21 San Antonio Riverwalk Facts That Are Terrific For Tourists

The River Walk (Paseo del Rio) is a city park below the street level and is one of the best routes to explore the city.

The river walk is filled with beautiful restaurants, bars and biking trails. The San Antonio begins bout 4 mi (6.4 km) north of downtown and ends at the south part of the town, at Mission Espada.

You do not have to worry about the timings as the Riverwalk is open 24/7. It is even open on New year's day and Christmas. San Antonio Riverwalk stretches for 15 mi (24.1 km). You may enter the park for free, but additional boat trips, attractions, and activities will have varying fees. To travel to the San Antonio Riverwalk, you may take a bus, train, or boat. Fishing is permitted in the city park. Largemouth bass, channel catfish, and blue catfish are the fish species that are caught often. The Antonio Riverwalk looks best, with holiday lights covering the entire area after thanksgiving. Among the other popular sites along the river walk, Tobin centre at the downtown section has the finest live performances. It is known for performing arts in the evenings. Continue reading to know more about the San Antonio Riverwalk. You can also check out our other articles on river Thames and rivers in Colorado.

San Antonio Riverwalk History

A major flood in the san Francisco river killed around 51 people and left another 23 people missing. This happened in September 1921.

Apart from the flood control plans, a few plans to develop an upstream dam and a bypass channel were also in progress. Proposals about a bend over and a storm sewer were offered. The dam (Olmos dam) and the bypass channel were successfully built. However, the idea about the storm sewer was not welcomed and completely disagreed with by the San Antonio Conservation Society. Robert Hugman, an architect, gave his ideas and plans about the river walk. He had a new approach and suggested three other things, Construction of a flood gate at the north end, a dam at the southern end and a tainter gate to monitor, control and regulate the flow of water. He then proposed a plan for converting the surrounding region for economic purposes. Hugman's proposals were met with scepticism since the location was hazardous. The funds from the Works Progress Administration offered in 1939 helped to start the initial construction. Over the years, the Riverwalk developed tremendously. Two contractors, Darragh & Lyda Inc. and H. A. Lott Inc. were the contractors who worked on the first expansion of the Riverwalk. The extension of the riverwalk went beyond the horseshoe river bend. It stretched to the convention centre and theatre. It was connected with the San Pedro Creek Greenway in 2016.

Top San Antonio Riverwalk Attractions

San Antonio Museum of Art: the museum is located in Downtown San Antonio, Texas, USA. You will find the museum right above the Southwest School of Art. It was opened in March 1981. The museum is well known for its representation of culture and heritage. It has over 30,000 pieces of Asian art, Greek antiques, Roman antiques, contemporary art and Latin American art. The museum also hosts 50 public programs such as lectures, and exhibitions each year.

Wedding Island: it is on the San Antonio river walk and in the middle of the San Antonio River. Though the island might not be quite appealing, it still is famous among couples. Over 225 couples get married on the island each year. Due to a large number of weddings each year, this island is also known as the Marriage island.

The Pearl: it is the headquarters of the hotel Emma and spans over 22 acres of land on the east bank. Between 1883 and 2001, it housed the Pearl Brewery. The route to this historic neighbourhood is 2 mi long from the downtown riverwalk.

Brackenridge Park: this public park was named after George Colin Brackenridge who gifted the land to the city. It was built in 1899. The Brackenridge park also has the Japanese tea garden, the Witte Museum, and the First Tee of San Antonio.

The Alamo Plaza: it is a commercial centre next to the San Antonio River in the downtown area. You can reach other hotspots like the Museum Reach, Rivercenter Mall and Casa Rio from the Alamo. Reaching the Alamo was not always easy due to the absence of a direct route. In 1981, when the Hyatt Regency hotel was opened, it also provided a public passage connecting the San Antonio Riverwalk and Alamo.

Hemisfair: it was built in 1968 and is also known as Antonio Convention Center Arena. The San Antonio Spurs lived here between 1973 and 1993. After the San Antonio Spurs shifted in 1993, the Hemisfair was torn down. It now has three public parks and several residences.

Casa Navarro State Historic Site: this historic site was the house of José Antonio Navarro. The Tejano neighbourhood, Laredito, where the historic site is situated was once a busy place. It also includes the Alamo chapel and the surrounding area, all of which were built in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Guenther House: a restaurant museum and store together is known as the Guenther House. It was named after the founder, Carl Hilmar Guenther. The house was built in 1859 as a private residence. The interior and arts and craft styles are top notch. The one story limestone house, two-story square store and office building are popular for the designs of the masonry blocks.

San Antonio Riverwalk Boat Tours

You can explore the rich history of the San Antonio river walk by taking the narrated river walk tours. These tours cover about 1.5 mi (2.4 km). This is a quick 35 minute tour that will help you to know more about about the city's culture, history, and architecture. You will be able to find new boats every 15 minutes with 40 members per boat.

If you enjoy eating, the Community River Walk Dining Boats are an ideal option. You may take the riverboat while eating at the Riverwalk. This is also an excellent opportunity to meet new individuals who share your interests. You can check with the river walk eateries like Lone Star Café, Café Ole, and Michelino’s Ristorante Italiano to see what kinds of foods are offered. The River Walk is lined with restaurants.

Private River Walk Cruises are the best if you want to experience an exclusive ride with a delicious dinner. Cocktail cruises, which include appetisers and beverages, are offered for groups of up to 30 people.

Apart from this, if you are tired of walking instead of taking ordinary taxis or bikes, you can take riverboat taxis. Riverboat taxis offer shuttle services. Taxi boats are easy to spot as they have GO RIO Shuttle signs.

The Architect of the River Walk

Robert H. Hugman was the architect of the Antonio Riverwalk.

Hugman was born in San Antonio and graduated from the School of Architecture and Design in Austin. He was the brains of the now-world famous Antonio River Walk. His ideas were not first approved or praised. He had to go to considerable lengths to win the hearts of the people and other city officials. Because of his tireless efforts, he was able to start the construction using funds from the Works Progress Administration. After a year, squabbles erupted between the Mayor, Maury Maverick, and Hugman. The mayor wanted Hugman to select a landscape engineer and provide the new landscape engineer with a share of Hugman's pay. Hugman declined the proposal because he believed it was unfair. The mayor was also working on rebuilding La Villita, an art community next to the river project. The things purchased under the river walk budget were being used by the mayor for rebuilding La Villita. When Hugman took the issue to the board; he was fired. He continued to assist Chief Engineer W.H. Lilly in ensuring that his plans were carried out even after he was fired. His hard work and good deeds were recognised by the people. They also named a bridge across the river after him. Various inscriptions along the River Walk now commemorate his vision as the Father of the River Walk. He was one of the major designers in the city and designed a number of well-known structures, including Walnut Springs Park in Texas and Max Starcke Park in New York.

Did you know? The city also conducts a Canoe challenge each year.

Texas Cavaliers River Parade Armed Forces, River Parade Ford Parade of Lanterns and Ford Holiday River Parade are some of the popular river parades in the San Antonio Riverwalk

Esquire Tavern is the oldest bar in the Riverwalk.

Every year on St. Patrick's day the whole António river is dyed green using eco friendly dyes and named River Shannon.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for San Antonio Riverwalk facts, then why not take a look at rivers in Mississippi or Puerto Princesa underground river facts?