All 4 of us would fly in from Newark... stay 3 - 4 days in San Antonio and then we would drop you guys off for return trip to NJ...? All plans very flexible!
“get flyin'” San Antonio International Airport provides commercial airline service for the South Texas region. More than 8 million passengers fly into and out of historic San Antonio each year, visiting more than 30 non-stop domestic and international destinations on over 13 airlines.
History comes to life in San Antonio. The city’s rich culture offers an authentic glimpse of early Spanish colonial life in the Southwest. As the first civilian settlement in Texas, San Antonio de Béxar was founded in 1718. Today, many of the city’s early architectural and cultural elements remain, allowing visitors to see into the city’s storied past first-hand. Our brave old world is your next, new adventure. Join us as pair historical sites and landmarks with modern-day events, celebrations and fun.
Named the first World Heritage Site in Texas by the United Nations Organization for Education, Science and Culture (UNESCO), the designation includes the city’s four southernmost Spanish colonial missions – Concepción, San José, San Juan, Espada and the famous Alamo, located in Downtown San Antonio.
“Providing quality, service, value and consistency you deserve” The Drury Inn & Suites San Antonio Riverwalk features comfortable rooms, a rooftop pool and plenty of meeting space for business events. It is located on the San Antonio River with countless restaurants and shops within scenic walking distance. This historically renovated hotel is the perfect location for business or leisure travel.
== Excellent location; with breakfast and afternoon cocktails - excellent value
DISCOVER NEW PLACES IN YOUR HEART San Antonio knows how to have fun. Our local attractions keep adventurers, thrill seekers and family vacationers coming back for more. Revisit the classics – Six Flags Fiesta Texas and SeaWorld & Aquatica San Antonio – and explore our newest additions – Morgan’s Wonderland, Inspiration Island – for fun on the land and in the water. Visit The Witte Museum or The DoSeum, take a train ride through Brackenridge Park, then visit with the animals at San Antonio Zoo. We have what you’re looking for.
The Official San Antonio Visitor Information Center is conveniently located across from the Alamo at 317 Alamo Plaza, San Antonio, TX 78205.
==Near Alamo good place to start and get info; walking distance to hotel
“Always remember, never forget” Originally named Mission San Antonio de Valero, the Alamo served as home to missionaries and their Indian converts for nearly seventy years. Construction began on the present site in 1724. In 1793, Spanish officials secularized San Antonio's five missions and distributed their lands to remaining Indian residents. These men and women continued to farm the fields, once the mission's but now their own, and participated in the growing community of San Antonio. More than 2.5 million people a year visit the 4.2 acre complex known worldwide as "The Alamo." Most come to see the old mission where a small band of Texans held out for thirteen days against the Centralist army of General Antonio López de Santa Anna. Although the Alamo fell in the early morning hours of March 6, 1836, the death of the Alamo Defenders has come to symbolize courage and sacrifice for the cause of Liberty. == Great museum; video
“a network of walkways along the banks of the San Antonio River” The San Antonio River Walk is a public park, open 365 days a year. It is a network of walkways along the banks of the San Antonio River, one story beneath approximately 15 miles of downtown San Antonio. Lined by bars, shops and restaurants, the River Walk is an important part of the city's urban fabric and a tourist attraction in its own right. The River Walk winds and loops under bridges as two parallel sidewalks, lined with restaurants, shops, hotels and more. It connects the major tourist draws from the Alamo to Rivercenter Mall, Arneson River Theatre and La Villita, the San Antonio Museum of Art, and the Pearl Brewery.Over 20 events take place on the River Walk every year.
==Awesome; walked it numerous times; had lunch/dinner at couple places; did the boat tour
== Visited the house; in a real nice neighborhood.
“An immersive interactive experience!” The San Antonio Aquarium welcomes families to enjoy an immersive interactive experience! Sea to Believe as we connect children and families to the planet, ranging from our rainforests and deserts to the exotic species of ocean. Family activities in San Antonio include hand feeding sharks, stingrays, birds, and tropical animals. Fun children activities include feeding and touching crocodiles, holding slithering snakes, or even taking a selfie with one of our exotic large breed birds. The San Antonio Aquarium opens eyes of discovery in a family friendly environment,creating fun things to do in San Antonio. We provide San Antonio’s children and families fun access to the excitement and learning of the planet without a long trip to the coast. Watch jellyfish gently float and glow, admire families of seahorses playing, or our Giant Pacific Octopus snack on crawfish – fed by guests! The Aquarium offers multiple educational programs and activities for kids in San Antonio. A favorite children’s activity is our Morning Rounds for aspiring aquarists, or those who just love animals.
