Two months across the south of the United States
2024
Highlights of the trip
During your stay you can enjoy the following highlights: Culture / Heritage, Faune and flora, Discovery, Adventure / Sports & Leisure.
Best times to go
The best time(s) to go is/are : Printemps, Eté, Automne, Hiver.
Petit Futé
Where to stay - Miami ?
The map of your stay "Two months across the south of the United States"
Detail of the stay : Two months across the south of the United States
How to get there - Miami
Arrival in Miami
Miami Beach
Steps: Daytona Beach
Walk in Miami Beach and its Art Deco neighbourhood, relaxation on the beach, visit of museums and parks, shopping in a mall or in a designer's shop... In the evening, outing in Ocean Drive, Collins Avenue and Washington Avenue.
Everglades National Park
Steps: Key West
Departure at dawn. Discovery of the ecosystem, alone or with a guide, cycling or canoeing. Departure in the very day to arrive at in Key West late in the day unless you decide to extend until the next morning.
The Keys
Steps: Key West
If you slept in Everglades or on the road to Key West, you can fully enjoy the bridges which will lead you to the end of the Keys. If you had already returned to Key West, rent a bicycle or scooter to take advantage of the streets of the island, its lush vegetation and Caribbean houses. Enjoy the sunset on Mallory Square.
Places of interest : MALLORY SQUARE
The Keys
Swimming and relaxation are on the programming of this day.
Return to Miami
Last walk in the city. Shopping.
Orlando
Steps: Orlando
Walk along the Atlantic coast of the Georgia. Stop in Orlando in one of the many amusement parks.
Golden Isles
Steps: Cumberland Island
At 3 pm in north of Orlando, you enter Georgia through the Atlantic facade. It's off this beautiful border coast that you can go to the Golden Isles that form, from South to North, Cumberland Island, Jekyll Island, Brunswick and walk through the streets of the historic centre.
Golden Isles
Steps: Brunswick
Spend the night in Brunswick and walk through the streets of the historic centre.
Savannah
Steps: Savannah
Savannah is a gem of the Antebellum architecture. Visit her beautiful homes like the Owens-Thomas House. Enjoy the excellent culinary reputation of the city to taste the soul food and the seafood. Take the time to taste the charm of a city marked by the American Civil War. Located at one-hour drive from Brunswick.
Macon
Steps: Savannah
Leave the coast and enter the Georgian lands to reach Macon, one of the best preserved cities in the South and located 2-hour drive from Savannah. The historic centre is a dive in the pre-war south.
Atlanta
Steps: Atlanta
Start the tour of the city by Centennial Olympic Park which houses, among others, the Georgia Aquarium. Atlanta's other great attraction is World of Coca-Cola, the head office of the famous company. Visit the High Museum of Art.
Places of interest : GEORGIA AQUARIUM WORLD OF COCA-COLA CENTENNIAL OLYMPIC PARK HIGH MUSEUM OF ART
Atlanta
Steps: Atlanta
Don't miss the Hollywood's greatest successes.
Places of interest : MARGARET MITCHELL HOUSE & MUSEUM MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. HISTORIC SITE VISITOR CENTER
Atlanta-Charleston
Steps: Savannah
Approximately 5 hours and half from Atlanta to Georgia and Charleston on the South Carolina coast. Take the time of this journey to cross the Savannah River and soak up the atmosphere of the South.
Charleston
Steps: Charleston
A beautiful highlight of the south, Charleston is an open-air museum that tells the farmers life and the Civil War violence. Don't miss the Fort Sumter National Monument where the civil war began in 1861.
Places of interest : FORT SUMTER NATIONAL MONUMENT
Charleston
The Antebellum architecture lovers will not be delighted, the city is full of beautiful mansions typical of the pre-war period.
Beaufort
Steps: Charleston
From Charleston you can make a day excursion to Beaufort, a very beautiful historic city at 1 hour an half south of the city.
The plantations along the Ashley River
Steps: Charleston
Less than an hour's walk from Charleston, immerse yourself in the atmosphere of Old South Antebellum and visit the beautiful plantations surrounding Ashley River Road.
Grand Strand
Steps: Georgetown
Cross the Atlantic coast of South Carolina 60 miles north, more known as the Grand Strand. Departure from Georgetown, a languidly charming old town which was a very well-known destination in the 19th century.
Places of interest : THE STRAND
Grand Strand
Steps: Pawleys Island
A little farther to the north, Pawleys Island is slightly out of time. Then go to Myrtle Beach, the great attraction of the coast.
