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Deep South roadtrip, 3 weeks, 2 more Brits needing your help!

Deep South roadtrip, 3 weeks, 2 more Brits needing your help!

Old Dec 21st, 2014, 11:43 PM
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Deep South roadtrip, 3 weeks, 2 more Brits needing your help!

I found this Fodors' thread on a 2 week trip around the Deep South (http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...-your-help.cfm) so helpful, I'm hoping the lovely panel might be able to help my boyfriend and I with a trip of our own.

We are planning a 3 week road trip around the Deep South in June (we are currently in Southeast Asia, so hoping we can handle the heat!).

I was thinking of an itinerary something like this:

Day 1-3 New Orleans (for Cajun food and wandering around)
Day 4 Natchez
Day 5-6 Memphis
Day 7-8 Nashville
Day 9-12 Smokies (for hiking, working off the ribs!)
Day 13 Atlanta (is it possible to bypass Atlanta and stop somewhere less busy en route to Charleston?)
Day 14-17 Charleston (it just looks lovely!)
Day 17-19 Savannah
19-21 wend our way back to New Orleans via the Florida panhandle - or any other scenic suggestions?

Does this look doable? Is there anything you would add/cut or any back roads you might suggest, if we could steal a couple of extra days?

As you might gather from the above, we mostly enjoy eating, more eating, soaking up the atmosphere of buzzy/old towns, and hiking (pretty much in that order!). Blues music and bourbon would be an excellent bonus but wouldn't be the main focus of the trip, and coming from Asia, we are less interested in beaches.

Just so you know our flight plans, we fly into Miami on 6 June and fly from LA back to London on 10 July (our original plan was to drive from Miami to LA until we spotted the one-way car hire fees - gah!). I was planning on taking a flight/ the dreaded mega bus from Miami to New Orleans, as I think we'll be able to pack in more if we start from there but am open to other suggestions too. We would then fly from NO to LAX.

Thank you so much in advance for your help!

And merry - almost! - Christmas!
katieanded is offline  
Old Dec 22nd, 2014, 03:26 AM
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Certainly do NOT go to Atlanta from the smokies. Go to Asheville (and see it anyway) and drive down I26.
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Old Dec 22nd, 2014, 06:55 AM
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Unless there is some vital reason you want to rent the car in Miami and drive the almost 900 miles to New Orleans, what you could do is take a cheap flight from nearby Fort Lauderdale on Southwest airlines to New Orleans, see that city, and THEN rent the car.

You could drive it and through the Florida panhandle if that seems like a must to you.

You speak of (hire) car drop off fees but if you are renting in Miami and dropping in NO, you may still have a drop fee.

Asheville is a lovely place but Atlanta may offer you more and yes, IMO, you could go there from the Smokies or you could go to Asheville and then to Charleston and then on to Savannah.
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Old Dec 22nd, 2014, 07:04 AM
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Atlanta is a big sprawling city--and they don't have that much time. The drive from Atlanta to Charleston is about as dreary as it gets--and from Asheville, not a whole lot better.
And yes, you takes your pick for what your druthers are.
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Old Dec 22nd, 2014, 07:05 AM
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I would suggest from the smokies, just spend a day in Asheville then head straight down I-26 to Charleston, it's and easy drive. Not sure what you want to see in Atlanta. It is a big busy city with horrible traffic and not a particularly southern feel. Stone Mountain is nice though.
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Old Dec 22nd, 2014, 11:20 AM
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I don't get how Atlanta is on the way to Charleston from the Smokies. That's a big detour south and out of the way.

There's no reason NOT to do the loop Dukey suggested: Fly to NOLA from Miami, drive from NOLA on your itinerary listed above, return to NOLA to fly to LA.

DO NOT TAKE A CROSS-COUNTRY BUS. Good gosh.

And I've been to Atlanta plenty of times, that would be the bottom choice of any location you've put on your list with a few other slots above it you haven't filled in. Just a sprawling mess, although it does have a good music fest that you're three months early for.
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Old Dec 22nd, 2014, 01:05 PM
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This is a lot to do in 21 days with rest days.

We are from Scotland, the whole route is essentially what we have covered over three separate trips to The South over six weeks.

