Texas State Tubes

Texas State Tubes is my preferred outfitter for floating the San Marcos River and only a quick 45-​minute drive from Austin. If you show up within the first hour of opening, you can get tubes at the «Early Bird Special» price of only $ 10 (instead of $ 17). If you miss that window and you’re a student, just show your ID to get tubes for only $ 15. The tubes last season were bright neon-​colored and not the cheap black tubes so prone to becoming blisteringly hot in the Texas sun.
The float itself is relatively slow and takes 2−3hrs depending on the flow rate of the river and how often you stop in the shoals. There aren’t many fast-​running parts of the river so there’s nothing particularly precarious about the trip. The take-​out point is a large concrete ramp that leads right into the parking lot, which is awesome for leaving quickly.

My sister from Germany, her 16 year old son and her 10 year old daughter and I did that about 2 weeks ago and I can only say FANTASTIC. We had so much fun, good equipment, nice people, we just had a blast. The water is nice and chilly, not too cold, just perfect (this was in the middle of August), and we took their suggestions with hats, sun glasses and lots of sun block. All very good suggestions!!! The river was beautiful, a few little rocky areas that were totally fun, but not dangerous. You can always stop when you want (there are plenty of areas where you can rest a little and refresh yourself out of the cooler that you are pulling with you). My niece wanted to do it again, but sadly we did not have the time for that. I, however, am planning on going again with my husband, my stepson and my nephew, who staid here for an exchange semester. We can’t wait!!!

Taylor was the coolest! She checked us in and told us about the early bird special. Everyone was really friendly — Charles drove the bus and was really safe. We actually almost got hit ! But he saved us. Cheaper than dons, friendlier than dons, plus they got a great groupon going ! I recommend this as your go to float in San Marcos

The lines weren’t bad. Easy in and easy out. BUT… the tubes were horrible! They are black and far too hot to tolerate in the July sun. Very uncomfortable. And worst of all, TWO of our THREE cooler tubes burst early in the trip and we were stuck holding coolers for the next 4 long hours. Totally unacceptable. I would not recommend this place unless you bring your own tubes. And be sure to inflate them before you arrive. Oh also, they don’t provide the netted trash bags you’d expect from a tube outfitter. So bring your own!

This place may be a good cheap option on weekdays or during Spring, but during peak season, do not consider them. There is no permanent structure; just a pop-​up tent in a parking lot. They sell wristbands from this tent. To get a tube, you wait in a chaotic line with no employees present to maintain any order. A truck pulling a trailer full of about 20 – 25 tubes pulls around every half hour or so, at which point the disordered line of 200+ people turns into a riot. The biggest and drunkest get tubes and the rest are left waiting.
The tubes are also not rubber and do not have bottoms, even though there are many shallow stretches. After about an hour and a half of standing in the sun without advancing in line, we left. I’ve tubed every river in the area, and cannot understand how a slipshod operation like this stays in business when we have Unilocal to identify legitimate businesses. Skip lunch and spend the extra $ 5 anywhere else if you actually want to get in the water during peak tubing season.

My husband and I went here for our first tubing experience. It was great! I only wish the float was longer. All the staff were super friendly and the atmosphere was super chill. I don’t have any other experiences to compare it to, but we liked how much closer to Austin this was as opposed to driving to New Braunfels and the Groupon we used was a great deal. We’ll definitely be back. 4 stars only because the bathroom was gross.

Texas State Tubes is my go to spot when I float the river. I’ve been coming here since they opened a few years back. There is nothing like getting your butt in the water, laying back with a cold beer in your hand, and escaping real life for a few hours.
I prefer this drop in point as opposed to Don’s because it’s smaller and there usually aren’t crazy long lines. I think the longest I’ve waited to get into the water was 15 min? Which is nothing because the line is constantly moving. If you bring your own tube it’s a pretty cheap day trip. With the student discount it was $ 11.
The staff rocks, they’re so friendly and the girls strike up conversations with you if there isn’t a line. I’ve never seen parking be an issue but I can see how it could be if you don’t get there early.
Air is free BUT this is also my criticism; guys, get a real air compressor. 15 tiny Coleman air pumps plugged into a generator and a surge strip is NOT cutting it.
Great place to float but fill your tubes before you get there.

For my first tubing experience, this place was awesome! It was a decent price (ask for the student discount!) and they provided everything that the other places do. We drove to the main site and paid for admission, were bused to the river site, and grabbed our tubes for ourselves and our cooler.
NOTE: Styrofoam coolers are highly discouraged because you have to pay a fine if the river cops find you with one. We wasted money buying one right before our trip only to have to get rid of it and rent one of their coolers instead. If you don’t have a cooler, just rent one of theirs — it’s $ 5 and it’s a lot more worth it than getting a styrofoam cooler.
ADDITIONAL NOTE: Bring ties for your cooler to secure it to your tube… and to secure that tube to one of you… or just to secure everyone in your party to one another so you don’t lose each other. Tie down is pretty important and we would have never survived without the gracious help of some fellow tubers who pitied us in our struggle to stay together.
Our trip down the river was very enjoyable, albeit slow at times because of how popular this activity is during the summer. Even though the water was pretty low, there were still some fun fast points and we even flipped once (so be careful with bringing stuff you don’t want to lose in the water!). The trip took about 5 hours (a lot longer than what some other people say) so just give yourself ample amount of time to float.
This was definitely a unique experience that I would love to do again. Next time I will be more prepared and hopefully after reading my notes, you won’t make the same rookie mistakes that we did!

