A small, east side neighborhood with a hipster vibe, Chestnut is an affordable Austin neighborhood that’s about a mile from the University of Texas at Austin campus. Chestnut residents can hop aboard the MetroRail at M L King Jr Station and quickly get to work or school. Chestnut is located between Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard and East 12th Street, extending from Chicon Street east to Airport Boulevard.
One of the neighborhood’s quirkier features is the Museum of Natural & Artificial Ephemerata, an in-home, family-run museum of quirky collections. Tours are available with a suggested donation, where you’ll enjoy themed exhibitions as well as traveling exhibitions. Another unique landmark, the Coleto Moonlight Tower, is a historical light tower located on the corner of 13 Street and Coleto Street. Built in 1894, 31 ltowers lit up Austin and stood 164 feet tall. Today, only a few remain.