Civil Rights Circle Tour - 6-day tour beginning and ending in Atlanta
The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and the American Civil Rights Struggles that shaped the world are highlighted in this road trip around Alabama and Georgia.
Day 1
Fly into Atlanta, pick up your car and drive to Alabama's Capital City, Montgomery (2 hours 20 minutes, 150 miles). On your way you should stop to see the Tuskegee Airmen Historic site and learn about the brave African Americans that broke the race barrier during WWII. The US National Park Service operates the museum in Tuskegee. Later continue to Montgomery to enjoy The Alley entertainment area of downtown Montgomery which includes a baseball field, basement jazz club, two performance facilities, an outdoor riverfront amphitheatre, several restaurants, bars, a New Orleans-style alley and a riverboat cruise. The Alley connects Commerce Street and Tallapoosa Street in downtown Montgomery and is adjacent to, or just one block away from, four hotels.
Day 2
Montgomery is a true southern city. It is not only the capital city of Alabama, but also a place where the southern flavour runs as deep as the nearby Alabama River. Both Civil Rights and Civil War history was made in this capital city of Alabama. It was in Montgomery that King came to preach and ended up starting the Civil Rights Movement in America. Tour the Rosa Parks Museum, named after the woman who refused to move to the back of a city bus. With the help of Dr. King and other civil rights activists, a yearlong boycott started the Civil Rights Struggle in America. Stand in the pulpit of the only church where Dr. King preached as a full time minister. See the home where he and his family lived and tour the Civil Rights Memorial. Also downtown is the Alabama State Capitol where protesters marched to demand the right to vote. The Capitol has been restored to its Civil War era beauty and sits across from the First White House of the Confederacy.
Walking along the downtown streets of Montgomery you will pass the fountain where slaves were auctioned to plantation owners. Turning the corner, the buildings still have that old southern charm but now house the museum dedicated to America's first country music superstar, Hank Williams. At the end of the street are the Alabama river and the Harriott II, a riverboat named after the first steamship to make the trip up the Alabama River to Montgomery.
Day 3
Travel to Selma (1 hour, 50 miles) where American history was made during the Selma-to-Montgomery Civil Rights March. There are two US Park Service museums on this route, one at the midpoint and another in Selma. Tour the Museums dedicated to the march before travelling to Birmingham to overnight (2 hours, 100 miles).
Day 4
You are now in Birmingham, Alabama's largest city, with a population of nearly 1 million. In the historic 4th Avenue area of downtown sits the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, the 16th Street Baptist Church, where four children died in a bombing, and the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame. Look to the mountain ridge at the edge of downtown Birmingham. Alabama Jazz Inductee Ona Watson operates his own club, Ona's Music Room while the 5 Points South is the dining centre of the town at one end of the 20th Street while a new entertainment district sits near the other end of this main downtown street. Other sites include Barber Motorsports Museum with the world's largest collection of motorcycles and the oldest baseball park in America, Rickwood Field. Our Birmingham latest news page details events taking place in 2013 and beyond commemorating pivotal events in the civil rights movement.
Day 5
Travel to Atlanta (2 hours 20 minutes, 150 miles). You are now in Atlanta, Georgia, one of the top ten largest cities in America. Atlanta is the home of Coca Cocla, Martin Luther King and the largest Aquarium in the world. See as much of the World of Coke, the Georgia Aquarium and the King Centre as possible before your flight leave the following day.
For more information on any of these places view the online Deep South USA Guide or complete an enquiry form to request further information.
