Things to Do in Longview, Texas

If you can time a visit for it, the Great Texas Balloon Race is Longview's signature event. Held in summer at the Longview Convention Complex, it's one of the premier competitive hot air balloon races in the country and has served as the U.S. National Hot Air Balloon Championship. The spectacle is the draw: dozens of balloons launching at dawn, competitive flying during the day, and the unforgettable evening "balloon glows," when tethered balloons light up against the night sky. There's live music, food, and a kids' area, and visitors can get up close to the balloons and crews.

The event is the reason Longview bills itself as the Balloon Capital of Texas. If you can't make the race itself, Balloon Adventures USA offers sunrise and sunset hot air balloon rides over the East Texas countryside, flown by a record-holding local pilot.

Longview's downtown Cultural District, designated by the Texas Commission on the Arts, packs several of the city's best indoor attractions into a walkable core. The Longview Museum of Fine Arts showcases a permanent collection and a sculpture garden, with rotating exhibitions of regional and contemporary work. The Gregg County Historical Museum, housed in the historic Everett Building, covers local history with military and architectural collections — and the can't-miss Bill Dalton Bank Robbery exhibit, which displays weapons and the original holdup note from the deadly 1894 shootout.

For families, the Longview World of Wonders is a hands-on children's science museum built to let kids imagine, create, and explore. Downtown also hosts live music, theater, restaurants, and seasonal events throughout the year, and it's the heart of the city's growing arts scene.

The Longview Arboretum and Nature Center, which opened in 2019 on 26 acres, has quickly become a favorite spot for a stroll, with themed gardens, water features, and educational programming. It anchors the city's investment in green space and quality of life.

Longview's trail system is a genuine asset. The Paul G. Boorman Trail runs about three miles along Grace Creek, and trail users can link it with the Guthrie Trail and the Cargill Long Park Trail — a Certified National Recreation Trail — for a continuous route of more than ten miles zigzagging through the city. The trails are landscaped and maintained, with benches, workout stations, and a dog park. They're popular with walkers, runners, and cyclists year-round.

Beyond the Balloon Race, Longview keeps a full event calendar. The city's Juneteenth celebration includes a parade along Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard that has run since 1985 and community events at Teague Park and the fairgrounds. Dalton Days marks the anniversary of the 1894 bank robbery each April at the Gregg County Historical Museum.

Downtown hosts seasonal markets, concerts, and holiday events throughout the year. Because Longview sits at the crossroads of Interstate 20 and US 259, it's also an easy launching point for the festivals and trade days in the surrounding towns.

Longview's location makes for easy day trips across Northeast Texas. Lake O' the Pines, northeast of the city, and Lake Cherokee, to the south, are both popular for fishing, boating, and swimming. The historic oil-boom town of Kilgore — with its East Texas Oil Museum and the famous Kilgore College Rangerettes — is just minutes southwest. Marshall, with its historic courthouse and Wonderland of Lights at Christmas, is a short drive east, and Tyler and its rose gardens are about 40 minutes west on I-20. For a longer outing, the piney woods, lakes, and small towns of deep East Texas are all within reach.