Visit Stone Mountain, Asheville, The Blue Ridge Parkway, Great Smoky Mountains NP, Nashville, Memphis, Natchez, New Orleans, Florida Panhandle and Atlanta.
Starting and finishing in Atlanta, you’ll immerse yourself in the Deep South’s absorbing culture, music and food. You’ll explore six of America’s southern states – which are home to The Blues, BBQ, Bourbon, and that famous southern welcome.
Key road trip highlights:
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We’ll suggest properties to match your preferred budget, be it low-cost, mid-range or high-end luxury that you’re looking for. We can also mix it up so you’ll experience a range of standards and experiences along your road trip.
All of our American road trips can be tailored to meet your requirements. Do you have more or less than 14 days for your road trip? No problem, we can bolt on extra nights to allow more time to explore or shorten the number of destinations as required.
Fly directly to Atlanta from the UK. You’ll then collect your car at the airport and head northeast on a short drive to Atlanta’s answer to Central Park… Stone Mountain Park. Offering green spaces surrounding a huge quartz monzonite dome, this is the most scenic introduction to the city. Tomorrow, you’ll begin your road trip with a cruise up to the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains.
Asheville in North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains is one of the fastest-growing cities in the country. Asheville offers historic landmarks like the Biltmore Estate and numerous cool eateries and bars. Venture out of town to see the beautiful views from Chimney Rock, approximately 25 miles south of the city. Tomorrow, you’ll drive along the most southern section of the scenic Blue Ridge Parkway to the spectacular Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Ridge upon ridge of pristine forest straddles the border between North Carolina and Tennessee in this super popular National Park. The Smokies are world-renowned for their diversity of plant and animal life, the beauty of their ancient mountains, and the quality of their remnants of Southern Appalachian mountain culture.
Spend a second day exploring Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Look out for the wonderful wildlife that lives in The Smokies. Black bears, bobcats, and elk all roam freely here. The Smoky Mountains are an excellent place to visit at any time of year, but in autumn, the trees put on a spectacular show of colour for hikers and driving enthusiasts to enjoy.
Country music takes the focus for the next two days as you leave the Appalachian Mountains and head west to Nashville, Tennessee. En route, you may decide to stop at Dollywood Theme Park, named after its proprietor and local legend, Dolly Parton.
Nashville is the home of country music, and ever so proud of it. Music City boasts about its musical heritage at every opportunity, including the impressive Country Music Hall of Fame. It’s not all about Country music though. Nashville has a rich blues history, whilst singer-songwriters from every musical genre enjoy playing the bars and recording hits in this vibrant town. Tonight, for the complete Nashville experience, we recommend you head down to lively Broadway and stop by a honky tonk or two for a one-of-a-kind night on the town.
Your meticulous Road Trip Pack will show you the most scenic route between these two great Tennessee cities. Alternatively, Elvis fans may prefer to head straight to Memphis on Interstate 40 to get to Graceland and Sun Studios in the shortest possible time.
Second only to The White House, Elvis Presley’s Graceland is the most iconic home in America. Amazing Memphis offers plenty more, including the legendary Sun Studios and the moving National Civil Rights Museum. In our opinion, Memphis is the Barbecue Capital of America, so make sure you try a rib joint tonight.
Your Road Trip Pack will include multiple route options for the drive between musical Memphis and historic Natchez. Natchez lies on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River, so if you decide to take the most scenic route to Natchez, you’ll follow the Great River Road, with former plantation homes dotting the path through the Mississippi Delta. Depending on your arrival time in Natchez, try to include a visit to Emerald Mound and Grand Village to learn more about the area’s rich Native American heritage.
Continue south along the Great River Road to New Orleans, or ‘The Big Easy’ as it’s also known. Built on the mouth of the Mississippi River, this laid-back city has seen a lot of changes in recent years, and the regeneration work is bringing out the best of its character. In between Natchez and New Orleans lies Oak Alley Plantation, and if you only visit one plantation home during your Deep South road trip, then this is the one to go for.
Built on the mouth of the Mississippi, New Orleans is the home of the blues, jazz, voodoo and the colourful craziness of Mardi Gras. The French Quarter offers great charm and is an ideal place to lose the car and take a walking tour. Further highlights include Audubon Park, Jackson Square (pictured), Bourbon Street and enjoying freshly made beignets at Cafe Du Monde.
You’ve seen and done so much in the last week and a half, from partying in Nashville to hiking in the Great Smoky Mountains. So, for the next two days, it’s time to sit back and relax on some of the best beaches you’ll ever enjoy visiting. Choose a different award-winning stretch of sand every day, or chill by the hotel pool and top up your tan.
The Alabama border is just a few miles down the road, which helps explain the relaxed vibe of Pensacola. This city jumbles laid-back Southern syrup with Florida brashness. Nearby St. George Island State Park is often voted one of America’s best beaches. The Gulf Islands National Seashore near Pensacola Beach is another coastal area offering turquoise waters, pristine white sands and adorable sea turtles.
Today, you’ll head back to Atlanta. Halfway along the drive lies Montgomery, where you can take a rest from driving and experience some southern charm and Civil Rights History. Atlanta is a fast-growing city that has exploded in size over the last few decades. Major visitor attractions include the World of Coca-Cola, Piedmont Park and the gigantic Georgia Aquarium. Beyond the big-ticket downtown attractions, you’ll find many excellent restaurants and important African-American history, like the final resting place of Martin Luther King Jr. Tomorrow, you’ll finish off any remaining sightseeing and shopping before flying back to the UK with a suitcase full of Deep South memories.
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You’ll find answers to most of your questions right here. If you still need assistance, Feel free to get in touch, and we’ll be sure to get back to you promptly!
Not a problem. If you are lucky enough to have extra time to explore more places or add more rest days, then just let us know and we’ll adjust your trip to match your preferred timescale.
We strongly advise that you purchase travel insurance for your holiday to cover you against medical expenses, theft and other financial costs. Should you need to cancel before travelling, some insurance policies may pay out for any loss of funds that have been paid to us and which cannot be refunded under our cancellation policy.
Many of our trips have a different end destination than the starting point, so this is not a problem. Please note a fee sometimes applies for one-way rentals between other regions or states, which will be paid to the supplier directly when collecting the vehicle. We’ll endeavour to inform you of this charge within your quote.
No, far from it. We work with a range of properties from 3* to 5*, so we can adapt the trip to match most budgets. We have access to rooms in more than 800 hotels, motels, lodges and B&Bs across North America.
The minimum age to rent a car is 21 in the United States or Canada, although, in addition, any drivers under 25 years of age will generally incur a surcharge.
Please use the form below to request a quote from our team. Fields marked with an * are mandatory. Please note that we currently only serve customers based in the UK & The EU.
Not quite what you’re looking for? Get in touch to discuss your Bespoke Road Trip plans, or check out these similar road trip itineraries…
ARTCo customers can be confident that we only work with the very best service providers, such as Virgin Atlantic, British Airways and Alamo. Any payments made to us are fully protected via the government’s ATOL scheme (Flight packages) or Financial Failure Insurance (Non-Flight Packages).
