Recreation & Things to Do

Andalusia’s recreation options tell you something about the place. There’s a spring-fed swimming hole bigger than three Olympic pools. One of the last six original Dairy Queens in America sits on Court Square. A ballet company brings in world-class guest dancers for four productions a year. The World Championship Domino Tournament has awarded nearly a million dollars over 40 years. This isn’t a town trying to be something it’s not — it’s a town that knows what it has and uses it.

Clark Theater

The Clark Theater operates on Court Square in a building with theatrical history layered into its foundation. The original Paramount Theatre stood here before a fire destroyed it in 1938. The Clark family rebuilt in 1940, constructing a new movie house within the shell of the burnt structure. For decades, it served as Andalusia’s downtown cinema.

In 2017, the theater underwent complete renovation. They gutted the interior and installed electric reclining seats — the kind you’d find in a modern multiplex. It’s still a single-screen operation, showing current releases, but the seats rival anything in Enterprise or Dothan. You’re watching first-run movies in a building that’s been showing films since before World War II.

Having a working movie theater downtown keeps Court Square active in the evenings. People come for a show, then walk to dinner or stop by other businesses. The Clark survives because it serves a purpose — not everyone wants to drive 30 miles for a movie, and the renovation proved the community wanted to keep its downtown theater functioning.

Boggs & Boulders Off Road Adventure Park

Twenty miles south of Andalusia on Brooklyn Road, Boggs & Boulders spreads across 1,000+ acres of trails, hills, mud, and pine forest. This is purpose-built ATV and dirt bike terrain — 160 miles of marked trails ranging from beginner-friendly paths to technical rock gardens and hill climbs that’ll test your suspension and your nerve.

The centerpiece is “Cool Pool,” a spring-fed swimming area that stays 65°F year-round. It’s bigger than three Olympic-sized pools, fed by underground springs that keep the water moving and clear. After hours on dusty trails, riders head to the pool to wash off the mud and cool down. The temperature differential is dramatic — you’ll feel cold getting in, even on a 95-degree summer day.

The park offers RV sites, tent camping, and bunkhouse rentals. Riders come for weekends or longer stays, making it a destination rather than a day trip. The campground has communal fire pits, bathhouses, and enough space to park truck-and-trailer rigs.

Admission runs $10 for adults, $5 for kids 6-12, under 6 free. The trails are open year-round, though summer weekends see the heaviest traffic. You’ll need your own ATV or dirt bike — there are no rentals on-site. The address is 20133 Brooklyn Road, east of Andalusia near the Conecuh National Forest boundary.

This is the kind of recreation that fits the region — outdoor, mechanical, family-friendly but not sanitized. People bring their kids, their ATVs, and their coolers, and spend the weekend in the woods.

Splash Pad at Johnson Park

City recreation is built around accessible facilities for families and youth.

The splash pad at Johnson Park covers 4,500 square feet with water features designed for kids from toddler age through 12. It’s fully handicap-accessible, with different zones calibrated for different ages — gentler sprays for the little ones, bigger fountains and bucket dumps for older kids.

Open Tuesday through Sunday, 10am to 8pm during warm months, at 706 Carson Street. Free admission. On hot Alabama afternoons, when the heat index pushes 105, the splash pad fills with families looking for relief without driving to a lake or pool. The park also has playground equipment, picnic shelters, and walking paths, making it the city’s main family recreation hub.

The city installed the splash pad in recent years as part of its parks improvement strategy. It’s a visible investment in family recreation, and it gets used heavily during summer months.

World Championship Domino Tournament

The Rotary Club’s World Championship Domino Tournament runs the second weekend in July at the Kiwanis Community Center. It’s been operating for over 40 years, and in that time has awarded nearly $1 million in prize money. That’s not a typo — this is serious competitive dominoes.

The format is 42, a trick-taking domino game popular in the South and particularly in Texas and Alabama. Teams of two compete in elimination brackets, with prize money going deep into the standings. Players travel from across the region to compete, making it both a tournament and a reunion for the domino community.

The event draws hundreds of participants and spectators. It’s held during the same weekend as other summer festivals, creating a multi-day concentration of activity that brings people downtown. Registration details and prize breakdowns are available through the Andalusia Rotary Club.

If you grew up playing dominoes at kitchen tables with relatives, this tournament represents the competitive end of that tradition. If you’ve never played 42, watching a high-level match reveals a game with more strategic depth than you’d expect from a box of dominoes.

The Oaks Family RV Park & Campground

The Oaks sits at 13421 Brooklyn Road, offering RV pads with full hookups, cabin rentals, and glamping tents for people who want the outdoor experience with mattresses and electricity. The property includes a spring-fed fishing pond, stocked with bass and bream, and a playground with a zip line that keeps kids occupied while parents set up camp.

This is a private campground, run as a business rather than a state park facility. It caters to families, RV travelers, and people who want a weekend getaway without driving to the Gulf or to one of the larger state parks. The spring-fed pond stays cool and clear, and the fishing is legitimate — you can catch dinner if you know what you’re doing.

