Weekend Event Guide

Here are the top 5 things to do in San Antonio this weekend

Fall is in full swing in Alamo City. From family-friendly fun at Natural Bridge Caverns to thrilling nights at Fiesta Texas’ Fright Fest, there’s entertainment for everyone to enjoy. Check out the top five things to do in San Antonio this weekend.

Thursday, September 30

Six Flags Fiesta Texas presents Fright Fest
Fright Fest is back at Six Flags Fiesta with spooky, family-friendly daytime activities and thrilling attractions when the sun goes down. Freaky festivities include haunted houses, scare zones, live shows, and seasonal updates to some of the park’s most popular rides. Fright Fest is open through October 31.

The Kingston Trio in concert
Folk music group The Kingston Trio comes to San Antonio for one night only at the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts. Enjoy a musical journey through the trio’s enduring career performed by the band’s second generation of members, including Josh Reynolds, son of founding member Nick Reynolds. Visit the ticketing website for seating availability.

Friday, October 1

SeaWorld San Antonio presents Howl-O-Scream
SeaWorld has undergone a spooky transformation with the return of Howl-O-Scream. Beginning at nightfall, the park comes to life with scare zones, haunted houses, signature Halloween bars, and more. Live entertainment and appearances by frightening guests are lurking around every corner. Entry to Howl-O-Scream is included with park admission.

Tim Allen in concert
Comedic legend and actor Tim Allen takes to the stage again for a stand-up performance at Majestic Theatre. Best known for his hit television sitcom Home Improvement, Allen has won a Golden Globe and is an Emmy-nominated actor. A limited number of tickets is still available on the event website.

Saturday, October 2

Natural Bridge Caverns presents Happy Fall Y’all
Explore the Natural Bridge Caverns with a festive autumn twist as part of Happy Fall Y’all. Visitors can enjoy the cavern’s many seasonal attractions, including live entertainment, photos-ops, yard games, and a mini hay maze. Guests who attend in a family-friendly costume will receive free admission to the AMAZEn’ Ranch Roundup. And, as a special Halloween weekend treat, visitors can experience animal shows, face painting, and trick-or-treating in the park. Programming is scheduled through October 31. Visit the Natural Bridge Caverns website for more information.

Venture to Fright Fest for haunted houses, scare zones, and more now through October 31 at Six Flags Fiesta Texas.

Photo courtesy of Six Flags Over Texas

Venture to Fright Fest for haunted houses, scare zones, and more now through October 31 at Six Flags Fiesta Texas.

event-planner

Nonprofit news

San Antonio nonprofit breaks ground on new West Side campus

Courtesy of SA Hope Center

SA Hope Center is expanding to San Antonio's West Side with a new campus.

The SA Hope Center is expanding to the West Side of the city with a brand new campus. The aim of the new campus is to continue the SA Hope Center's mission to assist families experiencing major crises like poverty.

The new campus will be an expansion at the original SA Hope Center location on N. General McMullen Drive. Thanks to generous donors like H-E-B and Valero, the SA Hope Center will be able to provide a new assortment of services at the exanded campus to help more families in need of assistance.

SA Hope Center CEO Megan Legacy summed up the non-profit organization's excitement over the campus expansion in an official statement, explaining that, "This campus is a place of hope and new beginnings for the people of San Antonio who need assistance, guidance, and compassionate support. This expansion will allow the SA Hope Center team to help families overcome poverty and thrive. We are so grateful to all of our major donors who are making this possible."

So what services will the SA Hope Center be able to provide at the new campus expansion? According to a release, the expanded services will include mental health services, drop-in childcare, and a renovated family assistance center that will provide healthy, nutritious food for families, clothing assistance, and expanded case management offices.

The SA Hope Center's campus expansion will also give the nonprofit the opportunity to provide more immediate and long-term services for San Antonio families in need.

For those unfamiliar with other services the SA Hope Center typically provides, here's a general overview: They offer financial literacy classes, workforce development, parenting education, spiritual services for those who are interested, and many other supportive services. The aim of the nonprofit's services as always is to help families develop enough financial stability and long term monetary planning to evade poverty and live happy, fulfilled healthy lives.

For more information on the SA Hope Center's services and update information on the opening, visit SAHopecenter.org.

city life west side nonprofit charity

Bon Voyage

San Antonio chef invites locals to explore Europe on guided culinary adventures in 2023

Courtesy of Tim the Girl

Chef Tim McDiarmid is hosting two curated trips through Europe in summer 2023.

Good news for San Antonio natives who have been enviously binge-watching From Scratch lately: One of San Antonio's best chefs is inviting locals along on a delicious, food-filled adventure through Europe next year. Founder of The Good Kind Hospitality Group (which includes Tim the Girl Catering, The Good Kind restaurant, and the Ivy Hall Events venue), chef Tim McDiarmid is hosting two curated trips in summer 2023.

Born in British Columbia, the award-winning chef is a James Beard Fellow (2019) and former Chopped competitor got her start in New York City, where she worked in restaurants for over 20 years before moving with her son to San Antonio in 2011. As a single mother in need of a flexible schedule, she founded Tim the Girl Catering that same year.