Wilmington
Steps: Savannah
Wilmington is a magnificent drop-off point to enjoy the coast. As charming as Charleston or Savannah, its historic centre is worth a visit. The white sandy beaches of the surrounding area are also unmissable, including .
The Outer Banks
Steps: Wilmington
North of Wilmington, the Cape Lookout National Seashore is the gateway to the Outer Banks, where you can spend two days by alternating beaches on Ocracoke Island and scenic lighthouse visits such Hatteras Lighthouse.
Places of interest : CAPE HATTERAS LIGHTHOUSE
Outer Banks
Steps: Raleigh
Continue exploring the Outer Banks beaches. Once you have fully enjoyed the ocean, go to the lands from North Carolina to the state capital, Raleigh 4-hour drive.
Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill University Triangle
It is in this central triangle of the North Carolina where the most prestigious American universities are located. Beyond the magnificent campuses, these three cities enjoy a pleasant student atmosphere.
Blue Ridge Parkway
Steps: Asheville
Leave the plain and join the Appalachians to the east of the state in the town of Boone, about 3-hour drive from Durham. A university city oriented towards the culture of the Appalachian, it is a pleasant part of the visit. Take the Blue Ridge Parkway, a scenic road that crosses the Asheville at 2 pm from Boone.
Asheville
Steps: Asheville
Asheville is the centre of the New Age Renaissance where the new American hippies meet. It is also a centre of American culinary renewal as well as a place of traditional local music (bluegrass and country). Enjoy this particularly relaxing atmosphere during the day.
Great Smoky Mountains
Steps: Great Smoky Mountains National Park
To the east, Cherokee is the gateway to the Mountains National Park. A Cherokee land, this park in the Appalachians makes the link between North Carolina and Tennessee. Enjoy the wild beauty of the places and take a two-day trek if you are a nature lover.
Great Smoky Mountains and Dollywood
Steps: Pigeon Forge
End your stay in the Pigeon Forge. You will discover the musical arts and traditions of the region. Spend the night in Knoxville (TN).
Places of interest : DOLLYWOOD & DOLLYWOOD SPLASH COUNTRY
Lexington
Steps: Knoxville
Go to Lexington, the horse's capital, with its superb Knoxville and Lexington, stop at Mount Vernon-Renfro Valley, visit the and in Berea to discover its craft district and its Knoxville and Lexington.
Places of interest : KENTUCKY HORSE PARK KENTUCKY MUSIC HALL OF FAME & MUSEUM BEREA COLLEGE HISTORIC CAMPUS
Lexington- Bourbon Trail-Louisville
Steps: Lexington
Visit Lexington at the Trensilvania University and Born Park. In the early afternoon, drive to Louisville. Take the time to visit some Bourbon distilleries which you will find on the Bourbon Trail. The trip between Lexington and Louisville will take you one hour, 2 to 3 hours by stopping at different distilleries.
Louisville
Steps: Louisville
Visit the Churchill Downs Hippodrome for the Kentucky Derby, the most famous horse race in America. Taste the cocktail named Mint Julep. In the evening, enjoy the entertainment in Fourth Street Live.
Places of interest : CHURCHILL DOWNS MUHAMMAD ALI CENTER LOUISVILLE SLUGGER MUSEUM
Hodgenville-Bowling Green
Steps: Bowling Green
After a last tour on the banks of Ohio, take the road to the south, towards Hodgenville. Visit the Mammoth Cave National Park. Night on site or at Bowling Green. It takes you 1 hour 40 minutes to travel from Louisville to Bowling Green, and 20 minutes less to Mammoth Cave.
Places of interest : ABRAHAM LINCOLN'S BIRTHPLACE NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE LINCOLN MUSEUM
Mamoth National Park Cave
Steps: Bowling Green
Spend the day by visiting part of the largest network of caves in the world. Night on site or at Bowling Green.
Bowling Green-Nashville
Steps: Nashville
Visit of the National Corvette Museum in the morning, then go to Nashville. It takes 1 hour drive between Bowling Green and Nashville.
Places of interest : NATIONAL CORVETTE MUSEUM
Nashville
Nashville
Steps: Nashville
Visit the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum and listen to music in the must-go Auditorium.
Places of interest : COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME & MUSEUM RYMAN AUDITORIUM
Natchez Trace Parkway and Shiloh National Military Park
Steps: Nashville
From Nashville, take the Natchez, in the Mississippi. Take advantage of this road to immerse yourself in the local atmosphere and then turn into the Shiloh National Military Park, one of the biggest battlegrounds of the American Civil War. Prolong your visit to Corinth (MS) and its Shiloh National Military Park. The road between Nashville and Shiloh will take you 40 minutes and another 40 minutes to reach Corinth where you can spend the night.
