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When I suggested a quick road trip to my husband at 9:30 the night before, all I knew was that I was dying to see the San Antonio River Walk, and this is where I wanted to stay: Omni La Mansión del Rio.
I had come across the website for this beautiful San Antonio hotel over and over when I was looking for places to stay on the San Antonio River Walk and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to stay there.
My husband said he would be down for an 8 hour road trip the next morning so I booked our room and at 5am we were heading south for a getaway to San Antonio.
The first thing we noticed upon entering the Omni La Mansión del Rio was how beautiful this historic San Antonio hotel is, with its black wrought iron balconies and creamy stucco walls.
PS The beds are a bit confusing because the first thing we all did on arrival was fall into the beds before I insisted we get up so I could take at least one picture of the room before the family!
Acquired by the Omni brand in the early 2000s, the aesthetic of this historic hotel is Spanish Colonial Revival with modern touches of luxury throughout, from the rooms with their exposed beams (probably not structural, but absolutely beautiful!) to the courtyard with the pool. and Spanish Fountain, and more.
Oh, and that pool is heated, too. I’m pretty sure this was my kids’ favorite amenity at the Omni La Mansión del Rio! I personally appreciated the generous amenities found in the room, such as the Nest New York toiletries which I loved…Sicilian mandarin is my new favorite scent!
Beautifully located right on the river, this is on all the lists of best places to stay at San Antonio River Walk. Not only was it conveniently located to the two attractions we most wanted to see in San Antonio – the River Walk and the Alamo – but it’s literally a staple of this popular tourist area.
I personally think it’s the most gorgeous building you see on the River Walk cruise and I’m sure I’m not alone here.
We walked up and down the River Walk as late afternoon turned to early evening, taking in the sights of this dreamy stretch of water and the cute shops and restaurants that surround it. There was even live music!
From our vantage point coming from the El Paso desert, we might as well have taken a nature walk as we stepped under the falling leaves of the trees as we meandered by the river.
Truly, the River Walk is an enchanting part of this historic area in San Antonio.
We foolishly thought we could walk into a restaurant along the San Antonio River Walk and get a table, but everywhere there was a minimum wait of two hours. Lesson learned there for next time!
This was not a problem, however, because the Omni La Mansión del Rio has several restaurants and we found the perfect solution: my husband took the kids to the heated pool for a fun night swim and I ordered takeout at the Four Brothers bar.
As an added bonus, I was able to enjoy a great craft cocktail while I waited for our food.
It basically worked out pretty well for all of us, I’d say. Whenever there are fresh herbs in the bar, I’ll have to see what they can make!
We had our dinner by the pool in the stunning courtyard of the Omni La Mansión del Rio, with the fireplace burning quietly just a few meters away, making our late night dinner more cosy.
Dinner was delicious, but expensive, of course. I mean, it’s a hotel restaurant, and a very nice one at that. For the convenience and quality, it was worth it to us that night!
My husband couldn’t stop raving about the Texas Food & Wine Burger from Four Brothers, and if you know my husband, you know that’s high praise indeed.
Once we finished dinner, it was time to lay down in those spacious queen beds for the night. (After an absolutely luxurious shower under the rain shower…fantastic!)
The beds were both comfortable and beautiful so we were able to sleep well the next day of our family vacation in San Antonio.
When we woke up the next morning, the pool was the only thing on our girls’ minds, so we suited up and went back again!
The courtyard of this beautiful San Antonio River Walk hotel is such a peaceful place to relax and unwind, so while I never dipped a toe in the water, I still enjoyed my time by the pool very, very much.
With adventures in San Antonio underway and the clock ticking towards check out, I went to the front desk to inquire about options and was met with amazing customer service.
Really, everyone we encountered on the staff at the Omni La Mansión del Rio, from valet to housekeeping and everyone in between, was pleasant and customer service oriented, but the front desk agent that morning was absolutely wonderful – thank you, Mrs. Carrie Wright !
We popped into one of the hotel’s restaurants, El Colegio, to buy muffins to tide us over until lunch, and the deliciousness of the bananas was enough to convince us that next time, we’ll need to try more of this. part.
We continued our family vacation in San Antonio with one of the popular Go on Rio San Antonio River Cruises, learn more about the history of this San Antonio must-see.
They also offer a night river cruiseand it’s already on my list for next time!
After working up an appetite waiting in that gloomy long line for the river cruise, it was time for lunch!
The wait time for lunch was not as long as our dinner wait time the night before, so this was a very happy realization for us! We ended up enjoying lunch at the River Walk Rainforest Cafe, because the kids, of course.
If you have kids, you already know that these animatronic animals and the jungle theme are really hard to get over with the younger crowd.
Who am I kidding, I was also very psyched for a visit to Rainforest Cafe because I have my own very near and dear memories of this kitschy restaurant from when I was a kid! I’ll just say that food was different in 1995, I swear it was.
Our final must-see product for this quick getaway to San Antonio was the Alamolocated right across and around the corner from the Omni La Mansión del Rio.
I knew we couldn’t leave without seeing this historic landmark, and I’m glad we visited in March when the South Texas sun wasn’t so unbearable that it made it difficult to explore this cool spot.
We all found it interesting, and there were even several re-enactors in the venue telling interesting stories and showing off their historical props.
Sometimes kids don’t find historical stuff like this as appealing as adults, but my kids loved this! They enjoyed asking lots of questions and getting great answers from these knowledgeable Alamo historians.
We had two local recommendations for must-visit restaurants in the area, but unfortunately we couldn’t make it to either on this trip: Voodoo Donuts & Alfredo’s Pizza.
Voodoo Donuts had an hour wait to even get in the door, and we just ran out of time/stomach space to visit it or Alfredo’s pizza, but we heard on good authority that if you don’t order the tiramisu during visit Alfredo’s, you’re doing it wrong.
This was just a quick overnight stay for our family, but we have a growing list of places to see and things to do on our next San Antonio getaway, as well as where to stay?
I can’t imagine staying anywhere else but the beautiful Omni La Mansión del Rio, and next time I visit, I’ll make sure there’s time for Voodoo Doughnuts, Alfredo’s Pizza, and a treatment or two at La Mansión del Rio’s beautiful spa.
Writing this review of La Mansión del Rio has only solidified how impressed I was with this beautiful River Walk jewel, a member of Historic Hotels of America. From check in to check out, this River Walk hotel received a 10/10 rating from us.
And San Antonio, Texas? You weren’t that bad. See you again soon!
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Kendra Paulson is the author behind the content He has luggage, he is still traveling on IG and FB, where she creates personal development content. She loves to travel and explore new places with her husband and two kids, which is a good thing because their military family moves every couple of years to a new place for a new adventure! A mix of every place she’s ever lived, Kendra likes to think she brings a little flavor of the Midwestern plains, the coastal Southeast, the desert Southwest, and the lush Hawaiian islands to everything she works on.
