As a vacation destination, Alabama surprises most first-time visitors. With its varied and splendid geography, moderate climate, and Southern hospitality, the state makes an ideal year-round getaway. From its craggy Appalachian bluffs to sugar-sand beaches on the Gulf of Mexico, Alabama’s wealth of natural beauty offers a happy (and uncrowded) vacation choice for everyone.
Alabama’s link with sports is legend—think Bear Bryant, Joe Namath, Bo Jackson, Pat Sullivan, John Hannah, Hank Aaron, Joe Louis, Willie Mays, Jesse Owens, LeRoy “Satchel” Paige, Bobby Allison—and the list goes on. Although racing fans throng Talladega’s speedway and Birmingham’s Alabama Sports Hall of Fame represents diversity, visitors soon discover that football reigns supreme here. The first Alabama–Auburn clash dates to February 22, 1893, and loyalty lines continue to divide families, friends, and lovers. The stirring words “Roll Tide” and “War Eagle” enter the typical childhood vocabulary early on.
Designed by Robert Trent Jones, the largest golf course construction project ever attempted winds its way through Alabama. The world-famous golf architect, who died in 2000, called this project the greatest achievement of his career; the New York Times calls it “some of the best public golf on Earth.” Unless you agree with Mark Twain that golf is a good walk ruined, you can’t pass up the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, which tests the skills of all golfers from scratch handicappers to hopeless duffers. Beginning in the mountains and lakes of the Appalachian foothills and continuing southward to the white sands and wetlands of the Gulf Coast, this group of PGA tour–quality courses, ranging from 36 to 54 holes each, provides superb golfing and splendid scenery.
The Trail continues to shine, and the two top public golf courses in the US await you here, according to Golf World readers, who recently ranked Opelika’s Grand National site #1 and Prattville’s Capitol Hill #2. Also, out of roughly 13,500 public-access courses, Mobile earned #32. “With rankings like this one and being named the top golf value destination in the country by Golf Digest,” said Dr. David Bronner, “we hope to introduce even more people to golf in Alabama.” Conceived by Bronner and funded by the Retirement Systems of Alabama (RSA), the Trail has transformed Alabama into a golfing mecca. So come on down and play.
To learn more about all 11 locations on the RTJ Golf Trail or to settle into one of the nearby upscale resorts along the way, call (800) 949-4444 or visit rtjgolf.com or pchresorts.com.
And while you’re at it, check out the new RTJ Spa Trail, part of the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail’s Resort Collection at Four-Diamond-rated properties in Point Clear, Mobile, Montgomery, Birmingham, Opelika, and Florence. After all, who doesn’t need a little pampering, particularly in these trying times?
alabamatrivia
Alabama’s Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail is the world’s largest golf-course construction project.
Speaking of trails, anglers will want to follow their bliss on the Alabama Bass Trail. Developed by the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and the first of its kind in the country, this trail consists of 11 premier bass fishing lakes across the state with plenty of outstanding bass tournaments on the agenda. And that’s not all. Audubon magazine named the Alabama Coastal Birding Trail, which stretches through Baldwin and Mobile Counties, one of the country’s best viewing sites. Birders will find directional and interpretive signs all along the way.
Stars still fall on Alabama, and visitors can dip into a rich musical heritage throughout the state. Depending on your own particular penchant, you may catch a classical music concert at the Birmingham Civic Center or a swinging jazz session during Florence’s yearly tribute to the “Father of the Blues,” W. C. Handy. The Alabama Music Hall of Fame, near Tuscumbia, features memorabilia of Nat King Cole, Hank Williams, Sonny James, Lionel Richie, the Commodores, Emmylou Harris, Dinah Washington, the Temptations, and many other musicians with Alabama connections.
This guide book spotlights some of the state’s special places—not only major sites such as the United States Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville but also small towns frozen in time and tucked-away treasures occasionally overlooked by the natives. In the state’s northern section, Huntsville makes a handy launching pad from which travelers can easily loop both east and west to take in north Alabama’s unique attractions. Heading south, the Birmingham area serves as a convenient base from which to branch out into the state’s central section. From there you can sweep farther south to Montgomery to see the state capital area and southeastern section, which includes the historic Chattahoochee Trace. This account concludes with the beaches of Gulf Shores and one of the state’s most beautiful cities, Mobile. In his book A Walk Across America, Peter Jenkins describes being captivated by Mobile, calling it a fantasy city. “Even more than by the psychedelic azaleas,” he said, “I was moved by the great-grandfather live-oak trees.”
