Carolinas, Georgia & South Trips (Lonely Planet, 1st Edition) - Alex Leviton [30]
SLEEP
Carnegie
This upscale choice, 20 minutes from Bristol, can sell out two years in advance for race weekends. 423-979-6400; www.carnegiehotel.com; 1216 W. State of Franklin Rd, Johnson City, TN; r from $124
Embassy Suites
Walking distance from Lowe’s Motor Speedway, this new resort hotel is the best option for race fans in Concord. 704-455-8200; 5400 John Q Hammons Drive NW, Concord, NC; r $119-169;
Race Lodging
This Bristol-based service can hook you up with accommodations in private homes near tracks in Bristol and Talladega, sometimes within walking distance. 423-764-5454; www.racelodging.com; 637 Rose St, Bristol, TN; r from $125-250
Shores
A classier option on Daytona Beach’s endless drag, with a full-service spa and Italian marble bathrooms. It’s probably where Kenny Rogers would sleep. 386-767-7350; www.shoresresort.com; 2637 S Atlantic Ave, Daytona Beach, FL; r $139-339
USEFUL WEBSITES
www.nascar.com
www.rowdy.com
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LINK YOUR TRIP www.lonelyplanet.com/trip-planner
TRIP
4 Music City to Dixieland: A Musical Roots Run
36 Talladega & Cheaha National Forests
43 48 Hours in Atlanta
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Return to beginning of chapter
TRIP 7
Southern Gothic Literary Tour
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WHY GO Legendary Southern authors William Faulkner, Tennessee Williams and Harper Lee are among those who channeled regional drama (think obscene riches, crippling poverty, brutal racial oppression), garnished with the South’s signature sweltering nights and powerful storms, into its own literary genre.
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No wonder then that the South has produced some of America’s most glorious writers, novels and characters. William Faulkner, Tennessee Williams, Carson McCullers and Flannery O’Connor have roots in Southern soil, as do the unforgettable Vampire Lestat, the brave Atticus Fitch, and wily Huckleberry Finn and his friend Jim. The Great American novel was invented here, and the Southern Gothic genre flourished here. There have been countless bestsellers, Pulitzers and one Nobel Prize.
Of course, commercial and critical success did not necessarily bring inner peace to all the authors. But we won’t get into the details behind the drunken loneliness, suicides, bankruptcies, or one author’s curious leap from erotic, Gothic horror to an embrace of evangelical Christianity. Yes, these things happened, but our tour is a celebration of the people, places and histories that nurtured our heroes – both real and fiction – in their prime of life. We are here for inspiration, people, not judgment. So bring along a six-pack of Southern literature and drive to that place where truth and fiction collide.
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TIME
7 days
DISTANCE
1274 miles
BEST TIME TO GO
Mar – Jun
START
Savannah, GA
END
New Orleans, LA
ALSO GOOD FOR
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Our journey begins at Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, also known as Savannah, Georgia. This opulent, historic town is nestled on the Savannah River, 18 miles from the Atlantic. Lowcountry swamps and massive oaks heavy with Spanish moss surround its countless antebellum mansions and colonial relics. It’s a beautiful place, and you’re here because of one of the more recent books on our list. Midnight was written by John Berendt in 1994, and though it’s classified as non-fiction, it reads like a novel. Written in the Southern Gothic tone, this distinctively 1980s tale revolves around the murder of a local hustler, Danny Hansford, by respected art dealer, Jim Williams – an event that triggered four murder trials. We won’t ruin it for you but, yes, the hustler and the dealer were lovers. Berendt doesn’t shy away from painting an eccentric picture of Savannah society and you’ll love the Lady Chablis, a local drag queen. The book eventually became a major Hollywood film starring John Cusack