South Padre

[mlchorn]

I haven't been in many, many years.
6 yr old is wanting to go to the beach (3 yr old as well), so I figured South Padre in Summer 09.
Does anyone have suggestions on good places to stay?
We will eat out some, but prefer to cook / grill our own meals.

I am but a public servant, so very high end places are not an option.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[SA_Town_Horn]

Sheraton is probably your best bet and very kid friendly

 

[SabreHorn]

I would avoid the Holiday Inn, Sheraton & Radisson. They are overpriced and not worth it.There is not a really good hotel on the island. You might want to check with a local realtor about a condo, which is likely not more expensive than the hotels.

If you think you will going to the Schlitterbahn more than once, watch for their "season pass", which is on sale in December. You can get a year long pass for the price of 2-3 days entry.

There are only a couple of expensive places to eat. Tom and Jerrys, Gulf Coast Oyster Bar, and Louie's Locals Bar are good places with kids. Do not confuse Louie's Locals Bar with the tourist trap downstairs. It is upstairs and "kid friendly" until about 9 or 10.. The stair has a "guard". I guess "Bear" is still there. Just introduce yourself and go upstairs - TVs, pool tables, shuffleboard, and a menu NOT BUFFET. Place seats probably 200.

If you cross the causeway, turn left at the first light. About a block on right is a really dumpy cheap ($5-6) TexMex restaurant, which is really good.

Every restaurant on the island has either a "soecial night" or "special of the night". Gulf Coast used to have a sirloin, potato, salad,for $7.50 on Wednesday, but that's been 3-4 years. Louie's Locals bar has nightly specials, as does Tom and Jerry's.

Down around Morningside, (last red lite going north - 3 miles from causeway) there are few people on the beach. You can take your child down there and have a 25-100 yard clearance around you on the 4th of July.

If you get a condo, there is an HEB and Super WalMart in Port Isabel where the two hiways converge. The Island has a small, but nice grocery.

Lots of building going on, but it's still the cheapest beach property in the country and still a lot less crowded than Florida or SoCal.

Watch out for Los Fresnos, Port Isabel, and Island police. they love to write tickets. Ever heard of "insufficient signal"? - Changing lanes and leaving the blinker on long enough. Brought 3 island police cars.

 

[HtownAg92]

Yaxche is a must.

We go once a year and still love some of the touristy places like Blue Lobster and La Parilla. After all, we don't live there and we are tourists. The owner of Blue Lobster knows us and always brings over tequila to share a shot with us. And La Parilla has the mariachi band nightly, which we love.

Last trip we went ot Divino on 5th, which was excellent.

 

[mlchorn]

I appreciate the feedback.
I'm sure we will go the condo route - we have much more fun cooking / grilling ourselves than eating out.
Again, thanks.