Gonna take a trip to the South this coming week.
Plan: Drive down from NYC to Annapolis and Washington DC the first day. Second day drive through Shenandoah Natl Park and then head south through Appalachia in NC, SC, and possibly Georgia.
On the way back: Drive to Savannah (possibly), Charleston, Outer Banks, Virginia Beach, etc
Are there any cities/towns/places that would be recommendable for a visit?
>>1136811
What do you like to do/see?
>>1136814
Both nature, as well as real Southern culture (food, architecture, hospitality, etc)
>>1136815
southern hospitality is a myth but i wilk show you around richmond if it interests you
>>1136815
Sorry you might be in for a bit of disappointment. Any "real" Southern culture has been gone for a long time and whatever sliver you might see remaining is probably very superficial.
>>1136913
I don't think Richmond is on the itinerary. The trip is geared more towards driving through mountains, state parks, and the beach cities of the south.
>>1136916
Well my expectations aren't high for hospitality, so it's fine.
Can anybody else shed light on this trip? What are some areas along the route that I shouldn't miss?
>>1136916
I commend you for driving through the Appalachians--such a beautiful region. Definitely take the Blue Ridge Parkway. Also, I recommend stopping in Asheville, if you weren't planning to already. I went to school there and it's a cool town with a lot of good restaurants and some cool art deco buildings. You could also try to visit Marshall, which is a tiny but scenic town about a half hour north from Asheville along the French Broad river. Good place to stop for lunch or a coffee and you could walk over the bridge to the park.
The beach cities as you call them (Savannah and Charleston, etc.) are nice, too. I live in Savannah and love walking and biking around town. There's a large historic district to check out and lots of beautiful old houses, city squares, parks, and cemeteries. It's a big drinking town, I'm told. It might be worth driving out to Tybee Island (20-30 minutes from downtown) for a swim, because it'll probably be really fucking hot, and the drive out there has some nice marshy scenery. Also, there's a free ferry downtown that goes through three stops on the river; good for 20 minutes of sightseeing.
Compared to Savannah, Charleston feels more upscale and refined to me. Plenty of good seafood options and even more cool buildings. A lot more beach options than Savannah.
I would just warn you that the highway driving down here (Atlanta to Savannah, Savannah north along 95) can be really boring with minimal scenery and mostly shitty towns along the way. You may find yourself wishing you were back in the mountains. But, if you've got music or podcasts or something you should be alright.
Can you expand your route?
>>1136811
I'd highly recommend walking around Annapolis for an afternoon. It's just such a quaint city. One of my favorites. You can do the Naval Academy too if you're into that.
>>1136815
>>1136913
Having grown up in GA and then traveled and lived elsewhere in the US, I can safely say that southern hospitality is not a myth. Yes, there are assholes and neutral folks everywhere, but there seems to be a greater percentage of hospitable people in the southeast.
Anyway, there's a great restaurant in Forsyth, GA called the Grits Cafe that you should check out if you're passing through on I-75. It's "southern casual fine dining" with delicious stuff. Kind of pricey ($25-30), but really good. I used to work there in college. Great BBQ in that area, too.
>>1136811
>Driving through coastal NC, but not on the Outer Banks.
There's your problem, right there.
