I need Texas sized help.

[Amianthus]

Okay you Texans. It's time to put up or shut up.



Last year the wife, sister-in-law and I went to Galveston in January. And with the help of some of you TDR members, we had a blast. Your recommendations made our trip super.



Well, it's that time of year again. This time we are going in February (~2/16-2/22). What we need is some ideas of destinations and activites that we should plan on doing. We like to eat out (Papadeaux's was great), check out gardens and art centers (her thing), beaches, museums, typical touristy stuff.



Now here's what we've come up with so far. We (My wife) wants to visit Mexico. Why, I have no idea. So we were thinking of the Corpus Christi / Brownsville area. Any thoughts? Recommendations? Guides (Body Guards)? We can change our plans completely to fit whatever you guys think is best. So shoot.



We will be towing the camper so we will need some insight on the campgrounds in the area. Golf courses would be nice too, but I will be the only one to do that. I got crucified on the Galveston municipal course last year, so I may just pass too. I'm no Tiger ya kno'.



Anyway, any help you guys can give would be appreciated. And if any of you want to stop by and say, "Hi", I'll be importing some Lienie's to share. Thanks for the help.

 

[Bill Lins]

Port Isabel & South Padre Island would be ideal for you- RV parking, lots to do on the island, 22 miles from Brownsville (great zoo here) & Matamoros.



On the way down or back, go through Corpus Christi & visit the Lexington (aircraft carrier) and the Texas State Aquarium.



Also, when going through Harlingen, go by the airport and see the ORIGINAL Iwo Jima Monument @ the Marine Academy.

 

[Wayno]

If you are coming into Galveston on IH 45 south take the 61st exit and go to end which will dead end into the sea wall. Take a right and head toward the village of Jamaica Beach. Just before you get to Jamaica Beach on the left next to the water there is State Park that you can camp at that has trailer hook ups. Now as far Mexico goes if you spend enough time in Houston / Galveston area(or any other big city in Texas) you'll think your in Mexico already.

 

[lschultz]

What is a Lienie?That something yall have up there?Down here we go donkey dick,sausage,pork,steak,tacos. If you are around Shiner,Tex check out the best little brewery in Texas.

 

[RustyJC]

If you're going to be headed to the Corpus area or south, I'd make it a point to spend some time in San Antonio. If your wife is a nut for gardens and art galleries, she would enjoy this. After shopping at El Mercado (the huge Mexican-style market), you may not have to take her to Mexico. I'd do the Riverwalk, visit the Alamo, spend some time exploring the Texas Hill Country north of San Antonio - Fredericksburg, Kerrville, etc.



There are good (but expensive) RV parks on the west side of SA near SeaWorld and Fiesta Texas, but our favorites are Hill Country in New Braunfels (I-35 northeast of SA) and Alamo Fiesta in Boerne (I-10 northwest of SA).



Rusty

 

[Amianthus]

We stayed at a resort just south of Jamaica Beach last year.



San Antonio. Hmmm. Never thought about going there. Not really out of our way either. She might like the market also. Thanks for the ideas.



Keep them coming, if you please.



P. S. -Leinie's is a Wisconsin beer. I'll be traveling with a couple sampler packs in the camper for visitors that want to drop by.

 

[Mike Ellis]

Corpus Christi - USS Lexington



If you are in Harlingen, Confederate Air Force Museum (think they changed the name to We Don't Want to Offend Anybody Air Force



Although the coast has the obvious attractions of the sea, there is really a lot more to see and do up to the north toward San Antonio.



The San Antonio area has LOTS of interesting stuff. The Alamo is easy to get to, and nearby you can see the old Menger hotel and the bar where Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders were recruited. The market has already been mentioned, there is also a large amusement park (Fiesta Texas) as well as Sea World. There are several very interesting Spanish missions in addition to the Alamo. Another interesting site is the Buckhorn Hall of Horns at the Lone Star brewery - has a lot of interesting displays on Texas history etc.



San Antonio also has a very nice zoo and botanical gardens set in an old quarry area, the Japanese garden is definitely worth a look. In the zoo area there are several art museums as well. (Just look on map for Brackenridge Park)



Just north of San Antonio is the small town of New Braunfels, which is home to the state's shortest river, the Comal - only a couple of miles long. It is entirely spring fed and one of the clearest rivers in the nation. There is a large park where you can see the springs gushing out of the rock, over the years a very large water park has developed around this great natural resource.



