Jenn

I'm looking at San Antonio for a 3-4 day visit with my husband the first week of Oct. It looks great to me... Fine hotel, great dining, shopping and some historic sites. I like the idea of just walking out of our hotel and having it all at our doorstep. I also want a vacation with some warm weather. My husband doesn't think there will be enough to keep us occupied. Note - he also enjoys strolling along and shopping or site seeing. Is 3 or 4 days too many? We are flying from CA so less than 3 days would not be worth the trip. Please give me your opinions. Thanks.

tomfuller

Are you planning on a rental car or just use a taxi from the airport? I saw most of what I wanted to see in 2.5 days including the Alamo and walking around the Riverwalk and a short boat tour.
If you rented a car for a day you could take a day trip to Corpus Christi and South Padre Island.
We went down for our daughters graduation from Air Force boot camp at Lackland AFB.

sf7307

I saw all I wanted to see in the city of SA in 1.5 days (unless you're interested in the missions, which I was not) but with an extra day or two and a car you could go outside of town - Natural Bridges Cavern, Gruene, even Austin ( we did Gruene and Austin as a day trip from San Antonio). I

Pegontheroad

I liked the King William district enough that I revisited it on my second time in San Antonio. If you enjoy just strolling along, I'd recommend time looking at those wonderful old houses in the K.W. district.

sf7307

We enjoyed the King William distrct too (with a stop for a snack at the Mad Hatter Tea House)!

countryskipper

I think 3-4 four days might be a little much for San Antonio. But you could do a day or two in Austin which is very close. There's lots to see there too.

countryskipper

I think 3-4 four days might be a little much for San Antonio. But you could do a day or two in Austin which is very close. There's lots to see there too.

pupchic

I am a San Antonio native. It depends what you are looking to do and what you enjoy. The King William area is wonderful. The Riverwalk and Alamo, of course. You can also do a nice tour of the missions, of which the Alamo is one. Shopping at the Mexican market downtown is enjoyable. There are a number of museums - one of my favorites is located in the area of San Antonio called Alamo Heights - it is in an old residence and called the Witte Museum. Sea World is there as well. It all depends what you enjoy. Mexican food is inexpensive and plentiful. Truthfully, there is more to do in SA than meets the eye of the casual visitor...If you like historic hotels try the Gunter (officially a Sheraton, I think) or St. Anthony (a Wyndham now). If you give me a little better idea what interests yall, I am happy to help. Also, Austin is 1.25 hour drive and has lots to offer as well...and I agree with the person who mentioned Gruene. It's a gem!

pupchic

You might also consider some of the surrounding Hill Country areas such as Fredericksburg.

volcanogirl

We love San Antonio. We did a Segway tour of the city that we really liked; part of it went through the King William district mentioned above, and it was beautiful. You'll definitely want to eat on the River Walk, do the boat tour, and visit the Alamo. I'd do about two nights there and then pair it with another location. Boudro's is a nice place to eat. Guenther House is good for breakfast and is in a neat historic building. Gruene is really charming, definitely can spend a day there with the cute shops, eating at the Grist Mill, and visiting Texas' oldest dance hall Gruene Hall for some live music. Austin is fun too. We like to eat at the Oasis with its pretty views. Salt Lick is a neat Texasy BBQ joint outside Austin that's fun to go to. There are also some cool museums. Seeing the bats on the Congress Ave. bridge is a neat Austin thing to do, but I think they'll be gone in October. I'd do a combo of all the things in the area.

ChristieP

I would advise against attempting a day trip to Corpus or Padre from San Antonio. Corpus is 2.5 hours' drive down a boring highway, and Padre Island is 5 hours' drive down the same highway! The best way to get to Padre Island is to fly!

If you rent a car, there is a LOT to see in/near San Antonio outside of downtown. I ALWAYS advise visitors to tour the Mission Trail National Park just south of downtown. The Alamo is just one of the six Spanish missions that founded San Antonio, and the other five are really worth the trip! San Jose has the visitors' center.

The suggestion of heading to Fredericksburg and the Hill Country is GREAT! DH and I spent 3 days there in July and we still didn't get to do everything! There are several excellent wineries, the Nimitz WW2 Museum, shopping and strolling downtown, all sorts of festivals (October is Oktoberfest, which is GREAT!), and Enchanted Rock State Natural Area. You can stay in a B&B or rent a cottage for the weekend.

bkluvsNola

Spend 2 days in San Antonio, then drive up and spend 2 days in Austin or alternatively spend 2 days in the Hill Country.

If you're up for that we can give suggestions.