creating the most festive holiday dinners, to UT Austin's new Christmas tradition, there's plenty to enjoy around the city.

Towns in the surrounding Hill Country area, including Dripping Springs and Georgetown, have also transformed into delightful winter wonderlands for the holiday season, and they're fun, festive escapes for city slickers this time of year.

Despite inflation woes, Austin households have bigger holiday budgets this year ($1,877) than they did in 2022 ($1,705), according to another WalletHub study. And, as a nice bonus that wasn't reflected in the study, Austin tones down some of the commercialism with a strong prevalence of holiday markets selling local goods.

"Inflation is weighing heavily on consumers’ minds as well as their budgets this holiday season, but it doesn’t have to spoil the occasion," said WalletHub analyst Cassandra Happe. "Whether you find yourself in what amounts to a humble modern-day manger or one of the best cities for budget-friendly Christmas celebrations, the most important thing is to spend quality time with loved ones and create lasting memories. By doing so, you can find joy and inspiration in the true spirit of the season."

Other Texas cities that earned spots in the top 50 include San Antonio (No. 17), Dallas (No. 34), Houston (No. 36), and Fort Worth (No. 50).

The top 10 best places to experience Christmas are:

No. 1 – Atlanta, Georgia
No. 2 – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
No. 3 – Orlando, Florida
No. 4 – Las Vegas, Nevada
No. 5 – San Francisco, California
No. 6 – St. Louis, Missouri
No. 7 – Seattle, Washington
No. 8 – Chicago, Illinois
No. 9 – Miami, Florida
No. 10 – Birmingham, Alabama

The full report can be found on wallethub.com.

wallethub reports holidays christmas

Top of the class

UT Austin ranks among best U.S. schools for entrepreneurship in 2025

UT Austin, University of Texas at Austin, top Texas schools, best public universities, best colleges

Photo by Alexander Williams on Unsplash

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The University of Texas at Austin has earned two top-10 spots on The Princeton Review and Entrepreneur’s lists of the best graduate and undergraduate schools for entrepreneurship studies for 2025.

UT Austin's McCombs School of Business ranks seventh in the graduate category, and UT ranks second in the undergraduate category.

The school is no stranger to the prestigious national lists. In the 2024 rankings, UT also appeared as No. 2 among undergraduate programs, and No. 6 in the ranking for the best graduate programs.

This year marks the fourth time that the school has landed in the top 5 on the undergraduate side, and the 12th time in 15 years that McCombs has made the top 10 among graduate programs in the annual ranking, UT notes in a news release.

The only other schools in Texas to make either top-10 list for 2025 were Rice University (No. 1 graduate school) and the University of Houston (No. 1 undergraduate program).

Rankings for The Princeton Review and Entrepreneur’s 2025 lists were based on a survey of administrators at nearly 300 schools in the U.S., Canada, and Europe that offer entrepreneurship studies. Among the more than 40 factors used for the rankings were academic programs, faculty credentials, mentorship opportunities, and alumni entrepreneurship ventures.

"If the focus of the MBA program at McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin were to be summed up in one word, it would be 'collaboration,'" reads the 2025 graduate schools report. "Students in more than 20 concentrations uniformly crow over its 'incredibly collaborative culture,' citing the 'supportive culture' as a top reason they ultimately picked the program. As a 'top 20 school,' the 'rigorous academic[s]' and 'focus on clean energy,' 'technology,' and 'entrepreneurship,' are other stand-out elements of the program."

The top 10 schools on the list of 50 best graduate schools for entrepreneurship studies in 2025 are:

1. Rice University
2. University of California-Los Angeles
3. University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
4. Washington University in St. Louis
5. Babson College
6. University of Washington
7. University of Texas at Austin
8. University of Virginia
9. Erasmus University Rotterdam in the Netherlands
10. University of South Florida

The top 10 schools on the list of 50 best undergraduate schools for entrepreneurship studies in 2025 are:

1. University of Houston
2. University of Texas at Austin
3. Babson College
4. University of Washington
5. Washington University in St. Louis
6. University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
7. University of Maryland-College Park
8. Miami University of Ohio
9. Tecnológico de Monterrey in Mexico
10. Northeastern University

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The story originally was published on our sister site, InnovationMap.

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