We floated from here this weekend. Awesome float and very reasonably priced place to float from! I would highly recommend this place to anyone no matter if your going with a big or small group. They do a good job getting you there quickly and helping you get you and your stuff back out of the river after your float. Just a reminder– don’t bring styrofoam coolers with you, they are not allow on the river by law.

I’ve wanted to go river-​tubing all year and I was a bit nervous that we were going to have long waits, and that the transportation they provided would be inconvenient. Not the case whatsoever! We arrived a little before noon and we were like the 5^th car to arrive. Everyone who worked there was wicked nice– and welcoming. The cost was $ 15 and it included, transportation, a tube and 2.5+ hours on the water. We took a little over 3 hours to complete the loop– and it was all so convenient. Bus drove us to the drop off point, we picked out our tubes and off in the water we went. The float was so relaxing, and it was nice because there were a lot of other tubers– but at times we ended up floating completely alone. We brought our own beer, and it was nice to be able to casually drink while floating down a giant lazy river.
The water was pretty slow at times and at other times we had a great time taking on ‘mini-​rapids’ in our tubes. I totally recommend going river tubing with TST and I plan on returning later in the summer. P. S. I went with just 1 friend, but I would also be nice to go with a bigger group of people and you can tie your tubes and float down the river all together.
It was also nice to see that at about the halfway point there were people in boats collecting trash and bottles from the river. We also saw many fish– about 20+ turtles basking in the sun on the shore and lots of butterflies. :)

Big family with kids; Texas state tubes was great!
We are a big group of about 15 people with kids. We always chose Texas State Tubes! We are familiar with the San Marcos river which does get a little busy since the Guadalupe River is so low. We have our own tubes and get there before noon. We never run into problems. Texas state tubes always takes care if us! All of the owners/​employees are awesome. One time we forgot one of the caps for our tube to stay inflated and Texas State tubes took care of us and gave one for free! The area is clean and organized. Getting on is easy. You get onto the river at a beautiful spot that is nice and refreshing to just sit and wait until your while group is on. When traveling with a big group that wants to stay together, this is very important. When you get off you are greeted by employees and a paved walkway up. This nice for my parents who are a little older. There are bathrooms available and a food stand in case your hungry. They even have live music on certain weekends. The area is set up nicely with hammocks and pic knack tables; this serves as a nice spot to wait with the kids.
My whole family loves Texas State Tubes and would never float any other place in San Marcos!

While the masses at the adjacent tube rental company waited in a long ass line, my friend and I parked our car, grabbed our cooler, paid for tubes, signed our waivers, and hopped on a good ol’ fashioned school bus and headed on down to the river. The river was crowded that day, but I have no idea why the other spot was so crowded and this one wasn’t. It might have cost a few $ more ($ 15 if you need a tube/​$ 8 if you have your own/​$ 10 for a cooler tube), but it was totally worth it to get from car to butt in a tube in the river with an open beer in under 10 minutes.
They made new river rules last year, but when you float from this location, they don’t apply. Cans are fine from this location. But for the love of God, people, please bring a bag or something to hold on to your trash.

