Road Trip: Ohio to Texas. Overnight Stop in Memphis?
 

We are moving from Ohio to San Antonio, TX and will be driving our two cars down to Texas in May. It will be me, my husband, and our 2 year old daughter.

Looking at the map, I think Memphis or Little Rock might be good points for an overnight stop. Any thoughts on which would be better? We're leaning towards Memphis. What could we do there in one evening and one morning with a toddler? Suggestions for hotels with easy access to the highway and in a safe part of town would be appreciated.

Thank you!

I agree that those are the logical stopovers.
In Memphis, favor the eastern burbs like Germantown.
Several of the freeway exits on 240 just east of the city are new areas with nearby restaurants. Avoid the airport area.

Little Rock gets you another couple hours closer to your destination. Little Rock is a much smaller town. I am not an expert on Little Rock, but I recently stayed at a Hampton near the intersection of 30 and 40 on the north side, and it was a mistake.

What route are you planning to take from Ohio ?? If the I-40 routing from Nashville thru Memphis I would suggest that you look at the Exit 16B which is Germantown Parkway. Wolfchase Mall is there for shopping, a number of chain hotels, and there are LOADS of good family restaurants in the mall area and up and down G'twn Parkway. Safe area and right at Interstate exit.

Thanks for your help! We're taking I-65 to I-40. I'll look into Germantown...it sounds ideal. I thought about trying to stay downtown, but I think that might take too much time in terms of getting on and off the highway, finding our way, etc. We won't be in town that long anyway; might as well do what's easy!

Has anyone stayed at a Germantown hotel that they can recommend?

Also, any suggestions of what we should do in the evening? (We'll have a little one with us.)

Any good breakfast places in Germantown?

Problem with staying in Germantown is that next morning you'll hit rush hour traffic into Memphis. Unless it's the weekend.

There are also hotels at exit 15, Poplar Ave.
If you go W on Poplar from 240, on the left is Corky's BBQ. Corky's is one of Memphis better BBQ's. Very casual. If you've got kids along or are in your travel clothes, no problem. Corky's has really fine ribs.
Further down Poplar, L on Winchester is the Half Shell, a casual but good seafood spot.
Nearby the Half Shell on Poplar is Houston's. A chain and a little more upscale, but always good.
Then, if you are looking for a fine meal on the trip, Folks Folly Steak House is on Mendenhall. Go past Houston's and Mendenhall is a right turn very close.



I know there is a Hampton Inn off exit 16.

Agreed with the above - Little Rock would be fine for an overnight, but if you're looking for a touristy activity in addition, Memphis has more to offer. And especially with a U-Haul or equivalent (if you're moving yourself), Germantown or somewhere near is the way to go. My brother lived there for a few years and the Germantown Commissary was one of his favorite barbecue spots there. It's a bit away from I-40, but not hard to get to - straight down Germantown Parkway, looks like.

Depending on when you get into town, you might see if the Redbirds are playing. They're Memphis's minor league baseball team, and the stadium (AutoZone Park) is right downtown. The Memphis Zoo is also supposed to be good, although I haven't been myself. And there's always Graceland. :)

Good point, Rkkwan. I hadn't thought about traffic...

Thank you stumpworks73 and jent103 for the restaurant suggestions. BBQ sounds good to me!

A baseball game or a trip to the zoo are both possibilities. Might be nice to get some fresh air after being in the car all day.

Just want to add one thing about routing. I have taken I-65/40 way too many times through Nashville while I was a trucker some years ago. Truck traffic was/is so heavy that I'd rather take West KY Pkwy/Purchase Pkwy to I-155 to I-55. It's only about 20 more miles, but you get to bypass BOTH Nashville AND Memphis, and on this route you basically get to set cruise and forget about it.

I highly recommend this route over I-65/40.

Take the Briley Parkway West around Nashville and stay out of the traffic.

It's not just traffic around Nashville and Memphis. It's the heavy truck traffic for much of I-65 and I-40. The West KY Parkway option starts from Elizabethtown, KY. Except for a small stretch of 4-lane divided highway in TN (and I think 2 to 3 traffic lights in Union City), it's all freeway.

Hmmm...hadn't thought about taking a different route. Let me look at a map...

So, in this case we would still be stopping near Memphis, right? But it looks like we'd go around Memphis to the west. Decisions, decisions.

The route I suggested will bypass Memphis, and rejoin I-40 in West Memphis, AR. You will have to backtrack 10 miles east on I-40 to Memphis downtown.

siena - our daughter goes to college in central Ohio and drives back and forth to our home in Texas up to 4 times a year (usually with my wife). They've gone a variety of routes and would agree with rkkwan on traffic in and around Memphis and Nashville and along I40; sometimes going through 1 of the cities, but not both.

They tend to prefer 2 routes: 1) the one rkkwan suggests [I155 to 55 then 40] or 2) I71 to I65, down to Birmingham, then I20 to I59 where they connect with I12 and I10 all the way to Texas. You could also stay on I20 through Jackson to Dallas, then I35 to SA.

Skip Graceland, it's the tackiest tourist trap I've been to. The Civil Rights Museum is far more interesting.

If you stay in Little Rock, the Clinton Presidential Libary is also very good and its within walking distance to shopping and restaurants downtown.

Dfr4848--Thank you for those additional route ideas. It sounds like it might be best to find an alternate route. I was just following Mapquest's lead! ;)

RBCal--Yes, I've heard that Graceland isn't worth it. Thank you for reminding me about the Clinton Library!!! Maybe we DO want to try to make it all the way to Little Rock on Day 1!

Of the two, choose Memphis. Little Rock is pretty much flat scary @ night, w/little to do and even less reason to stay there...It is not a nice place.