National Park System units within a drive of San Antonio
Two National Park System units sit within an estimated two hours of San Antonio, three between two and four hours, and seven between four and eight. The closest is San Antonio Missions National Historical Park, about 20 minutes by road from the metro's Census centroid. The metro is the San Antonio area as the Census Bureau defines it, home to 2,763,006 people in the 2024 estimates.
Each drive time is an estimate made from the straight-line distance between the metro's Census centroid and the unit's listed coordinates, multiplied by 1.25 for roads and divided by 55 mph, so a real trip will often take longer.
Metro centroid Free to enter Charges an entrance fee
Under 2 hours
| Unit | Est. drive | Entry | 2025 visits | Campgrounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Antonio Missions National Historical Park National Historical Park · TX | 0.3 h | Free | 1,552,510 | 0 |
| Lyndon B Johnson National Historical Park National Historical Park · TX | 1.3 h | Free | 38,456 | 0 |
2 to 4 hours
| Unit | Est. drive | Entry | 2025 visits | Campgrounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| El Camino Real de los Tejas National Historic Trail National Historic Trail · TX, LA | 2 h | Free | no count | 0 |
| Amistad National Recreation Area National Recreation Area · TX | 3.4 h | Free | 734,293 | 6 |
| Waco Mammoth National Monument National Monument · TX | 3.9 h | Free | 91,678 | 0 |
4 to 8 hours
| Unit | Est. drive | Entry | 2025 visits | Campgrounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Padre Island National Seashore National Seashore · TX | 4.1 h | Fee | 573,255 | 2 |
| Rio Grande Wild & Scenic River Wild & Scenic River · TX | 5.1 h | Fee | 120 | 0 |
| Palo Alto Battlefield National Historical Park National Historical Park · TX | 5.6 h | Free | 168,550 | 0 |
| Big Thicket National Preserve National Preserve · TX | 6 h | Free | 228,310 | 0 |
| Big Bend National Park National Park · TX | 6.3 h | Fee | 568,104 | 4 |
| Fort Davis National Historic Site National Historic Site · TX | 7.4 h | Fee | 35,580 | 0 |
| Blackwell School National Historic Site National Historic Site · TX | 7.5 h | Free | no count | 0 |
Metro boundaries and population from the Census Bureau Vintage 2024 population estimates; centroids from the Census Bureau 2026 Gazetteer, CBSA internal points. Unit coordinates, fees, campgrounds and 2025 recreation visits from the NPS API and Visitor Use Statistics. Data refreshed October 14, 2026. Other metros.