Why Lufkin, Texas is the Perfect Family Destination – Join Us on Our Last Adventure!

 Story and Photos by Ken Hulsey

This past Friday, our family decided to head west into Texas and revisit the town of Lufkin. On our trip there last year, we had lunch at Ray's Drive In, visited the Naranjo Museum of Natural History, and popped into the History Center in nearby Diboll. This time around, we brought our granddaughter along to share in the fun. The town of Lufkin has many family-friendly locations to enjoy, so many that we actually didn't get to them all in one day, so a return visit will have to be made in the near future.

Ray's Drive-In

We arrived in Lufkin just before noon with three empty stomachs, so we pulled into Ray's for lunch. We had enjoyed our meal there last year so much that we had been looking forward to a return visit ever since. The place was buzzing with locals, and we were lucky to get a table. You could tell the staff was used to dealing with this kind of lunch rush. The staff took orders quickly and efficiently, and it didn't take long for our order to show up at the counter. Just as before, the food was simply delicious. My Chili Cheeseburger was the best that I have had since the last time that I visited a Tommy's back in Southern California, and I dare you to try and find better French Fries anywhere. Anytime we visit Lufkin, a meal at Ray's will always be on our itinerary.

Naranjo Museum of Natural History 

Our second stop was to take our little princess to see the dinosaurs at the Naranjo Museum of Natural History. On our prior visit, we had thought that she would just love this museum, and we were right. Within the walls of the Naranjo Museum is an amazing collection of artifacts ranging from the Stone Age to the Space Age. I know that statement may sound rather cliché, but in this case, nothing could be more accurate. There is a large area filled with numerous complete dinosaur skeletons along with artifacts from the Greek and Roman empires, the Middle Ages, Revolutionary and Civil wars, Native American tribes of the Southwest, and to cap it all off, a room filled with objects from the NASA Space Program.

Related: Discovering Dinosaurs and Moon Rocks: A Journey Through Lufkin's Naranjo Museum of Natural History | Ken Hulsey

To be honest, our Junior Explorer became a bit timid when she heard the squawking and growling of prehistoric monsters over the speaker system, and she froze when she came face to face with a life-sized Tyrannosaurus Rex (skeleton). After some reassurance that all the critters in this zoo had been dead for millions of years, we were ready to tour the exhibits. There are so many wonderful interactive activities for young people here, and she got a real kick out of digging for fossils, and she eventually even warmed up to the 'Big Guy' after a while. She may not have been as excited to see the ancient Roman artifacts like we were, but the fossils of prehistoric mammals and the NASA exhibit were a big hit.

I think that we have a future archeologist or astronaut on our hands, in fact, that she will be digging up the remains of alien monsters somewhere in the galaxy in the future.

Lufkin Mall

We really enjoyed exploring the Naranjo Museum, but since we were traveling with a nine-year-old girl, our next stop would end up being the Lufkin Mall. You need to understand that our little angel has a fascination with everything soft and cuddly as well as anything that sparkles, so no trip with her would be complete without an expedition in search of such trinkets. Luckily for her, the Lufkin Mall had a handful of shops that sold exactly what she desired. 

The mall itself is rather small, and like most shopping centers today, had a few vacant shops. That being said, two shops sold Japanese Anime items, and Claire's where purchased some sunglasses. 

Sparkly item acquired.

Historic Downtown Lufkin

One of the things that Terri and I didn't get to do on our first visit to Lufkin was take a walking tour of the historic downtown area. This time around, we were able to spend a good couple of hours touring all the shops and taking in the sights.

Before I get started talking about our experience, I should point out that some of the streets are presently being worked on; that being said, all the stores and restaurants were open, and there were walkways set up so that they were all accessible.

Our first stop was the Lufkin Antique Mall. Terri and I are big on antique shopping, and we are quickly turning our little one into a connoisseur of vintage items. The store had a wide variety of items, including vintage toys and old books, which Terri and both enjoy and collect. We were able to exercise some restraint and didn't buy up everything we saw.

Related: Rodeos, Restaurants, and Remembrance: The Evolution of Vernon, Texas | A Cross-Country Odyssey

We then continued to walk down the street and popped into several shops and boutiques along the way. Our little princess is still young enough that she would rather dress up like Moana than wear trendy clothes, so we dodged a bullet there.

Terri and I were fascinated by an old-style movie house called the Pines Theater. Apparently, they show classic movies from time to time, and we took a look inside and saw that the venue is a perfectly preserved old movie theater. If we were locals, we would definitely be catching classic flicks here.

We reached the end of the block and spotted yet another antique store nearby. I have to tell you that Heritage Antiques was just the kind of place that Terri and I really love. Now, from a personal perspective, I loved the place because there were tons of vintage vinyl records all over the place. If you asked Terri, she would say she loved it because they had a bunch of dishware and cups from old diners. Honestly, I thought those were cool too. Now, as for our little one, well, she found a Build-A-Bear with tons of outfits and a $10 gift certificate for $20, so she was happy as a girl could be. I got Led Zeppelin's In Through The Out Door, so I was happy too. Poor Terri passed on the dishes, but secretly I wished that she hadn't.

Hey, a guy can love old dishware if he wants to!

One of the things that I really love about downtown Lufkin is all the painted murals that adorn the sides of many of the old buildings. Each one depicts an era from the rich history of Lufkin and the surrounding area. Each one is a real masterpiece, and Terri and I loved taking a moment to soak in the beauty of each one of them. If you come to Lufkin, you really need to spend some time admiring each of these.

 Our last stop on our downtown tour was the Rusty Axe Brewing Company. Now, we really couldn't indulge ourselves on this trip because we had our little one and we had a three-hour drive ahead of us, so we just stopped in to check it out, and we really loved their great selection of merchandise, so yours truly walked out with a hat and a t-shirt. We also picked up a growler for our son-in-law, who collects items from breweries around the world.

Hopefully, we can take an adult trip out to Lufkin and sample some of the beer here. I have a feeling that we would really enjoy it.

Related: Why Jefferson Stands Out as East Texas' Most Charming Small Town!

The time kinda got away from us, so we had to skip a trip to a splash pad at a local park, which really bummed out our little girl, so we owe her one, and rest assured, she will make us pay up (LOL).

Overall, our trip to Lufkin was an amazing blessing. Everyone of us had a great time, and I can't recommend visiting this town in Eastern Texas enough. We always have a great time here and will be back at the first opportunity we get.

Lufkin, we love you!

Here are some of my pics: