Downtown Austin hotel hosts goal-setting and mindfulness event to start 2023 off right

New year, new goals

If you've already broken some of your 2023 resolutions ten days in, have no fear: There's never a bad time to re-evaluate your goals and meet like-minded people with a similar vision. Perhaps that's why the Hotel Van Zandt's Vision Board Workshop is taking place a full two weeks into the new year, on January 14, to ward off the annual pressure to start fresh on New Year's Day.

Since health and wellness are usually top of mind this month, the event is a partnership with author Gustavo Padron and ATX Yoga Girl founder Cynthia Aguillon Bernard. Rather than setting abstract or unreachable goals, the Vision Board Workshop is designed to help attendees visualize their goals, get clear on their 2023 vision, and start the new year off with peace and mindfulness.

Taking place this Saturday, January 14, from 10 am to 11:30 am in the Merriweather Ballroom inside Hotel Van Zandt, the workshop will begin with gentle breathwork and a vision quest meditation. Afterwards, attendees can craft a vision board to ground their goals in more physical and tangible forms.

A soundbath experience will conclude the event, intended to help attendees expand and elevate their visions as they are immersed in the sounds and vibrations of crystal and quartz bowls.

As well as being a yoga and meditation teacher, personal trainer, and author, Gustav Padron is also a mindset and manifestation coach. He is fiercely passionate about helping people reframe their thoughts and heal their limiting beliefs by applying the tools and practices in his published journal, grounded practice.

Meanwhile, Cynthia Aguillon Bernard is the creator of ATX YOGA GIRL, a mobile yoga studio bringing wellness to the community. A teacher, guide, and facilitator in yoga, meditation, mindfulness, and sound healing, she specializes in children and family yoga, creating community and positive experiences in a safe, nurturing environment.

The Vision Board Workshop is the latest in health and wellness programming at Hotel Van Zandt, which provides a complimentary yoga mat in each guest room as well as access to the 24-hour fitness center and fourth floor pool deck.

Tickets to the Vision Board Workshop are $70 per person and can be purchased via Eventbrite.

Courtesy of Commodore Perry Estate, Auberge Resorts Collection

Austin's landmark estate checks in on list of world's best hotels, plus more top stories

Hot Headlines

Editor’s note: It’s that time again — time to check in with our top stories. Here are five articles that captured our collective attention over the past seven days.

1. Austin's landmark estate checks in on exclusive list of world's best hotels. The Commodore Perry Estate is one of the best hotels in the world, according to Condė Nast Traveler.

2. New luxury community breaks ground in North Austin's booming tech corridor. Presidium Tech Ridge, a four-story luxury apartment community that ties into the natural surroundings, is slated for completion next year.

3. Music of Whitney Houston shines through the dark in I Wanna Dance with Somebody. This biopic is a reminder of what a great singer Whitney Houston was.

4. Zillow's experts predict the top 5 home trends for 2023 in Austin and beyond. Pandemic-era home fads are still hanging on, according to data from Zillow.

5. Texas population shatters records with massive new number milestone. We're welcoming more and more new Texans every day.

Ad Placement 300x100

Ad Placement 300x600

CultureMap Emails are Awesome

Property Showcase

Willie Nelson receives prestigious honor and inaugural endowment at UT Austin

Willie forever

Willie Nelson has earned countless awards for his seven-decade music career, but the legend is also well known for his activism — particularly in the areas of farming and food security. In recognition of his longtime advocacy work, the LBJ Foundation will present its most prestigious honor, the LBJ Liberty & Justice for All Award to Nelson this spring.

The award will be presented at a special gala tribute dinner on Friday, May 12, 2023, which in turn will benefit the newly established Willie Nelson Endowment for Uplifting Rural Communities at the LBJ School of Public Affairs, a part of The University of Texas at Austin.

According to a release, the endowment will fund research and student fellowships focused on sustainable agriculture, eliminating hunger, resilient energy, sustainable water, and natural disaster recovery to benefit rural and farm communities.

Along with Neil Young and John Mellencamp, Nelson organized the first Farm Aid concert in 1985 to raise funds for struggling farmers, which has since raised over $70 million for those who own and operate family farms throughout the United States. He has also helped raise millions around disaster relief, for families of the victims of the 9/11 attacks and for veterans, as well as working toward environmental and animal advocacy, and voting rights. His Luck Family Foundation provides financial grant assistance and other resources to artists, organizations, and programs in need, donating proceeds from Luck Reunion events to Farm Aid and other longtime charity partners like the Texas Food & Wine Alliance.