WARNING: Drunk College Kids + No PoPo = Not Family Friendly.
The only reason why I’m giving these cats 3 stars instead of 2 is that two of their employees were very helpful when we needed to change our tire. We obviously just ran over something as we could hear the loud whizzing while we were pulling our tubes out of the truck and the tire was going low. They were quick to grab a good jack and helped get the tire changed quickly. They were at the river landing at the end of the float to help pull us out of the river and asked about our trip. They cared which was really nice to be remembered. Thank you.
We choose TST only because our friends were hosting a going away party yesterday (7÷14÷13) and this is where they like to float. This was my first time on this part of the San Marcos river. I usually float with the Lions Club when I’m looking for something different. It is always a nice change to get away from the New Braunfels city rules on the Comal. I grew up in Canyon Lake so very familiar with floating the NB area for the past 30+ yrs.
This river float was a different experience which could have been enjoyable… except for the gross trash, mostly empty beer cans, all along the shores and floating in the river with us. College kids hang out along the river banks and rock islands to smoke, float, and get their groove on. So if you are young looking for a party, this is a great party float… but please respect nature, always take out more than you pack in… its frat house trashy all over the river… please help pick up during and after the party or you will see more people complaining which will in turn bring out the cops to shut down the party. the banks of the river are private property so stay in the water… if the county hasnt starting undercover cops floating the river, its probably coming soon that the word is out about this well kept secret… this is the very reason why NB /​Comal county made river rules…
It is not the rivers fault for being trashy. Its the people. Its not truly the outfitters fault but I do feel that every person that pays for a wristband should also be given a mesh trash bag and asked to please bring in more than their own trash. Help educated the kids to be conscious of their actions to the environment. To the people that complain about any outfitter… go work for one and then tell us what you really think. you need to either get there before noon or go on a weekday to avoid lines… same as any outdoor recreation activity including theme or water parks…
the actual float was nice… large beautiful trees, very rural area, a nice amount of small rapids with some real slow areas also. we were told it was a 3 hr float which could even be longer if you make stops along the way. i think this would be a good river to kayak… I’m not sure i will do this float again, at least not on a weekend (and if i find what day they clean the river, outfitter and volunteers, i’ll go the next day)…
$ 8 for parking and shuttle which was ok i guess. we brought our own tubes. which thankfully had bottoms as we needed them on the small rapids. $ 15 for tubes, shuttle and parking. they offered real black tubes which is a big plus for me being a old school river rat. Cash is preferred tho they take CCs for $ 1 swipe charge.
TIP: for any tubers at any outfitter on any river… Get there early. Bring your own mesh bag to pick up trash or ask for one when you get there. Expect long lines when its really hot, after noon, or on a Saturday. Bring sunscreen, lots of beverages, snacks, sunscreen, sunglasses, waterproof camera. if you smoke, please bring a container for your butts. no styrofoam. no glass.

Had the best time at TST! Parking was easy, less than 10 minute wait for the bus, and way better looking people than other places I’ve floated. :) Cheap, easy, and a badass time on the river? Sold. Me and my girlfriends had a blast!

This place was the worst tubing experience of my life. Not only was the transportation to the drop in spot poorly organized, these guys know how to to destroy a river. There was trash EVERYWHERE at the drop off spot and absolutely no trash cans. The river itself was completely covered in garbage from the tubers and I felt like I was tubing through a landfill most of the time. When my friends and I arrived back at Texas State Tubes after the float, their stash was just pushing all of the cans and bags that people had been collecting right back into the river.
At $ 15 a person, I suggest tubing the Guadalupe or Comal rivers in New Braunfels. These guys don’t have their stuff together and frankly I don’t think they care :/​\
edit: I called them out on this a couple days after via Facebook and they accused me of being drunk and on drugs. Says a lot about their level of customer service

My friends and I had a terrible time with Texas State Tubes.
The gist: overpriced, waited two hours for tubes, beautiful river ruined by trash and trashy people. If you want more details please see below.
First we stood in line to pay for overpriced tubes. Then we stood in line to get on a transport bus. At this point everyone was still in high spirits. Once we got to to entrance of the river, we discovered that there was not enough tubes for the amount of wrist bands they sold. We stood in an unorganized line for 2 hours. We contemplated leaving and getting our money back, but decided it would be worth the wait once we got into the river. We had to wait for 3 truckloads of tubes to come before our entire group was set. It was so chaotic they had the police oversee the whole thing and threatened to taser a few people.
When we finally snagged enough tubes, we were ready to enjoy a calm and relaxing float down the river. To my dismay we were surrounded by the dredges of the gene pool. My heart goes out to any families who just wanted to have good, clean fun with their kids. There were a numerous amounts of people throwing the n-​word around, lip sinking incorrect words to horrendous Lil Wayne songs, throwing their beer cans into the river along with their cigarette butts and to top it all off — vomiting straight into the river. It was disgusting, depressing and disgusting (yes, so disgusting I had to mention it two… now three times).
I understand that we could have just caught the wrong crowd on the wrong day. However, I was still overly disappointed with the lack of planning by such a simple business model.
1. Only sell enough wrist bands for the amount of tubes you have while accounting for people entering and exiting the river based on how the river is flowing that day
2. Place convenient trash boats along the river so it doesn’t become a floating landfill
3. Ticket people who are:
a. drinking underage
b. obviously too drunk to be in public
c. bringing glass containers into the river
d. deliberately littering into the river
The only positive comment I have is directed at the police present this day. I never thought I would ever utter such words, but in this case they kept numerous fights from breaking out without being unnecessarily agressive and hostile.

This was our first time tubing on the San Marcos and we loved it. The folks at Texas State Tubes were friendly, parking was easy, we didn’t have to wait in line and the prices seemed fair. We’ll definitely be coming back.

Had an AMAZING float with these guys. First, they have 2 locations. The main location is listed and then they have a park and float location at 2024 N Old Bastrop Rd
San Marcos, Tx 78 666. We went to the main location and they bused us out about 15 minutes later … we were actually on the water about 30 minutes after we parked (that includes us getting ice chest ready and paying) — I’ve never had that happen in San Marcos or New Braunfels really … The owners were on the property and pretty cool guys. The staff seemed nice.
the main point is that it took no time to get on the water — that’s why I gave it 5 stars. Nice and no hassle. Love it. Will definitely be going back.