So, you have just 48 hours in Longview and need a local’s advice for how to spend your time? CJ Clayton is a busy tourism professional who loves shopping, socializing, and spending time with her big family. When she’s not working she’s planning hotel and tourism meetings or cooking for her husband, Chris.
Day 1
8:00am-Start your day having breakfast! Most people don’t think about Hilton Garden Inn, Holiday Inn and Courtyard by Marriott having breakfast that is open to the public, but they are considered hidden gems owned or operated by local people. Each one has a different take on breakfast and you will love how different each experience is!
10:00am-Hopefully you have gotten yourself the energy to “Shop till you drop”. Now would be the perfect time to head over to That Girl’s Boutique. This cute store is a local favorite. They also have fantastic customer service as you might expect from a boutique.
12:00pm-You will likely build up an appetite shopping and luckily one of our local Mexican restaurants is nearby. Papacita’s is known for its family ambiance and delicious seasoned chips, hot sauce and homemade tortillas! Try the chicken fajita salad so that you might save room for the sizzling apple pie with cinnamon ice cream!
2:00pm-Time to do some walking around. It is recommended that you step into the Gregg County Historical Museum as one of your stops in our nice downtown area.
3:00pm-Staying true to your shopper’s heart, you should definitely walk down Tyler street and shop the local offerings.
4:00pm- You must experience Heartisans Marketplace. You can shop and give back at the same time because profits generated by this local business go to providing training and employment opportunities to its program participants!
5:00pm-Just a short trek back to Tyler street gets you to our local Italian spot, Roma’s Italian Kitchen! It has quite the ambiance with music enticing people from the street. You must try their hot fresh bread with olive oil and spices. This is a spot you can take your love interest, your family or an important client. It is versatile.
7:00pm-Sum your night up well and walk across the street for some local desert danishes or coffee at our modern coffee shop experience, Silver Grizzly Espresso. They even have local beer on tap! You won’t regret it!
Day 2
8:00am-Heading over to Boorman trail for a nice morning run is a good start to any day! Clearing your head and enjoying the East Texas beauty is relaxing.
10:00am-Stop in downtown at Firstlite Nutrition for an energy boost! The Lobo is delicious if you like tart and refreshing beverages!
11:00am-Next door you can enjoy a wonderful massage at Copper Tree Retreat! It will make your day!
1:00pm-You might be hungry by now, so walk on over to Deb’s Downtown Cafe. It’s a cute local lunch spot where you will get a friendly welcome! The Nutty Bird sandwich with a cup of jalapeño cheddar soup is perfectly satisfying. It will top of yourmorning perfectly.
2:00pm-Just a mile away you can spend your afternoon surrounded by natural beauty with much shade from big beautiful trees, illustrious floral surroundings and other relaxing scenery at the Arboretum. Sometimes you can catch live music to add to your experience.
5:00pm-So for your last meal of the day, if you choose to keep in the theme of health and well being, you could stop by our local Kyle’s Quickstop and get a nice sandwich or salad combo from Nanny Goats Eatery. Or instead, you could try some of their pimento cheese to go with a select bottle of wine from their nice collection to take home so that you might take advantage of the opportunity to splurge at Dudley's Cajun Cafe. You can try their delicious crawfish enchiladas and some strawberry pie.