Two big factors that make it possible and enjoyable:
1. Use points for airfare, hotel, and rental car.
2. Purposefully do not schedule anything before 2pm. This way we can sleep in and leisurely eat breakfast/ get moving. We like the idea of exploring a new city but we also like to relax on vacation.
Basically, like with previous trips, I compiled a list of things I found on Pinterest and we picked what we wanted to do. I made a rough itinerary, and if we felt like doing it, we did. Saturday we planned to go hiking but instead we spent most of the day lounging around. It was awesome.
Here's what we did:
Wednesday night
Land in Memphis and check in to hotel. We had planned to go to Beale Street but were too tired.
Thursday
Graceland- THIS WAS SO COOL. We spent the whole afternoon there, and it was a lot of fun. We did the Elvis Experience + the planes. Lots and lots of walking so we were worn out and decided to have drinks on the patio of a nearby bar, where we talked to some locals about things to do around town. Made us glad that we were too tired to go to Beale Street because they said it was kinda shady and had a lot of crime.
Friday
Riverboat cruise- This was neat and mellow. Boats are not really my thing, but it was nice to take a little ride on the Mississippi. We learned lots of fun facts... and they sold booze.
Big River Crossing- I made a mistake and we missed the light show. Oops. But we did take a little walk on the bridge and it was neat to walk over the water at night. (A little hard to find, so it's helpful to put The Church of the River into the GPS, takes you right to it.)
Beale Street- We did check it out, and it's kind of like a mini Bourbon Street. Lots of bars and music and quirky shops. The street is closed off and you can walk around with alcohol. Yes, it's a little seedy; homeless folks asking for money and it smelled like urine in spots. I can see why the locals discouraged it, but what else do you expect from a street lined with bars?? You have to have realistic expectations, I think. We went at dusk and the vibe was festive and fun.
Saturday
Levitt Shell at Overton Park- They have this summer music series with free concerts. We took a sheet off the bed, spread it on the grass, and chilled to the tunes with snacks and purse wine. It was a pretty impressive show for a small free outdoor amphitheater. Good sound, video monitors, and solid lighting. The weather was gorgeous, too.
Sunday
Bass Pro Shop Pyramid- Yes, I'm serious. We spent several hours in here. This used to be a sports stadium and now it's a huge Bass Pro Shop. The decor is so over the top, plus they have this elevator that takes you to the top and you can look out across the city. There are 2 restaurants, several aquariums, a hotel, a gun range, a small museum, a gift shop where they make fudge, arcade games spread throughout the store... it's worth a stop.
Crosstown Concourse- I really wasn't sure what this was until we got there. Basically they took an old Sears warehouse and converted it into this multi-use space. There are private businesses, retail stores, restaurants, random cool art... all in this cool old building that was renovated but still has some of the original grungy features. Such a cool, funky place. We wandered around for an hour, checking out the different floors.
Stuff we didn't get to do:
Hiking Options:
TO Fuller state park
Shelby Forest
Herb Parsons Lake Trail
Overton Park
Other Neat Stuff:
-Memphis has a ton of those bikes and scooters that you can rent through an app. We didn't use them this trip, but have tried them before and they're a lot of fun.
-Broad Ave Arts District- We drove by on Sunday and hardly anything was open.
-Railgarten- Parking is limited, definitely a place to uber.
Other Notes:
-The speed limits are stupid. 55mph on the freeways, with cops every couple of miles. We are so used to driving 65+ that it was really difficult to stay at such a low speed.
-Parking is pretty good in this town. We didn't have issues finding it, and any parking that we paid for was pretty reasonable.
-Lots of free public activities and outdoor spaces. Overall, it was a cool town.
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