okieinkauai

We (2 adults & 3 children) will be flying into San Antonio in June. We are staying at the Drury Inn on the Riverwalk and plan to spend two days at Sea World and then several days enjoying the charm of San Antonio. My question of the day has to do with a rental car. Will we need one? I plan to call my hotel to see if there is a shuttle to and from Airport, but is there public transportation that would take us all the way out to Sea World? I think if we are going to have to pay for a cab for 5 people...it might just be cheaper to rent a car. Also, I ran across a mention of the Segway tours on another post. Is that something our kids (17,14& 9) would enjoy or would it be a "yawn?!?" Thanks for all advice. Okie

jd

I think the segway tours might be a "yawn". We were there is Dec. with two 12 yr. olds, and there is no way they would do the segway tour-especially having to wear helmets.Sea World was closed for renovations when we were there; will it be open in June?

Drury Suites is a good place to stay with kids.

lisatravels

I can't answer your question regarding public transportation to Sea World but I can tell you that is the only time that you would need a car. A taxi from the airport will cost you less than $20. The main tourist attractions in San Antonio will either be in walking distance from your hotel or easily accessible by the tourist-friendly trolley system. If you end up renting a car you'll probably only need it for Sea World unless you're planning to see other sites outside the down town area such as the missions.

Gretchen

San Antonio outside the Riverwalk is very spread out. Car rentals in SA are cheap. Bid on Priceline.

okieinkauai

Thanks everyone...sounds like we might as well go ahead and rent the car and then we can venture out to surrounding areas if we like.
Gretchen-in your experience, has it been cheaper to get a car on Priceline or book air and car together thus qualifying for the discounts often offered when booking those together? Thanks!

travelina

There is no trolley that will take you all the way to Sea World! Rent a car as most hotels have free parking. Hopefully your hotel has a nice swimming pool as June in San Antonio is hot and humid! I know Seaworld has a nice water park/wave pool included in the admission so bring your suits to cool off...

Tess

We took a taxi from our Riverwalk hotel to Seaworld last summer and it was fairly cheap--MUCH less expensive than paying for a rental car AND parking it in hotel lots. An option might be to rent a car for only a day or two--you honestly won't need one for most of your stay. As another poster mentioned, the trolley system gets you where you need to go, plus taxis are plentiful and not too expensive. We were in San Antonio twice last year and didn't rent a car either time.

We have teens 17 and 14 years old and they were disappointed that we didn't have time for the Segway tour on our December trip. The helmet thing shouldn't be a problem since their friends aren't there to see them We also did a ghost tour by the Alamo one night--totally cheesy and pretty fun.

AnnMarie_C

Sea World is an easy drive from downtown but definitely rent a car. There's a great BBQ place not far from Sea World if you have the time / energy when you leave, Rudy's BBQ.

http://www.rudys.com/index.html

Go to the "locations" page and scroll to the bottom for the Sea World location. I'm not a big BBQ fan but I love Rudy's. It is VERY casual--picnic tables and butcher paper for plates.

On previous posts regarding the Segway tour I read only positive feedback. If I can find the link I'll post it.

AnnMarie_C

Here is the link...

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...1&tid=34764192

Gretchen

I have never had to do a combo. Unless it is rodeo week-end or some other very BIG thing, I am pretty sure separate rentals will be good.

richbutnot

Our kids were 16 and 13 (boy and girl) when we took the Segway tour in December and they said it was the best thing they've ever done, helmets and all. To put that in perspective, we've been horseback riding in Zion and Garden of the Gods, Rafting on the Colorado and Pigeon Rivers, Whale Watching in the San Juan Islands, jeep touring in Monument Valley, and more. And my wife and I agree. Anyone who thinks it would be a "yawn" has obviously not ridden them. They were a BLAST!!!

jd

Looks like I'll have to give the Segway tour a try sometime, especially if it is better than rafting the colorado or horseback riding in Zion. They seemed to move so slow-it just didn't seem like that much fun.

kelliebellie

If you have a car, you can get out to the caverns and the drive through animal park. I think the kids would enjoy the caves, I did, and in the animal park they let you feed the animals from the car. It was really fun. A zebra ate our whole bag of food including the bag. I think there is a coupon on their website for buy one bag of food, get one free.

missypie

If you want to see the missions, you should have a car.

moldyhotelsaregross

The Segway tour is certainly worth doing. I did it in September.