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Music Roots Road Trip
Set off on a journey where every day brings you to a place that shaped the soundtrack of the modern world.
This road trip links Nashville, Memphis, and New Orleans with a string of legendary stops in between, creating a rewarding loop through the Deep South’s most influential music hubs. You’ll drive the Natchez Trace Parkway from Nashville to Tupelo, one of America’s most scenic and historic routes, and weave through towns where soul, blues, rock, and country were born. It is a smooth pace with two- and three-night stays, one-night hops to keep the rhythm, and curated stops that tell the story of American music.
Itinerary overview
Kick things off in Nashville, where your Nashville Attraction Pass gives you an easy head start: ...
Head southwest into Alabama on a relaxed three-and-a-half-hour drive before arriving in Florence ...
Follow the Natchez Trace Parkway south on a smooth, scenic drive where forest, meadows, and histo...
Roll into Memphis, a city where history, soul, and barbecue all matter. The drive from Oxford tak...
Head south into the Mississippi Delta, roughly a two-hour drive from Memphis, and base yourself i...
Head south on a relaxed three-hour drive to Natchez, where the Mississippi River sweeps into a wi...
Arrive in New Orleans and let the final chapter crank the volume. Wander the French Quarter, grab...
If you want to keep the journey rolling, fly north to Chicago for three nights of skyline views, ...
Nashville
Kick things off in Nashville, where your Nashville Attraction Pass gives you an easy head start: hop on the trolley tour, browse the Country Music Hall of Fame, explore the Johnny Cash Museum, try a moonshine tasting, and choose between behind-the-scenes access at RCA Studio B or Hatch Show Print. From there, follow your ears. Broadway’s honky tonks run live music all day, the Grand Ole Opry brings out the big names, and the Ryman Auditorium lets you stand where legends have stood. For intimate songwriter sessions, the Bluebird Café is iconic, though the Listening Room Café is often easier to get into. Add a plate of hot chicken and a rooftop view, and Nashville sets the bar high from the start.
Step out the front door and you’re in the thick of it: neon lights, live music drifting down the street, and that unmistakable Nashville buzz.
Kimpton Aertson Hotel is a design-led base that puts the city’s music, food, and nightlife within easy reach.
The essence of Nashville’s personality is brought into the folds of Omni Nashville thanks to thoughtful touches and design quirks in this large, perfectly located hotel.
A touch south of Nashville’s famous Broadway, the SoBro neighbourhood is home to live music venues, restaurants, and bars. At the heart of it is the Cambria, a hotel that h...
Florence
Head southwest into Alabama on a relaxed three-and-a-half-hour drive before arriving in Florence and Muscle Shoals, two towns whose modest looks hide a seismic musical legacy. Step inside FAME Studios or Muscle Shoals Sound Studio and you’ll be standing where Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, and The Rolling Stones shaped tracks that still echo through modern music. The area adds even more context with the Alabama Music Hall of Fame and the birthplace of WC Handy, widely regarded as the Father of the Blues. You can round out the day in characterful local spots like Swampers Bar or the unforgettable Rattlesnake Saloon.
In downtown Florence, the cultural heart of the wider Muscle Shoals story, GunRunner Hotel is a ten-suite boutique stay that puts you right where music history, local life,...
Tupelo and Oxford
Follow the Natchez Trace Parkway south on a smooth, scenic drive where forest, meadows, and historic stops make it tempting to pause every few miles. Your first major stop is Tupelo, the town where Elvis was born. The Birthplace Museum and Park let you step inside his tiny childhood home, explore the small museum, and visit the chapel and memorial garden that tell his early story with real heart. Pop into Tupelo Hardware Co., where Elvis famously bought his first guitar, and look out for the town’s colourful murals celebrating its musical roots. From here, it’s about an hour to Oxford, a friendly university town with a lively square, great food spots, and an easygoing buzz.
Hotel Tupelo has a fresh, considered style that might well exceed your expectations for a town of its size.
Graduate Oxford feels fun and welcoming from the moment you walk in, with a design that nods to Ole Miss without taking itself too seriously.
