Mississipi River & Southern States

sunshinetours

N9eav wrote: »

The summer is always hot hot hot, Autumn is nice and cheaper too, say end of sept-oct
The people in the south are very friendly and the food is just..... very fattening ... but delicious. Fried is the order of the day...

Fly to Atlanta cheaply and drive up to Chattanooga and Nashville. Just a thought

Hmm yes forgot to add that - probably alos the most humid place I have ever been to although we had to go in mid August which clearly is not the best time to visit. Your clothes would be wet as soon as you walked outside - not pleasant in summer

robhac

I was in New Orleans in 1999 and am returning this year. I loved it. Stick to the tourist areas at night and be sensible. Some of the best music is in the less salubrious parts of town, so get taxis to and from. A local friend told me that Mardi Gras is very sleazy with people having sex in the streets. The police don't interfere.
One place to look out for is The Rocking Bowl, a bowling alley with a stage at the back. I walked in and heard a familiar sound. It was Jules Holland on stage. He was just visiting but did a session. They have now moved location so check the address.
I drove from NO. to the Alabama Gulf Coast, known as the redneck riviera. Fantastic beaches of white sand. If you go then visit a bar called the Florabama. Its on the Florida - Alabama border and has a great reputation for music. Unfortunately it was destroyed by Katrina but has been rebuilt.
Pensacola is lovely and is the training place for USN pilots. I imagine it might be a good place for girls to be on the lookout for young Naval and Marine Aviators. The Naval Air Museum (free) is on the base and is excellent.
Have a great time.
Rob

Murphy_The_Cat

I've just come back from 3 weks in Texas and had one hell of a good time.
Do's- have a great time
Don't - believe all the stereotypes of the Southern States

wattywattwatt

We visited New Orleans for a couple of days a few years ago in mid summer (july), never again! Don't get me wrong the place was great but the heat and humidity were unbearable, it was so hot the inside of the tour bus we went on steamed up completely and we couldn't see out at all, it was in the middle of a very heavy downpour though so there wasn't that much visibility anyway. We also went on the 'Natchez' paddle steamer, can't remember the details of cost etc but we regretted it almost from the moment it left the dock. The trip was no more than a couple of hours but the heat on deck was unbearable and if you went into the air-conditioned areas it was extremely crowded and the noise was deafening, between the air-con, the engine noise and the jazz band we couldn't stand it. Outside on the deck it was difficult to find seats together and, to be honest there was not much to see, very industrial area near to the town and the boat didn't really go far enough to get past this. If I go back, which I would love to, I would definitely not go on the paddle steamer as we regretted wasting the time as we didn't have that long there. As a previous poster has mentioned Chattanooga is a great destination, loads to do and see and well worth the trip if you are prepared to go to Tennessee.

Murphy_The_Cat

wattywattwatt wrote: »

well worth the trip if you are prepared to go to Tennessee.

I enjoyed TN as well, plus, KY is a fine place to visit.

Coolhandluke

Welcome back Murphy,so you eventually did make Texas,hope you had a gr8 time with no problems.
Was it hot?

Murphy_The_Cat

Coolhandluke wrote: »

Welcome back Murphy,so you eventually did make Texas,hope you had a gr8 time with no problems.
Was it hot?

We had a cracking time, with absolutely no problems whatsover - hottiness wise, it was low 70's to high 70s every day. Perfect :j

scottishminnie

Been to both Texas and Tennessee several times. The further south you go, the slower the pace of life and the more laid back people tend to be. I loved them both - Tennessee for me was exactly as I'd expected, bluegrass and country music and rolling hills and valleys. The drive south from Nashville to Chattanooga was just beautiful. My husband and I kept stopping just to stare at the scenery.

Having worked our way through around 14/15 states Texas, for me, is my all time favourite. We've had 3 visits now. I love the Texans to bits, they don't take themselves too seriously, they can't be bothered (in the main) with political correctness (but not in a nasty way) and they are fiercely proud of their state. I'm a country girl so rodeos, oil derricks and cowboys make me happy (and Dallas has them all).

Never been to Georgia, it's on my list though. Atlanta seems like a beautiful city and the Georgia countryside I imagine would be similar to Tennesee.

Too many states, not enough time!

What ever you decide - enjoy.:)

p.s. I'm a big fan of Trip advisor - lots of friendly people and good advice on the forums (almost as good as MSE!)