Welcome to Port Arthur, Texas!


Check out the Visit Port Arthur website for more information and events! Come taste our Cajun flavor, lose yourself in our dramatic Port Arthur history, and absorb all the natural beauty that the city of Port Arthur has to share. Here our motto is “laissez les bons temps rouler.” That translates to “let the good times roll,” and it’s our attitude for welcoming tourists to the shores of Lake Sabine. So, come see why Port Arthur is a city of true character, pride and overwhelming fun. You will be glad that you did.

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Gator Country


Gator Country Alligator Theme Park in Fannett, Texas, located just minutes from Beaumont, Port Arthur or Winnie, or about 1 hour east of Downtown Houston on IH-10 (exit 838). Gator Country is home to “Big Al”, the biggest alligator in captivity in Texas. Gator Country is Texas’ premier alligator wildlife park. Great family adventure for a historic and scenic look at the wildlife and nature of Southeast Texas. Great family restaurant and perfect for events such as groups, parties, birthdays and weddings.

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Ford Park


Ford Arena, Ford Exhibit Hall and Ford Midway opened in Fall 2003, with Ford Arena selling out its inaugural event. The 8,500 seat multi-purpose Ford Arena is the home to ABA Southeast Texas’ Mavericks. The Arena also hosts concerts, rodeos, circuses, motor sports, ice shows and many other special events. There’s always something going on at Ford Arena!

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Southeast Texas State Fair


The Fair offers hundreds of commercial exhibits, food concessions outstanding livestock and poultry shows and new and exciting attractions for the entire family which include a PRCA Sanctioned Rodeo. For 64 years the YMBL Rodeo has been well respected by rodeo fans in the southwest, the YMBL Rodeo always offers plenty of thrills, spills and action.

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Port Arthur Mardi Gras


In April 1990, a casual conversation between two friends launched Mardi Gras of Southeast Texas. After nearly three years of planning and joined by 18 community minded non-profit organizations, the highly successful first event was held in Downtown Port Arthur in February 1993.It is hailed by many as the catalyst that began a resurgence of downtown Port Arthur.

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Adventure Kingdom


Adventure Kingdom offers an 18-hole Renaissance-themed mini golf course; gasoline powered zero-turning radius bumper cars and swan paddle boats. With party packages, group rates, and a 1932 log cabin used as a “party cottage”, there are plenty of reasons to celebrate. It is an exciting park for any group of any size.
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Shangri-La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center


As one of the most earth-friendly projects in the world, Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center offers a glimpse of how people can live in harmony with nature. The combination of gardens and nature at Shangri La presents a serene oasis for retreat and renewal, as well as the opportunity to explore, discover and learn.

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Fun Island Depot


Fun Island Depot is a large community-built playground that was designed as a wooden replica of the old KCS depot originally located in downtown Port Arthur. The handicap-accessible children’s playground includes swings, bars, slides, climbing towers, and a walking track.


Music


The Southeast Texas region is known for its blues, jazz and rock ‘n’ roll, and audiences can find something to fit every taste. Numerous clubs in the area feature local and guest bands. A number of organizations promote homegrown talent. Some of those organizations are:
Port Arthur Community Concert
Beaumont Civic Opera
Beaumont Music Commission
Beaumont Interfaith Choral Society
Beaumont Symphony Women’s League
Southeast Texas Youth Symphony
Symphony of Southeast Texas
Harmony Exporters
Sweet Adelines
Orange Civic Light Opera

Lamar University’s music department hosts a series of music concerts featuring the symphonic band, jazz ensemble, Cardinal Singers, a capella choir and grand choir. Lamar State College-Port Arthur and the area community theaters present one or more musicals each year.



Theater


Both Lamar State College-Port Arthur and Lamar University present theatrical performances to the public each season. The Golden Triangle also has three well-established community theaters that offer regular seasons, dinner theater productions and children’s workshops. They are the Port Arthur Little Theatre,  Beaumont Community Players, and Orange Community Players.


Visual Arts


In addition to the art exhibits of the many area museums, there are other galleries and organizations for the visual arts. They include the Texas Artists Museum, the Gulf Coast Art League, the Dishman Gallery at Lamar University, The Art Studio Inc., Art Museum of Southeast Texas and the Beaumont Art League. TAMS and the Art Studio regularly host events such as artists’ receptions and musical performances.

Museums


GOLDEN TRIANGLE VETERANS MEMORIAL PARK
Located in the park there are 10,000 names of area servicemen that served in WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Peace Time, Desert Storm, or with the Merchant Marines during WWII.
The Tower of Honor, which is 50 feet tall, lists the names, rank, branch of service, and the war served in of the 930 of those killed or missing in action from the Golden Triangle. Other static displays represent the various branches of service. The displays include an F4-D Phantom Jet, an M60A3 Tank, and an UH-1 Huey Helicopter, an anchor from the Texaco SS Mississippi (the last WWII Merchant Marine ship to be decommissioned), an assault landing craft, and a seven-foot tall statue of an U. S. Marine.

