Updated December 2019
Just an hour and a half north of Dallas sits a small town, Denison, 10 minutes from Lake Texoma and 30 minutes from the Oklahoma casinos. It’s well worth the exploration if you’re ever in the area or looking for a lil getaway from Dallas! Here are our recommendations to do just that in the best way possible.
EXPLORE THE SHOPS OF MAIN STREET
Main Street of Denison has that quintessential throwback small-town look to it with a row of colorful historic buildings. It’s too cute to not wander up and down! But if you want to head inside some of the shops to…
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For antiquing, stop by Main Street Mall, Vintage Mercantile and 301 Mercantile.
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For clothing and accessories, 410 Collective, 2 Chicks Home and Market, Zelda Rose Boutique, Kaboodles and Grayson Social.
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For specialty foods, Pop Around the Corner and Main Street Candy.
VISIT HIDDEN HANGAR WINERY
This was our FAVORITE when visiting Denison! It’s not too often you can visit a winery in Texas that’s only an hour and a half away! Hidden Hangar has been growing grapes for decades and is actually the largest winery in North Texas. However, they just started bottling their own brand of wine in 2017 and opened a tasting room in November 2019.
They offer four whites and one red, but have three more reds joining the line up in the spring! We sampled the Syrah that’s coming and it was really good. The winery is also going to be rolling out fun activities in the months to come from live music to themed nights and more!
If you visit Denison during the winter, make sure to stop by the ice rink on Main Street! You can walk right up, rent ice skates and see how good you are at not falling. You can also order a hot cocoa and peppermint stick afterward to warm up, from the food truck on site! They even might be holding some special events including an adult date night skate night when you visit so make sure to check the schedule!
EAT HAMBURGERS AT A RETRO DRIVE-IN
You can always count on a small town to have great hamburgers and we dove right in. We grabbed cheeseburgers and fries at Best Burger Barn, a classic but cozy dive.
However, next time we go back, we will make sure it’s not on a Sunday so we can try the most adorable drive up - Watson’s Drive-In. It’s classic burgers get rave reviews and Watson’s as a whole is a staple to the area - it’s been around since the 1950’s.
DISCOVER DENISON VISITOR’S GUIDE
Every type of nostalgic activity we used to play as kids can be found at HeyDay - an entertainment chain from Oklahoma. It lies about 10 minutes from the center of Denison and offers everything from mini golf to an arcade to bowling to laser tag and even a ropes course!
LEARN ABOUT THE KATY RAILROAD
For a bit of culture, head to the Red River Railroad Museum (also closed on Sundays) to learn about The Katy Railroad line. You might know that name from Katy Trail Icehouse, where the Dallas patio bar got its name. Well, guess what? The same railroads line is also found in Denison, and there, you can play and see old railroad cars and learn about railroad history in general!
SPEND THE NIGHT FOR EVEN MORE EXPLORING
If you’re really enjoying your time in Denison, look up The Mirick Getaway on AIrBnb and stay over! You can head to Lake Texoma the next day or head up to the casinos! Or instead of staying at Choctaw, stay in Denison - you will save a lot of money!
And the Mirick Getaways are beautiful, brand new properties just minutes walking distance from Main Street. Both buildings are their own rentable spaces with a kitchen, sitting area, bedroom and upstairs loft. Then they have a shared fire pit space outside!
While all opinions and reviews are our own, this blog was in partnership with Discover Denison.
