San Antonio, Texas

Famous for its expansive history from the Alamo to its River Walk, San Antonio, Tex. has been a top tourist destination for decades. Not only does San Antonio have many historical destinations but it also has its fair share of other popular tourist spots such as museums, its Botanical Garden and the Tower of the Americas as well. So, let’s take a trip to the heartland of Texas to see all that the Alamo City has to offer.

History of San Antoni
Native Americans initially lived on the San Pedro Springs area which now is known as the San Antonio River. In 1691 though, the city got its name from a group of Spanish explorers and missionaries that found it on June 13th during the feast of St. Anthony, thus naming the area San Antonio. However, the founding of the city itself wasn’t found until 1718 by Father Antonio de San Buenaventura y Olivares who would create the Mission San Antonio de Valero, one of the very first Spanish settlements found in the Americas. 

In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s steps were taken that fixed the problematic flooding of the San Antonio River by building structures that prevented problems in the case of severe rainstorms. After these plans were implemented, many people in the surrounding area realized the great potential economically to develop along this river bank.

In 1836, the battle of the Alamo ignited where 189 defenders including James Bowie, Colonel William B. Travis and Davy Crocket defended the mission against an overwhelming 4,000 Mexican troops for 13 days with Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna leading them. It was during this long bloody battle that the famous quote, “Remember the Alamo” was uttered. Present day, the Alamo symbolizes historic resistance, which is why it is so important to Texans today. 
  
Today in San Antoni
The population in San Antonio has almost doubled in the last 35 years to 1,296,682 people, but unlike other cities nearby, there is not a surplus of independent urban cities surrounding it. 

San Antonio’s economy has four main industries including financial services, health care, national defense and tourism. The South Texas Medical Center has become the largest medical research and medical provider in South Texas and is a $14 billion biomedical industry that employs 27,000 people with a budget of $2.8 billion. Not only that, but San Antonio is the only city across the country that has three Level I Trauma Centers including 2 military and 1 civilian. San Antonio is also home to some of the largest military bases in addition to military training facilities. It employs over 89,000 and produces $5.2 billion to impact the city’s economy annually.

Twenty million tourists travel to San Antonio yearly and the San Antonio Convention Center by itself takes part in more than 300 events and has 750,000 delegates from around the world.

Within San Antonio there are three freeways, Interstates 35 and 37 as well as U.S. Highway 90/Interstate 10. Sixteen districts are located downtown including but not limited to the Historic Civic District, La Villita and the Central Business District. 
 
Here to there:
The San Antonio International Airport is found in north central San Antonio and it contains two terminals with 15 airlines including but not limited to Delta, American and Northwest serving at least 35 destinations. The airport is only eight miles away from downtown. There are nine rental car agencies and there is a large bus and trolley system with 78 bus routes and four trolley routes. Bicycling is used in San Antonio and is indicated by specific bike lanes on some streets but not all. It is said that San Antonio is not one of the more bicycle friendly areas in the country though.
 
Top Attractions:
 When traveling to San Antonio, the top attraction with more than 2.5 million visitors is the Alamo. With over 300 years of history, this 4.2-acre complex showcases the history of the men that fought in the famous. Featured at the Alamo are three buildings that consist of a shrine, long barrack museum and a gift museum in addition to the gorgeous Alamo Gardens. When at the Alamo, take a look at the original cannons used in the fight, artifacts that belong to the original heroes and view a 17-minute film that was created by the History Channel.

Next on the list to see is the Buckhorn Saloon and Museum. In 1881, a lone man named Albert Friedrich opened his own business known as Albert’s Buckhorn Saloon where he persuaded patrons to bring in their deer antlers for shots of whiskey. From that point forward, Friedrich created one of the most unique experiences in all of San Antonio by expanding his business to a saloon and a museum that now showcases many bizarre exhibits from the hall of fins and feathers to the Wax Museum of Texas History. Within the museum there also is a bar, café and “the world’s oddest store.”

Another popular attraction in San Antonio is the Tower of the Americas. Having been built in honor of the city’s 1968 World’s Fair celebrating the 250th anniversary of the city, the Tower of the America’s has the largest view of the city. However, it is not only an observation deck. From the very top there is a revolving diner and bar for people to enjoy while viewing the spectacular views of the city. In addition, the facility has been upgraded and now contains a 4-d multi-sensory theater, a ground level café and a retail shop.

One of the most highly regarded attractions in San Antonio is its botanical garden. This garden, which encompasses 33 acres in the downtown area, was initially a limestone quarry but due to droughts and other such problems it was turned into a vast Botanical Garden with hundreds of flowers and birds. It has eight different gardens; in addition group travelers will find Water Saver Lane, a neighborhood of several miniature cottages with gorgeous gardens with the sole purpose to influence homeowners to create water conservative landscapes. Texas Native Trail is full of plants that are native to Texas and the Lucile Halsell Conservatory contains plants that range from desert to rainforests and are housed in several glass buildings that have been tucked into the earth. If you are a flower lover or are interested in nature, you can’t miss the San Antonio Botanical Garden.

The final attraction is the beautiful River Walk, which consists of several shops for both the high spender or for the more conservative shopper in addition to various restaurants of local flavors as well as chains. Another prime feature of the River Walk is to go on a 40-minute cruise, a charter featuring dinner and cocktails or take the river taxis to get from place to place.
 
By Simon Mounsey

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Courtesy of leisuregrouptravel.com