QUEEN OF PEACE SHRINE
801 9th Ave. (7 blocks south of Gulfway Dr.)**409-983-7676 Appointments not required. Free admission**20 Min.
This Hoa-Binh (Area of Peace) features beautiful gardens and statue of Mary three times life size was built by parishioners of Queen of Vietnam Martyr’s Catholic Church, in gratitude to the city which welcomed them.

BUU MON BUDDHIST TEMPLE 
2701 Procter** 409-982-9319, 409-543-2803 Tours by Appointment**Free Admission**20 Min.
The four-tier pagoda tower symbolizes tenants in the Buddhist faith. Built as a Baptist Church more than 40 years ago, this building was converted to a Catholic Church in 1976 and then in 1987 remodeled into a Buddhist Temple which included changing the steeple to the characteristic Stupa, the pagoda style tower that contains a sacred relic. Gardens include towering bamboo, lotus and tropical varieties.

ROSE HILL MANOR 
100 Woodworth at Lakeshore 409-985-7292**Tours by Appointment Catered events can be arranged A fee for admission**40 Min (closed May 22 through May 31, 2015)
Listed in the National Register of Historic Places and one of the oldest landmarks in the city, this colonial-style mansion was built in 1906 by Rome H. Woodworth, an early banker and Mayor. It remained in the Woodworth family until 1948 when it was deeded to the city.

POMPEIIAN VILLA
1953 Lakeshore Dr.**409-983-5977 Tours by appointment. Regular hours are 1 to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays; closed holidays. **Fee for admission**Catered refreshments for a fee**45 Min. This building’s history is almost as fascinating as the villa itself. Isaac Ellwood, “the barbed wire King,” built this modest 10-room “cottage” that was an authentic copy of a Pompeiian home of 74 AD with the rooms built around a traditional Roman peristyle, a three-sided courtyard to which each room has access. Part of the home’s colorful past is at one point the home was traded to George Craig, banker and land developer, for 10 percent of stock in the newly formed Texas Company, a forerunner of Texaco. The stock at the time was worth a few thousand dollars, however, today the same stock is worth more than two hundred million dollars.

VUYLSTEKE DUTCH HOME
1831 Lakeshore Dr.**409-984- 6101** Free tours by appointment**40 Min.
The first Dutch counsul in Port Arthur built the home in 1905. The home provides a priceless glimpse of a glamorous time. Among its features are three fireplaces that share one central chimney. The home has been restored to its original condition with original furnishings and is owned by Lamar State College.

TEXAS ARTISTS MUSEUM
3501 Cultural Center Dr. **409-983-4881**Free admission
The Texas Artists Museum primarily exhibits art by artists in or originally from Jefferson and Orange counties. The artists represent nearly every town and city within a 50 mile radius. There is a display and reception in the main galley each month of a different artist.

MUSEUM OF THE GULF COAST
700 Procter. 409-982-7000**Open 9-5 M-S & 1-5 Sun Fee for admission**1.5 Hrs.
The Museum of the Gulf Coast combines both conventional and unconventional approaches to tell the extraordinary history of this Gulf Coast region. The first floor employs traditional themes to interpret Gulf Coast life before humans arrived, the role of Native Americans, European/African contacts, the Hispanic legacy, the trauma of Civil War, post-war economic and cultural growth called Progressivism, and finally, the integration of the Gulf Coast region into the larger national/inter-national community. On the other hand, the mezzanine presents unique exhibits that focus on the area’s rich musical heritage, featuring performers like Janis Joplin, George Jones, Harry James and J. P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson. Sport’s enthusiasts will also find displays that chronicle the lives of “Babe Zaharias, Coach Jimmy Johnson, “Bum” Phillips and golfer, Bruce Lietzke. Fine arts are included also, such as internationally known artists, Robert Rauschenberg’s gallery of works, and a celebrated decorative works section and parlor setting in the John and Grace Snell gallery.

WHITE HAVEN
2545 Lakeshore Dr.**409-984- 6101**Tours by appointment No fee for admission** 45 Min
Wide porches and spacious rooms bring back memories of relaxed times by Lake Sabine. Originally built as a New England colonial-style mansion in 1915, it was changed by subsequent owners to a Southern Greek Revival style by the addition of large verandas and columns. On display in the home are early pieces of Wedgwood china, a French made screen from the collection of Empress Carlotta of Mexico, and candelabras from the Shah of Persia. The home is now owned by Lamar State College.

