Athens
Athens is a charming city situated in Limestone County in the northern part of Alabama. Downtown Athens includes a traditional square, which makes it easy to walk from restaurants, shops, coffee shops and the well-known Big Spring Park in downtown.
Since 2008, the community has truly reinvigorated its spaces with new restaurants, a brewery, boutiques, and more plans to open new businesses in downtown in the near future. Visitors will easily discover the town’s small-town charm and why so many have chosen Athens since its incorporation in 1818.
Getting out and meeting the local business owners, neighbors and visitors to Athens is one way to truly immerse yourself in the city, as well as thorough a variety of events throughout the year.
The Chocolate Walk every February is one of the most anticipated events. But with a limited number of tickets sold, a lucky few are invited to take a self-guided tour through the downtown businesses to collect chocolates and sweets on display. The 2023 event sold out in three minutes!
And when you need a new spring wardrobe, you don’t want to miss the annual Spring Boutique Crawl. For every $20 spent at shops and boutiques, you’ll be entered in to win a $500 shopping spree—with select restaurants also in on the fun with food and drink specials. This event tracks the economic impact of the downtown ecosystem by recording the amounts shown on the receipts submitted for the drawing.
The summer months bring a special kind of fun to downtown with the Athens Farmers Market bringing local produce and goods to The Square every Tuesday and Saturday. (The Farmers Market is an Alabama-certified market, meaning that everything sold is grown and comes from the local area.) There’s always live music, food trucks on Tuesdays, and breakfast items on Saturdays.
The Square comes alive during the summertime with Fridays After Five and is a designated entertainment district, so you can take beverages with you as you shop and enjoy.
As the weather turns cooler, the fun heats up! The annual Sippin’ Cider Festival is the best way to get your Christmas shopping completed. Plus, you don’t want to miss Merchants Alley Happy Hours! From September to mid November, the alleyway on Jefferson Street will come alive every Friday night with a serenade of diverse musical acts—providing the perfect backdrop to the downtown atmosphere.
Visitors and residents alike can start by grabbing coffee or breakfast at one of the great coffee shops (like Revive Cafe or Hi-Plane Coffee Company) and then shopping at one of the boutiques, such as Boutique Bliss, Epiphany or BeanBeans.
Some amazing restaurants you won’t want to miss in downtown Athens include Athens Alehouse and Cellar for a craft beer and charcuterie board, Wildwood Deli for one of the best deli sandwiches in the state, Village Pizza for a gourmet pizza pie and a brew, Lucia’s Cocina Mexicana for delicious all day specials, the Salty Cod for British cuisine, and Old Black Bear Brewery.
Athens State University is also located at the edge of downtown, with the town being located just off I-65.
Discover the charm of downtown Athens, where history and modernity blend together!
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