Tag: San Antonio

Posted in: Campground Review, Exploring Texas, Hiking, Sightseeing, YouTube Video Link

KOA San Antonio: Campground Review

Written by tepetravels 1 Comment on KOA San Antonio: Campground Review

For our stay in San Antonio, we stayed at the KOA San Antonio/Alamo. It was in a more of an industrial/commercial area of town, but it was conveniently located to downtown San Antonio.

The campground had RV sites (pull through and back in), cabins to rent, and tent sites. The campground is located in a flood plain, although I think it would take a lot of rain to reach the RV sites. It also backed up to a bike/walking trail. There was also a park that was within walking distance.

KOA San Antonio/Alamo allowed mail delivery, which was really nice. The mail room was next to the laundry room and office. The office had a nice store, with snacks, drinks, postcards ($0.25 each, the cheapest we found), and miscellaneous stuff. The office also sold ice for $2.70/10 lb. bag, firewood $7/bundle, and propane for $3.25/gallon (I was unaware that the “regular” sized 20 lb propane tank holds 4.6 gallons). The bathrooms and showers were open and looked nice. Laundry was $2/wash load, $1.5/dryer load.

The KOA offered cornhole (bag toss), a pool (not heated and closed for repairs for half of our stay), a playground and gaga ball court, and a fishing pond. The pond was catch and release and did not require a license. The office sold bait. You could also rent bikes and peddle bikes. The boys reported that the peddle bikes were much harder to use, as it was a single gear and the bikes were heavy.

Unlike the other KOA campgrounds we have stayed in, there were no planned activities due to Covid. The other KOA’S had indoor (which we did not do) and outdoor activities, and take and go crafts.

There was breakfast for sale 7-11am. When we were first there, it was limited to pancakes (unlimited for $3.99, but you start with two and go back for more). Halfway during our stay, the menu changed to offer more items. We loved the breakfast tacos (sausage, potato, egg, and cheese in a soft taco/burrito). In the office, you could place an order for pizza for order (Brother’s Pizza). It is made in the office. At home, Brother’s Pizza is connected to a gas station, so we were a little hesitant to try it. However, we did give in one night and gave it a try. It was ok pizza, not the best but not bad either. The crust was a little softer than I would normally like, but it was nice to have the option when we didn’t want to cook or go out.

The campground also hosted a Christmas Eve tamale dinner for free for the campers. It was held in the large barn (which had been closed for social distancing). Tables were set social distance apart, staff wore masks and spaced people apart while entering the building. Each person got a container with 2 tamales, beans, rice, and the option of water or tea to drink. It was a really nice gesture and also nice to partake in a Texas Christmas tradition.

The front of the campground was gated and you needed a code to get in at night, but anyone could walk in the back from the bike trail. There was a bike stolen while we were there (not ours), so I would lock up your gear. There was some train/road/air noise, which I did notice at night.

It was in a convenient location to San Antonio and about a little over an hour from Austin. If we were in the area, I think we would stay here again.

Video: KOA San Antonio/Alamo Campground Walk Through

SUMMARY OF CAMPGROUND:

Our rating: 3.5-4 out of 5 hitches

Cell Phone Reception: AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile

Laundry: Yes

Bathrooms/Showers: Yes

RV Sites: Pull Through, Back-in

Pop Up Tents/Gazebos/Outdoor Rugs On-Site: Yes

Amenities: picnic table, fire pit/grill, cable, playground and gaga ball court, dog park

Cabins: Yes

Tent Camping: Yes

Full Hook-ups: Yes. 30/50 Amps

Pool: Yes

WiFi: Yes

Accepts Mail: Yes, no charge when we were there

Food On-Site: Yes, breakfast and pizza

Camp Store: Yes

Fishing: Yes, no license needed

Posted in: Exploring Texas, National Parks, Sightseeing

The Missions of San Antonio, TX

Written by tepetravels

On Christmas Eve day, we decided to explore the San Antonio Missions. We had already explored the Alamo. There are four in the area, at least two of which still had active parishes that we could see.

Although you could, in theory, walk between the missions, it would be a long boring walk. We drove between them as each one had a parking lot.

The buildings themselves were really neat to see. Each Mission was a little different and had their own interesting features. However, our favorite was the San Jose Mission with it’s large grounds.

We started at Mission Concepción. The grounds were open, but the buildings were closed.

Mission San Josè: There was a little library at the Visitor Center. This Mission seemed like it was the largest walled grounds of the ones we saw. Outside of the main walls was a mill. We were able to go inside the church and chapel area. We saw what looked like frescoes on one of the walls and an awesome spiral staircase that looked like it was made of wood!