“Willie Nelson is a national treasure who gained fame through his sheer musical talent and won hearts as someone who truly cares about the lives of his fellow Americans," says Larry Temple, Chairman of the LBJ Foundation Board of Trustees, via release. "A product of rural Texas, Willie has never forgotten where he comes from. His longtime efforts to raise money and awareness for family farmers through Farm Aid and numerous other endeavors to help those in need throughout his career make him a true inspiration.”

The dinner will honor Nelson's lifelong support for rural communities, embodying President Lyndon Baines Johnson's commitment to public service, particularly in the areas of farming and food security. With their similar backgrounds as rural Texans, both President Johnson and Nelson shared a keen awareness of the struggles of those who work in the agricultural industry.

“The bounty of the earth is the foundation of our economy," President Johnson shared in a 1965 Special Message to Congress on Agriculture. "Programs in every aspect of our nation’s life depend on the abundant harvests of our farms.”

Bluegrass trio Nickel Creek celebrates new tour + album with fall Austin date

Welcome Back

The Grammy Award-winning bluegrass trio Nickel Creek — mandolinist Chris Thile, violinist Sara Watkins, and guitarist Sean Watkins — is extending their 2023 tour into the fall with a stop in Austin at the Moody Amphitheatre at Waterloo Park on October 21.

This is the first tour that the folk group has headlined since 2014, and it kicks off in Cincinnati, Ohio, on April 15. The Austin stop is the tour's last, preceded by a night at Dallas' Majestic Theatre on October 20.

Nickel Creek is also releasing a new 18-track studio album for the occasion, titled Celebrants. It's their first new album in nine years and is available beginning March 24, which is also when tickets for the Texas tour stops go on sale.

Ahead of the release, Nickel Creek has unveiled three album tracks: “Where The Long Line Leads,” “Holding Pattern,” and “Strangers."

Nickel Creek revolutionized bluegrass and folk in the early 2000s and ushered in a new era of what we now recognize as Americana music. After meeting as young children and subsequently earning the respect of the bluegrass circuit for a decade, the trio signed with venerable label Sugar Hill Records in 2000 and quickly broke through with their Grammy-nominated, Alison Krauss-produced, self-titled LP.

Each member has also kept busy with individual projects over the years. Thile is a 2012 recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship and served as the host of the American radio variety show Live from Here (formerly A Prairie Home Companion) from 2016 to 2020.

Sean Watkins is a co-founder of Watkins Family Hour alongside his sister Sara, who has released four albums and maintains a long-running collaborative show in Los Angeles. Sean has also released a string of solo albums, while Sara’s extracurricular projects include the Grammy-winning roots trio I’m With Her, which she co-founded alongside Aoife O’Donovan and Sarah Jarosz.

Sara has also contributed fiddle to recordings by artists like Phoebe Bridgers, the Killers, and John Mayer.

Pre-sale tickets are on sale now, with general sale beginning March 24 at 10 am here.

There is also the option to join the VIP Celebrants Club, which in addition to a premium reserved or GA ticket includes a private pre-show performance and Q&A with Nickel Creek plus early access to the venue, an enamel pin, and a limited edition poster signed by the band. Membership starts at $169 plus taxes and fees. More info can be found here.

Homegrown vodka brand invites Austinites on a VIP Dell Match Play experience and giveaway

Bogey Boat

We may still be recovering from SXSW, but it's time to gear up for our next big local event. WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play (a.k.a., Dell Match Play) returns this weekend, and our favorite local vodka brand is getting in on the fun.

As the official vodka sponsor of the PGA Tour and PGA Tour Champions, Tito's Handmade Vodka is bringing back its famousTito’s Bogey Boat, setting sail on Lake Austin. Stationed by the Austin 360 bridge overlooking the 13th hole, the Tito’s Bogey Boat offers fans a VIP experience during Dell Match Play and features a live DJ, photo booth, tasty bites, and more.

And best news of all: Austinites who visit the Love, Tito's Retail Store can win a chance to experience the Tito’s Bogey Boat for themselves: The first 10 fans that stop by the store when it opens on Thursday, March 23, and Friday, March 24, will receive passes.

For fans who win a spot on the boat, the brand will provide water taxi transportation between 12 pm and 6 pm to convenient pick-up and drop-up locations, one of which will be specifically for winners who already have tickets to Dell Match Play.

View All Listings