LoneStar Casino launches Austin pop-up across two October weekends

LoneStar Casino is staging a branded pop-up at Oria’s on Barton Springs Road in Austin across both Austin City Limits festival weekends in October 2026. The activation runs 12:00–19:00 on Friday and Saturday of Weekend 1 (2–3 October) and Weekend 2 (9–10 October); LoneStar-branded pedicabs will continue to operate around Austin until midnight on those evenings and remain in the city for the rest of October.

LoneStar Casino Austin pop-up: dates, hours and purpose

The pop-up is designed as a festival respite where attendees can cool off, eat and drink, listen to DJs and take part in interactive games and giveaways. Operating hours at Oria’s are 12:00 to 19:00 on Friday, 2 October and Saturday, 3 October, and again on Friday, 9 October and Saturday, 10 October. After the Oria’s site closes at 19:00, LoneStar-branded pedicabs will continue operating until midnight to extend the brand’s visibility across the festival footprint.

On-site activations and entertainment at Oria’s

A dedicated DJ setup will run throughout each day at Oria’s and visitors are invited to request songs. Inside the pop-up there are three digital Spin to Win wheels that award a prize on every spin. Prizes include LoneStar merchandise, food vouchers and beer (21+ with valid ID). Merchandise on offer comprises cowboy hats, bandanas, hand fans, collapsible water bottles, wristlet phone holders and poker-chip keyrings.

The activation also features a LoneStar sticker wall. Each sticker conceals a QR code on its back worth between 1 and 5 SC, with one sticker carrying 100 SC and a single top sticker worth 1,000 SC. Weekend 2 includes an additional live draw on Saturday, 10 October, for two VIP tickets to the big race in Austin; entry details and drawing times will be shared ahead of the event.

“For everyone who can: come say howdy.”

Pedicabs and street presence during the festival

LoneStar will operate ten branded pedicabs as a relay across the festival weekends. Five pedicabs will shuttle people from the main pedestrian route to Oria’s, and five will transport people from Oria’s directly to the festival entrance. The pedicabs will run until midnight on festival evenings and will remain visible in downtown Austin for the remainder of October, extending the activation beyond the two weekends.

The pedicab fleet keeps LoneStar visible after the pop-up site closes and places the brand in high-footfall areas around the festival and downtown.

Creator programme, content and remote access

Austin creators covering music, food, lifestyle, tourism, comedy and gaming will support the activation on the ground. Ten creators are confirmed for Weekend 1 and eight for Weekend 2, supplemented by a group of local micro-creators. LoneStar will use those creators to generate on-site content and amplify reach on social channels.

For those not in Austin, the LoneStar Casino Blog will publish photos, video and behind-the-scenes material from both weekends. The brand frames the online coverage as the alternative for people who “can’t make it to Austin”.

Brand positioning and legal notice

LoneStar Casino describes itself as a social casino brand with a Texas personality that brings players together both in-app and at live events. The company says the Austin activation is independently operated by LoneStar Casino and is not sponsored by, endorsed by, or affiliated with Austin City Limits Music Festival or C3 Presents. The promotion states standard restrictions: 18+ | No Purchase Necessary | Void Where Prohibited | T&C apply.

Contact for consumer support is listed as [email protected].

What operators and brands should note about the activation

This activation combines experiential marketing (a pop-up and pedicab fleet) with digital mechanics (QR-backed sticker prizes and Spin to Win wheels). Key measurable assets for LoneStar will be on-site engagement rates, spin redemption volumes, QR scans linked to SC redemption, and creator-driven social metrics across the two weekends. The pedicab relay also functions as a mobile OOH placement, extending dwell-time impressions beyond Oria’s 12:00–19:00 window.

For brands planning similar festival tie-ins, the LoneStar approach underlines three tactical choices: centralise a short-duration hub near festival routes, use a mobile fleet to prolong presence, and combine physical giveaways with digital prize mechanics that can be tracked and verified.