• Founded: 1718
• Incorporated: 1837
• Founded by: Spanish missionaries (led by Father Antonio de Olivares)
• Population (2023 estimate): 1.495 million
• Official City Website: https://www.sa.gov/
• Total City Area: 465.4 sq mi (1,205.4 km2)
• Counties: Bexar, Atascosa, Bandera, Comal, Frio, Gillespie, Guadalupe, Karnes, Kendall, Kerr, Medina, Wilson

2023 Accolades

1. WalletHub ranked San Antonio at #5 in their “Best Winter Holiday Destinations.”

2021 Accolades

1. U.S. News & World Report ranked San Antonio as #1 in “Best Places to Visit in Texas” and in the top 15 in “Best Weekend Getaways in the South” for their “2021 Best Vacation Rankings.”
2. PureWow listed San Antonio as #7 in its “The 50 Best Vacations for Kids in the U.S.”
3. WalletHub’s “2021’s Best Summer Travel Destinations” survey ranked the San Antonio metro area in the top 15 in the country for budget-friendly travel experiences.
4. AT&T’s The Wave survey ranked the San Antonio Riverwalk as Texans’ Favorite Tourist Attraction.
5. TravelingMom.com included San Antonio in its “25 Top Teen Destinations for 2021.”
6. Trivago listed San Antonio as one of the “Top Seven U.S. Destinations” in a March 2021 study on top-searched and booked destinations.
7. Family Vacation Critic featured San Antonio in its “50 Best Family Vacations in America.”
8. Travel Daily News named San Antonio among the top 10 in its “The Top Staycation Locations in the U.S.”

2020 Accolades

1. AFAR Magazine included San Antonio in its prestigious “Where to Go in 2020” list.
2. Condé Nast Traveler recognized San Antonio as #5 in the “Best Big Cities in the U.S.” category in the Readers’ Choice Awards, making it the only Texas city selected.
3. Hotel Valencia Riverwalk (#4) and Hotel Emma (#7) were chosen in the Top 20 Hotels in Texas category by Condé Nast Traveler.
4. ConventionSouth included San Antonio in its 2020 Readers’ Choice Awards, honoring several local hotels like Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort & Spa, JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa, and The St. Anthony Hotel.
5. San Antonio was voted to TripAdvisor’s “Travelers’ Choice 2020 Best of the Best, Popular Destinations – United States.”
6. J.D. Power ranked San Antonio International Airport in the top 15 overall and top 10 among medium-sized airports in its North American Airport Satisfaction Study.
7. Food & Wine included Bakery Lorraine and La Panadería in its “Top 100 Best Bakeries in America.”
8. The Jerk Shack was selected for GQ’s “Best New Restaurants 2020” and Esquire’s “Best New Restaurants 2019.”
9. Chef Steve McHugh (Cured) was named a finalist for the James Beard Award’s Best Chef: Texas category in 2020.