==Did not Go
== Little bit of a wait... but great breakfast!
“A 35-acre zoo” The San Antonio Zoo is open 365 days a year! We are open rain or shine. Sorry no rain checks. The San Antonio Zoological Society is non-profit organization and home to over 3,500 animals representing 600 species on 34 acres. The Zoo's newest exhibit Africa Live2! is now open. See amazing colobus monkey's, wild hunting dogs, dwarf mongoose, and a walk-through termite mound. Several interactive exhibits include the Butterflies! Caterpillar Flight School – a photographer’s paradise, where hundreds of butterflies flutter around you for that perfect snapshot. Lory Landing, where guests can feed colorful Australian birds, and the Kronkosky’s Tiny Tot Nature Spot, a mini zoo, especially designed for children ages 5 and younger. And, don’t forget to take a train ride on the San Antonio Zoo Eagle – a scale replica of an 1863 steam locomotive. Enjoy a relaxing round trip through Brackenridge Park. All aboard!
==did not go
San Antonio Botanical Garden is committed to inspire people to connect with the plant world and understand the importance of plants in our lives. The garden features the Lucile Halsell Conservatory which houses plants from desert regions to equatorial rainforests. Specialty collections include epiphytic plants display, desert cacti and succulents, equatorial tropicals, palms and cycads, tropical fruits, ferns and aroids, insectivores, and aquatic plants. The Texas Native Trail is a unique aspect of the San Antonio Botanical Garden. This area consists of plant communities characteristic of the Hill Country (Edwards Plateau), East Texas Pineywoods, and South Texas. These three distinctive and diverse ecological regions of Texas vary in soil, plant life, topography, and weather.
== nice
“stunningly beautiful” The Japanese Tea Garden reopened in March 2008, with fanfare that included a serenade of Japanese songs by Tafoyalla Middle School Japanese students, keyboard by Carol Gulley, calligraphy and origami demonstrations, and an enormous Koi-shaped cake. The garden had been closed while the San Antonio Parks and Recreation Department and the San Antonio Parks Foundation completed infrastructure rehabilitation to the facility, to include walkways, piping, filtration, wall repairs, and pond sealing. The restored garden features a lush year-round garden and a floral display with shaded walkways, stone bridges, a 60-foot waterfall and ponds filled with Koi. The project cost $1,587,470 funded from public and private sources including the City of San Antonio, the San Antonio Parks Foundation, and Friends of the Parks.Members of the Jingu family, which lived and worked in the Garden, in the 1920s, attended the ceremony, along with the descendents of Ray Lambert, the Park Commissioner who conceived of the idea of turning an abandoned rock quarry into a "lily pond," also attended.The Parks Foundation is pursuing its next phase of improvement that will add lighting to the lower garden. The Japanese Tea Garden features areas available for rent, which are ideal for small weddings, a memorial service, as well as an area for large corporate gatherings, not to mention the renovated Jingu House Café. Come visit one of San Antonio’s historical jewels centrally located, just a short distance from downtown.
==Nice
“connecting the past, present and future” The Witte Museum promotes lifelong learning through innovative exhibitions, programs, and collections in natural history, science and South Texas heritage. The Witte Museum will be the confluence of the community, culture, and river. It will be an exemplary center where visitors engage in relevant and thought-provoking experiences. Exhibitions, programs, and collections will connect the past, the present, and future through a dynamic learning environment.
==Did not make it
“a celebration of nature’s mysteries” SeaWorld is proud to make its home in the wonderful San Antonio, TX It’s an area brimming with American history and beautiful natural surroundings. Come be amazed by the magical partnership of beautiful beluga whales, exotic Pacific white-sided dolphins, colorful birds and acrobatic performers. Sail away on a journey beyond reality to a place where creatures of the sea and sky meet in an incredible celebration of nature’s mysteries. Sesame Street Bay of Play is an area for kids and parents alike to enjoy everyone's favorite Sesame Street characters.
