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Texas

On the Road: Exploring Texas Heritage from Austin to San Antonio

Program No. 25127RJ

Discover Texas heritage — explore the historic districts of Austin, learn about agriculture in the Hill Country and experience traditional dance, music and food in San Antonio.

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Length

8 days

Rating

New

Activity Level

Starts at

2,649

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8 days

7 nights

16 meals

7B 5L 4D

Check-in, Orientation, Welcome Dinner

Austin, Texas

Mexic-Arte Museum, Texas State Capitol, Downtown Austin

Austin, Texas

East Austin, George Washington Carver, Texas Music

Austin, Texas

Agritourism, Winery Visit, Hill Country

Fredericksburg/Johnson City

Fredericksburg Trolley, San Antonio, San Fernando Cathedral

San Antonio, TX

San Antonio Missions, Chicano Culture, Museo del Westside

San Antonio, TX

Free Morning, Mexican Market, Farewell Dinner

San Antonio, TX

Program Concludes

San Antonio, TX

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At a Glance

With over 300 years of immigrant history, Southeast Texas has one of the most diverse cultural scenes in the U.S. Discover how this region blends new development with historic preservation and learn about the traditions and influences passed down by the numerous ethnic groups that settled Texas. Enjoy experiencing this cultural diversity through traditional dance, music and food.

Activity Level

Keep the Pace

Walking up to three miles daily. Must be able to climb stairs and board motor coach with minimal assistance. Standing in museums for up to two hours a day.

Small Group

Love to learn and explore in a small-group setting? These adventures offer small, personal experiences with groups of 13 to 24 participants.

Best of all, you’ll…

Explore East Austin with a local and find out why the city is known as the “Live Music Capital of the World” with a private performance from a Grammy Award-winning artist.
Delve into the wine-making process and experience what makes a Hill Country wine truly Texan.
Learn about the lives of indigenous peoples from a lineal descendant of Mission Natives as you explore the San Antonio Missions National Historic Site.

Featured Expert

All trip experts

Aimee Villarreal

Aimee Villarreal has a Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of California at Santa Cruz, and specializes in Mexican American culture and history. With Chicana roots in New Mexico and Texas, she is passionate about the movements for social justice, equity, and sustainable futures surrounding the U.S.-Mexico borderlands. She is the author of the book "Sanctuaryscapes," which highlights the concepts of community, sanctuary, and humanitarianism in native cultures.

Please note: This expert may not be available for every date of this program.

Aimee Villarreal View biography

Michael Robinson View biography

Michael Robinson is a professional guide and owner of San Antonio ProTours, the exclusive operator for the award-winning Hotel Emma. He is an expert conversationalist and presenter with vast and varied experience as a history teacher, large event emcee, stand-up comic, and more. Michael has lived and worked in Philadelphia, New York City, Portland, and Zurich. He and his family moved to San Antonio in 2018 to be close to his wife’s family, South Texans for many generations.

Suggested Reading List (8 books)

Visit the Road Scholar Bookshop

You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.

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On the Road: Exploring Texas Heritage from Austin to San Antonio

Program Number: 25127

Texas, My Texas: Musings of the Rambling Boy

by Lonn Taylor

In a collection of essays about Texas gathered from his West Texas newspaper column, Lonn Taylor traverses the very best of Texas geography, Texas history, and Texas personalities. In a state so famous for its pride, Taylor manages to write a very honest, witty, and wise book about Texas past and Texas present.

As Texas Goes: How the Lone Star State Hijacked the American Agenda

by Gail Collins

Gail Collins, the best-selling author and columnist for the New York Times, visited Texas and discovered that in Texas, where Bush, Cheney, Rove, & Perry had created a conservative political agenda that is now sweeping the country and defining our national identity. Through its vigorous support of banking deregulation, lax environmental standards, and draconian tax cuts, through its fierce championing of states rights, gun ownership, and, of course, sexual abstinence, Texas, with Governor Rick Perry’s presidential ambitions, has become the bellwether of a far-reaching national movement that continues to have profound social and economic consequences for us all. Like it or not, as Texas goes, so goes the nation.

Austin City Limits: 25 Years of American Music

by John T. Davis

This book documents in words and pictures, anecdotes and behind-the-scenes images, the performances of the more than five hundred stellar recording artists who have appeared on the show. This book features a foreword by Lyle Lovett and over 200 color illustrations.

Seat of Empire: The Embattled Birth of Austin, Texas

by Jeffrey Stuart Kerr

The founding of Austin sparked one of the Republic’s first great political battles, pitting against each other two Texas titans: Lamar, who in less than a year had risen to vice president from army private, and Sam Houston, the hero of San Jacinto and a man both loved and hated throughout the Republic.

Keep Austin Weird: A Guide to the Odd Side of Town

by Red Wassenich

Entertaining text and over 180 color photos show the colorful places, people, and doings in Austin, Texas' capital city. Tour the Cathedral of Junk built with over 700 bicycles. Meet Leslie, the cross-dressing perennial mayoral candidate. Party at the Spamarama, Austin's premier weird cook-off. Keep your eyes peeled for the cruising art cars.

Friedrichsburg: Colony of the German Furstenverein

by Friedrich Armand Strubberg and James C. Kearney

Big, Wonderful Thing: A History of Texas

by Harrigan, Stephen

Written by a great story teller, this readable, monumental work is exactly what the title implies: a comprehensive history of Texas complete with wonderful historic photographs and a focus on the stories of individual people. Not for the fainthearted, the time invested in reading this is well-spent. Actually, the book is so readable that devouring it is a pleasure. It has been described as “a must read for Texas aficionados.”

Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History

by S. C. Gwynne

S. C. Gwynne’s Empire of the Summer Moon spans two astonishing stories. The first traces the rise and fall of the Comanches, the most powerful Indian tribe in American history. The second entails one of the most remarkable narratives ever to come out of the Old West: the epic saga of the pioneer woman Cynthia Ann Parker and her mixed-blood son Quanah, who became the last and greatest chief of the Comanches.

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On the Road: Exploring Texas Heritage from Austin to San Antonio

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Protecting the Environment

At a Glance

Best of all, you’ll…

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