Memphis Vacations

When planning vacations to Memphis, spring and autumn are excellent seasons to look for flights when the weather is pleasant for outdoor activities. Winter is comfortable in Memphis without an overabundance of snow. This makes it a convenient time to plan for Memphis travel for cheaper accommodations. You also get to enjoy Beale Street’s annual New Year’s Eve celebration as part of your Memphis travel at this time of year.

October through November is prime time for budget travelers from abroad to visit the city. The summer crowds have disappeared, the soaring summer temperatures have cooled down and hotels, restaurants and attractions offer a sudden burst of discounted deals. The days may still be warm, and the nights are cool, so be sure to pack a variety of clothing that you can layer to accommodate whatever nature throws at you. April and May also offer some of the city's best weather, with temperatures ranging from the low 70s to the low 80s, as well as some of the area's most popular festivals and tours. Whether you decide to travel to Memphis during peak travel times or the off-season, Orbitz.com will help you find the lowest possible prices.

When planning vacations to Memphis, spring and autumn are excellent seasons to look for flights when the weather is pleasant for outdoor activities. Winter is comfortable in Memphis without an overabundance of snow. This makes it a convenient time to plan for Memphis travel for cheaper accommodations. You also get to enjoy Beale Street’s annual New Year’s Eve celebration as part of your Memphis travel at this time of year.

Stop for a tasty treat or lunch at Jerry’s Snow Cones, where you can sit and chat with the locals.

Enjoy the sounds of local musicians at Handy Park with open-air jazz, blues, and R&B concerts under the stars until the early hours of morning.

Browse the local produce from the Memphis Farmers Market downtown where you can taste everything from fresh fruit to home-baked goods.

Enjoy an afternoon bike ride on the seven-mile Greenline Trail, which links Shelby Farms to Midtown.

Enjoy kayaking in Wolf Man Harbor, one of the Mississippi River’s tributary, and see Memphis from the water.

Elmwood Cemetery

Visit one of the first rural garden cemeteries in the South, as well as the final resting place for many historic Memphis figures.

Malco Summer Drive-In

Live like a local and bring back childhood memories with an evening at this iconic drive-in movie theater.

Caritas Village

Often overlooked by visitors and locals alike, Caritas Village offers a place for people from all walks of life to come together and share a meal from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily. It is an experience you won't soon forget.

The Memphis Zoo

If you're traveling with kids, be sure to visit the Memphis Zoo on Tuesdays between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m., when admission is free.

Playhouse on the Square and the Circuit Playhouse

To see some of the best productions in the city on a budget, call these theaters in advance. Each one offers at least one night for each production where guests name their own ticket price.

Enjoy kayaking in Wolf Man Harbor, one of the Mississippi River’s tributary, and see Memphis from the water.

Enjoy an afternoon bike ride on the seven-mile Greenline Trail, which links Shelby Farms to Midtown.

Browse the local produce from the Memphis Farmers Market downtown where you can taste everything from fresh fruit to home-baked goods.

Enjoy the sounds of local musicians at Handy Park with open-air jazz, blues, and R&B concerts under the stars until the early hours of morning.

Stop for a tasty treat or lunch at Jerry’s Snow Cones, where you can sit and chat with the locals.

Memphis is a city known for its music and you will find plenty of attractions and events designed around its musicians. However, you can find plenty of other activities in the city to entertain you, as well. Enjoy the dazzling scene of downtown at night on the antique trolleys as you stop for the famous Memphis barbeque at one of their many restaurants. Visitors can spend an entire afternoon of their Memphis vacations at the museums learning about the history and culture of the area. Enjoy a day out in nature hiking on the trails or biking through the parks.

Memphis Walk of Fame, located in the Beale Street district, is similar to the Hollywood Walk of Fame but focused on Memphis musicians.

Graceland, the best-known attraction in Memphis, was the home of Elvis Presley and now contains a brilliant display of his history and memorabilia.

Victorian Village features a series of old Victorian homes, many of which are open to the public.

National Civil Rights Museum, located where Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated, provides a stirring history of the fight for Civil Rights.

Memphis Zoo, located in midtown Memphis, has one of the only Giant Panda exhibits in the country and one of the only zoos to have a live rhinoceros birth.

The Pink Palace Museum, one of the biggest science and historical museums in the mid-south, is worth visiting on Memphis vacations.

Cruise along the Mississippi River on the American Queen steamboat provide guests a special overnight experience along the river.

Levitt Shell, a beautiful park in Midtown Memphis, is the site of Elvis Presley’s first show and continues to provide entertainment for the city.

The Orpheum Theater, located on Main Street, has featured many Broadway shows and had celebrities grace its stage.

Cooper-Young is a set of cross streets where you can hear a variety of local music and see what Memphis is truly all about.