PLEASURE ISLAND
Located across the MLK Bridge on Hwy 82
The 3,500 acre island, once secret anchorage of pirate Jean Laffitte, located between the 400-foot wide Sabine-Neches Ship Channel and Sabine Lake is being developed to live up to its name and become a resort-type island. Facilities on the island include: a 10-acre park, a marina, Yacht Club, picnic areas, disc golf course, cabin rentals, lighted fishing piers, boat launches, RV Parks, Mesquite Point, Fun island Depot, which is a huge playground for children, free camping areas, restaurants and a waterside boardwalk.

SABINE PASS
Located on Hwy 87 South
Sabine Pass is located on Hwy 87 South of Port Arthur and was annexed by the city in 1978. This community has the distinction of having been laid out by Sam Houston in 1836. A high point in the town’s history was the Civil War battle fought there in which a handful of Confederates with a few cannons whipped a Federal invasion force more than a hundred times its strength. Its present day claim to fame rests on great fishing and the excellent bird watching and wildlife observation sites, including new Marina and Sea Rim State Park.

SABINE PASS BATTLEGROUND STATE PARK AND HISTORIC SITE
6100 Dick Dowling Rd
Sabine Pass, TX 77655
1.5 miles South of Sabine Pass on Dick Dowling Road (FM 3322)
512-463-7948, 409-332-8820
Open 8 a.m.-10 p.m. Fee for Admission.
The story of the Civil War battle fought here sounds like a Texas Tall Tale, but is true. On September 8, 1863, a Union fleet numbering some 20 vessels and about 4,000 men tried to invade Texas through Sabine Pass. Facing them all alone was Company F of the Texas Heavy Artillery. The Company consisted of 40 Irish dock workers lead by a young lieutenant, a barkeep from Houston, named Dick Dowling. They had six cannons set up in unfinished earth works reinforced with railroad iron and ship’s timbers. When the smoke cleared, Dick Dowling and Company F had captured two Federal ships and 350 men. The remainder of the union fleet returned to New Orleans. The Federals were never able to penetrate the Texas interior during the war.
Today Sabine Pass Battleground State Park and Historic Site features an interpretive pavilion and walkway, a 14-foot statue and monument, ADA- accessible sidewalks and restrooms, covered picnic tables and grills, 4-lane boat ramps with ADA-accessible dock, 1/4 mile of shoreline with safety railing.

SEA RIM STATE PARK 
19335 Hwy 87
Sabine Pass, TX 77655
10 miles west of Sabine Pass on Hwy 87
409-971-2559
Open 8 a.m.-10 p.m. (except for overnight campers). Fee for admission.
Named for that portion of the marsh grasslands extending along the coastline to the Gulf, Sea Rim State Park preserves a beautiful and unique environment. Sea Rim’s D. Roy Harrington Beach Unit includes the Park’s Visitor Center, nature trails, camping areas, and 5.2 miles of Gulf Coast beach. The Marshlands Unit encompasses 4,141.1 acres of marsh wetlands, including two lakes, ponds and estuaries. Its marshes are a popular spot for viewing wildlife, particularly the American alligator.
Activities include beachcombing along the Gulf shores; surf fishing or fishing via boat in the marsh lakes; swimming in the Gulf (no lifeguard provided); walk-in waterfowl hunting sites (in season) and kayaking.
Facilities include primitive campsites on the beach and on platforms in the marsh. For campsite reservations call 512-389-8900.
Sea Rim also offers a 6 person cabin for rent. It sits waterside with direct access to three kayaking trails.

OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE SHRINE
3648 Staff Sgt. Lucian Adams Drive. ** 409-962-6777. No Fee.
The 17-foot high bronze statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe was sculpted by the artists Miguel Angel Macias, from Mexico City, and Douglas Clark from Port Arthur. The statue is set upon rocks brought to the site from Mount Tepayac, Mexico City, where the Virgin appeared to Juan Diego. The back wall of the Shrine showcases stained glass windows depicting various symbols relating to Our Lady of Guadalupe. The Parish of Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church envisions the Shrine to be a sacred place of spiritual renewal, peace and solace.

THE ITALIAN HERITAGE MONUMENT
Located at the grounds of the Port Arthur Library.  No Fee.
In 1990 the Port Arthur American-Italian club formed a committee to prepare for a quin-centennial celebration of this country.  An immigrants Wall of Honor was decided for the 500 years celebration.  The wall is in remembrance and recognition of the families and individual who sacrificed so much and lit the torch for the future generations.
On August 27, 1993 the Italian Wall of Honor was dedicated.  The Wall of Honor consist of family names and the city of each immigrants birth on a bronze plaques mounted on a marble wall.  The following words are inscribed on the monument: “We who follow, dedicate this immigrants Wall of Honor to those who led us to a new country, a new life, and a new beginning.