Let the Guadalupe River guide you through quaint Hill Country towns.
To really understand Texas Hill Country, you have to get away from the buzzy metropolitan areas and escape to the rugged limestone cliffs carved by the majestic Guadalupe River. Canyon Lake is a quintessential Hill Country destination, with its beauty on display for hikers, swimmers, and tubers—and one of the best ways to experience it is on a camping trip. Make Canyon Lake your home base with day trips to nearby attractions like Natural Bridge Caverns and quaint small towns to make the most of your time.
Like nearby Fredericksburg, small towns like New Braunfels and Gruene (pronounced “Green”) embrace their German heritage through cuisine and holiday traditions. Gruene is home to one of Texas’s oldest dance halls, still hosting live music and dancing, while New Braunfels offers another beautiful spring-fed river, the Comal River, which delights throngs of tubers on summer weekends.
Wimberley mixes creativity and nature, serving as the homebase of many singer-songwriters. You can snag some great locally made finds during Wimberley Market Days on the first Saturday of each month between March through December, but even better, you’ll find some of the most Instagrammed Texas swimming holes near Wimberley: Jacob’s Well and Blue Hole, both refreshing swimming spots with green-blue water beckoning visitors to go for a dip.
To get the most out of your outdoor itinerary in Canyon Lake, we recommend visiting from March through November. Summer temperatures can be quite high in Hill Country, but it’s the best time for tubing down the Guadalupe River. Spring and fall are ideal for camping and hiking, while winter months can also be quite mild as well, aside from the errant cold snap. During the holidays, it’s fun to explore the multicultural traditions of San Antonio and the small Hill Country towns.