Arkansas Ozarks has a lot of great hiking, caves, waterfalls and canoe/kayak rivers. New Orleans is great but have your street smarts tuned up, lots of crime but you can avoid it. Cajun country west and north of New Orleans is more chill with great food and music. The “Redneck Riviera” east of New Orleans through the Florida panhandle has a lot of cool beaches and seafood. East Tennessee/western North Carolina has some obvious tourist traps but a lot of nature, music and interesting small towns.

What are your interests? Outdoors, music, history like old buildings or Civil War battlefields, highbrow art or crazy folk art environments, which the South has a lot of, food, beaches, drinking, etc.?

>>2884888
>Planning a road trip to the South
>We're looking for a mix of great food (real BBQ
Is that a typo? Surely you meant BBC

>>2884912
Thanks for your reply.
We'd love to see the Civil War battlefields and maybe even a few museums/old buildings.

>>2884906
>Arkansas Ozarks has a lot of great hiking, caves, waterfalls and canoe/kayak rivers.
>East Tennessee/western North Carolina has some obvious tourist traps but a lot of nature, music and interesting small towns.

That's what we were looking for. We don't want to waste money.
And what are the people like there? Friendly or will they shoot you?

>>2884888
>hitting Memphis or New Orleans
Skip Memphis. Complete shithole. Maybe do Graceland if you want to see that. Otherwise don't bother.

>Any specific routes or scenic drives we should take?
Natchez Trace Parkway or the Blue Ridge Parkway are pretty good. The Natchez Trace Parkway is pretty long, it goes from near Nashville southwest almost into Louisiana.

>>2884906
>The “Redneck Riviera” east of New Orleans through the Florida panhandle
That's really just from Gulf Shores, Alabama east into the panhandle. The beaches west of there are noticeably worse.

>>2884921
>We'd love to see the Civil War battlefields
If you swing through Chattanooga, there are two battlefields (same park) nearby, one in Chickamauga and the other on top of and around Lookout Mountain, where you can ride the Incline Railway up to the top and walk to it. That's really worth doing even if you don't care about the battle. Lots of other things to do in and around Chattanooga as well. If you want to go whitewater rafting, the Ocoee River is ~30 min outside of town with lots of outfitters right around it to choose from.

>>2884922
>And what are the people like there? Friendly or will they shoot you?
Are you planning on breaking and entering homes or robbing people? If you're not, your chance of being shot is 0%.

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>>2884888
I have a soft spot for St. Louis if you are passing through there. The Hill is their Little Italy. Lots of good Italian restaurants. Kinda fun vibes there. Obviously Eastern STL and Downtown are kind of not ideal outside of a Cardinals gameday.
Kimmswick on the way out of the city was a fun little kitschy Midwestern town if it happens to be on your route. Otherwise skip it.
Memphis BBQ is pretty good. I recommend kind of an old faithful "The Rendezvous" downtown. The wet ribs are probably the best thing on the menu, but you can't really go wrong. Corky's is another obvious one. Tops BBQ and Central BBQ are a little more fast food-y and YMMV there. I know The Bar-B-Q Shop went viral recently, so that's probably a good one.
In terms of tourism, the Pyramid, Beale St, and Graceland are kind of the big ones tourists hit. The Memphis Zoo is actually pretty decent if you like that.
If you travel into Arkansas, the Ozarks have lots of great nature. Walmart's founder's had a kid into mountain biking so there's lots of trails near Bentonville. Lots of hiking all over the Northwest really.
If you want to go down further, Hot Springs is an interesting town, kind of Prohibition vibes. Used to be a resort that Pro baseball players and Al Capone used to visit to convalesce and train.

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>>2884930
>What are the absolute MUST-DOs that tourists usually miss?

most tourists only go to the smokies in east tn and totally miss the beautiful area between east tn/nc border and nashville

welch point
https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/tennessee/welchs-point

easy short walk to a beautiful view, this harder walks to other views and waterfalls if you are interested

also savage gulf state park nearby, easy walk to beautiful views

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/tennessee/stone-door-trail

>>2884912
there's a folk art museum in morehead kentucky with a really nice gift shop with wooden bowls and pottery and other art

kentucky and tennessee have a lot of nice stuff
don't skip WV though - highland scenic highway - most people miss it, its beautiful

https://paradisegardenfoundation.org/
This folk art environment in north Georgia is not far from Chattanooga and is one of the greatest outsider art works around. There’s other things like this in Georgia like the Land of Pasaquam and a search on the site Roadside America will show you more.

>>2885046
uhhhh i dunno about folk art but there's some great hiking in northern georgia and near chattanooga as well
chattanooga is also relatively nice for a mountain-adjacent city in the east
hip and affluent in parts

>>2884912
Shiloh Battlefield is pretty nice. Early battle with Grant and Sherman. Pretty bloody and back and forth.
It's about 2 hours from Memphis. About 30 minutes from Corinth MS. Russell's Beef House has good steak there.

