I am traveling to the west in Oct. looking for a place to relocate to.

What areas around San Antonio are the safest, prettiest, booming areas and the "must see" parts?

Also, can you suggest any nice hotels that are reasonable in the area?

Thanks!

Not sure whether you are asking about neighborhoods in San Antonio, the sprawl that has arisen arouund it, or nearby towns. In SA, the "neighborhoods to see" are King William and Monte Vista for the architecture. Downtown SA is quite pleasant in a tourist kind of way - more authentically historic than Disneyfied, but not all that residential (though that is changing). There are some nice rsidential neighborhoods if that is what you seek - Alamo Height, Olmos park, some of Terrell Hills probably the nicest. Jefferson has some neat historic homes but is surrounded by some pretty seedy stuff. The boomlets on the edge are pretty much cookie cutter McMansions, more or less all variations on the same couple themes - brick, brick and stucco, stucco and stone, many using that godawful "snout house" design with the garage door a major part of the facade - that you can see in any of dozens of places. Not that any of them are flat out ugly or uncomfortable to live in, just that they are typically piled together so densely that the development exceeds the ability of the infrsatructure to keep pace, yielding lots of clogged traffic.
Now as for hotels, you have some great choices. Do you want to be downtown or out in the Hill Country?

Thanks for the reply. I would rather look at the outskirts than in the city.

I am not really sure what Hill Country is but I would prefer to be at a higher elevation so hopefully it would be cooler??? (maybe????

We are not sure what part would be better for us to find jobs ( Pharmacists) but we just want a safe area that is pretty and has some shopping.We don't have kids so it is not an issue.

I appreciate your time. I am lost in trying to plan this trip.

Thanks

Pharmacists are in demand everywhere and SA is no exception. Whether you want something in retail or a more clinical position you should have little problem. The South Texas Medical Center is in NW SA, lots of academic and hospital positions.
The Hill Country begins around the NW edge of SA and is an area seeing lots of sevelopment. IH-10 and state highway 281 are the main roads. It is a bit cooler than in town, but does still get warm. If you are interested in a scenic location with a smaller population, Marble Falls has always seemed a nice place. Not exactly commuting distance to SA, but nice. A closer to SA places that was previously sort of a weekend getaway but turning into a bedroom community is Boerne.

I'd look around booming Boerne or perhaps Bulverde. Helotes is a hot spot (figuratively speaking, that is) as well, and all are a decent commute into San Antonio for better restaurants etc.

Truly, it's not a heck of a lot cooler out of town than it is in. Our car thermometer dropped on the way home from shopping in Alamo Heights yesterday...it said 106 there (I think the pavement influences that thermometer) and 103 by the time we got to our home in the beginning of the hills, a half hour out of town. A veritable cold front!

Where are you moving from?

OO - had to make a Central Market run, huh?

Yup Seamus...it was a Hatch burgers and Hatch scones run. $135 later, we were on our way home!

You want to be looking in the north central area. The traffic outside the 1604 loop gets very bad, so we ended up just inside, the home values are better though if you go farther out.

Shavano Park, Deerfield, Inwood, Hill Country Village are all in that area and in good school districts (NSISD or NEISD).

It really depends on where you are working and how far you're willing to commute.

I'm in Ohio now and I can't stand it. I hate the cold but don't want to be lliving in a oven either! To me Hawaii is the perfect climate.

I am going to copy all these suggestions so I have them when I get there.

We are going to be traveling out west for a month to look around. I hope to find the perfect spot.

Does anyone have any suggestions on where to stay as far as hotels? I am not looking for anything great, just a safe place with a pool that is reasonable.
Thanks!

PS I only used Hawaii as a baseline so eveyone would know what I like and maybe offer suggestions on locations based on that. I didn't want to offend anyone

I shouldn't be saying this because we have far too many people moving here already but have you considered the Austin area? Any place in Texas will feel like an oven in the summer, just an unfortunate fact of life but we do have mild winters here. To be in the middle of the action, central Austin is a good spot. If you want more house for your money there is Buda and Kyle just south of Austin and also Round Rock and Pflugerville both north of Austin. We are a university city so there is always alot of things going on. In my opinion, it is the best place to live in Texas.

Thanks Ilovetulips! I appreciate all those ideas. I wrote down all the names and will make sure I stop by those towns when I get there in Oct.

You've been a big help

My wife and I just moved from New Braunfels, TX (about 35 miles N of SA and about 50 miles south of Austin) several weeks ago to the DC area and LOVED it.

While NB is considered to be part of the I-35 corridor and in many ways considered to be a commuter town for those living in SA or Austin, it's a fantastic small town that makes it easy to get to just about everywhere.

While you're there you should check out the sleepy town of Gruene (not more than 2 miles from I35). Visit Gruene Hall (oldest dance hall in TX) and get a feel for the area, the people and the food. (www.gruenehall.com)

Speaking of food (did I say I loved living in TX?) you must eat at the Salt Lick (http://www.saltlickbbq.com) for some of the best BBQ in the southwest. A little out of the way to get to, but well worth it. Print out a map, cuz it's located in the sleepy little town of Driftwood, TX. Oh yeah, and take some of your best beer/wine with you, as the town is located in a dry county.

As far as SA hotels to stay in, anything is fine as long as you're in NW/NE/Central (Downtown). I hope this helps.

Good luck

Also suggest Boerne. We have friends who have a "ranchette" there and they absolutely love it. This is a military couple who have lived all around the world and chose TX. But, the last time we were there...100+++ and dry as a bone.

A friend of mine lives in Cordillera Ranch off Highway 46 in Boerne. It's beautiful but a bit too far from the things we like to do in San Antonio.

http://www.cordilleraranch.com/

rncheryl, not much has changed since you were last here.

It rained the other day but only 60% of the city benefited. Even the xeriscape plants look like they're choking. If you can stand the heat it's a great place to live. Summer has always been my least favorite season and it's summer at least 6 months of the year here--I really cannot wait to move.

Believe it or not, AnnMarie, though I am such a proponent of SA I totally understand. I spent a couple days in Maine earlier this week and the max temp daytime was in the 80"s with overnights in the 50's and it felt like Nirvana. It has been particularly nasty the last couple summers her ein SA, worse than I recall in the past. I suspect that the changing culture as the city grows also has an effect - more time stuck in traffic even without the rampant construction projects all over town, more cookie cutter strip mall franchise shopping and less of the unique small town feel that was always SA's saving grace. As SA morphs into yet another overdeveloped, poorly planned city emphasizing spin over substance (animal frescoes along the highway when most streets in town don't even have curbs???) it is losing its appeal..sigh. Thank heavens there are more good restaurants opening all the time!

lol, Seamus. Thankfully, the restaurant scene has improved ten-fold since we moved here in '89! Not to mention the shopping!!

I know I sound like a broken record this time of year, the heat really wears me out. Last month I spent a week in Aspen--highs in the 80's, lows in the upper 40's; I was in heaven. But my reason for wanting to move extends beyond the heat--I miss my family... make that some of my family. ;-) When things go wrong, people get sick or die it's been a challenge being so far away. Having said that, I wouldn't trade our time here for all the tea in China. Heat aside, we have loved living here.

Glad you enjoyed a great escape to Maine!

It's called Austin

very cute, pumpy!