Places of interest : CORINTH CIVIL WAR INTERPRETIVE CENTER NATCHEZ TRACE PARKWAY
Memphis
Steps: Memphis
2 hours west from Corinth, Memphis is the city of Elvis and the blues. For the King's fans, a visit of Graceland where he lived and is buried is an absolute must. The Sun Studio visit where he recorded and others like Johnny Cash is also exciting.
Places of interest : GRACELAND SUN STUDIO
Memphis
Steps: Memphis
Think also of visiting the Beale Street clubs.
Places of interest : LORRAINE MOTEL & NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM BEALE STREET
Oxford
Steps: Memphis
The city of William Faulkner, one of the greatest American writers, Oxford is located 2 hours south of Memphis. It's a charming gateway to Mississippi. The heart of the city beats at Courthouse Square where you will find restaurants, cafes and a warm atmosphere. Don't miss to visit , the magnificent home where Faulkner stayed from 1930 until his death in 1962.
Places of interest : WILLIAM FAULKNER'S ROWAN OAK
Blues Highway
Steps: Memphis
The Highway 61 which goes along the Mississippi river from Memphis to New Orleans is called Blues Highway. Immerse yourself in the origins of the blues from Clarksdale where you can visit the Delta Blues Museum. It is a mythical city where you can spend the night. It takes you 1 hour to travel between Memphis and Clarksdale, with a stop at the Gateway To The Blues Visitors Center located on the Highway, at the height of Tunica.
Places of interest : DELTA BLUES MUSEUM
Cleveland-Greenwood-Greenville
Steps: Cleveland
South of Clarksdale, take a full day to visit the area of the Cleveland-Greenwood-Greenville triangle. To east Cleveland, stop at Greenwood you will find one of the (many) Indianola, where BB King became famous. Don't miss the Ebony Club that belongs to him today. Before you reach Greenville, where you can spend the night, make a last stop in Leland. Visit Highway 61 Blues Museum, then visit Greenville is at 1-hour drive from Clarksdale.
Places of interest : ROBERT JOHNSON GRAVESITE DOCKERY FARMS HIGHWAY 61 BLUES MUSEUM JIM HENSON MUSEUM, BIRTHPLACE OF KERMIT THE FROG
Jackson
Steps: Jackson
The capital of Mississippi is no longer in the , Jackson is a modern and airy city, which boasts beautiful buildings to visit (including its two capitoles) and is an important witness to the struggle for civil rights.
Jackson
Steps: Greenville
Take the time to visit the Jackson from Greenville.
Places of interest : MISSISSIPPI AGRICULTURAL & FORESTRY MUSEUM
Vicksburg
Steps: Vicksburg
40 minutes to the west of Jackson, Vicksburg was the place of a major battle of the Civil War. After the visit of the , visit the city centre with its cobbled streets and beautiful old mansions.
Places of interest : VICKSBURG NATIONAL MILITARY PARK
Natchez
Steps: Natchez
Leave the past violence of Vicksburg and take the road for the beautiful and quiet city of Natchez, at 1-hour drive. Natchez has preserved its pre-war splendour as it was very little affected by the war.
Natchez Trace Parkway-Tupelo
Steps: Nashville
Leave early in morning Natchez and go up Natchez Trace, an ancient Indian track that crosses unspoilt bucolic landscapes between Natchez and Nashville, Tennessee. Finish in Tupelo, Elvis's hometown. It takes you 5 hours 30 from Natchez to Tupelo.
Places of interest : NATCHEZ TRACE PARKWAY
Muscle Shoals
Steps: Tupelo
Just under 2-hour drive from Tupelo, Tennessee River in the northern part of Alabama state. This region is an important musical centre, which supported the development of R&B and soul in the 1960s. Don't miss in Tuscumbia.
Places of interest : ALABAMA MUSIC HALL OF FAME
Huntsville
Steps: Huntsville
1-hour drive to the east, Huntsville is home to one of the best attractions in the United States. is the world's largest museum dedicated to space. A must.
Places of interest : US SPACE & ROCKET CENTER
Birmingham
Steps: Birmingham
As you return to the geographical heart of Alabama, you will find Birmingham, a city of great historical interest as the defence movement for civil rights was particularly active there. Don't miss the describing the history of segregation and the black Americans struggle for equality.