Memphis
Roll into Memphis, a city where history, soul, and barbecue all matter. The drive from Oxford takes about an hour and a half, so you’ll be right in the action before lunchtime. Your VIP Graceland tour is included, and it’s absolutely a must-do. You’ll walk through Elvis’s home, check out his car collection, and see those iconic jumpsuits up close. Add Sun Studio for the place where rock and roll first found its feet, and the Stax Museum for the unmistakable punch of Southern soul. Beale Street brings neon blues clubs and late-night buzz, while the National Civil Rights Museum gives you essential context and a moment to pause. And of course, you’ll need to order some Memphis barbecue.
This ain’t no Heartbreak Hotel – The Guest House at Graceland embodies southern charm and is woven with an Elvis theme throughout. What’s more, it’s right next door to the Gra
A clean and contemporary hotel with easy access to Memphis’ metropolis of attractions.
Greenwood
Head south into the Mississippi Delta, roughly a two-hour drive from Memphis, and base yourself in Greenwood, well placed for exploring the region that shaped the blues. Clarksdale is under an hour away and home to the Delta Blues Museum, a brilliant starting point for understanding how early musicians turned local stories into a global sound. Just outside town, you’ll find the so-called Blues Crossroads, long linked to the Robert Johnson legend, and Ground Zero Blues Club, a famously characterful venue associated with Morgan Freeman, where live sets often light up the evenings. Cleveland offers the modern, hands-on Grammy Museum, while nearby Dockery Plantation, once home to Charley Patton and other early pioneers, is often described as the birthplace of the blues. Indianola completes the picture with the BB King Museum and memorial site, a moving tribute to the man who carried Delta blues to the world stage. The region may look quiet and weathered, but that rawness is part of its pull. This is the landscape where American music found its roots, and being here feels like tuning in to the source.
Small town pace, wide skies, and a main street define Greenwood, with The Alluvian giving it a fresh, confident edge.
Natchez
Head south on a relaxed three-hour drive to Natchez, where the Mississippi River sweeps into a wide, dramatic curve and everything moves at a gentler pace. Natchez isn’t a major music centre in itself, but river travellers, blues players, and travelling bands once passed through on their way between the Delta and New Orleans, and that old river-road connection still lingers in the air. The town is known for its grand historic homes, and Longwood is one of the most fascinating if you want a glimpse into the era that shaped so many Southern stories and song traditions. Down by the river, Under-the-Hill Saloon brings a more rugged edge and often hosts local musicians in a setting that feels unchanged in decades. If you’re here in October, the city’s balloon festival adds colour and a festival buzz.
New Orleans
Arrive in New Orleans and let the final chapter crank the volume. Wander the French Quarter, grab hot beignets at Café du Monde, and slip into jazz bars. Book a set at Preservation Hall, head to Frenchmen Street for the Spotted Cat, tour the Sazerac House for a free and interactive cocktail masterclass, and rise above it all at VUE Orleans for skyline views. Between soulful dining, river breezes, and night after night of live music, your three days here will fly. You’ll leave with playlists full of discoveries, a camera full of stories, and the unbeatable sense that you’ve driven the true backbone of American music.
A storied hotel whose lobby is said to mark the beginning of the New Orleans’ famous French Quarter, few American hotels can claim such a rich history as the Hotel Monteleone.
Grandeur and elegance in the heart of New Orleans, Omni Royal Orleans is the perfect retreat for a classic luxury city break.
Artsy-yet-unpretentious, The Old No.77 is close enough to the French Quarter action to get involved but is a pleasingly quieter spot to retreat to once you’ve had your fill.
A red-brick warehouse in New Orleans’ Arts District has been reimagined as a contemporary and convenient hotel without losing a sense of the building’s industrial beginnings.
US city stays
If you want to keep the journey rolling, fly north to Chicago for three nights of skyline views, lakefront breezes, and a music scene that hits just as hard as the food. Explore the city’s electric blues heritage in clubs that feel timeless, wander Millennium Park, and admire the architecture that shaped modern city design. Chicago adds a fresh urban edge to your Deep South soundtrack. And if you have your eye on somewhere else, this itinerary is easy to tailor. Add New York for big city buzz, Miami for sun-soaked glamour, Las Vegas for all-out spectacle, or spend longer diving deeper into the South’s musical roots.
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