San Antonio/Austin suggestions

[OrlandNole]

Hey, gang.

My (no pics) son and I are going to San Antonio in a couple of weeks as part of our annual Grizzlies NBA road trip. We're flying into Austin (better/cheaper options) early on a Friday morning and flying out Sunday night.

We'll have a rental car and are staying at a hotel on the Riverwalk. So far the only thing planned is the game on Friday night. (my son is in his 20s)

1. Any must do things in either city? (Riverwalk? Alamo? Missions?)
2. What are some good local restaurants - definitely TexMex/BBQ, but also other things.

I've been to both cities a handful of times for work, but never for fun, so any and all suggestions are appreciated. TIA!

 

[millah_22]

I don't think you need to see the Alamo, only remember it.

 

[ping72]

I don't think you need to see the Alamo, only remember it.

Ask for the basement tour.

 

[jasonrann]

Too bad you're not going to New Orleans, got some sweet hookups down there.

 

[Here_4_a_Day]

Hey, gang.

My (no pics) son and I are going to San Antonio in a couple of weeks as part of our annual Grizzlies NBA road trip. We're flying into Austin (better/cheaper options) early on a Friday morning and flying out Sunday night.

We'll have a rental car and are staying at a hotel on the Riverwalk. So far the only thing planned is the game on Friday night. (my son is in his 20s)

1. Any must do things in either city? (Riverwalk? Alamo? Missions?)
2. What are some good local restaurants - definitely TexMex/BBQ, but also other things.

I've been to both cities a handful of times for work, but never for fun, so any and all suggestions are appreciated. TIA!

Don’t know about SA, but Austin is now a defunded, criminal shithole, so if you’re a biden guy, pack plenty of toilet paper and head over!!!

 

[FAUlty Gator]

I don't think you need to see the Alamo, only remember it.

I rented a decent car from there.

 

[BelemNole]

Preorder some brisket from Franklin's in Austin, eat on your drive.

 

[B1GDeal]

Alamo is neat and only takes maybe 30-45 minutes to see depending how fast or interested you are. Riverwalk boat tour is alright and take maybe 30ish minutes. The San Juan and Espada Missions are neat and takes maybe 1 hour each to see. I'd suggest one evening at the Pearl. I've heard the Japanese Garden is nice, but never been. A day trip to Fredericksburg would be fun. A few places to eat: Guenter House, Stout's and II Forno. BBQ is better outside of the city... Lockhart and Austin both have several great spots or Salt Lick in Driftwood.

 

[Hawk_4shur]

Spent a few days in SA and didn't enjoy it at all. Stayed on the Riverwalk but didn't like it. Went to the Alamo - meh.

Austin has to be better than SA.

 

[TJ8869]

BBQ is better outside of the city... Lockhart and Austin both have several great spots or Salt Lick in Driftwood.

It’s been over 25 years since I ate at The Salt
Lick, so I don’t know if the food is still as good. But the one thing I’ll never forget is the aroma of the smoke was heaven on earth.

 

[alaskanseminole]

Well, I live in San Antonio, but I'll let the others who spent a few days here back in the 90s while here on business go first.

 

[NDallasRuss]

Hey, gang.

My (no pics) son and I are going to San Antonio in a couple of weeks as part of our annual Grizzlies NBA road trip. We're flying into Austin (better/cheaper options) early on a Friday morning and flying out Sunday night.

We'll have a rental car and are staying at a hotel on the Riverwalk. So far the only thing planned is the game on Friday night. (my son is in his 20s)

1. Any must do things in either city? (Riverwalk? Alamo? Missions?)
2. What are some good local restaurants - definitely TexMex/BBQ, but also other things.

I've been to both cities a handful of times for work, but never for fun, so any and all suggestions are appreciated. TIA!

I was just in San Antonio for the daughter's spring break last week. Two restaurants on the river that I really liked:
Iron Cactus: https://ironcactus.com/locations/san-antonio-mexican-restaurant/
Ambler: https://www.amblersanantonio.com/

We went to Iron Cactus for dinner - it's my favorite of the riverwalk mexican places, and has really good food and drinks. We went to Ambler for the first time in the middle of the day. We hung out and had drinks and appetizers in mid-afternoon and had a really nice time. The goat cheese brulee was really, really good. It's like a goat cheese mousse with honey drizzled over it, served with pita - so good!

The biggest things to do are the alamo, the riverwalk, and the zoo. If you do the alamo, do the guided tour rather than the self-guided audio tour - I've done both and find the guided tour to have a lot more interesting insights and tidbits. The zoo is good, but there's a lot of construction, so you can't see everything you normally could. For the riverwalk, do the river cruise at night when everything is lit up. https://www.goriocruises.com/?gad_s...v95vZXtlZqe9rry7z9QRroSgAw0FGgegaAsJjEALw_wcB

 

[JustSayOV]

My sister lives in San Antonio (no pics pervs) so we have been to the Riverwalk & The Alamo quite a few times.....I would say if you are going to be close by and have time to kill, go do the Riverwalk/Alamo...otherwise I wouldn't go out of your way just to see it per se.....seems to smell worse and get more trendy/touristy every time we visit. Just my 2 cents....

That said if you got the rodeo bug and no plans Saturday night the Tejas Rodeo in Bulverde (North side of San Antonio) is usually a pretty good time.

https://tejasrodeo.com/

 

[TJ8869]

 

[jawatkins]

San Antonio river walk at night of course. Austin lady bird lake and hit up the food trucks on Rainey street

 

[TheCainer]

Ask for the basement tour.

Is Pee Wee's bicycle still there?

 

[millah_22]

Well, I live in San Antonio, but I'll let the others who spent a few days here back in the 90s while here on business go first.

OP, avoid this guys car wash.

 

[chalupa81]

We did this over Thanksgiving when we stayed there.

Natural Bridge Caverns | Naturally Amazing

There is plenty to discover at Natural Bridge Caverns. Explore two distinct cave systems, conquer the ropes course and zip line, mine for fossils, and more!

naturalbridgecaverns.com

 

[ping72]

Is Pee Wee's bicycle still there?

Was afraid nobody would get the reference!

 

[ericram]

In Austin you can see the bats come out at night from the caves downtown.

 

[OutbackBowl2017]

All I got is this place to eat on the Riverwalk…..

https://www.boudros.com/

We had a great time drinking and checking out all the restaurants and bars along it while there for Hawk bowl games and conferences over the years.

 

[OrlandNole]

Well, I live in San Antonio, but I'll let the others who spent a few days here back in the 90s while here on business go first.

 

[TC Nole OX]

City Market bbq in Luling TX. Whenever I am in Austin or San Antonio, I drive to Luling to go to City Market. I have been going there for over 20 years.