You're going the wrong way. If you're in Iowa, go west to Colorado. The southern US is flat, ghetto and has terrible weather.

Car trips are expensive too. Gas is going to run you $600. You'll need 10 days worth of hotels and food. For that price, you could buy two roundtrip ticket to Cancun and go stay at Playa Del Carmen. Flights would be less than $600 roundtrip and you can get a really nice hotel for $70/night.

If you're dead set on doing a trip to the south, do New Orleans and cut across on a coastal route. Just drive along the beaches the whole way to Panama City. It's the best stretch of beach in the US. Make sure to do the Emerald Coast in Florida.

^^^^ Ignore that retard

>>2885055
Vicksburg is another cool battlefield park with a lot of the siegeworks still intact, the salvaged ironclad USS Cairo, a sleepy old city rather than suburbia that’s gobbled up other battle sites, and the river itself, the reason this was the “Gibraltar of America”.

>>2885174
uh yeah but like the battle is long over and its just a list of names and places now
if you go that far south you miss the best hills
ozarks east through nashville or cincinnati east to appalachia is gonna be much nicer scenery

>>2884926
Wow, so many tips. Thank you so much.
>Are you planning on breaking and entering homes or robbing people? If you're not, your chance of being shot is 0%.
Okay lol, so they are friendly

>>2884930
You seem like an expert, I'll check it out. My girlfriend loves Italian food.
>>2885009
This! We want to avoid the usual tourist spots and have the equipment for a few hikes.
Nothing too strenuous. Thanks.

>>2885055
>>2885174
>>2885175
We hope to be able to see as many of them as possible (it will be very difficult to see all of them)

>>2885046
Paradise Garden looks fun to see.
We like these alternative attractions. Thank you

>>2884888
That's a lot of shitty unappealing country to cover, full of fat mutts, bad drivers and countless miles of commerical boulevards lined with goyslop drivethrus. You could go across a much shorter stretch of Midwest emptiness to the Black Hills of South Dakota. But I bet that part of America has some awful restaurants.

>>2884921
You obviously need to go to Vicksburg.

>>2884888
Skip Memphis. Absolute shithole, very dangerous. If you want the bbq, stop in Germantown or something.

You're also going to be driving through a lot of pine trees and rural poverty.

>>2884913
This Americans cant help themselves but want their wives to be bvlled. So glad to be canadian and we have nothing but good memes and stereotypes if you can even think of one

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>>2885128
Yea, I'm sure you know what you're talking about. Have fun in Shiloh.

>>2885340
>>2885357
Thank you both.
I'm used to traveling through corn and wheat fields.
A few pine trees don't scare me.
>>2885360
>>2885376
Kek

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A literal shack in a parking lot serving high-end brisket and steelhead trout tacos; a local favorite that tourists often drive past.

>>2884888
New Orleans is a must. Go there eat great food and enjoy the most unique city of the region. Memphis is a trash pit just ignore that spot. Go down the gulf coast to Tampa towards the everglades. Don't bring your girl to Miami. Go to miami alone or with the homies. Go up to Savannah, GA. After that go back up to the smoky mountains in TN/NC. Hit Nashville maybe on your way back to Iowa

>>2885411
Where is located?
>>2885419
Thanks, I hope to see Nashville then too.
Oh, I was in Miami during spring break a few years ago.
Good memories ;)

>>2885411
>>2885452
Over romanticizing it. It's been a restaurant for years. It was a pizza place before this.

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Louisiana native here
>Great food
Commanders Palace and Superior Seafood and Oyster house are really great staples, but more high end. I like Dragos too, its where a lot of older people from Metarie like to go. Places like Gris-Gris, Rosedale, and The Blue Crab have good more casual dining. These are all specifically southern/Louisiana food specifically. Crawfish season is also just ending, so you might be out of luck with quality stuff, but check out Clesis in Midcity, they usually have good stuff.

for desert stuff, check out Angelo Brocatos its a really good old school Italian ice cream parlor. Cafe Du Monde is kinda tourist trappy I feel, but its good and fun to experience. If its too packed, check out Morning Call Coffee its basically the same thing.

>history
The National WW2 museum is THE staple in the city. Not Louisiana specifically, but I think every American should check it out. The Cabildo (old capital building during Spanish rule) in Jackson square is great and they currently have an exhibit on Louisiana role in the American Revolution and on the Battle of New Orleans. About a hour drive out the city you can visit the Chalmette Battlefield where it actually took place. The NOMA museums usually has some good stuff too. I would just stay away from any ghost/vampire/voodoo/haunted ect. tour stuff. This is just pure made up tourist trap slop for retards. If you want actual history, dont do this. Walking around the french quarter is always good, just avoid the obvious tourist trap shit like voodoo dolls or beads. No one wears mardi gras beads around outside of parades, and no one especially pays for them. Avoid bead sellers like the plague.

