Compact and walkable, San Antonio is a wonderful city to enjoy, complete with Spanish architecture, a river walk, and a variety of cultural landmarks to discover. Here’s our recommendations for a few days in Alamo City.
What is Pee Wee Herman’s connection to The Alamo?
In the movie Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure, Pee-Wee is told that his stolen bike is in The Alamo basement, but on our visit here, we discovered that the Alamo has no basement! His beloved two-wheeler is however currently on temporary display inside the Ralston Family Collections Center (behind the historic church).
The bike will find a permanent home in the upcoming Alamo Visitor Center and Museum (opening in Fall 2027). It’s just a fun twist that visitors will discover when visiting one of San Antonio’s iconic buildings, A US National Historic Landmark also listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Ralston Family Collections Center is a newer fixture at The Alamo complex and includes a wealth of historical artifacts curated by private collectors, including musician Phil Collins who was inspired by his love of Disney’s Davy Crockett series. His collected pieces focus on early Texas history and the Texas Revolution.
Stroll by the beautifully detailed façade of San Antonio’s San Fernando Cathedral (the second oldest in the US) on Tuesdays through Sundays (starting at 9 pm) and watch it come to life with a colourful, illuminated history of the city designed by French artist Xavier De Richemont.
The Algerian-born painter is one of the most highly sought-after visual artists in the world, and has created gorgeous video installations in the US, Canada, and Germany — he even designed a video fresco for the King of Morocco in Marrakech!
The Aztec Theater is a historic, ornately designed venue in downtown San Antonio, celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.
Known for its striking Mesoamerican-inspired architecture and lavish interior, it now hosts concerts (including upcoming shows by Descendents and A Flock of Seagulls), comedy shows, and special events while remaining one of the city’s most iconic landmarks.
Originally opened as a silent movie theater, the show-stopping lobby chandelier was installed three years later to entice clientele away from nearby competitor the Majestic Theater.
[A beautiful Wurlitzer organ can be found in the upstairs VIP room]
While a US $2 million redevelopment project reminagined the Aztec as a live entertainment venue, most everything here is original. During a private tour, I also learned that both Grauman’s Chinese Theatre (1927) and the Egyptian Theatre (1922) were designed by the same team.
I had the chance to tour a similar landmark in Boise a few years back. The maintenance and renovation of these majestic theaters is crucial as they’re simply no longer being built.
A 50-minute river cruise through downtown San Antonio while enjoying jazz entertainment? Count us in! Go Rio offers regular river cruising, but on Fridays, you can sip a drink with live music as the boat glides along the water, an excellent way to ring in the weekend.
Their website contains several special upcoming events in addition to daily river shuttles (a one-day or three-day ticket that allows you to hop on and off throughout the Downtown and Museum Reaches at your leisure).
The San Antonio Botanical Garden is located in a serene corner of the city with wide pathways that connect from the Welcome Center through a conservatory, an excellent viewpoint high above the city, and the Texas Native Trail that eventually winds back down to lovely seasonal heritage and Japanese gardens.
With five locations around San Antonio, the ever-popular La Panaderia Latin American bakery chain offers some of the most beautiful baked goods and breakfast dishes in town, the latter served up on artisanal spiral croissants. The Houston Street restaurant is their second (and flagship location); all goods are baked here and sourced to the others (a sixth location is set to open soon).
La Panaderia’s James Beard-nominated La Cochas (pan dulce) are the first Mexican pastries to ever receive acknowledgement (a pink variety supports the National Breast Cancer Foundation).
Boudro’s Texas Bistro – right on Restaurant Row – is the perfect spot for a lazy lunch on the river with cocktails or mocktails in hand. Their Tex-Mex dishes are flavourful and varied enough to cater to most tastes and appetites.
Table-side guacamole and prickly pear margaritas are popular choices; Boudro’s is currently celebrating 40 years in business.
Brasserie Mon Chou Chou is located in the heart of San Antonio’s Pearl District, a hip, vibrant neighborhood filled with warehouses-turned-restaurants, cafes, and boutiques.
[PEI oysters to start a delicious meal]
This stunning French bistro has a warm and romantic interior, with hexagonal black and white floor tiles, low-lit lighting, and tall plants.
A central bar holds court near the entrance, with a wall of international wines off to the side.
Presentation and taste are both top-notch prepared by Alsatian Executive Chef Laurent Rea and his culinary team.
CityPASS
We visited several San Antonio attractions using the CityPASS, an excellent value that offers four visits out of a list of eight, including The Alamo, Witte Museum, San Antonio Museum of Art, Tower of the Americas and Go Rio San Antonio River Cruises. It’s easy to reserve a time via the companion smart phone app, and the pass includes various discounts and upgrades for ticketed users. We’ve previously enjoyed using CityPASS in New York City, Seattle, Chicago, San Francisco and Dallas.
We were hosted by Visit San Antonio for the purpose of this feature. Opinions, as always, remain our own.
