Weekend Getaway to San Antonio
A few weekends ago my husband and I had the opportunity to get away….by ourselves. We’ve had a lot of “company” lately, which I don’t mind, but it was nice to take some time, go away and be alone.
We only had a three-day weekend and didn’t want to spend more time driving than resting so we chose San Antonio. It’s about four hours from our home and a very popular vacation spot, but we’d never been. To our surprise, there’s so much to do!
If you have children and love theme parks you can visit Six Flags San Antonio or Sea World. If you love being outdoors, floating down the San Marcos or Brazos Rivers is a very popular activity. Since our children weren’t with us and the rivers were “closed” because we’ve had so much rain, we decided to spend our time relaxing and enjoying the Riverwalk.
On our trip down we spent several hours at the outlet malls in San Marcos. Ironically, I bought nothing, my husband however, found some great deals!
Our first evening was spent walking around town deciding what we might want to do. We narrowed it down to sleeping in, breakfast at Shipley Do-Nuts, a river boat ride, lunch at Schilo’s Delicatessen, visit to the Alamo and dinner on the Riverwalk. Where to eat is always an important “event” on our vacations. It’s a good thing we walked everywhere, we needed to burn some calories.
My favorite part of the day was the boat ride down the San Antonio River. Pick-up locations are scattered along the Riverwalk and round trip tours are only about $8. That’s a great deal!
Water taxis are also available but they are a little more expensive.
Our guide/boat driver was very knowledgeable about the local history and architecture. He had a great sense of humor, too.
San Antonio is a beautiful city.
I loved all the tall trees, lush greenery and blooming flowers!
Next stop, lunch! (You knew there had to be food pictures at some point!) We opted for (the famous) Split Pea Soup and sandwiches at Schilo’s Delicatessen. It’s a great little German Deli located in the heart of downtown. Serving authentic German food since 1917, it’s one of the oldest continually operated restaurants in Texas! How cool is that?
My husband never passes up the opportunity for a good Reuben Sandwich and homemade Root Beer. It’s pretty reasonably priced but get there early, they close at 8 pm.
A trip to San Antonio wouldn’t be complete without visiting the Alamo! I’m not sure you can even officially call yourself a “Texan” unless you’ve visited. It really is something. The biggest surprise for us was the fact that it literally sits in the middle of downtown, surrounded by tall building and a bustling city. Although, the closest tall building is a hotel, limited in height so as NOT to cast a shadow on the Alamo. We Texans take very seriously the sacrifices made for our independence!
More lush green plants…
Beautiful flowers…
And wildlife! At first we weren’t sure this guy was real. He was standing still as a statue, waiting to catch a lizard. We were only sure when he started to move forward as if in slow motion.
I think San Antonio may have more Mexican restaurants than any city I’ve ever visited! Many are located right along the Riverwalk with outdoor dinning. We chose Casa Rio. Casa Rio was the first San Antonio business to open its doors to the River and take advantage of the River’s setting. Canoes, gondolas, and paddle boats, evolving into tour and dinner boats, began here and helped create the Riverwalk of today. (All pictures of Casa Rio are courtesy of their website…I was so busy enjoying the food, I forgot to take any.)
We had planned to sit outside but as we were waiting for a table it started to rain….downpour actually!
We sat in the Veranda room, right next to the window where it was nice and dry.
It was one of the best “Mexican” places I’ve been….and I’ve been to A LOT! The prices are reasonable and another “claim to fame” is their Chili Con Carne. It’s the BEST IN TEXAS – Tender chunks of beef and pork simmered in spices like the dish popularized by the Chili Queens and served in the plazas of San Antonio in the 1800s.
We loved it so much we debated having lunch there the next day before leaving. Instead, we slept in had a late breakfast and headed home.
One more stop at Buc-ee’s for beef jerky, trail mix and bottled Cokes on our way and our trip was complete!