Elite Traveler Spring 2022

EXPLORE SAN ANTONIO GUIDE TO SANANTONIO by Becca Hensley

Perhaps not everyone knows that the portion of Texas that includes San Antonio was once part of Spain, Mexico and France in turns, not to mention the realm of Native Americans for thousands of years. Later, cowboys and frontier settlers came, followed by German immigrants with famed beer-making skills (resulting in one 19th-century San Antonio neighborhood earning the name ‘Sauerkraut Bend’). Today, this wholly unique American city revels in its fusion of rich cultures that feed its vivid personality. Its undulating Paseo del Rio (River Walk) — a network of walkways along a barge- fi lled river — corkscrews through the city’s downtown. A buzzy social space, the walk provides access to restaurants, hotels, galleries, historical monuments and shops. With Spanish spoken as commonly as English and a deep regard for history, the Alamo City has excelled at repurposing its architectural treasures. Don’t miss the Pearl, a distinctive entertainment district hewed into the sprawling grounds of a bygone brewhouse. With noteworthy museums, acclaimed chefs, a Unesco- listed set of 18th-century Spanish missions (including the illustrious Alamo), a wine region in the surrounding countryside, and biking and hiking paths galore, San Antonio o ff ers options for every sort of traveler.