Deep South USA Plus Texas for solo travellers

Itinerary

• Day 1
  Arrival in Atlanta
• Day 2
  Travel to Nashville - Driving into Tennessee to Lynchburg, this quintessential little town is a true slice of unspoilt 50s America, with its red-brick courthouse, general store and one traffic light. It’s a great place to just browse the shops and get a bite to eat before we visit Lynchburg’s claim to fame: the Jack Daniel Distillery. Obviously, it’s where Jack Daniel’s whisky is made, since 1884 and a tour is a great experience. Interestingly, the county is ‘dry’ and locals are not allowed to consume the product they are most famous for.
• Day 3
  Nashville - Country Music Hall of Fame Continuing across Tennessee’s rolling green hills we soon arrive at ‘Music City USA’, Nashville, where we will visit the Country Music Hall of Fame. A huge museum of all things ‘Country and Western’, it has floors of fascinating exhibits from the earliest days of country music to the megastars of today. There are films and videos of music’s greatest, with their life-stories and costumes.
• Day 4
  Memphis - Today we say goodbye to Nashville and head to the far west of Tennessee and the city of Memphis, the Mississippi. From its earliest beginnings as a small French garrison, Memphis grew into a magnet for freed slaves after the Civil War and as a cotton trading centre. This afternoon we have a guided tour around the birthplace of Rock n’ Roll – the legendary Sun Studio, where Elvis recorded his first hit. This insignificant, yet iconic 1950s building, was the starting point for Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash and Roy Orbison amongst others and is a designated National Historic Landmark. You can still see Jerry Lee’s piano and Elvis’ microphone!
• Day 5
  Graceland and National Civil Rights Museum - Today we visit one of America’s biggest tourist attractions, Elvis’ Graceland. The ‘King’ bought the Graceland mansion for $100,000 in 1957 when he was just 22 and it was his main home until his death. From the time it opened to the public in 1982, Graceland has expanded to include Elvis’ private airplanes and his extensive car collection. One of the most iconic houses in America, Graceland’s Garden is also Elvis’ final resting place. This afternoon we step back into America’s historical milestones visiting the National Civil Rights Museum at The Lorraine Motel. It was here Martin Luther King was shot on 4th April 1968. Five years previous on 28th August 1963 he delivered his famous ‘I Have a Dream’ speech around the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC to a crowd of 250,000 people. The following year in 1964, King won the Nobel Peace Prize for combating racial inequality through non-violent resistance. In that same year, President Johnson got a law passed prohibiting all racial discrimination. This evening is at leisure to sample the music scene at Memphis’ famous Beale Street.
• Day 6
  Journey to New Orleans - After an early start, this morning, we board a trusty coach to the legendary city of New Orleans. We'll journey through sprawling forests, passing charming farms and catching glimpses of the quaint 'southern' towns that dot the east bank of the mighty Mississippi River, like pearls on a necklace - each with its own story to tell. So sit back, relax, and soak in the scenery as we make our way to the heart and soul of the Big Easy! New Orleans has a unique and distinctive charm. Its heady combination of rich culture, history and a vibrant atmosphere makes the city a must-see destination for any Americanophiles.  In the evening, why not step out and try New Orleans’ famed Cajun cuisine – there are plenty of fantastic restaurants.
• Day 7
  New Orleans - This morning we have a walking tour of New Orleans’ famous French Quarter with an expert local guide. We see the charming art galleries and antique shops along Royal Street, the white stucco St Louis Cathedral and Jackson Square, full of artists, musicians and fortune tellers, and walk up the iconic Bourbon Street, centre of the city’s nightlife. The afternoon is free for you to explore this charming city at your leisure. This evening, you have the opportunity to enjoy an evening jazz cruise with dinner on board the Steamboat City of New Orleans. Personalise your holiday - Steamboat New Orleans Dinner and Jazz Cruise The graceful steamboats of the south have long been a colourful part of America's history, so what better way is there to experience New Orleans by taking an evening jazz cruise with dinner on board the Riverboat of New Orleans. Admire stunning views of the city while rollin’ down the river enjoying the casual buffet-style dining. Stroll the decks as well as enjoying the live sounds of New Orleans swing style music. From £89pp Please contact us for more information and to add the above experience to your booking.
• Day 8
  Free day in New Orleans - A free day to relax in the ‘Big Easy’ and explore at your leisure.  Alternatively, you may choose to personalise your holiday with visit some of the most impressive Antebellum Plantations outside New Orleans combined with a fascinating boat tour of the nearby Louisiana swamps, known for their alligators and snapping turtles, and where you can admire the fauna, such as the moss-draped cypresses native to the bayous of Louisiana.   Personalise your holiday - Oak Alley Plantation & Louisiana Swamp Journey back in time to the most famous historic plantation of New Orleans' antebellum south, iconic for its photogenic walkway of magnificent, centuries-old oak trees. Tour the stunning 'Big House' with a guide and hear the stories of its compelling history. Complete your experience with a 1.5-hour-long boat tour of the Louisiana bayou to discover the wetlands, its inhabitants and the unique history of the Manchac Swamp. From £49pp Please contact us for more information and to add the above experience to your booking.
• Day 9
  Houston and NASA - We leave New Orleans this morning heading ever westwards along Louisiana’s Cajun country towards Texas. As we enter the outskirts of Houston, our first stop is at the world-famous NASA Johnson Space Centre, still a working NASA base from where the international space station is controlled. We visit ‘Mission Control’, now restored to its 1965 look with all the original equipment and furniture – a unique experience. We also see a full-size Saturn V rocket which famously has no on-board computer, they were just too big at the time, plus the huge indoor training facility for the astronauts of the International Space Station.
• Day 10
  San Antonio - We continue further into the south Texas plains arriving in San Antonio this afternoon and checking into our hotel for a two-night stay.   Once a frontier settlement in the Wild West, San Antonio has become a city full of modern amenities. There's plenty of shopping to be done with upscale boutiques multiple shopping malls and the largest Mexican market in the USA. Just around the corner from our hotel is the city's famous River Walk stretching for more than 24km, The River Walk has shaded pathways that connect you to hundreds of shops, restaurants and hotels as well as historic landmarks, museums and attractions.  In the North, you'll find museums filled with everything from Picasso to eastern memorabilia. To the South you'll find four UNESCO-protected Spanish missions that once provided shelter for the frontier settlers - and still provide some of the best birdwatching spots around.   Tonight, we stay just around the corner from the Alamo and within easy walking distance to the charming Riverwalk area with its many bars and restaurants, ideal for trying out the region’s famed Tex-Mex cuisine.