Cheap Flights To San Antonio

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Cheap Flights To San Antonio

Overview
When to Go
Airport Information
Weather
Things to Do
Local Attractions
Must See Sights
Insider Tips
Getting Around

Overview
The rolling terrain of the Hill Country embracing San Antonio parts to reveal a city like none other. The third largest city in Texas, San Antonio is known for its 18th century missions, the River Walk with its sidewalk cafes, and vibrant museums. Foodies sample Hispanic and European-influenced cuisine, while history buffs explore the area’s cultural sites. Families with children make memories at Six Flags Fiesta Texas and couples take in delightful vineyards, hillside bed and breakfasts and nationally-acclaimed spa resorts. 

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When to Go
High Season
Most travelers prefer to see San Antonio in summer months, but this is not ideal due to extreme heat and crowded hotels and attractions. Spring and fall months are popular months for meetings and conventions, which occasionally raises hotel rates.

Low Season
Fall and spring tend to bring the best temperatures, airfare specials and fewer crowds due to school being in session.

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Airport Information
San Antonio International (SAT)
Distance: Eight miles north of downtown San Antonio 
Drive time: 15-30 minutes depending on time of day

The two-terminal facility averages 260 daily domestic and international departures and arrivals. The airport offers the first thirty minutes of parking free at all parking facilities. There are several car rental companies operating near the airport, as well as numerous shuttle services available outside baggage claim. Taxi cabs are available at the lower level curbside at Terminal 1 and outside baggage claim. Fare to San Antonio downtown areas averages $20 to $23.

VIA Metropolitan Transit offers service downtown from the airport. The closest bus route can be accessed by taking the airport employee shuttle to the nearby VIA bus stop, located on Northern Boulevard.

Alternative Airports
Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) - 70 miles from San Antonio
George Bush Intercontinental Airport Houston (IAH) - 191 miles from San Antonio

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Weather
With 300 days of sunshine a year, San Antonio’s weather is often a draw for visitors, especially in spring and fall, when temperatures hover around 80 degrees. July is the hottest month, with average highs reaching 95 degrees and very light rainfall. January is the coolest month with average highs of 62 degrees and a rainfall rate similar to July’s, at about 1.6 inches.

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Things to Do
San Antonio for Sports Fans
Sports buffs love San Antonio. The NBA’s San Antonio Spurs and WNBA’s San Antonio Silver Stars provide hoops fans with excitement throughout the year. The San Antonio Rampage of the Central Hockey League provides chilly action in an otherwise warm town.

Performing Arts in San Antonio
San Antonio’s performing arts scene is among the best in the Southwest. Built in 1929, the Majestic Theater hosts touring Broadway shows as well as the San Antonio Symphony. Also built in the 1920s, the Aztec Theater is a Meso-American themed masterpiece that hosts a Grand Ole Opry-style country music show. The art deco Alameda Theater, currently undergoing remodeling, serves as a home for Hispanic arts, culture and entertainment.

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Local Attractions
Paseo del Rio
The jewel of San Antonio is the Paseo del Rio, better known as the River Walk. Cobble- and flagstone paths frame four miles of the San Antonio River, dotted with European-style cafes, high rise hotels and world-class shopping. Rio San Antonio Cruises runs guided cruises lasting 35 to 40 minutes. River taxis deliver visitors to restaurants, hotels and other stops.

McNay Art Museum
Located in a Mediterranean-style mansion, the McNay Art Museum was founded in 1950 when wealthy heiress Marion Koogler McNay left her personal collection of approximately 700 works of art, along with her house and an endowment to create the first museum of modern art in Texas. Since then, the collection has expanded to 20,000 pieces, including a notable display of Medieval and Renaissance art.

Six Flags Fiesta Texas
San Antonio is a great city for families with children. Six Flags Fiesta Texas has four themed areas: The Mexican town of Los Festivales, the German village of Spassburg, the 1920’s western town of Crackaxle Canyon and the small Texas town of Rockville, with its seaside boardwalk. Each “town” hosts shows set amongst immense wooden and steel roller coasters.

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Must See Sights
San Antonio Missions
Of San Antonio’s five 18th century missions, the Alamo is its most famous. Here, in 1836, 189 defenders of Texas independence staved off 4,000 Mexican troops for 13 days. Four other Spanish colonial missions founded in the early 1700s comprise San Antonio Missions National Historical Park. Visitors can drive from mission to mission, or hike/bike on Mission Trail.

Market Square
Since 1840, Market Square (El Mercado), the largest Mexican marketplace in the United States, has been serving up hearty Tex-Mex cuisine, Mexican wares including sombreros and instruments, and entertainment. The hallmark of the market is the Museo Alameda, a Smithsonian affiliated-museum dedicated to the history and culture of the United States’ Hispanic population. Nearby, Farmers Market Plaza features several shops and restaurants.

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Insider Tips

• Skip the grossly-overrated Sea World, where lines are long, ticket prices high and marketed educational value questionable. For children’s entertainment with substance, visit the San Antonio Children’s Museum, where kids are encouraged to enjoy activities hands-on and families enjoy professional dramatic arts at The Magik Children’s Theatre.
• San Antonio is one of the best cities in the country for conventions, with almost 40,000 hotel rooms, about 12,500 of these concentrated in downtown. Corporate meeting planners are impressed with San Antonio’s 300 days of sunshine a year, the Alamodome’s ample event capacity plus opportunities for corporate social activities throughout the city.
• At Fiestas Navidenas in Market Square during December, cultural holiday activities abound. 122,000 twinkling lights strung along the River Walk are lit during an annual Christmas procession, which visitors can take in aboard a trip on a river cruiser, or from the aerial view of an Alamo City Helicopter.
• Annually in mid-November, the city hosts Mariachi Vargas Extravaganza, a massive music festival. Student mariachi groups entertain the public on the River Walk, mariachi-inspired art decorations are displayed and a there is a concert featuring Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan, considered by many locals the best group of the genre.

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Getting Around
Driving isn't isn’t the best idea for visitors, as the city is a jumble of confusing one-way streets.  Fortunately, VIA Metropolitan Transit Service, the local bus system, is visitor-friendly. Most routes cost just one dollar, with additional transfers just an extra 15 cents. The Sightseer Special runs between the city's most popular sites for just one fare.

VIA also offers downtown color-coded streetcar routes that hit the Alamo and the King William Historic District. The trolleys are open-air reproductions of the streetcars of San Antonio from a half-century ago. River taxis stop at 39 locations along the River Walk. The boats are marked with black and yellow checkered flags.

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