Parking

We%26#39;re staying in Bandera for a week at the Flying L Dude Ranch. We plan on spending a few days in San Antonio since we%26#39;ve never been there before. Is there a good central parking location? We plan on using a day pass to get around rather than moving the car from place to place. Any suggestions would be appreciated. How is the food at the Buckhorn Saloon? Any other recommendations for lunch would also be welcomed.

Parking

Rivercenter Mall would be a good spot. To check out parking garages you may want to check out this website. www.visitSanAntonio.com on the lower part of the page i says Tools click on area map.

Go places for lunch would be in the Market Square area like La Margarita www.lamargarita.com or Mi Tierra www.mitierracafe.com or Boudro%26#39;s on the RW www.boudros.com with the guacamole prepared tableside with a prickly pear margarita. Michelino%26#39;s for good Italian www.michelinos.us or Lone Star Caf茅 or Rio Rio Cantina www.rioriocantina.com

Have a great visit in SA!!!!!

Parking

Thanks for the information. I think I will go to that site and check things out. Is there paid parking at the mall or is it free? If paid, do they validate it if you make purchases at local stores/restaurants? Have you tried Augie%26#39;s Barbed wire Smokehouse, near the zoo? It%26#39;s rated pretty high on TA. Again, I will check out your suggestions regarding eateries as well. Thanks.

CJ

Augies is very good. I believe the mall validates for the first hour or two. There are many city and private parking garages downtown. I like Riverbend. I think daily rates are around 10 bucks. I usually prefer to use a car when I%26#39;m traveling. Check out http://www.sanantonio.gov/dtops/garagesdo.asp

At all but the downtown locations parking will be free. What hotel are you staying at, again all but the downtown will have free parking.

We are not staying downtown but will be at the Flying L Ranch in Bandera. We plan on at least 2-3 days downtown so perhaps we should section our plans and park in an area we%26#39;ll be seeing that day. We could park further out and then use the day pass to get around. What%26#39;s the easiest route in and out of the city and what%26#39;s the best time to do this. Is there much traffic to contend with? Thanks again for your thoughts.

CJ

You brought up a good point about parking somewheres else since you are getting a day pass you could park at the Park %26amp; Ride, www.viainfo.net I%26#39;m not sure if there%26#39;s one on Bandera but there%26#39;s one at Crossroads on Fredericksburg just a couple miles away. They have free parking %26amp; you don%26#39;t have to worry about the downtown traffic %26amp; parking in the downtown area %26amp; paying for parking. Yes the Rivercenter gives you 2 hrs free after validation.

The BBQ at Augie%26#39;s is very good %26amp; would be a good choice as well.

The busy congested time for traffic on Bandera %26amp; Downtown is between 7:00 am - 8:30 am %26amp; 4:30pm - 6:30 pm It best to avoid those time for smooth traveling if possible.

Have a great visit %26amp; the Trolley/Streetcar is very easy to get around the downtown area or you can just walk.