Right west of town, you hit the Hill Country and all its attendant scenery. Near Boerne there is a nice cave (cascade caverns), lots of scenic caverns in the area. Drive north into the Hill Country and Fredericksburg is a great place to go, it is a small German town, home to the Nimitz museum and close to the beautiful Enchanted Rock area. Enchanted Rock is a huge granite dome with lots of good camping in the area and many opportunities for rockhounding - for instance, on the road north of Llano you can find the only location in the world for llanite, which is a type of granite that has sky-blue quartz crystals instead of the normal clear quartz - looks like it is full of sapphires when polished. Llano and Mason counties are famous for the blue topaz that they produce, there are places you can go on private land and search for it (state gemstone of Texas, very pretty).



The Guadalupe river offers canoeing and rafting, good fishing at many lakes and rivers. At Johnson City is the LBJ Ranch and related historic sites. Lake LBJ at Marble Falls is a very pretty place to visit and a famous retirement destination in Texas due to the climate and beautiful landscape. Dozens of small towns with museums and antique stores, more stuff to see and do than you can shake a stick at.



San Antonio is a very popular vacation destination in Texas because of all the interesting stuff you can find nearby in the Hill Country between there and Austin. Definitely worth a look if you have time. If you have any particular questions, drop me an e-mail and I'll be glad to answer. I lived in the Austin and San Antonio areas for years...

 

[C. Harlan]

I live in San Antonio, and when you will be coming is the end of the Stock Show and Rodeo... Houston's will be going on if y'all are interested. San Antonio is pretty nice, but as far as staying on the west side of San Antonio, it is less than safe over there. If you want a good, safe place to stay, there are places a little north of here in New Braunfels that y'all would love. You can shop in Gruene, Texas (Pronounced GREEN), see the oldest Dancehall in Texas, go 15 mins to the north, and shop at the Outlet malls if you like. As far as going to Mexico, one of the nicer border towns is Ciudad Acuna. Its just across the border from Del Rio, TX, and it is very pretty over there. Matamoros, which is across from Brownsville is not the safest place, and I would not recommend going down there. If y'all do decide to come to San Antonio, There is the Riverwalk which I love (a little pricey, but that's ok), El Mercado, the Alamo of course, the Tower of Americas, as well as other local things I am not very familiar with. Kerrville is a great place to spend a day or two at as well. If you stop there, be sure to go 30 miles northeast to Fredericksburg TX, Also known as the Peach Capitol of the world (I think) or 25 miles south of Kerrville to Bandera, TX, Known as the Cowboy Capitol of the world. There is lots of things going on down this way, and if you need, look myself or anyone else in the area up when y'all are down this way! If you have anymore questions, PM me



-Chris-

 

[JConley]

As I write this, I am in the Rio Grande Valley about 7 miles from the Mexican border. They have good fruit stands down here, but I hardly call going to the Mexico border a vacation. To me the Mexican border towns are mostly slums. Dont drive across the border either. I would recommend staying in the San Antonio area, and if you want an education as to why the Mexicans are trying to migrate to the US, then come take a look at the border. If you lived there, you would want to swim the creek also! You only need one day for this.



Visiting the border is more educational than recreational. .

 

[TowPro]

Originally posted by Amianthus

We like to eat out (Papadeaux's was great),

I am a PA Yankie, (but I did have some relatives that fought in the cival war for TX).



Anyway, I was doing a Cell Site job in TX, and they sent me to this Mexican restraunt called Papadeaux. Man that was the best. Up here all we have is Mexican Dennys (Chi-chi's). I thought they were good until I hit Papadeaux. Now I know better!

 

[Bill Lins]

TowPro- the Mexican restaurants are called Pappasito's, the seafood ones are Pappadeaux- both owned by the Pappas family. They're all great.



Mike Ellis- CAF moved from Harlingen to Midland a few years back.

 

[sdalton]

around here, Papas is the seafood one and Papadeaux is the steak one. Papasitos is the Mex one. All are very good. You can find better Mex food though. It depends on area.

South Padre and San Antonio are your best bets for fun. I dont Know San Antonio that well but there are several members who live there. They should be able to guide you around.

