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Within the Travel South region are the country’s most visited and most recently proclaimed National Parks, hundreds of recreation-rich state parks, the highest – and some of the most beautiful – mountains in the eastern USA, America’s largest blackwater and river swamps, a sizeable portion of America’s largest estuary, the Chesapeake Bay, the longest stretch of America’s most famous footpath, the Appalachian Trail, sparkling lakes, spectacular waterfalls, exhilarating white-water rivers, and lush and lovely hills and valleys, known for their prize-winning horse-breeding stables, orchards and wineries.
In their midst are some of America’s most beautiful and historic cities and small towns, the birthplace and/or proving grounds of most of America’s most popular music genres, the homes of many of its most famous authors, award-winning restaurants and chefs producing some of the country’s most creative and delicious cuisines, not to forget those life-enhancing beverages – wine, beer, Bourbon and Whiskey. And then there are those annual festivals saluting not only food, wine and spirits but also everything else from music to motor sports, pirates to peanuts and glorious gardens to goodness knows what.
ALABAMA
From 32 miles of golden sand beaches along the Gulf of Mexico to adventures in the rolling foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, Alabama is a triumph of treats: Huntsville is home to the world’s largest space museum; Mobile, to a colourful museum commemorating America’s first Mardi Gras; and Montgomery, Birmingham and Selma to numerous thought-provoking Civil Rights sites. That’s not to forget its rich music heritage found in such places as Muscle Shoals, Florence and Tuscumbia and the literary heritage of such towns as Monroeville (inspiration for To Kill a Mockingbird) and Bayou La Batre (Forrest Gump).
ARKANSAS
America’s ‘Natural State’ offers a wealth of outdoor adventure opportunities – hiking, mountain biking, river floating, fishing and much more – plus an impressive human heritage that includes the Hope birthplace of former US President Bill Clinton and his museum, and Civil Rights sites in the state capital, Little Rock. And then there is the renowned spa town, Hot Springs, and the impressive Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art founded by Walmart heiress Alice Walton in Bentonville, where her dad, Sam, set up his merchandising empire.
GEORGIA
Home to Atlanta, the South’s largest city and site of the world’s busiest airport, Georgia considers itself ‘The South Reinvented’. For although the beautiful scenery and Old South mansions depicted in the epic, if over-romanticised book and film Gone With the Wind still exist, they are balanced by the Atlanta sites honouring the life and heritage of Civil Rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Other unmissable places include seductive, historic Savannah and the idyllic Golden Isles, with all their resort offerings.
KENTUCKY
Nicknamed the ‘Bluegrass State’ after Lexington area’s lush meadowlands grazed by championship horses, Kentucky is best known for Louisville’s thrilling annual Kentucky Derby, which celebrates its 150th anniversary in 2024, and Muhammad Ali Center, which commemorates the life and legacy of the city’s most-famous son. That’s not to forget its wealth of Bourbon distilleries in Bardstown and beyond, and such natural wonders as Mammoth Cave and Cumberland Waterfall, “The Niagara of the South”, or the fact that its myriad of state parks are celebrating their centenary this year, that its Lake Cumberland is the ‘Houseboat Capital of the World’, and that the new air service from London into Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport makes it the South’s latest international gateway state.
LOUISIANA
Best-known for fabulous, fun-loving New Orleans, Louisiana is also graced by Baton Rouge with its unique skyscraper State Capitol; Lake Charles, known for its casinos, restaurants and pirate legacy; and a wealth of beautiful old plantation homes and charming towns easily reached both by road and Mississippi River cruises. Also on offer: its unique Cajun culture, which still thrives in Lafayette and other picturesque towns and villages found in the bayou country west of New Orleans, its ever-expanding array of award-winning restaurants and its huge choice of fun and flamboyant music festivals.
MISSISSIPPI
Not only does this state share its name with the mighty river flowing along its western border but also many of its attractions: riverfront Natchez, which offers spring and autumn pilgrimages to the opulent mansions built by cotton tycoons when it was the wealthiest town in America; Vicksburg, famed for its Civil War heritage and Military Park; and the historic music sites and museums in the Delta Country, birthplace of The Blues. Also unmissable: the state capital, Jackson, and Tupelo, Elvis Presley’s hometown.
MISSOURI
The ‘Show Me’ state in fact has much to show you, from St. Louis’s towering riverside Gateway Arch symbolising its role in America’s westward expansion to a sizeable portion of legendary Route 66; from Kansas City, renowned for its jazz heritage and succulent barbecue, to Branson, buzzy with its array of live music shows; and from Hannibal, hometown of Samuel Clemens, aka Mark Twain, whose epic novels put Ole Man River on the international map, to Independence, home of and museum about former US President Harry Truman.
NORTH CAROLINA
From its convoy of Outer Bank Atlantic coastal islands, enhanced by wild ponies and photogenic lighthouses, to its beautiful western mountains that reach their zenith with Mount Mitchell – at 6,684 feet, the tallest peak east of the Mississippi River – North Carolina offers a delectable diversity of attractive places to visit, including a triangle of lively university cities – the state capital, Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill, the vibrant business hub, Charlotte, and mountaintop Asheville, home of the majestic Biltmore Estate, the largest private home in America.
SOUTH CAROLINA
Not only is Charleston considered one of the South’s most-beautiful and romantic cities, but lively Myrtle Beach up the Atlantic coast is one the region’s most-multi-faceted beach resorts offering everything from Las Vegas-style shows to great golfing. Down the coast are a litany of lovely resort islands such at Hilton Head, known for its great golfing and photogenic lighthouse; centrally-located Columbia is home to the handsome State House, museums and a zoo; nearby Camden is renowned for its equine events, and the western foothills of the Appalachian Mountains are full of hiking, biking and other outdoor sporting opportunities.
TENNESSEE
No American state has a richer music heritage than Tennessee, home to Nashville, ‘Music City USA’, where attractions include the Grand Ole Opry, the Country Music Hall of Fame and the newer American Museum of African American Music; Memphis, where you can visit the clubs along buzzy Beale Street and Elvis’s Graceland mansion; and Sevierville, Dolly Parton’s hometown. But the state also has such natural attractions as America’s most-visited National Park, the Great Smoky Mountains, and the recreation-rich Land Between the Lakes.
VIRGINIA
The birthplace of English-speaking America – at Jamestown in 1607 – takes pride in its early American heritage: its colonial capital, Williamsburg, is now one of the world’s largest living history museums, and it also encompasses two of America’s most-popular presidential homes/museums – George Washington’s Potomac Riverside Mount Vernon south of Alexandria and Thomas Jefferson’s mountaintop Monticello outside Charlottesville. That’s not to forget that Richmond’s State Capitol doubled as the Capitol of the Confederacy during the American Civil War or that the state also encompasses beautiful mountain and coastal scenery that includes Virginia Beach, the longest pleasure beach in the USA.
WEST VIRGINIA
The ‘Mountain State’, which boasts that it’s “Almost Heaven”, is indeed divinely endowed with opportunities for outdoor adventures. The third most-forested state in America, it has 1,500 miles of hiking trails, ski resorts, and the country’s highest density of whitewater river runs as well as its newest national park, The New River Gorge, which is full of opportunities to whitewater raft, mountain bike, fish and rock climb. Also of note: riverside Charleston, dominated by its gold-domed State Capitol; lively Morgantown, home of West Virginia University; and lovely Lewisburg, gateway to the renowned Greenbrier Resort.
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