Ideally, I would spend more time in Savannah and Charleston.

I also agree that Atlanta isn't the best place to taste the flavour of the South.
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Old Dec 22nd, 2014, 04:44 PM
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Great, thanks for all the tips so far!

Just to clarify, we are planning to pick up the car in New Orleans and drop it off there (not Miami) to avoid the extra mileage and drop off fees. I am quite fond of the overnight bus (maybe I've been in Asia too long!) but can also look into the flight.

I definitely like the Asheville tip. The only reason I included Atlanta is because I've been researching other peoples' trips and using their routes as a base for my own, and Atlanta was always included (most likely because that's where they fly in!).

Dickie GR I also think it looks a bit much - is there anything you would skip? And if we focused more on Charleston and Savannah, does that mean we shouldn't start in NO, and leave it to another trip?
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Old Dec 22nd, 2014, 05:03 PM
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Sorry, one more question!

Is June likely to be busy on this route, in terms of booking hotels/cabins etc? My guess/hope is that the heat will put many off and that US school hols won't start until July, so it should be relatively quiet?

Thanks!
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Old Dec 22nd, 2014, 09:03 PM
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Schools in the South get out in late May or early June, so summer vacation will have started already. It's Northern (or at least Northeastern) schools that get out in late June/almost July.

"My guess/hope is that the heat will put many off "—Nope. Southerners will have already been experiencing the heat for a month or two by the time June rolls around. It's certainly not enough to stop most people from being out and about. At least it won't yet be as bad as July or August, which are miserable even to locals.
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Old Dec 23rd, 2014, 01:02 AM
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You are likely to find it busiest in the Smokies and near the beach, both places where Southerners head in droves when school gets out.

I would book well in advance for both the Smokies and Charleston. I would also try to book lodging in the National Park rather than dreadful Cherokee or horrible Gatlinburg, though these may be amusing to overseas visitors. If I couldn't do that, I might skip the park area and enjoy some of the rest of the Smoky Mountain area, which extends from -- very roughly -- Clayton, Georgia to Boone, North Carolina. Plenty of mountain scenery, plenty of waterfalls, plenty of enjoyable small towns, fewer crowds and little tat.

The "native" food of New Orleans is creole, Cajun is the very different country cousin. Try both. Then try them again.

Don't drive Natchez-Memphis by interstate. Take Highway 61 and the Blues Trail.

Memphis to Nashville is a very boring drive, comparable to Asheville-Charleston.

Again, take US 17 between Charleston and Savannah, stopping for lunch in Beaufort. The Interstate is indirect and mortally boring.

Driving back to NO, I can recommend a visit to Wakulla Springs State Park and Apalachicola in the eastern Panhandle. Both are Old Florida. Mobile is interesting, the rest, I don't know well enough to comment on.
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Old Dec 23rd, 2014, 10:34 PM
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Very helpful, thank you, and apologies for the Cajun/Creole mix up - I shall certainly make great study of each cuisine next year!

Useful to hear the warning on Gaitlinburg. It's the first town that popped up when I was looking at cabins around the Smokies, and I actually thought it looked lovely (great views but perhaps quite manicured?), but it was rather expensive for us, so it's good to know there's nice, authentic alternatives. Airbnb has some fab cabins in Clayton! Will also look into a stay in the park itself - although a preliminary search suggests most campsites are for RVs, as opposed to tents.

In terms of getting to the Smokies, would the roads to cabins be smooth? I.e. Should we be worried about accessing cabins in the hills with an economy / compact rental car?

Anyway, I am about to be told off for planning trips on Xmas Eve, so many thanks again to everyone, hope you have a wonderful holiday. - I will check in after the festivities!
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Old Dec 24th, 2014, 02:52 AM
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Roads will be just fine--it isn't rustic!! Gatlinburg "views" can be lovely--it's just the whole kitsch and commercialism that is bad.
There is tent camping available in Cherokee which is literally on the edge of SMNP--there's a Yogi Bear park there that I think you could make reservations. We have camped there with our kids, right along the creek. It is away from the town center. I know it sounds awful, but it isn't!! You could probably find some commercial campgrounds around the Park, if that is what you want to do.
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