Day trip from San Antonio
 

Would it be worth my while to plan a day trip from SAT? I'll be there 6 days with some free days. Mexico? The Gulf Coast? Is Del Rio a good day trip from SAT/

Thanks,
Dewdrop

Del Rio IS a good trip, but it's better if you can stay overnight. It's a 3-hour drive from San Antone. DO NOT speed through the small towns on Hwy 90!

Fort Clark Springs is a beautifully restored old cavalry post. It has an excellent museum.

The Whitehead Memorial Museum in Del Rio is an eclectic collection of Southwest Texas artifacts, everything from Wolfman Jack to an old cavalry saddle! It's also the burial ground of Judge Roy Bean. Spend at least 2 hours...

No trip to Del Rio would be complete without a trip across to Cd. Acuna. Park your car in one of the lots near the international bridge and take a taxi across for $5. Once across, you can have a nice lunch at Lando's, drink a fishbowl-size, STRONG margarita at Ma Crosby's (made famous in the George Strait song "Blame It On Mexico"), and shop for all sorts of things! The best buys are usually blankets, handmade crafts, and liquors. You can bring one case of beer, or one fifth of liquor per adult back across.

If you do choose to stay overnight, I recommend the La Siesta Best Western on Avenue F. Or, there are several nice motels out near Lake Amistad. The view looking south on top of the Lake Amistad dam is spectacular!

Take a drive further west to Seminole Canyon State Park and take the guided tour of the indian pictographs. They are very neat! Also, visit Langtry, home of Judge Roy Bean's courthouse/bar.

And if you're hungry for good Mexican food in Del Rio or Uvalde, stop at any of the Don Marcelino's locations!

And if the Mexican border town isn't your cup of tea, you can always drive through the Hill Country, even tour some wineries in the area.
http://www.texaswinetrail.com

Check out this thread from just a few days ago.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34476998

Well, I feel the need to say that I really think you would be sorely disappointed with a trip to Del Rio. If you REALLY want to see a Mexican border town, then it might be okay. Acuna is a fairly clean, safe town and there are a lot of shops and restaurants. However, there are SO many other wonderful places to see within 3 hours of San Antonio...Hill Country (Fredricksburg), Corpus Christi, Austin...all MUCH more beautiful and have much more to do than Del Rio. If you go to DR, you will drive fore 3 LONG hours through dry, desert like conditions and end up in a town that is not really remarkable at all. Sure, there are a few things to do there, but compared to other TX destinations it is not worth it. I say don't go.
P.S. Lived there for 8 months and I suppose I'm a little biased because of the horrible time we had there. :(

I'll agree that Del Rio isn't the biggest hot spot in Texas, but there are some neat things there. My in-laws have lived there for over 40 years, and that's where my husband was raised. We visit at least once a year, and always manage to have a good time.

Travelisfun, sorry you didn't have a good experience there. Were you at laughlin AFB?

ChristieP--Yeah...my husband went through training at LAFB. We actually lived off base in Del Rio, though. I'm sorry to be so negative about it...I was just really dissappointed with our time there. I wasn't able to find a job (didn't speak Spanish and that was a big red flag there--even at Bath & Body Works), so the huge amounts of free time there were excrutiating. I will agree that there are a few interesting things to see there...Acuna, Lake Amistad, Val Verde Winery, but overall...a trip to Hill Country would be a better bet in my book. Sorry to be negative! I just wanted the poster to have a good idea of what they'd be driving 3 hours for.

Oh--but the one thing I'd drive back to Del Rio for in a heartbeat is a "Deli Special" from "The Deli"--I LOVED that place! :)

Not sure of your age group but spending a day tubing down the famous Guadelupe River on a weekend day for me was the best time to be had. Its about an hour north of SA near New Braunsfels and Sattler below Canyon Lake. And the scenery is beautiful. If you don't want to tube, go to the Griss Mill restaurant and Green Hall, a 100 year old dance hall north of New Braunsfels on the river.

Yea Jor, now were talking! I love tubing on the Guadalupe river. Lovely! And Gruene is a great little town for walking around all the little shops, and Gruene Hall is an old institution!

Another great place is Schlitterbahn Water Park. It is in New Braunfels and just down the road from Gruene so you can do it all.

Schlitterbahn is voted the number 1 water park in the world, year after year.

Hey Travelisfun...

Mother-in-law says lots of folks out at Laughlin hate Del Rio! She teaches kindergarten at St. James School and works with lots of teachers who are military wives.

I'll have to try The Deli next time we're down there. We are always going to Don Marcelino's or Memo's for good mexican food!!

I would skip DR, too. ESPECIALLY if you've been there/done that with Mexican villages. You can save the drive and go to El Mercado in downtown SA. Same merchandise and food - minus the haggling, of course.

Austin is a great trip. Fredericksburg. New Braunfels. Texas is a big state so other destinations will be treks. Corpus Christi (although it's been years since I've been there).

Houston/Galveston (Moody Gardens on Galveston island is great). Shiner is home of the Shiner brewery (www. Shiner.com). They have a great tour and a GREAT tasting room. Go near "quiting time" to meet locals on their way home from work. If you go, have a Bock for me, my supply is running low.

Texas has a great tourism web site www.texas.com

Enjoy South Texas!!