Mission San Juan:

Mission Espada:

Posted in: Exploring Texas, Sightseeing

Exploring San Antonio, TX: Concrete Plant Ruins and a Japanese Tea Garden

Written by tepetravels 1 Comment on Exploring San Antonio, TX: Concrete Plant Ruins and a Japanese Tea Garden

Those two things don’t sound like they go together, do they? After looking online at RoadsideAmerica and Atlas Obscura, we decided to go back to the Brackenridge Park area.

There were buildings from what remains of a concrete plant. It ran from 1880-1908. The buildings were still there and you could see some equipment if you peer through the railings.

Behind the ruins lay what used to be the limestone quarry. The city turned the quarry into a Japanese Tea Garden. It was amazing. There were koi, bridges, and a waterfall. There was a cafe as well, although it was not open when we were there. I would love to have been able to sit there and read, it was beautiful and peaceful (minus the people).

After the garden was completed, there was a caretaker for many years. The city then asked Mr. Jingu and his family to live there and maintain it. They lived there even after Mr. Jingu’s death caring for the garden, until WWII when the family was kicked out of their home due to Japanese fear. The garden was renamed. It wasn’t until 1983, that the city restored the name. Can you imagine living there for generations and then being kicked out of your home?

It’s a gorgeous area with lots of history. I would definitely check it out if you are in San Antonio!

Posted in: Animal Sightings, Exploring Texas, Hiking

Exploring San Antonio, TX: Brackenridge Park

Written by tepetravels

We wanted to find a new place to explore and walk around. After Googling for a little bit, Ben found a park with a 4.5 star rating, Brackenridge Park. It definitely earned its rating! It was a really neat area to walk around with trails, water, picnic areas, and lots of neat bridges and buildings.

It was on the San Antonio river, near the zoo, so parking could be a little busy.

The area had been used as a swimming area in the early 1900’s and there are still several buildings from then, including the Pavilion (which is gorgeous).

It was a really nice day to walk on the trail and around the area. If you are in the San Antonio area, I would definitely check it out!

Posted in: Animal Sightings, Christmas, Exploring Texas, Food, Holidays, Sightseeing, YouTube Video Link

San Antonio River Walk

Written by tepetravels 1 Comment on San Antonio River Walk

We had been looking forward to seeing the San Antonio River Walk for a long time, years in fact. So, of course, one of our first stops in San Antonio was the River Walk.

After driving around to find parking (everything is paid parking, even street parking), we lucked out and found a spot near one of the River Walk bridge entrances.

The River Walk is as neat as everyone says. There were sections of just walking (or running for some people) with plants growing along the walls or decorations in the retaining/bridge walls. Then there was the shopping and restaurant section of the River Walk. The restaurants certainly had great patio views.

Our first trip there was during the day, which was great. But Ben had seen online that the Christmas lights really make it beautiful. So, we went back during a Luminary weekend, which was too pretty. We found a restaurant next to the river to eat dinner (Casa Rio). All the wait staff wore masks, and there were plastic curtains between tables. They also seated customers with a table in between them for spacing. The ducks that occupy the canal are expert beggars at these restaurants. The kids named them water pigeons. While eating it was fun to hear snippets of the boat tour guides speeches as they passed. Ultimately, we got to sit and and enjoy the lights as they came on at dusk.

The restaurants were decked out in lights, there were lights hanging down from the trees and they had luminaries placed along the sidewalk. It looked like open-drink carry was allowed, as we saw several people with (plastic) glasses of wine or even baggies with straws for frozen margaritas.

CAUTION: Most of the sidewalk does not have railings. Be careful while walking along the edge. It would be really easy to fall in. Luckily, we did not.


It was a really neat treat to see the River Walk and so far it has had my favorite Christmas decorations.

Nice job San Antonio!

VIDEO: Walking Down River Walk During Luminaries/Christmas

Posted in: Exploring Texas, Museums & Tours, School, Sightseeing, YouTube Video Link

Remember The Alamo!

Written by tepetravels 2 Comments on Remember The Alamo!

One of Will’s picks to see on this trip was the Alamo. This kid loves history.

It was in the downtown area, not far from the River Walk. We walked between the two quite easily (it was less than 10 minutes, depending on where you were on the River Walk).

It was really neat to see. They did a really nice job with historical information signs and diagrams. There’s a gorgeous, huge, oak tree in the courtyard. (Ben’s favorite thing was the “historical” gift shop.)

Due to Covid, there was a limited amount of people allowed in the church area of the Alamo. Tickets were free, but they were sold out the day we were there. We do plan on going back once we can get tickets.

VIDEO: Walking Around The Alamo

VISITOR NOTE: The postcards in the Alamo gift shop were $1.99 each. The shop across the street and the San Antonio Visitor Center had them for about $0.35/each.

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