Portions of this post were originally published in May 2015 by Brooke Meabon.
Summer is here, and many San Antonio families are ready to get out and explore. Whether you’re in the mood for a road trip or looking for something to do nearby, we have ideas to keep those boredom blues at bay!
Need help organizing summer plans & your family’s summer bucket list? You’ll find links to download & print our Summer 2023 Planner & our Summer Bucket List below.
Out and About in San Antonio:
- Sign up for a summer camp—check out ACM’s Summer Camp Guide.
- Check out San Antonio’s amazing children’s museum, The DoSeum.
- Visit your nearest San Antonio fire station and bring snacks for the firefighters!
- Register for a local Vacation Bible School.
- Take a San Antonio Ghost Tour downtown.
- Experience a drive-in movie at Stars & Stripes Drive-In in New Braunfels or one of many free summer movies in San Antonio.
- Visit Miss Anastasia’s Story Time at The Twig Book Sho
p on Fridays. Or try another local bookstore. - Go western at the Briscoe Western Art Museum.
- Pretend you’re a tourist and remember the Alamo!
- Visit the animals at the San Antonio Zoo.
- Book a staycation at a local resort. Great family options include the Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort & Spa and the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa.
- Practice your putting skills at Monster Mini Golf or one of the other miniature golf courses in town.
- Consult your inner-dare devil and ride the roller coasters at Six Flags Fiesta Texas.
- Watch fireworks on the Fourth of July.
- Catch a San Antonio Missions baseball game.
- Have a train day! Go for a ride on the San Antonio Zoo Train.
- Ride a real train at the Texas Transportation Museum.
- Explore the River Walk downtown.
- Try something new on San Antonio’s Southside.
- Take a day trip to the McKenna Children’s Museum in New Braunfels and stop for lunch and shopping in Gruene.
- Make a day out of SeaWorld San Antonio.
- Step back in time on the rides at Kiddie Park. Read about its history here.
- Step inside a saloon and see the animals at the Buckhorn Museum.
- Cruise down the San Antonio River on a river barge.
- See the city from a different angle from the top of the Tower of the Americas and see a 4D movie while you’re there.
- Paint pottery at Clay Casa.
- Get artsy with a painting class.
- Practice your pinball skills at What’s Brewing and grab a drink while you’re there.
- Play tourist and take a ride on the Citysiteseeing Tour Double Decker Bus.
- Take a shopping trip to El Mercado.
- Feed the ducks at Heritage Duck Pond & Park in Boerne or Brackenridge Park in San Antonio.
- Go on a “treasure hunt” (aka: try your hand at geocaching).
- Take a trip to Morgan’s Wonderland.
- Get your rodeo fix at Tejas Rodeo.
- Make some art! Visit Artworks Studio or the splatter room at Pinspiration and let your creative juices fly.
- Catch a free movie at Santikos Theaters on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, June 6–August 2, or a $2 movie during the Regal Summer Movie Express, on Tuesdays and Wednesdays throughout the summer.
- Build with bricks at the LEGOLAND Discovery Center or go under the sea at the nearby SEA LIFE Aquarium.
A Little Culture and Learning:
- Catch a show at The Magik Theatre.
- Introduce your kids to art appreciation at the McNay Art Museum (free admission on Thursday nights from 4:00–9:00 p.m. and the first Sunday of each month) or the San Antonio Museum of Art (free admission for Bexar County residents on Tuesdays from 4:00–7:00 p.m. and Sundays from 10:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.).
- Experience the current exhibit at The Witte Museum.
- Heat things up with a visit to the San Antonio Fire Museum.
- Enjoy the new exhibit and the wide open spaces at the San Antonio Botanical Garden.
- Visit the San Antonio Missions: Conception, San Jose, San Juan, and Espada.
- Visit your local San Antonio Library branch, let the kids pick out any books t
hey want, and be sure to sign up for their Summer Reading Program! - Take a guided wildlife tour at the Exotic Resort Zoo in Johnson City.
- While in Johnson City, check out the Science Mill.
Water Fun:
- Pool time! If you don’t have a pool at home or in your neighborhood, check out the City of San Antonio’s Park Pools.
- Take a trip to Port Aransas for some beach time.
- Play in a local splash pad.
- Hit our local “beach” at Boerne City Lake Beach.
- Splash in the river at Guadalupe River State Park.
- Float the Comal River.
- Swim indoors on a rainy day at the San Antonio Natatorium.
- Tube the Guadalupe River.
- Take a trip to Lake LBJ, Lake Buchanan, Canyon Lake, or Lake McKinney.
- Make it a water park day at Schlitterbahn.
