Located in the beautiful Texas Forest Country, Lufkin is filled with surprises for all ages. Discover how surprisingly convenient Lufkin is located to major cities like Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Waco, and explore through our city's unique opportunities for fun weekend trips or even regional conventions and meetings. With a population quickly approaching 40,000 people, it's surprising how Lufkin remains peaceful and quaint while serving as a regional hub for retail shopping, medical facilities, industry, government and much more.

It's also a surprise to find a city complete with superior bass fishing, top notch golfing, state of the art museums, an outstanding zoo, quality hotels and restaurants, incredibly charming downtown, and the friendliest people on earth. With all of this to offer, it's no surprise to us why we know you'll love Lufkin. Here’s a look at some of our city's most notable attractions:

• Two 18-hole golf courses, including Crown Colony Country Club which has been consistently rated as one of the top 10 golf courses in Texas for over 20 years. We also have the 18-hole Neches Pine Golf Course located in Diboll, just minutes from Lufkin. 
• Lake Sam Rayburn, the largest reservoir completely in the state of Texas with more than 570 miles of shoreline attracts approximately 2 million users each year for the state's best bass fishing, water skiing, camping and more. The lake is conveniently located to Lufkin and Lufkin's hotels.
• Texas Forestry Museum, the only one of its kind in Texas, features the industry that made Lufkin possible - forest products. You can spend several hours in this museum looking through history, unique collections and learning about the forest industry. The museum located at 1903 Atkinson Drive is open 10am-5pm, Monday through Saturday, and 1pm-5pm Sundays. Admission is free. 936-632-9535.
• The Museum of East Texas explores art and history through exhibits, lectures, performances, classes and publications. The Museum was founded in 1976 and is one of the finest in East Texas. The museum is located at 503 North 2nd Street and is open Tuesday through Friday from 10am-5pm. Admission is free. 936-639-4434
• Ellen Trout Park & Zoo is one of Lufkin's main tourist attractions and has over 500 animals, and one fourth are endangered species. The Zoo has received numerous state and national awards and is considered one of the top zoos in cities with Lufkin's population. At the Park, you can take a ride on a miniature pre-Civil War train replica, around the lake and through the beautiful Pine trees, which fully represent Lufkin. 936-633-0399
• Downtown Lufkin is the site of many eating establishments, unique retail shops and antique collections. Also, a historic walking tour reveals the history of Lufkin. Don’t miss the beautiful murals painted by Lance Hunter throughout the downtown area. There are five, each depicting historic businesses or tales of Lufkin. In our city hall, you’ll find the Medford Western Art Collection, which features beautiful Western Art. 936-633-0206
• National forests provide the backdrop for boating, fishing, and camping. Lufkin is located between the Davy Crockett National Forest and the Angelina National Forest. 936-639-8501
• Parks and recreational opportunities include ten public parks, one swimming pool, 2 spray play pads, three golf courses, and 14 tennis courts. For more information contact the Parks and Recreation Department at 936-633-0205.
• While these are some of the town's tourist attractions, Lufkin is a great place to hold a regional or state meeting with several quality, and very reasonable, hotels and motels.

Here's a quick look at Lufkin facilities for convention services.

• The Angelina County Exposition Center is one of the premier facilities in the South and draws hundreds of thousands of visitors to Lufkin each year. Known as the Expo Center, the facility is one of the largest clear span indoor arenas in the nation. It is capable of seating 7,500 for rodeos, horse shows and other similar events and 10,000 people for concerts. The complex includes a newly covered arena with one acre under a roof and four barns that hold hundreds of horse stalls.
• The Pitser Garrison Convention Center has 16,000 square feet of meeting space which can be divided in five different meeting rooms. The Civic Center features three separate state of-the-art sound systems, a catering kitchen, and a full-service staff to help with your needs.

Lufkin offers several tourism events each year including:

• Holiday Extravaganza, a special program that lights up Lufkin during December. The holiday season is kicked off the first Saturday after Thanksgiving with a special evening on the downtown streets. There’s a night time lighted parade, pictures with Santa, the lighting of the courthouse, and entertainment. Festivities continue through the month with the lighting of Rudolph, a Trail of Lights home decorating contest, and “An Evening in Old Bethlehem.” The Expo center is transformed into the streets of Bethlehem and you can hear first hand from the townspeople about the newborn King.
• Pineywoods Purgatory is a cycling event through the rolling hills of East Texas. the event features 25, 52, 68 and 102-mile courses for the novice to the experiences cyclist. This event attracts hundreds of riders each year, with more than 95 percent coming from outside of the Lufkin area.
• The Neches River Rendezvous attracts visitors from Houston, Dallas, San Antonio and beyond. It is held the first Saturday in June. The family event is a 15-mile canoe trip down the beautiful and scenic Neches River, through the pineywoods of East Texas.
• The Texas State Forest Festival, held the fourth week in September, features several events including the Southern Hushpuppy Olympics, the East Texas Cheerleading Championships, lumberjack competition, a huge carnival, food booths, children's activities, local entertainment, and much more.

As you can see, Lufkin offers many different activities and opportunities for you, your family and your business. Any of these events can be found on our newly designed website www.visitlufkin.com. The website gives detailed information about our local attractions and yearly events.