Places of interest : BIRMINGHAM CIVIL RIGHTS INSTITUTE
Montgomery
Steps: Montgomery
The capital of Alabama is at less than 2 hours south of Birmingham. It is also a great place of history: It's here that Rosa Parks decided to sit among the whites on a bus, which started the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Go to the Dexter Parsonage Museum where Martin Luther King lived, when he was in charge of the renowned church Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church.
Places of interest : CIVIL RIGHTS MEMORIAL & CENTER DEXTER AVENUE KING MEMORIAL BAPTIST CHURCH DEXTER PARSONAGE MUSEUM
Mobile
Steps: Mobile
Alabama inherited a very small opening on the Gulf of Mexico. Mobile is the treasure. 3-hour drive from Montgomery, it was the first colony installed by the French in the region. For a little bit of history, go to and . Visit the , take a tour of the old town by Dauphin Street and discover the beautiful residences in the historic districts. Think also of visiting to the East of the city.
Places of interest : USS ALABAMA BATTLESHIP MEMORIAL PARK THE HISTORY MUSEUM OF MOBILE MOBILE CARNIVAL MUSEUM FORT CONDÉ
Mobile - New Orleans
Steps: Ocean Springs
Shortly after leaving Mobile, plan a stop in Ocean Springs for the Walter Museum of Art and in Biloxi for lunch. When you arrive in New Orleans, start by walking through the Old Quarter before exploring the rest of the city.
Places of interest : WALTER ANDERSON MUSEUM OF ART
New Orleans
Steps: La Nouvelle-Orléans
For the second day in the one called The Big Easy, you can try a ghost tower or a voodoo tower to dive into the legends and mysteries of the city. Visit the French Market, on the banks of Mississippi and in the neighbourhoods you have to discover.
Places of interest : FRENCH MARKET
The bayou
In the vicinity of New Orleans, you are in cajun countries and in the heart of the bayou, these typical marsh of Louisiana where alligators abound. Profit from a guided tour with a local alligator hunter.
The plantations
Steps: Baton Rouge
The plantation route stretches over 150 miles between New Orleans and Baton Rouge). Choose different styles.
Lafayette Region - Cajun Countries
Steps: New Iberia
Visit the Avery Island, discover New Iberia, go up to Breaux Bridge, the world's capital of the crayfish. Spend the evening with a fais do-do (a dancing party).
Places of interest : TABASCO FAN EXPERIENCE
Baton Rouge and St Francisville
Steps: Lafayette
Take a quick tour in Baton Rouge, the State capital and rival of New Orleans (at just less than 1 hour drive from Lafayette). Don't spend too much time there but instead go to St Francisville at 40 minutes from Baton Rouge where you can choose between one or two plantations to visit.
Alexandria and Natchitoches
Houston
Steps: Atlanta
Morning departure to reach Texas and Houston. It takes 4 hours and half from Natchitoches. When you arrive, take the time to rest in the heart of one of the great green lungs of the city, such as Memorial Park or Hermann Park. Spend the evening in Downtown to begin this first stage.
Places of interest : MEMORIAL PARK HERMANN PARK
Houston
Steps: Clear Lake City
The next day, the early birds will discover Houston via its Museum District by choosing one of its many museums. In the afternoon, departure for the , south of the city.
Places of interest : SPACE CENTER HOUSTON MUSEUM DISTRICT
Fort Worth
Steps: Fort Worth
Four and a half hours north of Houston, Fort Worth is a dive into the world of Texas cowboys. Discover the Stockyards district of Fort Worth, with the sale of cattle and the longhorns which beat the pavement, guided by the cowboys.
San Antonio
Steps: Fort Worth
About 4 hours and 30 of Fort Worth to the South, San Antonio is one of the oldest cities in Texas. It is also one of the most pleasant. Once you recovered from the trip, you can easily discover San Antonio on foot. Don't miss the , the or the that makes the city's charm.
Places of interest : THE ALAMO MISSION - FORT ALAMO SAN FERNANDO CATHEDRAL SPANISH GOVERNOR'S PALACE
Bandera
Steps: Bandera
At 1 hour from San Antonio, Bandera is the heart of a cowboy country. Spend this day in a nearby ranch. Sleep on site.
Austin
Steps: Bandera
At 2-hour drive from Bandera, Austin is the capital of Texas. It is also the city living an impressive musical effervescence. Visit the city centre, its museums and its capitol and do not hesitate to indulge in a local honky-tonk in the heart of country music.
