About Downtown

Photo courtesy of City of San Antonio

It's more of a fact than an opinion that if you're looking for an amazing restaurant, hotel, attraction or just about anything else in San Antonio, then you're best bet is to head straight downtown. It has some beautiful architecture, charming shops, fabulous bars and clubs, top notch restaurants an endless number of sites to see!

See & Do

San Antonio has a rich history, and therefore has no shortage of some exciting historic attractions, including the Alamo as well as the Tower of the Americas, which was built for the World's Fair a long time ago. Many of the venues downtown are also historic, including the Bonham, a popular club and many of the hotels, such as the Menger, which is rumored to be haunted. You'll also enjoy the historic King William District.

Eat

You can practically throw a stone and hit an excellent restaurant in downtown San Antonio. Granted, San Antonio has no shortage of wonderful restaurants. The nice thing is downtown has so much more than Tex-Mex, although you won't regret going to Acenar. Downtown also plays host to an array of upscale restaurants featuring a breadth of cuisine. Check out Gwendolyn, Azuca, La Frite and Bella on the River just for starters!

Party

No matter what kind of party mood you're in, downtown San Antonio is the place to satisfy any and all desires. Check out the Menger Hotel bar or Swig or SoHo for a great drink in a sophisticated atmosphere. If you want to take it up a notch for some serious drinks and dancing, head over to the historic Bonham, Heat or Tabu. For awesome local music, try the Cove.

Stay

Of course if you're staying downtown, you're going to want to try to find a hotel that is on or near the Riverwalk, such as the Valencia, Hilton Palacio Del Rio and the Omni La Mansion Del Rio. Historic hotels include the very elegant Menger Hotel and the Havana Hotel, which sports a speak-easy type bar in the basement. For luxury and class, check out the new Grand Hyatt or Mokara Hotel and Spa!

Shop

For shopping in downtown San Antonio, take the whole family to the Mercado, also known as Market Square, where you can enjoy shopping, food and fun, especially on the weekends. It's also the perfect place to find gifts to take home with you. Downtown is peppered with a number of tourist shops, many of which can be found in La Villita and galleries such as Art Pace. For everything else, head to the Rivercenter Mall!