San Antonio

[Linda in MO]

We will be going to San Antonio in June and I need advice on where we should stay, what we should do, and where we should eat? We know that we will go to the Alamo (of course ;) ), Sea World, the River Walk area...not sure what else. And what's the best and cheapest way to book a hotel room? Is expedia.com a good place to use? Help!! You guys were a great help to me when I went to Chicago and NYC, so I hope someone can help me plan this trip also. Thanks!

[aggie94]

A few years ago, we used Priceline to book a room in San Antonio and ended up getting the Hyatt Regency on the Riverwalk for $60/night. You just have to limit your area to "Downtown-Riverwalk" and your hotel level to 4-star, but you should be able to get a great deal that way.

Have fun - I love San Antonio!

[Linda in MO]

Whoa! That's a good deal! I went to priceline and that hotel was over $194/night! Did you use their "name your own price" option? What are the tricks to getting a great deal like you got? thanks

[Hoodone]

I'm only familiar with the river walk. If you can stay somewhere like the Menger Hotel, that would be your best bet. Try their website to see if they have any deals. The restaurants along the river walk cater to tourists, but there are some nice places. It is quite pleasant to sit along the river eating Mexican food and having a margarita. There are plenty of cute shops along there as well. The little boat ride is fun in a touristy sort of way.

There are other missions you can visit in addition to the Alamo. There is an interesting cave nearby called Natural Bridge Caverns if you're into that sort of thing (as the geologist in me would be!). New Braunfels is nearby and cute for a day trip. Actually, go to Gruene (pronounced "green") as it is more quaint than New Braunfels itself. There is interesting German heritage in these parts. Nearby Fredericksburg is also quite interesting to visit if you can travel a bit further afield. I would say that is the B&B headquarters of Texas. Hope some of that helps.

[sneezles]

Linda,
Are you driving or at least renting a car? I'd stay on the Riverwalk, there are a few Marriots located along the river that are not as high priced as the Hyatt.

Places to eat:

Mi Tierra, in the Market, best Mexican food in town but be prepared to wait even though the place is huge.

La Fonda, has a few locations but we prefer the one on Broadway, also excellent food.

Buckhorn Saloon and Museum (http://www.buckhornmuseum.com/), located downtown, we went for the beer and the museum so I don't know how good the food is but it's a fun place to visit.

Places to visit:

Mission Trail (http://www.sanantoniocvb.com/visitors/missions.asp) covers just about all the missions downtown.

Aztec on the River (http://www.aztecontheriver.com/) is new since we were last there but it sounds wonderful!

Enchanted Springs Ranch (http://www.enchantedspringsranch.com/) gives you a taste of old Texas. And not too far from San Antonio plus it's reasonably priced for admission.

La Villita (http://www.lavillita.com/), shops and artists galleries.

El Mercado (http://www.marketsquaresa.com/?res=1280&ver=true), a bit like being in Mexico.

[MNGirlTX]

My sister and I enjoyed Schilo's Deli so much that we ate there twice in the 2 days we were in San Antonio. They serve German food. The homemade root beer was fabulous and the apple struedel was even better.

[aggie94]

Whoa! That's a good deal! I went to priceline and that hotel was over $194/night! Did you use their "name your own price" option? What are the tricks to getting a great deal like you got? thanks

Yes, you have to use the "bidding" option. Bidding for Travel (http://p070.ezboard.com/bpricelineandexpediabidding) has some good forums that will show successful bids that other people have recently won, so that will usually give you a good idea of what $ amount you can bid and win, and what hotels are typically going at those prices.

The two Marriotts on the Riverwalk are actually running even more than the Hyatt Regency in terms of rates right now, but there are some Courtyard/Residence Inn properties nearby that are more affordable. I still suggest going the Priceline route, though, as you can easily get a 4-star hotel on the Riverwalk for a steal.

[erin elizabeth]

My parents just went to San Antonio a few months ago. I gave them all the suggestions I found here by doing a search for titles with San Antonio. They stayed at a La Quinta that was supposedly within walking distance of the Riverwalk--technically it was and there was also a city shuttle that took them where they wanted to go, but they said they should have stayed closer. I guess there was another La Quinta that was nearer the Riverwalk. They got the best deal on a hotel through a travel agent, actually, but they were really late in making their plans.

One of the things they really liked--they took the shuttle to the end of the line, rented bikes, and biked the trail between four old missions.

They had a good time--hope you do, too.

