The Barwalk, San Antonio

My wife booked this tour for me while we were visiting San Antone for my birthday. We’d been on tours before on the river walk and around the local area, so I was expecting much of the same rehearsed information being regurgitated by a part time employee of some tour company. I majored in history and am always looking for bits of new information to help gain a better understanding of historical events. When we saw this tour being paired with bars and food, what wasn’t to like, right? Emzy, the guide, has gone above and beyond gathering information and doing research on this city. He has a personality as big and rich as San Antonio’s history and truly has a passion for what he does. He’s a native of the city and the pride he has in its history is shown through the work he puts into his tours. We went with a two hour tour because of our schedule, but will be returning next year to do the five hour tour. Even though we only paid for two hours he spent much longer with us sharing historical bits of information and discussing all the different areas of the city and its relevance to historical figures. It was so entertaining and well crafted I told him he needed his own TV show. He has devoted his life to telling the story of San Antonio and trying to preserve this piece of Americana. Everywhere you go, whether it’s buildings, battle sites, or bars, they are all part of the historical fibers that were woven into San Antone. Emzy has obviously spent countless hours researching and investigating the city in depth. What this trip offers that others don’t is the human factor, he makes you feel like you are actually standing there watching this history take place. If you want to hop on a boat and pay a commercialized tour to regurgitate information that can be found in any fifth grade history book, that’s your choice, but you’ll be cheating yourself out of the experience that is San Antone. We were in town for five days and this was by far the highlight of our trip and is worth every penny spent. Plus the bars were great:)

I cannot tell you how pleased I was with this experience with enough enthusiasm to do it justice. Emzy went above and beyond my expectations. His obvious commitment to the history of the area was unparalleled. Any question I had was met with an immediate, detailed answer. I suggest you don't just listen but also engage and ask questions as he is eager to share more information. Besides the history lesson, the overall feel of the evening was one of friendly conversation mixed with crafted cocktails with a local who truly had the back stage pass to many local watering holes and the historic buildings they reside in. Worth every penny! It was a truly unique experience!