The glamping tents offer a middle ground between primitive camping and cabin rental — raised platforms, real beds, climate control, but still enough outdoor exposure to feel like you’re camping. It’s a format that’s become popular with families who want to introduce kids to camping without subjecting them to sleeping bags on rocky ground.

Cottle House B&B

The Cottle House is a 1905 restored home operating as a bed and breakfast at an undisclosed location in Andalusia. It’s owned by Brenda Gantt, the local cook who became a social media phenomenon during COVID with her Facebook videos teaching Southern recipes. Her audience numbers in the millions now, making her one of the most recognized figures from Andalusia.

The property offers three queen bedrooms, a wrap-around porch, fishing access, and walking trails on private land. This isn’t a hotel — it’s a historic home that functions as a B&B, with the kind of personal hospitality that depends on the owner being involved. Reservations are made by text at (334) 343-6192, not through online booking platforms.

If you’re a fan of Gantt’s cooking videos, staying at the Cottle House is as close as you’ll get to visiting her world. If you’re just looking for lodging, it’s a well-preserved early 20th-century home with the character you’d expect from that era.

Andalusia Ballet

The Andalusia Ballet operates out of the Church Street Cultural Arts Center, a converted elementary school at 420 Church Street. Under the direction of Meryane Murphy, the company produces four major performances per year, including an annual production of The Nutcracker during the Christmas season.

The company brings in world-class guest dancers for performances, elevating the productions beyond what you’d expect from a town of 8,800. Students train year-round in classical ballet technique, with performance opportunities through the annual productions. The spring shows often feature full-length story ballets or mixed repertory programs.

This is a legitimate ballet company, teaching serious technique and producing professional-caliber performances. The Church Street facility includes proper dance studios with sprung floors, barres, and mirrors. For families with kids interested in dance, it’s a substantial program without requiring a move to Montgomery or Birmingham.

Performance tickets and class information are available through the Church Street Cultural Arts Center or the Andalusia Ballet’s website.

Dairy Queen on the Square

One of the last six original Dairy Queens in the United States operates on Court Square. Original means it still uses the vintage walk-up format and retains architectural elements from the earliest Dairy Queen era, before the chain standardized its design to the red-roof mall-style buildings you see everywhere now.

This is the kind of detail that matters to people who care about preservation and corporate history. For everyone else, it’s the place on the square where you get soft-serve ice cream. But it’s notable enough that Dairy Queen enthusiasts and roadside architecture historians make detours to see it.

If you’re in downtown Andalusia during summer, you’ll see lines at the window. It’s been there long enough to be part of the ritual of going downtown — City Hall, the courthouse, and Dairy Queen, all within a block of each other.

Adult Activity Center

The city operates an Adult Activity Center offering recreational programs for adults 21 and older. This includes fitness classes, social events, educational workshops, and organized activities designed for adults who want structured recreation beyond just gym access.

The center addresses a gap in recreational programming — most city recreation focuses on youth sports and family activities, leaving adults with limited options beyond commercial gyms. The Adult Activity Center provides space and programming specifically for grown-ups.

Details on schedules, programs, and membership are available through the City of Andalusia Parks and Recreation Department.

Farmers Market

The farmers market sets up on the front lawn of the Kiwanis Community Center at 20096 Kiwanis Drive during growing season. Vendors sell produce, baked goods, plants, honey, jams, and whatever else is coming out of local gardens and kitchens.

It’s a small market by city standards, but it’s steady. You’ll find tomatoes, squash, okra, corn, butter beans, and field peas when they’re in season. Some vendors bring plants and flowers. Others sell value-added products — pickles, preserves, baked goods made from local ingredients.

The market operates on Saturday mornings during spring, summer, and fall. Exact hours and season dates vary year to year, so check with the city or the Chamber of Commerce for current schedules.

Cooper Pool and City Pools

Public pools remain one of the most practical summer amenities in town.

The city maintains public swimming pools, including Cooper Pool, offering swim lessons, water aerobics, and open swim during summer months. These are traditional municipal pools — concrete, lifeguards, chlorine, and the institutional smell of sunscreen and pool chemicals.

Swim lessons run in sessions throughout the summer, teaching kids basic water safety and swimming fundamentals. Water aerobics classes offer low-impact exercise for adults, particularly seniors who need joint-friendly fitness options.

Public pools are baseline recreation infrastructure, especially in the South where summer heat makes water access essential. Andalusia maintains its pools as part of basic parks and recreation services. Hours, lesson schedules, and fees are available through the Parks and Recreation Department.

What This Adds Up To

Andalusia’s recreation landscape isn’t built around tourist attractions or destination resorts. It’s built around what the community uses — movie nights downtown, weekends at the off-road park, kids at the splash pad, domino tournaments, ballet performances, and the local B&B run by a woman whose cooking videos reach millions.

The variety is wider than you’d expect for a town this size, reflecting both community priorities and individual initiative. The city maintains pools, parks, and the splash pad. The Rotary Club runs the domino tournament. Private businesses operate the RV park and off-road park. The ballet company functions through the arts center. The Clark Theater survived because someone invested in renovation.

Recreation here isn’t manufactured or packaged. It’s a mix of tradition, investment, and whatever people decided was worth building or maintaining. That’s how small-town recreation works when it’s working right.