- Wade in the creek at Cibolo Center for Conservation (formerly the Cibolo Nature Center). Check out the dinosaur footprints while you’re there!
- Play in the water park at Aquatica.
Get Active:
- Go bowling (check out these locations for Kids Bowl Free).
- Visit an indoor playground like Inflatable Wonderland or Pump It Up. More ideas here.
- Take a class at The Little Gym.
- Bounce on a trampoline at an indoor trampoline park like Altitude or AIRTOPIA Adventure Park.
- Go rollerskating at Rollercade.
- Head to a driving range or Top Golf and hit some golf balls.
The Great Outdoors:
- Stroll through the Japanese Tea Garden and rest at the Jingu House.
- Check out local hiking trails.
- Go camping at Garner State Park or visit one of the other Texas state parks near San Antonio.
- Attend a planetarium presentation from the Scobee Planetarium.
- Walk the Texas Star Trail.
- Hike through a San Antonio park like O.P. Schnabel Park, Friedrich Wilderness Park, McAllister Park, Eisenhower Park, or Phil Hardberger Park.
- Explore San Antonio’s plentiful public art.
- Find a new playground.
- Roam the tree-lined nature trail at Dinosaur Park in Cedar Creek.
- Take a day trip to Fredericksburg and visit the Wildseed Farms, Airport Diner, and National Museum of the Pacific War.
- Visit and take selfies with San Antonio’s best murals.
- Kayak through the San Antonio River Walk or Espada Park. Or rent a stand-up paddleboard or kayak from Hill Country Paddle Sports at Boerne City Lake.
- Take a self-guided walking tour of the historic King William area.
- Head to Austin and stroll through the beautiful Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
- Hike, bike, or run San Antonio’s greenways on the Howard W. Peak Greenway Trails System.
- Visit the Lyndon B. Johnson State Park and Sauer-Beckmann Farmstead in Johnson City.
- Take a driving tour of the LBJ Ranch at the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park.
- Hiss with the residents of the Animal World and Snake Farm Zoo.
- Explore the Natural Bridge Caverns and their new Hidden Wonders tour.
- Take a glass-bottom boat tour at the Meadows Center for Water and the Environment in San Marcos. Find more information here.
- Go on a safari through Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch.
- Walk, run, or ride on The Mission Trails. Don’t miss the historic Espada Aqueduct.
- Visit Landa Park in New Braunfels to play miniature golf, ride the train, rent a paddle boat, swim, fish, or play on one of several playgrounds.
- Explore the Cave Without a Name, Inner Space Cavern, or Wonder World.
Summer Snacks & Cool Beverages:
- Cool off with raspas.
- Take a root beer break at Schilo’s, the oldest restaurant in San Antonio.
- Take a trip to a frozen world and enjoy the treats at Arctic Ape, Aloha Shaved Ice, Lick Honest Ice Creams, Black+White Modern Creamery, Paleteria San Antonio, or another local frozen treat shop.
- Discover your favorite location for paletas or fruit cups.
- Shop at a farmer’s market.
- Pick fruit (or flowers) at Sweet Berry Farm, Jenschke Orchards, or Love Creek Orchards.
- Test all of the local ice cream joints and vote on your favorite.
- Hit up Happy Hour at Sonic for half-price drinks from 2:00–4:00 p.m. every day!
- Try out some kid-friendly restaurants with patios.
- Pack a picnic and take it to a San Antonio park.
- Dine in at your favorite San Antonio kid-friendly restaurants.
- Eat at one of San Antonio’s food trucks.
Other:
- Donate! Pick your favorite charity, find donatable items that you already have around the house (books, clothes, toys, canned goods), and let the kids decide what to donate.
- Have media-free days (put your phones, iPads, TVs, etc. away for the entire day), and on the days that aren’t media-free, set clear boundaries for use of devices (kids AND parents!).
- Make a family and/or individual dream board, and add to it all summer (take a cork board or a poster board and add words or pictures of who you want to be or what you want to do).
- Teach gratitude to your family. At the end of each day, have each person in your family write down what he/she was grateful for that day. At the end of summer, read through all the things each person shared. You’ll have 92 items per person by the end of the summer!
- Plan a family service project. Think of things your family loves and enjoys, and use those natural gifts and passions to help others. Serve a meal at a soup kitchen, mow a neighbor’s lawn, wash someone’s car, hand out cold water bottles to others, pay for someone behind you in line, or find a non-profit your family believes in and ask them how you can serve as a family.
- Send the kids off for a night or week with grandparents or friends… and take time for YOU!
- Have a “yes” day! For one day, let the kids be in charge and make sure that Mom and Dad only answer “yes”!
Click here for our 2023 Summer Planner and Summer Bucket List!
