Coach Jeremy Williams Explores San Antonio, Texas with Family

Red Hawk Coaching Coach Jeremy Williams Trip San Antonio Texas Alamo

This last week, my family and I took a planned vacation to San Antonio, Texas. As I coach up my clients that own businesses is the importance of scheduling time in your calendar to get away from the grind. This is important to refresh and reflect which leads to greater productivity. My family has been to San Antonio several times over the years, yet we experienced San Antonio a little different this time around now that our kids are older.

Where Did We Stay?

Hyatt Wild Oak Ranch - San Antonio, Texas

We stayed at the Hyatt Wild Oak Ranch located next door to the Hyatt Hill Country Resort. If you have a connection with someone that sells time share points on the secondary market, this is the way to go for a place like this. The accommodations included two bedrooms, two bathrooms, washer/dryer, a kitchen, living room, and each room had a private balcony. The resort-style Wild Oak Ranch featured many amenities, and my family found the most used amenity was the lazy river. Floating would be a part of the theme for the week while in San Antonio.

Where Did We Eat?

San Antonio has amazing food. Our first night, we hit Rudy’s BBQ known for being “the worst B-B-Q in Texas”. That’s a joke folks. The BBQ was amazing.

Rudy's BBQ - San Antonio, Texas

You can’t go to San Antonio, Texas and not partake in great Mexican cuisine. Our two favorites were La Fogata and Jacala’s Mexican Restaurant. We also tried out Viola’s Ventanas using DoorDash, and I believe it would have been much better in person.

 La Fogata - San Antonio, Texas (Dominion Location)

Jacala's Mexican Restaurant - San Antonio, Texas

Our kids loved eating dinner at the Magic Time Machine. This experience took me 30 years ago when I was a kid eating at the same restaurant. It is one of the few places where you will pay to be mocked, embarrassed, and harassed throughout your meal. Our server was Fortnite. All waiters and waitresses are in character.

Magic Time Machine - San Antonio, Texas

What did we do?

The week was filled with activities. Our goal was to have at least one planned activity a day though we found ourselves having two resort days to recoup between the activities. San Antonio is family friendly, and there is so much to do for all ages. One spot we did not get to that was on our list was the Pearl; next time.

Friday

We arrived late afternoon to the Hyatt Wild Oak Ranch.

Saturday

We enjoyed a day at the Hyatt Wild Oak Ranch, and spent a majority of the day in the lazy river. Every night, Laurie and I enjoyed the amazing sunsets from our balcony. They did not disappoint.

Sunday

We walked the Riverwalk prior to our evening activity. We watched a great magic show featuring Jon Armstrong at The Magicians Agency Theatre in the historic Reuter building across from Alamo Plaza. The magic show was legit, and I highly recommend adding this to your itinerary when visiting San Antonio. Both Emma and Logan where brought up on stage to participate. You want to get to the venue early as described on their site to enjoy close up magic and a scavenger hunt through the historic building.

Pre-Show Up Close Magic with Jon Armstrong

Logan Getting Brought on Stage for Jon Armstrong’s Performance
Emma Participates in a Magic Trick Conducted by Jon Armstrong

San Antonio, Texas River Walk

Monday

We headed northeast from the Hyatt Wild Oak Ranch to Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch and Natural Bridge Caverns. The drive through safari is amazing. We’ve done others, and you can’t beat this one. It took about 2 hours to complete, and you are able to purchase food to feed the animals that walk right up to your vehicle, and at times, they may even stick their heads in the vehicle. The ostriches terrify my family.

Ostriches Worked the Line of Vehicles – Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch
Gemsbok – Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch
Oryx – Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch
Zebras – Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch

After the two hour trip through Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch, we headed next door to Natural Bridge Caverns. Thinking it was going to be cooler 180 feet below the surface, the temp was 70 degrees at 99% humidity. We definitely worked up a sweat walking the cave. You do want to be in decent shape as the decent is steep, and the climb out will test your endurance. The caverns were a site to see, and it is definitely a great experience.

Natural Bridge Caverns Gets It’s Name from the Rock Formation at the Entrance to the Cave

Hall of the Mountain King – Natural Bridge Caverns

Tuesday

We spent another day in the lazy river at Hyatt Wild Oak Ranch recovering from the caving, and that evening did a walking tour with Sisters Grimm Ghost Tours located next to the Menger Hotel. The locations we stopped at along the tour included the Menger Hotel, the Alamo (which is a little creepy at night), the Emily Morgan San Antonio, the Casino Club, Drury Plaza HotelSan Fernando Cathedral, the Spanish Governor’s Palace, and the Holiday Inn Express (the old Bexar County jail where executions by hanging took place).

Sisters Grimm Ghost Tours – San Antonio, Texas

Wednesday

We spent most of the day at Fiesta Texas; a Six Flags theme park. Fiesta Texas was a reminder to my wife and I that we’ve aged. With the exception of Batman: The Ride and The Joker, we rode all the extreme coasters including: Iron Rattler, Superman: Krypton Coaster, Poltergeist, Goliath, and Wonder Woman: Golden Laso.

Thursday

We made the hour and a half drive to Josh’s Frio River Outfitter in Concan, Texas and floated the Frio River. I’ve floated rivers before having grown up in Central Texas, and this was the first experience for my family. The trip was three and a half hours in some of the most beautiful water that was definitely refreshing in the Texas heat. Despite lathering up in sunscreen, I still managed to get badly burned. The other lesson was to pack a floating ice chest stocked with water the next time around. Otherwise, our family had a great time, and it is definitely a relaxing activity.

Friday

We made our way home. No trip between Houston and San Antonio can happen without a stop at Buc-ee’s. If you’ve never been to Buc-ee’s, it’s an experience. You can get anything from gas to chopped beef sandwiches to jerky to even a deer stand at the location in Luling, Texas. They’ve also got the cleanest bathrooms on the road.

Overall, the trip was a great success. We created new memories and shared with our children our passion to travel. If you’re looking for a place to land on your next vacation, consider San Antonio, Texas. The food, the history, and the experiences are well worth making the trip. Refreshed, I am back to coaching up my clients this week. If you are a small business owner looking to do greater things, and you would like to find out how coaching can help you get there, consider setting up a discovery call with me.

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