If a person were to go to San Antonio what are some "not to be missed" activities/ venues?
River Walk downtown.
The Alamo,
It's right there close to the Riverwalk. Park once and go to both.
I went to a class in San Antonio a couple of years ago. My wife went to the Zoo while I was in class. She loved it.
James
> If a person were to go to San Antonio what are some "not to be missed" activities/ venues?
What is special about San Antonio is the interesting mix of cultures. San Antonio was settled before independence from Spain and still has many residents descended from the original Spanish families from the Canary Islands. The Germans mostly arrived after independence from Mexico in 1836 and brought industries and their style to the city.
http://schilos.com /">Schilo's delicatessen and a tour of the King William district will give you some of the Texas-German vibe.
If you like Mexican food, La Fogata on Vance Jackson will set a standard to judge all others by, particularly if you eat outside in the garden patio.
If you're going to be mostly downtown, Mi Tierra wouldn't be a bad choice if you get their early for lunch on a weekday (jammed on the weekends) and if you want to look through the market beside it and are willing to walk a few blocks to the old Military Plaza where what used to be called the Spanish Governor's Palace (where it turns out the governor didn't actually live)
is located. It's a very old Spanish colonial house. In that vicinity, I'd take in San Fernando Cathedral and Museo Alameda (a museum).
If you're into militaria, there's a museum at Fort Sam Houston that may be of interest.
If you're into animals, the San Antonio Zoo is pretty nice, and, corny as it sounds, you can take a small train from the zoo to the Witte Museum on the other side of the park where the zoo is (and can ride the train back to the station by the zoo).
I personally wouldn't take visitors to the Alamo just because it's underwhelming and full of people. The Daughters of the Republic of Texas who I think still run it haven't really done much with it and the famous facade of the building is a later "creative" reconstruction of the original wreckage.
The Governor's Palace is a more interesting relic to me and even better is probably the J.A. Navarro house nearby.
The River Walk is fun enough, but it probably makes more of an impression on Texans than people from places where irrigation canals and waterways are more common.
Of the missions, I'd recommend Mission San Jose.
I like Kent's approach.
It's definitely a restaurant town, What I remember in addition to the good food was overhearing local families carrying on conversations- the parents speaking to the kids only in Spanish and the kids answering only in English.
If you watched Fess Parker and John Wayne die at the Alamo, as I did as a kid, you should probably wander through the Alamo to put it all in scale...
And if you have relatives in Texas (my wife is there this weekend for her family reunion) and you are from way north of there you will sooner or later be reminded about the "War of Northern Aggression".
Yes, downtown San Antonio in particular reminds me of cities in Northern Mexico. The street layout follows the irregular lanes and paths of the ancient city that grew up along the San Antonio River and the irrigation ditches (acequias) conveying water from it. The style of buildings and even ordinary things like paving and benches generally reminds me of Mexico, that of iron bridges, engineered works, and late 19th century buildings seems more German.
I've been there many times and it's one of my favorite Texas towns. Shaded and lovely river walk and many amazing buildings.
Kids will clamor about six flags or sea world but I've never been to either. I went mostly as an adult get away with a female companion.
I stay at the River Walk Hotel and pay extra and book early to get a river walk side room. Walk out your door to the open bar/cafe and eat as the sun rises up in San Antonio.
Let them park your car and forget about it during your stay. A bus pass for a day is about $4.00 and is worth every penny. You can get to anywhere in town and they are clean and the routes are frequent. You can get on an off anywhere you want and they are the way to travel around town.
We spent a day at the Museum of Art which is spectacular.
I will agree with Kent in that the Alamo itself, size wise, is underwhelming. But it is the Alamo and for history lovers then you can walk the hallowed halls of the mission and just sink back into thoughts of the battle that happened.
I'd also recommend the Japanese Tea Gardens for a few hours. Very beautiful and peaceful.
The Tower of the America's is a must for me. It's like the Seattle Space needle but it gives you a great view of most of San Antonio. It's hard to time it just right but we would up several times as the last ones going up. It's very nice to watch the sun set and then see the town light up at night. We had dinner at the restuarant on top but it was expensive and to me, the food was pretty pedestrian.
We loved walking on the riverwalk and the tour on the boats is fun. They will show you water marks of a historic flood and tell you many other facts as you travel. We did not do the dinner boat but I've heard it's worth the price.
San Anonio is very pedestrian friendly and you can spend days downtown just walking around and visiting the shops and enjoying the building styles. They have many places to sit and rest in the shade all over town and the Mission San Juan Park is one of their nicest parks.
We went to the Market and had a very excellent lunch and then a dinner a few nights later. I can't remember the name but it's the one with the bread shop inside as well.
And just for fun, go into the Ripley's Haunted Adventure. Animotronic T-Rex and just fun stuff. Mostly kids but I enjoyed it very much.
And one very special thing I found were the street vendors. Try any of their food, it's really good. We saw several city inspectors that were always there each night to check out the vendors.
I think the only time we ate at a chain was the night of the football game and we ate at Denny's by the stadium with the team.
I give the town a 10 of 10 for being very friendly, charming and with many things to see and do.
