5 Best Cities to Visit in the South
If you want to explore the South but aren’t sure which cities to visit, these destinations offer everything from gorgeous mountain scenery to delicious eats, cultural attractions and more.
Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville has become one of the South’s hottest spots in recent years, drawing creative types, brew lovers, music enthusiasts and more. Check out the River Arts District, the perfect place for a stroll, jam-packed with art galleries, eateries, breweries, and street performers. Just minutes from downtown, take advantage of the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains, an adventure enthusiasts’ playground with opportunities for everything from whitewater rafting on roaring rivers to miles and miles of scenic hikes.
Baton Rouge
This beautiful Louisiana city offers lots to see and do, jam-packed with magnificent historic mansions like Magnolia Mound, an elegant plantation home with French Creole styling open for tours, with guides wearing period costumes. In fact, you might even want to take a tour of the Baton Rouge houses for sale while you’re here too. You can also enjoy multiple museums, riverboat gambling, and a zoo.
Greenville, South Carolina
Greenville has not only become one of the state’s fastest-growing cities, but it’s also a great place to visit, home to all sorts of opportunities for outdoor adventure, nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains among lakes and rivers. It offers a wide range of cultural attractions too, including world-class museums, theaters, and galleries. Its charming downtown is filled with enticing boutiques and outstanding eateries, and there’s a picturesque River Walk as well as an acclaimed zoo. Falls Park on the Reedy is considered a must-visit for enjoying a picnic among the picturesque scenery. If you enjoy riding and want to have a new experience cycling along the beach in and around Hilton Head, you could Try Peddling Pelican Cruiser bikes.
Austin, Texas
Visit Austin and you can enjoy a wealth of city attractions along with day trips to explore lush Hill Country scenery nearby. The Texas capital is a music lovers’ dream, with even more live music per capita than famous music destinations like New York City, Los Angeles, and Nashville, and it’s also renowned for its mouthwatering BBQ found at numerous eateries like Franklin Barbecue, considered one of the best spots to enjoy it in the entire state. Sports enthusiasts can tailgate with the locals and cheer on the home team at the University of Texas, and those who want to get active won’t want to miss Zilker Metropolitan Park. It offers miles and miles of hiking and biking trails, the Barton Springs Pool, and attractions like the Zilker Botanical Garden and the Austin Nature and Science Center.
Atlanta, Georgia
There’s lots to love about Atlanta too, another great city for enjoying barbecue and all sorts of delicious cuisine with everything from southern comfort foods like biscuits and gravy, chicken and waffles, to international gourmet fare. The hometown of Martin Luther King, Jr., history buffs shouldn’t miss a visit to Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Park, where his birth home can be toured along with other historic sites like King’s tomb and the Ebenezer Baptist Church, where the civil rights leader was baptized and both he and his father served as pastors. For those interested in some more in-depth research on the leader’s history through newspaper records or obituaries, websites such as Genealogy Bank (https://www.genealogybank.com/explore/obituaries/all/usa/georgia/atlanta/atlanta-journal-constitution) could prove to be helpful.
Other popular attractions include the Georgia Aquarium and the World of Coca-Cola. Be sure to catch a live show if you’re into good music with just about every genre available on any given night of the week.