The Hill Country Feature

The Hill Country is the land of the open road. The best, and really the only way to access the Hill Country is by car—or by motorcycle, which is an increasingly popular method.

You can access the region from I-35 or I-10, coming from the north and south or east and west, respectively. The gateway cities are Austin and San Antonio (Austin is technically even part of the Hill Country). These two cites are about 60 mi from each other on I-35. Between these two hubs on the interstate lie New Braunfels, Gruene, and San Marcos. Running north and south through the Hill Country is Highway 281, which intersects with I-10 West and San Antonio, and can be reached from Austin via Highway 71 or Highway 290, the latter traversing the region from east to west.

The most direct, and economical way to reach the Hill Country by air is to come into either San Antonio or Austin, though there is also a small airport at Del Rio. From San Antonio International Airport, take Highway 281 north for about 90 mi to go through Blanco, Johnson City, Marble Falls, and Burnet, or cut across on State Loop 1604 heading west to I-10 West and you'll go through Boerne, Comfort, Kerrville, and can then easily make your way to Bandera and Medina, or Fredericksburg and Mason. From Austin Bergstrom Airport, take Highway 290 west to Highway 281 to get to most of the Hill Country towns.