Alabama’s surprises start as soon as you cross the border, and the following sneak preview will give you an idea of what to expect. Huntsville, while playing a strategic role in the nation’s space program, also preserves its past at EarlyWorks and at Alabama Constitution Village, a living-history museum. Delegates drafted Alabama’s first constitution here in 1819, and when you enter the village, you may smell bread baking and see aproned guides dipping beeswax candles or carding cotton—quite a contrast to the future-focused Space & Rocket Center. By the way, if you’ve harbored a secret yen to taste the astronaut’s life but always thought Space Camp was just for kids, you’re in for another surprise: The Space & Rocket Center offers programs for all who dare to delve into space technology, from fourth graders to grandparents. You might even participate in a simulated space-shuttle mission. If you’re not ready for such a challenge, you can still stop by the gift shop and sample some freeze-dried astronaut ice cream.
Heading east gets you to Scottsboro, home of the “First Monday” market, one of the South’s oldest and largest “trade days.” Also known for its many caves, this area attracts spelunkers from around the world. Russell Cave, located at Jackson County’s northeastern tip, could be called Alabama’s first welcome center. Some 9,000 years ago bands of Native Americans began occupying the large cave; archaeologists, using carbon dating, have determined it to be the oldest known site of human occupancy in the southeastern US.
At DeSoto State Park, also in the northeast region, visitors can view Little River Canyon National Preserve, the largest and one of the deepest gorges east of the Mississippi River. Near the charming mountain hamlet of Men-tone, Cloudmont Resort features a dude ranch and ski slopes (albeit with Mother Nature getting some assistance from snow machines).
Lakes Guntersville, Wheeler, and Wilson make northern Alabama a haven for water sports enthusiasts. Lake Guntersville State Park hosts Eagle Awareness Weekends in January through the first weekend in February, a good time of the year to spot bald eagles. Many visitors report being surprised by Alabama’s state parks, which offer a sampling of some of the state’s most spectacular vistas, such as the awe-inspiring Cathedral Caverns, plus a host of recreation options—and at bargain prices.
At Cullman, visitors can take a Lilliputian world tour at Ave Maria Grotto, a unique garden filled with more than 125 miniature reproductions of famous buildings. The reproductions were made by a gifted Benedictine monk named Brother Joseph Zoettl. And nearby Hanceville has become a mecca for pilgrims who want to visit the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament of Our Lady of the Angels Monastery.
In Blount County you can see three of the state’s covered bridges. Master-and-slave team John Godwin and Horace King built a number of Alabama’s early bridges. After gaining his freedom, King joined Godwin as a business partner, later erecting a monument in “lasting remembrance of the love and gratitude he felt for his lost friend and former master.” The monument can be seen at a Phenix City cemetery.
Each summer visitors can witness the reenactment of a miracle in northwest Alabama at Ivy Green, home of America’s courageous Helen Keller.
As Alabama’s major metropolis, Birmingham’s paths are well trampled. Still, the Magic City offers some not-to-be-missed treats, such as the historic Five Points South area with its boutiques and outdoor eateries and the 740-acre Barber Motorsports Park near Irondale. On the somber side, the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute and nearby complex re-creates a journey through the darkness of segregation.
Farther south you’ll find Montgomery, a backdrop for sweeping drama since Jefferson Davis telegraphed his “Fire on Fort Sumter” order from here and the Civil War proceeded to rip the country apart. Less than a century later, the Civil Rights Movement gained momentum in this town, paving the way for overdue national reform. The interpretative Rosa Parks Library and Museum offers an in-depth look at the Montgomery bus boycott and pays tribute to the “Mother of the Civil Rights Movement.” Also located here, the Alabama Shakespeare Festival provides top dramatic entertainment.
