Athens is a small southern city in Henderson County, Texas, quiet and relaxed, but only a short drive from Dallas and Tyler. Nearby Lake Athens offers all kids of outdoor recreation including scuba diving and exploring sunken boats. Athens has a nice walkable downtown with antique shops, galleries and restaurants.
Stroll through the East Texas Arboretum
Surrounding the historic Wofford House Museum, the East Texas Arboretum is a must-visit attraction for all nature and gardening enthusiasts. The beautiful arboretum covers around 100 acres of outdoor beauty comprising mature trees, thousands of shrubs and flowers, streams, bridges and nature trails.
The trail: There is a rugged 2-mile trail where nature lovers can expect to see plenty of birds and small wildlife as well as a paved accessible trail which covers around 1/3 of a mile.
Themed gardens: You will also enjoy exploring 4 themed gardens (including a special Children’s Garden) and the Discovery Barn, now home to a collection of vintage farm implements. Visiting the arboretum provides a great day out for all ages.
Find it at this Address: East Texas Arboretum, 1601 Patterson Road, Athens, TX 75751, 903 675 5630
Visit Athens Scuba Park
It is not exactly like diving the reefs in the Caribbean, but diving in Lake Athens offers lot of fun to the local scuba enthusiasts. Athens Scuba Park is an all-inclusive dive facility that provides all kinds of diving service, classes, travel and sale of diving equipment. They are one of the very few dive resorts in the States that has its own full service dive shop, training pool, classroom and an open water lake, all in one location.
The dive site: There are 35 sunken wrecks to explore and 11 diving docks around the lake, so more groups can dive at the same time and there is no waiting. They have all diving gear needed in their well-stocked store – tanks, masks, BCDs, air and more. They offer scuba diving classes of all levels. Warm, spring-fed lake water of Athens Scuba Park has a visibility of 35 to 70 feet. The lake's depth is from 20 to 35 feet.
Find it at this Address: 500 N Murchison St, Athens, TX 75751, Phone: 903-675-5762
Relax at The Retreat Massage and Day Spa
The Retreat Massage and Day Spa is designed as a place for people to gather, escape the stressful environment, retreat for a short time from the life’s problems and let someone else take care of them. Each of the five spa rooms have a different theme.
Find it at this Address: 225 S Prairieville St, Athens, TX 75751, Phone: 903-677-4211
Have dinner at Jalapeno Tree
The Jalapeno Tree is a family-owned Mexican chain of restaurant with a large menu of classic Mexican food. They use fresh, seasonal ingredients in the made to order kitchen where everything is made from scratch.
Find it at this Address: 1112 E Tyler St, Athens, TX 75751
Go wine tasting at 3 P’s in a Vine Winery and Vineyard
3 P’s in a Vine Winery and Vineyard is a family and friend business which strives to offer visitors an enjoyable and relaxing wine tasting experience.
Find it at this Address: 955 Douglas Road, Athens, TX 75751, 903 677 9463
Book a stay at Tara Vineyard and Winery
Tara Vineyard and Winery is the oldest vineyard and winery in Henderson County, and is family owned and operated. At the heart of the property guests will find the gracious Tara Inn, which occupies the former historic Murchison home which dates back to the 1880’s and was moved to its current location from downtown Athens.
Find it at this Address: 8603 CR 3914, Athens, TX 75752, 903 675 7023
Watch a performance at the Henderson County Performing Arts Center
For more than 50 years the Henderson County Performing Arts Center has been enriching the lives of East Texas residents and visitors by bringing the joys of live theatre to their doorstep.
Find it at this Address: 400 Gibson Road, Athens, TX 75751, 903 675 3908
