• San Antonio Visitor Information Center, 317 Alamo Plaza, 800-447-3372. For visitors coming to San Antonio a good starting place to see is the downtown Visitor Information Center and Official City Store is located right across the street from Alamo. It is a wealth of information about San Antonio. Representatives there can assist you in getting a map of the city, help you to get around, or anything else you may need in San Antonio.

 • Riverwalk. The Riverwalk area of San Antonio is an excellent place to explore by day and party by night. Riverwalk has guided ferry tours departing regularly. Numerous restaurants line the river on both sides.

 • The Alamo. Considered to be hallowed ground and the Shrine of Texas Liberty, the Alamo is a former mission which was also the site of the Battle of the Alamo. Admission is free, although donations are encouraged. Revenues from an adjacent gift shop fund the historic preservation efforts.

 • San Antonio Missions National Park. Four Spanish frontier missions, part of a colonization system that stretched across the Spanish Southwest in the 17th, 18th, 19th centuries, are preserved here. They include Missions San Jose, San Juan, Espada, and Concepcion. The national park, containing many cultural sites along with some natural areas, was established in 1978 and covers about 819 acres.

 • Casa Navarro State Historical Park. Home site of Jose Antonio Navarro, a 19th-century Texas legislator under Mexico, the Republic of Texas and the U.S. The park is the site of Navarro's furnished house, first residence, and store.

 • King William Historic Area. A 25-block area near downtown on the south bank of the San Antonio River. In the late 1800's the King William District was the most elegant residential area in the city. Prominent German merchants originally settled the area. It was zoned as the state's first historic district, and has once again become a fashionable neighborhood.

 • Market Square - El Mercado. Visitors can browse through the 32 shops at "El Mercado," and 80 specialty shops in Farmers Market Plaza. Market Square is also the scene of many Hispanic festivals where food and beverage booths spring up alongside the Guadalajara lamps and the strains of mariachi music blend with the excitement of Mexican dances. Free admission.

 • San Antonio Zoological Gardens and Aquarium. The Zoo is home to over 3,500 animals representing 750 species of animals on 56 acres. Open 365 days a year. Hours: 9 a.m.- 5 p.m. from Labor Day to Memorial Day; 9 a.m.- 6 p.m., Memorial Day to Labor Day. Admission: adults $8; seniors (62+) and children (3-11) $6; military $7; under 2 free. Group rates available.

Museums and Galleries

 • Witte Museum, 3801 Broadway, 210 357-1900 - Tu 10am-9pm, Wed-Sat, 10am-5pm, Sun Noon-5pm. $7 Ad/$6 Sen/ $5 kids to 4-11, Free Tuesdays 3pm-8pm. Dinosaurs, textiles, history, big museum with lots going on - fun with kids!

 • Marion Koogler McNay Art Museum, 6000 N New Braunfels, 210 824-5368. Tu-Sat 10am-5pm, Sun Noon-5pm. Free admission except during select exhibitions and special events. Fine arts exhibits, library. museum store.

 • San Antonio Children's Museum, 305 Houston St, 210 212-4453, fax 210 242-1313 - Adm. $5.95 per person. M-F 9am-5pm, Sat 9am-6pm, Sun Noon-4pm. Winter (School Year) hours: M 9am-Noon, T-Fri 9am-3:30pm, Sat 9am-6pm, Sun Noon-4pm. Groups, parties, events, hands-on learning play.

 • Instituto de Méico, 600 HemisFair Park, 210 227-0123. Thur-Fri 10am-5pm, Sat-Sun Noon-5pm. Free. Contemporary Art from Mexico.

 • San Antonio Museum of Art 200 W. Jones, 210 978-8100. Tu 10am-8pm, W-Sat 10am-5pm, Sun Noon-6pm. $6 adult, $5 sen. $4 Student, $1.75 age 4-11. Free Tuesdays 4pm-11pm. Fabulous collections and changing exhibits. If you can do only one museum visit, this is the one to explore. Bring your sketchpad.

 • Southwest School of Art & Craft. 1201 Navarro and 300 Augusta, 210 224-1848. Art/museum gift shop in the Ursuline Campus as well as student work in the hallways and cafe. Free. On buslines, and the Ursuline Campus backs up to an older, parklike section of the Riverwalk.