Don’t miss Selma, a quintessential Southern city, but one that preserves its drama-filled past—from Civil War to civil rights. Spring Pilgrimage events include home tours, a reenactment of the Battle of Selma, and a grand ball on Sturdivant Hall’s lovely lawn. Selma also stages an annual Tale Tellin’ Festival honoring Alabama’s first lady of folk legends and ghost stories, Kathryn Tucker Windham, who died in June 2011.
Traveling down to Monroeville, the Literary Capital of Alabama, you’ll see the courthouse and surrounding square where Truman Capote and Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird, roamed as childhood friends.
Still farther south, the Gulf Shores and Orange Beach area, with glistening white beaches, sea oats, and sand dunes, lures many visitors. The coastal area also offers historic forts, grand mansions, a multi-rooted (French, British, and Spanish) heritage, and superb cuisine.
On Mobile Bay’s eastern shore, a strange spectacle known as “Jubilee” sometimes surprises visitors. Spurred by unknown forces, shrimp, flounder, crab, and other marine creatures suddenly crowd the shoreline, usually several times a summer. When the cry of “Jubilee!” rings along the beach, people rush to the water’s edge to fill containers with fresh seafood.
Alabama’s colorful celebrations run the gamut from Mobile’s Mardi Gras (which preceded New Orleans’s extravaganza) and Gulf Shores’s National Shrimp Festival to Opp’s Rattlesnake Rodeo, Dothan’s National Peanut Festival, and Decatur’s hot-air balloon gala called the “Alabama Jubilee.”
When making travel plans, call ahead because dates, rates, and hours of operation change from time to time. Unless otherwise stated in this guide, all museums and attractions with admission prices of $5 or less per adult are labeled modest. A restaurant meal (entree without beverage) classified as economical costs less than $10; moderate prices range between $10 and $25; and entrees $25 and above are designated expensive. As for accommodations, those that cost less than $85 per day are described as standard; an overnight price between $85 and $150 is called moderate; and lodging costing more than $150 is designated deluxe.
Director of tourism Lee Sentell and the Alabama Bureau of Tourism & Travel encouraged everyone to eat their way around the state by creating the coveted brochure 100 Dishes to Eat in Alabama Before You Die. “This is the largest brochure we have ever printed and it’s full of exciting places to discover and experience,” Sentell said.
General Alabama Trivia
Alabama is a place where the waitresses (not servers, please) may call you darlin’. But don’t take it personally—they call everybody that. As for food, many of us agree with a quote by Linda Vice, who represents Alabama’s Black Belt in the state’s southwestern section: “We can cook like Grandma did, or we can cook fancy. We draw from a number of food traditions. Food is one of our religions, and we worship at every shrine we pass!”
For travel information, maps, and brochures, stop by one of the eight Alabama Welcome Centers; call (334) 242-4169 or visit Alabama.travel. To preview the state parks, log onto alapark.com. You can make reservations at any Alabama state park by dialing (800) 252-7275. So pack your bags, head for the unforgettable Heart of Dixie, anticipate some surprises, and watch out for falling stars.
Fast Facts about Alabama
CLIMATE OVERVIEW
Alabama’s climate falls in the temperate range, becoming mostly subtropical near the Gulf Coast. Spring’s first flowers appear early, often in February. By April, average statewide temperatures reach the 60s. Summer days often fall in the hot and humid category. Fall brings changing foliage and refreshing cooler weather. Snow is such a rarity in most parts of the state that when the weather person predicts it, everyone gets excited and makes a mad dash to the grocery stores for bread and milk—even if they’re curbing their carbs and are lactose intolerant.
FAMOUS ALABAMIANS
Some famous Alabamians include Condoleezza Rice, Helen Keller, Harper Lee, Winston Groom, Fannie Flagg, Lionel Richie, Channing Tatum, Hank Williams Sr. and Jr., Rosa Parks, Kenny Stabler, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, and Octavia Spencer.
NEWSPAPERS
The state’s major newspapers include the Huntsville Times, the Birmingham News, the Montgomery Advertiser, and the Mobile Press Register. Since printed papers started in the state around 1806, according to Bill Keller, former executive director of the Alabama Press Association, Alabamians have demonstrated a long-standing appreciation for newspapers. Every county in Alabama produces a newspaper.