Or wrangle a ride to the quirkiest city in Texas

‘SHORTS? This is Texas, partner!’ The ranch-hand eyed me suspiciously, impervious to the 104F (40C) heat in his double denim.

If I were anywhere else in the Lone Star State, I might have thought he was sizing me up for a showdown at high noon. But this is Austin, a city that challenges any misconceptions of America’s second-largest state.

From the green banks of the Colorado River that runs through town to the eye-popping street art decorating the vintage shops of South Congress Avenue, at times it doesn’t feel like Texas at all. But then coding, not cattle, is now big business here.

Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg have both set up gleaming new headquarters here and the city is filled with tech pioneers.

The business traffic has led to a boom in high-class, all-glass hotels Downtown, including the Fairmont with a wonderful rooftop pool and just a short distance from the bustling nightlife of Rainey Street.

It would be unfair to label Austin as some kind of soulless Silicon Valley in a stetson, however. It beats with a quirky, individual spirit, epitomised in the unofficial motto of ‘Keep Austin Weird’ and aided by its proudly liberal politics – you’ll find few Trump bumper stickers here.

Live music is a way of life and the city truly comes alive when the sun sets and the hot Texan night is awash with the sound of country, blues and rock.

Avoid the rowdy bars on tacky 6th Street and instead swing your hips at the more established music venues such as The Continental Club on South Congress Avenue, or iconic blues joint Antone’s Nightclub on East 5th.

For a feast to remember, there’s the beef brisket at Franklin’s, the city’s most renowned smoke shack, where it is slowly barbecued for up to 15 hours to create a charred mess of pure melt-in-the-mouth joy (franklinbbq.com).

Of course, it would be a shame to visit Texas without at least a bit of rootin-tootin cowboy fun.

Head to the Lone Star Ranch on the outskirts of Austin, where the team of friendly cowpokes will teach you all the lasso-throwing and horse-whispering skills you need to make it on the open range – even if you do arrive wearing shorts (lonestarranchtexas.com).

Virgin Atlantic return flights from Heathrow to Austin cost from £516.