In 2017, McDiarmid opened her first retail outpost, The Good Kind, in the Historic Pearl’s Bottling Department food hall. She went on to open a second Good Kind location in 2018 and took over the management of Ivy Hall Events venue space in the King William district before closing the Pearl location of the Good Kind in 2020. In 2019, she was selected as a James Beard Fellow for the James Beard Foundation's Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership program.

Along the way, McDiarmid has guided numerous groups through Italy in collaboration with a travel company, ItalianFix, which curates tours for those seeking to experience a place, rather than just pass through. McDiarmid is the perfect guide for these adventures, weaving her culinary and hospitality experience into a highly curated itinerary. In turn, she pulls from her travels as inspiration for her catering company and restaurants back home in San Antonio.

In 2023, McDiarmid will host two trips. The first will be a woman-only getaway to the The Cinque Terre, exploring picturesque seaside villages along the Italian Riviera for eight days and seven nights between June 24 and July 1, 2023. The second is open to all adults and spans three countries, traveling through the the Italian & French Rivieras for nine day and eight nights from July 3 to July 11, 2023.

Reservations for these one-of-a-kind trips are already open, and payment plans are available after a small initial deposit. Space is limited, so interested travelers should scurry over to italianfix.com to sign up and start planning for the adventure of a lifetime.

Let's Talk about Bruno

Disney debuts immersive, family-friendly experience in San Antonio in 2023

Courtesy of Lighthouse Immersive Studios

Disney Animation: Immersive Experience is coming to San Antonio in 2023.

A family-friendly immersive experience is coming to San Antonio in 2023. From the same team that brought Immersive Van Gogh to cities around the world, Lighthouse Immersive is bringing Disney classics to life, including The Lion King, Aladdin, and newer favorites such as Encanto, Frozen, and more.

"Like so many of us, I have a life-long love of Disney films,” said Lighthouse Immersive founder Corey Ross in a release. “I’ve grown up with them since childhood and so has my family. The work lends itself brilliantly to the immersive experience and I am confident this program will give our guests the opportunity to be engulfed in the world of Disney, making them feel like they’re standing next to their favorite characters and seeing the world through their eyes.”

Ross captures the excitement both Disney and Lighthouse Immersive feel for the project as he describes how it begins:

“Just imagine journeying through Zootopia with Judy Hopps, diving to the ocean floor with Ariel, flying on a magic carpet with Aladdin, and stepping into Casita with Mirabel and the family Madrigal. This is where the Disney Animation: Immersive Experience will take you.”

Oscar-winning producer J. Miles Dale (2018 Best Picture: The Shape of Water) is leading the creative team on the production, a collaboration between Lighthouse Immersive and Walt Disney Animation Studios.

“Trailblazing in a new medium is always exciting, and this is truly going to be the most challenging and rewarding project of my career," Dale shared in a release. "Being entrusted with Disney’s rich archive of animation is a great honor, but also a tremendous responsibility. With such a wealth of material and a treasure trove of memorable characters, it will be a thrill to bring the work of all the great Disney animators and performers to life in a 360-degree immersive environment.”

Coming to Lighthouse ArtSpace venues in late 2022/2023, the show will debut in just nine North American cities. San Antonio's opening date is set for February 28, 2023, and tickets (starting at $39.99) are already on sale at disneyimmersive.com.

Weekend Event Guide

Here are the top 5 things to do in San Antonio this weekend

Venture to Fright Fest for haunted houses, scare zones, and more now through October 31 at Six Flags Fiesta Texas.

H-E-B scoops new Spurs-inspired ice cream flavor to honor 50 years of hometown team

Real-world events make the message of Call Jane all the more relevant

San Antonio museum's popular Sips and Sounds series returns with night of Norteño music

Nonprofit news

San Antonio nonprofit breaks ground on new West Side campus

H-E-B scoops new Spurs-inspired ice cream flavor to honor 50 years of hometown team

Real-world events make the message of Call Jane all the more relevant

San Antonio museum's popular Sips and Sounds series returns with night of Norteño music

Bon Voyage

San Antonio chef invites locals to explore Europe on guided culinary adventures in 2023

H-E-B scoops new Spurs-inspired ice cream flavor to honor 50 years of hometown team

Real-world events make the message of Call Jane all the more relevant

San Antonio museum's popular Sips and Sounds series returns with night of Norteño music

Let's Talk about Bruno

Disney debuts immersive, family-friendly experience in San Antonio in 2023

H-E-B scoops new Spurs-inspired ice cream flavor to honor 50 years of hometown team

Real-world events make the message of Call Jane all the more relevant

San Antonio museum's popular Sips and Sounds series returns with night of Norteño music

Weekend Event Guide

Venture to Fright Fest for haunted houses, scare zones, and more now through October 31 at Six Flags Fiesta Texas.

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Nonprofit news

CultureMap Emails Are AwesomeGet San Antonio intel delivered daily.

We will not share or sell your email address.

Bon Voyage

CultureMap Emails Are AwesomeGet San Antonio intel delivered daily.

We will not share or sell your email address.

Let's Talk about Bruno

CultureMap Emails Are AwesomeGet San Antonio intel delivered daily.

We will not share or sell your email address.

CultureMap Emails Are Awesome
Get San Antonio intel delivered daily.

CultureMap Emails Are Awesome
Get San Antonio intel delivered daily.

CultureMap Emails Are Awesome
Get San Antonio intel delivered daily.

CultureMap Emails Are Awesome
Get San Antonio intel delivered daily.