ginger50

My friend has had to cancel, so I am going to be in San Antonio, staying at a hotel on the Riverwalk, for 2.5 days next week. I have no idea other than the Alamo and strolling the riverwalk about what to do in San Antonio, so I would be grateful for any suggestions.

I will not have a car, but could easily rent one for a day if there is anything I should see. I enjoy kitchy types of things.."Worlds biggest" "largest" etc.

Also, how to get to and from the airport? Taxi, shuttle, public transportation?

Thanks.

Ginger

riccar79

Ginger ~~ Hubby and I spent 4 days there last year, right about this time, on a 2 week road trip. I would look into shuttles from the airport to your hotel.

As far as ideas of spending time, we were told by all who have been there before, to go to The Mercado (Mexican Market) and we were not disappointed. It's just outside of downtown and used free public transportation. San Antonio has a free bussing system - there is a tourist center right across the street from the Alamo, where we learned more about it. We ate at Mi Tierra (also highly recommended by friends) for traditional Mexican food - modest in price, delicious, and oh, is it ever decorated and sparkly, for lack of a better word. Like an authentic Mexican celebration. They have a huge bakery within the restaurant. I would not hesitate to dine there alone. Then there's the huge Market Square to walk around -- some very nice stores and also like a Mexican flea market. We brought back a few beautiful small serving bowls.

http://www.sanantonio.gov/marketsquare/default.aspx

We also visited Brackenridge Park, right by the zoo. There's a Japanese Garden and tea house (tea house was closed & under construction when we were there). The gardens were beautiful to walk through, koi pond, waterfall as well. If interested, would have to inquire about transportation out to the zoo area.

http://www.sanantonio.gov/parksandre..._japanese.aspx

Other than that , spent a lot of time walking the city - it's very pretty and clean. Wish we had planned on more days there - we did 3,500 miles in 2 weeks and had a ball. Enjoy your trip !!

Michael

There is a string of missions a few miles south of San Antonio which, in my mind, were more interesting than the Alamo. There is also a historic district with Victorian houses.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...ith/4516083537

ginger50

Thanks for the ideas. Do you know if the missions are accessable by public transport?

Michael

I can't say. We had a car. They are within 20 miles of San Antonio.

MP07950

I was in San Antonio in September but since it was for work, didn't have a lot of free time. There's a tourism board right across the street from the Alamo (where you can buy the bus tickets)and a tourmobile leaving from there that makes the rounds of the big attractions, including a number of the missions that are outside of town. My recollection was that with one of the tickets, you could get on and off the bus at different stops. One of my favorite things on the trip was viewing the really interesting artwork at the main library (although it's not in a really great area).

Seamus

ginger - if you like kitschy you'll love the Mexican market / El Mercado. While many locals cringe at the thought of Mi Tierra as good Mexican food, it is not uncommon to see recommendations from tourists who don't know any better.

As to transport - from the airport you can shuttle or taxi. There is a bus that runs every 30 minutes but unless you are watching every penny, do a shuttle. Once downtown there is a free trolley that circulates around town. The mission trail is not easy to do on public transport, though there are organized tours. Have a look at http://www.visitsanantonio.com

P_M

Since you won't have a car you might look into the hop on, hop off trolley tours as MP mentions above. They stop at the missions and other major sites. I live in Austin but I recently did the trolley tour for the first time and it was fun. Don't miss the boat ride on the river. I think you will easily fill up your 2.5 days.

sarge56

Seamus- c'mon. If you're going to dig on the dining rec, at least give her the names of some alternative places you know that DO sell great food. (PS good to "see you"!)

P_M

Seamus, what was the name of that place we went? That food was great.

Seamus

Oh, OK sarge, if you insist. And you are right, P_M, the food was almost as good as the company. Both these places are close to downtown.
The first GTG was at Liberty Bar, which has moved to the King William neighborhood and is now in a very cool location (a former convent) at 1111 South Alamo. Eclectic menu with lots of local/regional dishes, everything very good. www.liberty-bar.com/
The most recent GTG we met at Rosario's, which is only a few blocks away at 910 South Alamo, corner of S St Mary's. Some of the best TexMex in town. Do not miss the chocolate flan for dessert; local gossip is that when Martha Stewart visited she took two of them back to her hotel. www.rosariossa.com/
Both places have very reasonable prices especially given the quality of the offerings.

ginger50

Thanks for the tips, especially the recommendation for Rosario's. It was very, very good. Sadly, I'm allergic to eggs and had to skip the flan, but it looked like I was the only one in the whole place that didn't order it.

I did end up at Mi Tierra since I had to kill the afternoon before going to the airport and hadn't been to the Mercado yet. I had their lunch special and it was fine, not bad, not special. The sparkly interior was fun. Since I live near Mexicantown in Detroit, the bakeries here make the one at Mi Tierra look like the gringo bakery that it is, but it sure was busy!! And on a Monday, too.

I ended up renting a car, since I wanted to go to Fredricksburg (which I could have missed, not sure what the fuss is all about), and also to the outlet mall about an hour out of SA, as it has a bunch of my favorite stores such as Williams Sonoma/Restoration Hardward/Soma that are not available anywhere in Michigan. That was worthwhile for me

With the rental car ($11 per day/Priceline) I was able to drive to the missions and enjoyed that as well.

All in all, a fun trip.

P_M

Thanks for the report ginger, I'm glad you enjoyed your trip.