Deep South Music & Heritage

Depart for Montgomery, Alabama’s capital. Take a walk back in time and explore the city’s history or be inspired by the arts. Montgomery is the birthplace of both the American Civil War and the American Civil Rights Movement.

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Mobile is an historic city and home of the first Mardi Gras in America. Fresh delicious seafood from Alabama’s fishing village, Bayou La Batre, as depicted in Forrest Gump, is located just south of the city. Explore America’s second largest delta on a kayak, boat tour or airboat ride to see wildlife and alligators.

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At the heart of New Orleans’ enduring allure are the hundred-odd squares of the French Quarter. Alive with history, myth, music and a joie de vivre, the Vieux Carre attracts visitors from around the world to its time worn streets. We recommend a city sightseeing tour to visit historic cemeteries, marvel at stories of voodoo and follow the path of the St. Charles Avenue streetcar.

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The Vicksburg National Military Park, a Civil War battlefield, is one of the most heavily monumented parks in the world with over 1330 monuments, markers, tablets and plaques. Built by slave labour in 1858, the Old Courthouse Museum is the most historic building in Vicksburg.

Drive north on America’s Blues Highway. Visit the B.B. King Museum & Delta Interpretive Center. From the 30s through the 50s, Clarksdale was a major blues town. This evening visit Red’s Lounge, an authentic blues juke joint.

Memphis is home of the blues and the birthplace of rock ‘n’ roll. Visit Graceland, the home of Elvis Presley and The Stax Museum of American Soul Music. Tour Sun Studio, or visit Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum. Later, visit famous Beale Street for a variety of food and live music venues including traditional blues, jazz and rock ‘n’ roll.

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Stop in Tupelo, the birthplace of Elvis Presley, before driving the beautiful Natchez Trace Parkway to Muscle Shoals. Tour the Alabama Music Hall of Fame and the FAME Recording Studio, the heartbeat of the Muscle Shoals sound. FAME has worked with some of the greatest artists in rock music history, including Aretha Franklin, Little Richard, Etta James and Otis Redding.

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Check out the Country Music Hall of Fame and visit Historic RCA Studio B. This evening walk along Broadway Street and grab a quick drink in Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge, one of Nashville’s most famous honky tonks with live entertainment.

Stop in Huntsville, home of the U.S. Space and Rocket Center before continuing to Birmingham, Alabama’s largest city. Visit the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute and the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church to tour the World Heritage nominated site where four girls died in a 1960s bombing.

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Return to Atlanta and drop off your rental car as your journey ends.