Truth be told, we chose Longview for one of our stops simply because we were looking for a place that fell in between Memphis and Austin on the map. I’m so glad we landed here though! Prior to visiting, our visions of Texas involved hot, desert terrain with the occasional tumbleweed blowing by. Eastern Texas completely obliterated these assumptions by enveloping us in a lush, green and fertile forest environment with a moderate climate.
Below you’ll find plenty of ideas for your own trip, including:
Things To Do
There is plenty to do when visiting North-East Texas. Here are some of the highlights:
Texas State Railroad
All aboard! A great way to enjoy the scenery is by taking a relaxing train ride on the Texas State Railroad through the piney woods of East Texas. Our tour took us from Palestine to Rusk and back with a stop to disembark for lunch in between. The kids loved exploring the train. It was definitely one of the highlights of our time in Texas!
KidsView Playground
On our travels, there’s nothing the kids like more than a fresh playground. We couldn’t believe our luck when we discovered KidsView! It is a massive, wooden structure that is clearly the result of a coordinated community effort. Names etched into the slides, monkey bars, swings and even down to the picket fences acknowledge all the donations that came together to create this fun park.
Other Fun North-East Texas Activities
As usual, there were many more things to do than we had time for in our brief visit to Longview. Here are some other things I had shortlisted: Southwest Dairy Museum, Depot Museum Children’s Discovery Center, Cherokee Trace Drive-Thru Safari, Longview World of Wonders, East Texas Oil Museum and the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center. You can find all this and more on this post about East Texas attractions.
Places To Eat
Sonic Drive-In
In Longview, we mostly ate in our RV, which is one of the benefits of travelling this way! So in terms of reliable dining recommendations, I have nothing for this area. Yet, we did have time to try out a Sonic Drive-In – a common restaurant chain in the area, but the old-school drive-in component was a novelty for us!
Where We Stayed
Fernbrook Park
We were really impressed with Fernbrook Park. Everything was so clean and well-kept! The laundry facilities were great too. We would definitely stay here again when back in the area.