You can also check out the more rural river parishes area right outside the city. Thats where the plantations all are, some good ones are Oak Alley, Laura, and Destrahan plantations.

(1/2)

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>>2885531
For nature you can check out the Jean Lafitte National Park. Its a nice little stroll through swamp lands, but last time i was there a year ago some woke faggots defaced a bunch of the signs. City Park and Audubon Park are nice little strolling areas, but not really nature. Also the Couturie forest is pretty nice as well.

If you feel up to driving an hour out to the Baton Rouge area, I think the BREC parks are much better for actual nature walks.
>>2884921
>We'd love to see the Civil War battlefields and maybe even a few museums/old buildings.
Not a lot of Civil War stuff in NOLA. There is the Confederate Memorial Hall which has a cool collection. Again, if youre up for an hour drive out the city towards Baton Rouge, you can check out the Port Hudson site. The Battle of Port Hudson was the longest siege in American military history, the epic clash over control of the Mississippi River. Its a nature walk/museum.

If you are driving down you would pass through Baton Rouge before you hit New Orleans anyway, so you could make a quick stop in that area to check out the BREC Parks and Port Hudson site.

>>2885531
>>2885535
>The National WW2 museum is THE staple in the city.
This was on the list. Do you know also small museums along the way? We love those stuff.

>avoid the obvious tourist trap shit like voodoo dolls or beads
Yeah, one of my friends went there years ago.
He almost got scammed by someone who wanted to sell him shit that no one else was wearing.

>There is the Confederate Memorial Hall which has a cool collection
I hope it hasn't been vandalized by some woke asshole.

>>2885531
>Louisiana native here
Oh, and what are the locals like? I'd like to avoid any problems.

>>2885535
>The Battle of Port Hudson was the longest siege in American military history

When I was a kid my friend’s dad knew some private landowners outside the battlefield park and we went metal detecting. It was a huge battle that’s mostly forgotten and overshadowed by Vicksburg, which it resembles as a besieged river stronghold, though there’s no town there now as the river changed course. Part of the siegeworks are preserved, including Fort Desperate, where one of my ancestors fought.
Baton Rouge has two historic state capitol buildings, the old one which looks like a Moorish castle and is now a museum, and the new building, an Art Deco skyscraper built by Huey Long. You can see his tomb and the bullet holes in the marble where he was shot. On the grounds there’s the old arsenal museum and nearby Pentagon barracks, antebellum structures when it was a military post. There was a Civil War battle in BR but nothing to see apart from a few markers.

>>2885617
>and what are the locals like?
Not that anon but I grew up in Louisiana. It’s not like Easy Rider where they’re going to shoot your ass but people can get kind of crazy, though in general they’re friendly, especially in areas that are used to tourists. A Cajun dance hall or blues bar that’s known to tourists will be cool, but “hey let’s walk in this random dive bar!” might not end well. If you’re black there’s certain white rural areas you won’t enjoy, and if you’re white avoid the hood in NO or BR. A parked car full of stuff with out of state plates could attract unwanted attention in a city or remote rural area. Just use the same common sense you’d use in Chicago or some rural part of the Midwest.
Lots of Trump supporters of course but unless you’re making a big deal over it no one cares. Football, food, drinking, boating, hunting and fishing are what folks are really passionate about.

OP here: I'm back
>>2885811
>we went metal detecting
In high school, I had a friend who had a metal detector.
We spent a summer searching the countryside and hills.
We never found anything interesting, except for old, rusty garbage.

>>2885815
>Easy Rider
That was a movie Anon.
I watched it with my dad when I was a kid.
When we took a trip to Arizona, I was scared kek.
>“hey let’s walk in this random dive bar!” might not end well.
>A parked car full of stuff with out of state plates could attract unwanted attention in a city or remote rural area
It was one of my main concerns, thank you.
>Lots of Trump supporters of course but unless you’re making a big deal over it no one cares
I survived college surrounded by liberals kek.
A couple of guys in red hats don't scare me.
>If you’re black there’s certain white rural areas you won’t enjoy, and if you’re white avoid the hood in NO or BR.
Well, thank you then.

>>2885890
>That was a movie Anon.
*a great movie

>>2885616
>Do you know also small museums along the way?
the plantation tours in the river parishes I mentioned are good. Theres also this small hole in the wall place no tourist site will know about called Nobils. Small and good little cajun place.

The Port Hudson site has a small museum about the battle too. It also has one of the better hiking trails there too if you wanted some nature as well so you can hit two things off in one trip.
>>2885815
what this guy said. Just be smart in New Orleans or Baton Rouge. Also, avoid the Bywater, is a ghetto sewer of gentrified hipsters and crust punk transplants from Portland.

>>2885997
>Nobils
I found a restourant with this name near New Orlins.
Do you confirm?
>The Port Hudson site has a small museum about the battle too.
Seems cool