Graceland

No trip to Memphis would be complete without visiting the place that Elvis called home. Graceland is the second most-visited house in the country, with the White House as the most visited.

Elvis Week

Each August, Elvis devotees converge on Memphis to spend an entire week devoted to his memory.

Carnival Memphis

This June street festival actually began in 1931 as the Cotton Carnival.

Beale Street

Visit the heart and soul of the city and the place where history comes to life. Beale Street is particularly lively in May during the Beale Street Music Festival.

The Peabody Ducks

Stop by the Peabody Memphis Hotel to see the daily parade of live ducks heading into the lobby fountain.

The Orpheum

This must-see attraction is one of the most historic theaters in Memphis.

Memphis Rock 'n' Soul Museum

Learn more about the birth of rhythm and blues at this historic museum.

Sun Studio

Take a tour of the birthplace of rock and roll.

Mud Island

Spend a day enjoying the great outdoors at the Mud Island River Park and Mississippi River Museum.

The World Championship Barbeque Cooking Contest

Visit Memphis in May, when professional and amateur barbecue masters converge on the city for the world's largest barbeque cookoff.

Cooper-Young is a set of cross streets where you can hear a variety of local music and see what Memphis is truly all about.

The Orpheum Theater, located on Main Street, has featured many Broadway shows and had celebrities grace its stage.

Levitt Shell, a beautiful park in Midtown Memphis, is the site of Elvis Presley’s first show and continues to provide entertainment for the city.

Cruise along the Mississippi River on the American Queen steamboat provide guests a special overnight experience along the river.

The Pink Palace Museum, one of the biggest science and historical museums in the mid-south, is worth visiting on Memphis vacations.

Memphis Zoo, located in midtown Memphis, has one of the only Giant Panda exhibits in the country and one of the only zoos to have a live rhinoceros birth.

National Civil Rights Museum, located where Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated, provides a stirring history of the fight for Civil Rights.

Victorian Village features a series of old Victorian homes, many of which are open to the public.

Graceland, the best-known attraction in Memphis, was the home of Elvis Presley and now contains a brilliant display of his history and memorabilia.

Memphis Walk of Fame, located in the Beale Street district, is similar to the Hollywood Walk of Fame but focused on Memphis musicians.

Memphis is a city known for its music and you will find plenty of attractions and events designed around its musicians. However, you can find plenty of other activities in the city to entertain you, as well. Enjoy the dazzling scene of downtown at night on the antique trolleys as you stop for the famous Memphis barbeque at one of their many restaurants. Visitors can spend an entire afternoon of their Memphis vacations at the museums learning about the history and culture of the area. Enjoy a day out in nature hiking on the trails or biking through the parks.

Sometimes Memphis music and Memphis food coincide in a few annual events that bring a massive influx of visitors, locals and international media groups.

For one month a year, downtown's Tom Lee Park is transformed from a tranquil, riverfront greenway into a sea of music, pork and people for the annual Memphis in May festival. This month-long celebration draws tens of thousands of visitors every spring, and features the world-famous Beale Street Music Festival, World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest and several International Events honoring a selected foreign nation (Spain, 2007). Sponsored by Downtown's Center for Southern Folklore, the annual Labor Day Memphis Music and Heritage Festival showcases live music, spoken word and dance on multiple indoor and outdoor stages. The multi-day festival features a parade, as well as tons of Southern cooking, children's activities, works by Southern artists and craftspeople and much more.

Perched high on a bluff, the city of Memphis overlooks the mighty Mississippi River as it flows south from the nation’s heartland toward the Gulf of Mexico. Like the ancient Egyptian city for which it’s named, Memphis grew and prospered due to its proximity to the river, which has been a major commercial artery throughout the city’s history. With a population of 635,000, Memphis is the largest city in the state of Tennessee, and the principal transportation and commercial hub for western Tennessee, eastern Arkansas and northern Mississippi. But Memphis is much more than a transportation hub. In fact, most Americans know the city best for its barbecue and musical heritage. For most of his professional life, Elvis Presley made Memphis his home, and his Memphis estate at Graceland remains one of the most-visited homes in America decades after the King’s death. The histories of Memphis and the blues, a uniquely American musical genre, are closely intertwined, and multiple blues clubs line world-famous Beale Street, which sits at the heart of the city’s nightlife scene. For barbecue fans – particularly those who love baby back ribs and pulled pork – Memphis is a mecca. Its unique combination of dry rubs and spicy sauces produces barbecued pork that is truly unforgettable. Although many of the city’s 10 million annual visitors come for the food and music, others consider a visit to Memphis a sacred pilgrimage of sorts. For it was in Memphis that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. made his last plea for equal rights for African Americans in 1968. The Lorraine Motel, site of Dr. King’s assassination, was transformed into the National Civil Rights Museum, one of Memphis’s most popular attractions.

AOL Travel’s Memphis Guide

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