==Did not make it
“largest Mexican shopping market” Market Square is a traditional and historic shopping district in San Antonio, Texas. The shopping district is the largest Mexican shopping center in the San Antonio area. Market Square is called El Mercado by the locals. It is also where some festivals and exhibits are hosted. Discover authentic mexican dining and music enriched with a fascinating legacy of public markets full of bright, bold colors and beautiful treasures.
==Great visit went from hop-on-hop off bus
San Antonio Missions National Historical Park is a National Historical Park and part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site preserving four of the five Spanish frontier missions in San Antonio, Texas, USA. These outposts were established by Catholic religious orders to spread Christianity among the local natives. These missions formed part of a colonization system that stretched across the Spanish Southwest in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. In geographic order from north (upstream of the San Antonio River) to south (downstream) the missions are located as follows: Mission Concepción, Mission San Jose, Mission San Juan, and Mission Espada. The Espada Aqueduct, also part of the Park, is due east of Mission San Juan, across the river. The fifth (and best known) mission in San Antonio, the Alamo, is not part of the Park. It is located upstream from Mission Concepción, in downtown San Antonio, and is owned by the State of Texas. The Alamo was operated by the Daughters of the Republic of Texas until July 2015, when custodianship was turned over to the Texas General Land Office. On July 5, 2015, the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park, along with the Alamo Mission in San Antonio, was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site.
==Several missions; we went to one
“Defy gravity, get soaked & go for a spin” San Antonio's biggest, most popular themed attraction featuring dozens of thrill rides, shows, and activities. Home of nine world-class roller coasters and our giant FREE White Water Bay Water Park! == did not get here
Food, Sun, Water, People - stir, laugh and repeat. Located in the heart of downtown SATX - 200 E. Grayson St. http://www.atpearl.com Pearl, located north of downtown San Antonio, provides a unique experience as a top culinary and cultural destination. The mixed-use space features retail, dining, picturesque green spaces, paseos riverside amphitheater, and the third campus of The Culinary Institute of America. As a former brewery operating from 1883 to 2001, Pearl reflects a vivid past while embracing the future with LEED-certified complexes mixed with historic architecture.
The 22-acre Pearl site is home to The Culinary Institute of America, San Antonio, the year-round Pearl Farmers Market, Hotel Emma and its restaurant Supper. Pearl restaurants include La Gloria by CIA graduate chef Johnny Hernandez; Nao Latin Gastro Bar, from The Culinary Institute of America, San Antonio; Blue Box Bar; Botika; The Boiler House Texas Grill and Wine Garden; The Granary ‘Cue & Brew; Cured; Southerleigh Fine Food & Brewery; Bakery Lorraine; Local Coffee; Lick Honest Ice Creams, Green Vegetarian Cuisine, and High Street Wine Co. The Bottling Department, San Antonio’s first food hall, includes restaurants Bud’s Southern Rotisserie, Fletcher’s Hamburgers, Maybelle’s Donuts, Tenko Ramen, and The Good Kind. Pearl is also known for its shops, including The Sporting District, The Twig Book Shop, The Tiny Finch, Adelante Boutique, Ten Thousand Villages, LeeLee, Dos Carolinas, Leighelena, Niche Boutique, The Synergy Studio, Bike World, and The Vintage Bouquet Bar.
Notable office tenants at Pearl include San Antonio Hispanic Chamber, Nature Conservancy, San Antonio Area Foundation, RBC Securities, The CE Group, Inc., WestEast Design Group, KGB Texas, and The San Antonio Business Journal. The Can Plant offers urban contemporary apartments with a place in history. The Cellars are luxury apartments offering hospitality and culinary excellence, extraordinary living spaces, concierge-curated services, and more. Event spaces include the historic Pearl Stable and the more contemporary Pearl Studio.
== upcoming neighborhood; definitely go into Hotel Emma
“we believe that creating fine spirits is truly an art form” At Rebecca Creek Distillery, we believe that creating fine spirits is truly an art form. And like any art form, it takes time and craftsmanship to produce a masterpiece. That’s why we handcraft our spirits in small batches with pure copper components to ensure the ultimate in quality and taste. Sure, it may take us a little longer to make each batch, but every bottle that comes out of Rebecca Creek Distillery has been produced with true Texas pride.
==did not go