[Linda in MO]

Thanks Eva, Hoodone, Susan, MNGirlTX, and Erin! I really appreciate the time everyone took to respond to my questions!! :)

I would love to use priceline, but after doing some research I'm a little nervous. Mainly because we're traveling w/our 2 kids and it looks like you're not guaranteed a room w/2 beds. And I'm also nervous not knowing what hotel it is until after you pay for it. Plus no refunds. I would probably use it if we were just traveling as a couple, but it just seems a little risky for a family of 4.

I'm thinking of booking a room at Drury Plaza Hotel on the River Walk which is brand new. I can get a rate of $120/night (plus $15/night parking) which doesn't sound too bad to me. It seems like a great location and the pictures look nice on the internet. And I've read good reviews. Plus they have a free breakfast buffet, free popcorn/soda in the lobby and free happy hour drinks/snacks. :D Refrigerators and microwaves in the rooms and a rooftop pool/2 whirlpools. What do you guys think?
http://www.druryhotels.com/properties/Alamo.cfm#

Susan, we will be driving there. We'll drive to Dallas first and stay one night and then on to San Antonio. My husband also wants to drive down to Corpus Christi one day, but most of our time will be spent in SA.

I have marked Schilo's Deli, Mi Tierra, and La Fonda in my travel guide as places to eat. Also, we'll go to Aztec on the River, Buckhorn Saloon and Museum, El Mercado, and visit the Mission Trails.

Anyone else have any recommendations? :)

[sneezles]

Linda,
The Drury looks fantastic and it's a great location! How cool they converted the old bank to a hotel! If you stay there please let me know how you liked it. DS#3 goes to school in SA so we go there a couple of times a year but prefer to stay down on the river rather than out where he lives.:p

[linsleyd]

I have stayed at Drury's before and they are great with kids and without. Great hotels!

It's been years since I've been SA but I do remember eating at MiTerria, great food!

[MNGirlTX]

Linda - what area of Dallas are you going to stay in? There is a place in "old downtown Carrollton" (which is a northern suburb of Dallas) called Babe's Chicken that is a fun, yummy place to eat. The menu is easy - there are 6 kinds of meat: fried chicken, smoked chicken, chicken fingers, chicken fried steak, fried catfish, and pot roast. They serve the sides family style and refill them (the sides only) as often as you want. You get a salad, green beans, creamed corn, mashed potatoes, gravy, and biscuits. All for about $10 per person. It's very casual, a great place to take kids. The waitstaff usually does the chicken dance at least once while you're in dining.

Lori

[EmilyD]

my husband and I stayed there for an anniversary trip (from Austin area) and enjoyed it so much we booked it for four nights last year when his sister married. Both times outr rooms were really nice (I think we had suites each time). The hot tub is on the roof, by the pool, which makes for a neat view. There's a small exercise room, though not the best I've seen in a hotel. Best part is the breakfast buffet and evening happy hour. Your kids will love the popcorn and, if you're so inclined, the drinks for grownups are nice too! When I saw your thread asking for advice I was about to come on here and recommend them. The hotel is on the Riverwalk too so you can step right out into the thick of it. But it's also on a quiet enough stretch that should you have a room facing that way you won't be hearing margarita-fueled laughter til the wee hours. ;)

We've paid $20 for parking at downtown S.A. hotels before too so the price isn't bad for that either (though we thought it was a tight fit for our big SUV it was big enough).

Check out the website http://sasave.com/ -- you might find some good deals there. We got a code from that site that saved us even more on the Drury when we stayed there.

Have fun!

[Linda in MO]

Yippeee! I just made my reservations at the Drury Plaza Hotel! :D

Susan, I will give a full report of the hotel/vacation when I get back. I used to live in San Antonio when I was a kid in the late 70's, but something tells me it's changed a bit since then. ;)

linsley and Emily, I'm glad to hear that Drury hotels are good! I ordered a SA travel guide that had a s.a.v.e. pamphlet in it and that's how I got the hotel room for $120. It has a bunch of other coupons in it as well. I'm finallly starting to get excited about the vacation now that I got out hotel reservations out of the way!

Lori, I'm not sure where we're going to stay in Dallas yet. My husband mentioned maybe the southern part of Dallas? That restaurant sounds neat though.

Now, more about food ;) ...I know I definitely want to eat at Mi Tierra but what should I order? Any more restaurant recommendations? Any restaurants I should avoid?

Has anyone been to the Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch? Is it worth going to?
http://wildliferanchtexas.com/home.html

Thanks again everyone!!