And one thing to not forget. Take off you hat when you enter the Alamo. I thought they were going to arrest me when I walked in. 🙂
San Antonio is a great town, that's where we go shopping and dining once a month.
There are a multitude of attractions to go to, too many for a weekend trip for sure.
It is one of the largest city's in America, but it does not feel like it because its a friendly town, unlike Austin which over the years has turned into a place I do not care for.
But you could always drive an hour north of there and have an adult beverage or two at my place.
Hambright's bar and grill/driving range and gun shooting club is always open.
Randy
SA? Meh. There is plenty to see if youve never been there. It can be pretty pretty warm this time of year which in my opinion takes away from the experience. You might check out the Natural Bridge Caverns if the heat gets to be too much. Nice and cool underground. You could also head a little north to New Braunfels and hit the Schlitterbahn Water Park for a break from the heat and some of Texas' finest eye candy and maybe take a lazy trip down the Guadalupe River on an innertube, just be sure to get you a tube for a cooler of Barley Pops 😉
The Alamo was a real ....
disappointment. It's right in the middle of the city and it's difficult to imagine Santa Anna's army laying seige to the place. At least as it's depicted in the movies. When I was there (quite a few years ago) the museum consisted of a few display cases in the gift shop. I just found it hard to believe that Texas could let this be that way.
On the other hand, the city was great! I really enjoyed my time there and think you will as well.
Kent
Admittedly it has been over 30 years since I was last there but, Is the Lone Star Brewery still open? How about the Buckhorn Saloon? My wife has been to San Antone for medical conferences and said she really enjoyed the River Walk.
Andy
Things to do in San Antonio, TX. Islenos
kent
Do you know of any good Mom and Pop 'greasy spoon' restaurants?
The islenoses were very integral to the settlement of Louisiana,
The Alamo was a real ....
> The Alamo was a real disappointment.
Yes. It's more of a fragmentary relic like the fingernail or lock of hair of some famous person. The main problem is that the building has been under the custody of an organization known as the Daughters of the Republic of Texas who have wanted to operate it as a sort of shrine, but without spending any real money to develop it as a museum.
Some of the history of the Alamo
The vicinity of the Military Plaza (Plaza de Armas) near the Spanish Governor's Palace and San Fernando Cathedral is where the alcalde of San Antonio Francisco Antonio Ruiz lived. His house was later removed and reconstructed on the grounds of the Witte Museum, so it can be seen more or less as it was. Mr. Ruiz was summoned to the Alamo by General Santa Anna to identify the dead, in particular the Catholics among them whose remains were to be separated. Some remains of the Alamo defenders are reputedly interred in San Fernando Cathedral.
Things to do in San Antonio, TX. Islenos
> Do you know of any good Mom and Pop 'greasy spoon' restaurants?
Well, if you want family-operated and home cooking, there's Los Barrios. It's a bit too slick to qualify as a greasy spoon joint, but the food is quite good. It's probably second after La Fogata on Vance Jackson. The problem with looking for a well-established greasy spoon restaurant is that once they succeed, the owners tend to slick the premises up. La Fogata began as a former A&W Root Beer stand which the owners added to and added to to finally end up with what is there now. You can still see the original building surrounded by the patios, gardens, and building additions if you look for it.
If you're in the vicinity of Military Plaza during the week at lunchtime, I'd take Tommy's Restaurant at 107 South Flores. It's genuine greasy spoon lunch joint with good food. If you like history, most of the block where Tommy's is was owned by a fellow named Peter Scheiner, after whom Shiner, Texas is named (as I recall) in the 1870's where he operated a leather and hides business.
Kent
> Is the Lone Star Brewery still open? How about the Buckhorn Saloon?
I don't know about the Lone Star brewery, but The Buckhorn is around. For the beer lover, there are some very good micro-breweries in San Antonio.
The Alamo was a real ....
That sounds like Sutter's Fort.
The current Fort is an 1890s reconstruction and is much smaller than the original. The only original part is the central building.
The Alamo was a real ....
Here is some more of the colorful history of the Alamo, the battle in the early 20th century that the preservationist Adina De Zavala waged to keep the building from being razed.
I was in San Antonio about 2 weeks ago - stayed in the Homewood Suites hotel on the river walk. We took the river boat tour and lounged around the river for the better part of the day. We rode the trolley to the market and ate at Mi Tierra on Saturday afternoon and it wasn't too crowded. We strolled through the adjacent market, but after about 30 minutes, we felt like we had seen all the merchandise that was there as most shops all had the same thing. We went to the Alamo (probably my sixth time) and enjoyed it again. If you haven't been to the Alamo, I would recommend a visit. If you are expecting to see the defenders still lining the walls or see the Mexican army camped out beyond rifle range, well you're going to about 176 years too late and may be disappointed like some others. And after that long, the City of San Antonio has grown up around it - cities do that kind of thing. It's kind of like Mount Vernon - the people that made the place famous aren't there anymore, but if you enjoy seeing the places where they were and keep it in the proper perspective, then you will probably enjoy the Alamo.
Deral said it all. I enjoyed the same things, was there for several months flying aerial photography in Southern Texas and down into Mexico in 2001. You are not a far drive from Austin too, great town for pub crawling and good music.