 

[me4osu]

I agree with JConley, don't drive across the border. I was in Laredo for business last week, stayed three blocks from the border, and didn't even think about going across.



If you stay up in the Hill Country, go to Burnet and see Longhorn Cavern State Park. Longhorn Cavern Link



It is one of only three or four "river formed" caverns in the world. Also, you don't have huge crowds of people as there are at the one near New Braunfels.

 

[Amianthus]

San Antonio it is.

Well, we've decided to hit San Antonio based on your guys' recommendations. Now we just need to find a place to park the camper. Probably will stay north of San Antonio. Any recommendations for a good park?



Things we are planning on doing.

USS Lexington.

Japanese gardens.

Malls.

Aquarium (possibly).

Visit some friends in DFW (on the way through).

Go to Mexico (wife's an idiot and won't believe me about the whole 'Mexico' thing. Don't worry, not driving anywhere close to Mexico for sure).

Anything else you guys think is cool.



Keep them suggestions coming. This is gonna be so cool!

 

[RustyJC]

Re: San Antonio it is.

Originally posted by Amianthus

Now we just need to find a place to park the camper. Probably will stay north of San Antonio. Any recommendations for a good park?

Depends how far north. See my previous post. To reiterate and add a few more favorites:



New Braunfels (I-35 NE of SA) - Hill Country RV Resort

Boerne (I-10 NW of SA) - Alamo Fiesta

Kerrville (I-10 farther NW of SA) - Buckhorn Lake RV Resort or Guadalupe River RV Resort

Fredericksburg (N of Boerne - probably too far, but close to Luckenbach!) - Fredericksburg RV Park, Fredericksburg KOA



These are just our favorites in the area.



Rusty

 

[TxDieselKid]

You picked the right town. San Antiono is one of the BIGGEST tourist towns in Texas. the river walk is a great site just after Sunset. There is a higher class resturant called La Fogadda. That is how you say it, I can't spell it. Chris(charlen), doesn't care much for it, but if you like Pappa's style places, then it's the ticket.



Be sure to stop in Austin and see the only state capital that is taller then the Capatal Building in Washington. Stright accross you can see the UT Clocktower, where a sniper once shot people from.



Now if you want my favorite place to eat, goto Taco Cabana, it's the pink place!!!



and by the way, wlecome back,



Andrew

 

[me4osu]

My favorite restaurant in SA

Tomatillos. I think it is better than La Fogata. Just my 0. 02.



Alamo Cafe is good too.

 

[C. Harlan]

If you want Mexican food, REAL mexican food, let me know when you are coming, and I will arrange to take y'all to my little hole in the wall located in the deep west side of San Antonio, AKA little mexico... The restaurant is killer, and it by far beats Alamo Cafe, or TC's... Don't get me wrong, TC's is good when you close down the honky tonks and it is 2 AM, and your tummy is saying FEED ME!! Austin is a really cool town to visit, though I know all the cool places to hang out, but none to sight see, other than Lake Travis on a Summer day! ... JAPANESE TEA GARDENS..... Last I heard and checked, they are closed for cleaning, but I will look into it for y'all... If you stay close to San Antonio, and want to go to Mex for the day, and it is on a weekend, I may ask to hook up with y'all. . Anyways, PM me and let me know what else you plan to do around here, and I will try to get y'all some sweet things to do... and BTW, Andrew... Just lettin ya know there is no E In my name. . its cool, it is a common misconception... It's CHARLAN... . No problemo though... Talk to y'all laters,



-Chris-

 

[truckstom]

I agree with charlan, find a little hole-n-the-wall place for "real" mex food, the chain restaurants are ok,,,but... . I just got in from the valley, I second what JConley said, I wouldn't...

 

[Kernel]

Originally posted by charlan

I will arrange to take y'all to my little hole in the wall located in the deep west side of San Antonio, AKA little mexico... The restaurant is killer



-Chris-

A must when you come to S. A.



There are some interesting stuff on Fort Sam Houston also if your interested, the Army Medical Department Museum, and the jail where Geronimo was kept and later escaped by jumping over the wall. The post is closed off but I can get you on if your interested.



And Chris, if you take them to La Gloria's and I'm not invited, I will have to get sideways on your arse .



Scott