Complete South USA

New Orleans sprawls along the bends of the Mississippi River, in the humid heart of Louisiana, a city unlike any other in the United States, a melting pot of French, Spanish, African and Creole cultures that gave birth to jazz and an unmistakable identity. Its most famous core is the French Quarter, the oldest district, where wrought-iron balconies overlook cobbled streets and Jackson Square opens before St. Louis Cathedral. From Bourbon Street, with its nightspots and music spilling from every doorway, you reach the more refined Royal Street, lined with art galleries and antique shops. A few steps away, the French Market blends stalls, flavours and tradition, while the Café du Monde serves its sugar-dusted beignets alongside chicory coffee. Beyond the centre, the Garden District reveals sumptuous antebellum mansions set among centuries-old oaks, easily explored aboard the historic St. Charles Avenue streetcar. The city lives for music: the clubs of Frenchmen Street keep live jazz alive, the legacy of Louis Armstrong, and every February Mardi Gras turns the streets into a riot of floats, masks and parades. The local cuisine is an experience in itself: gumbo, jambalaya, po' boys and crawfish tell the story of Creole and Cajun fusion in every dish. Along the banks of the Mississippi, paddlewheel steamboats evoke the golden age of river travel, while nearby the historic plantations and the mysterious swampy bayous, explored by boat among cypress trees and alligators, offer unforgettable day trips. With its syncopated rhythms, spiced aromas and a soul at once festive and melancholic, New Orleans enchants all who pass through.

Baton Rouge rises on the banks of the Mississippi as the capital of Louisiana, a city of hybrid character where French and Creole heritage blends with the energy of a university capital. Its institutional heart is dominated by the neo-Gothic Old State Capitol overlooking the river and the modern New State Capitol, the tallest state house in the United States. The riverfront invites strolls past museums and paddle steamers, while the Spanish Town district and the Louisiana State University campus enliven the city. Cuisine is the absolute star: gumbo, jambalaya and crawfish tell the Cajun and Creole story, best enjoyed in local restaurants to the rhythm of blues and zydeco. A short distance away stretch the historic plantations along River Road, an almost obligatory stop for those heading up to New Orleans. Natchez looks out from a high bluff overlooking the Mississippi River, a Deep South town renowned for its extraordinary heritage of antebellum mansions. Along its shaded streets survive splendid pre-war residences: Stanton Hall, a sumptuous neoclassical villa framed by magnolias, and Longwood, an octagonal home left unfinished when the Civil War broke out and today a haunting witness to an interrupted age. At the foot of the bluff, along the river, stretches the old quarter of Natchez Under-the-Hill, once a lively hub of boatmen and traders and now dotted with bars and restaurants facing the water. From here begins the historic Natchez Trace Parkway, a scenic route winding through woods and ancient Native American trails all the way to Tennessee. Between Creole cuisine, sunsets over the Mississippi and an air of bygone days, Natchez tells the romantic, complex story of the Old South.

Vicksburg commands the Mississippi River from its bluffs in the state of the same name, guarding one of the most decisive chapters in American history. The city is inextricably linked to the siege of 1863, a pivotal episode of the Civil War, today commemorated in the vast Vicksburg National Military Park, where monuments, cannons and trails retrace the lines of the two armies and visitors can tour the ironclad USS Cairo, recovered from the river's waters. The historic centre, with its antebellum buildings and houses overlooking the Mississippi, preserves the atmosphere of the Deep South, with shady verandas and warm hospitality. Along the river one feels the culture of the blues and Southern cooking, made of generous dishes and bold flavours. Vicksburg reveals itself to those who love history, great rivers and the authentic soul of the American South. Indianola rests in the alluvial plain of the Mississippi Delta, a fertile, melancholy land that gave birth to the blues. Here stands the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center, dedicated to the famous musician born nearby, the beating heart of local musical memory. The cotton fields and small communities tell a deep story of toil and creativity. Clarksdale is regarded as the cradle of the Delta blues, set in the fertile cotton plains of north-western Mississippi. Here, according to legend, Robert Johnson met the devil at the famous "Crossroads," and today clubs such as Ground Zero and the Delta Blues Museum keep the musical tradition alive. The nights resound with guitars and harmonicas among old railway stations and juke joints. Memphis is the true capital of blues, soul and rock & roll music. Music lovers won't want to miss the many music history landmarks.

Nashville rises on the banks of the Cumberland River in the state of Tennessee, and has earned worldwide its nickname of "Music City": it is the undisputed capital of country music, but also a lively crossroads where history, Southern cuisine and an ever-buzzing cultural scene come together. Its beating heart is Lower Broadway, where the neon signs of the honky-tonks light up a street that never sleeps: guitar chords and live voices pour from the venues at every hour, in a succession of free stages that launched the careers of many artists. A short walk away stand the temples of musical tradition, from the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum to the famed Ryman Auditorium, dubbed "the mother church of country music", and the Grand Ole Opry, the longest-running live radio broadcast in America. Heading toward the civic centre you reach the Tennessee State Capitol, while amid the greenery of Centennial Park stands a striking surprise: the Parthenon, a full-scale replica of the Athenian temple that earned the city the label "Athens of the South". The neighbourhoods tell other Nashvilles: The Gulch, a former railway district now dotted with murals and trendy restaurants; Germantown, with its brick houses and most refined tables; East Nashville, bohemian and creative, a realm of coffee shops and independent boutiques. Food is a chapter of its own: hot chicken, spicy fiery fried chicken, is the city's emblem, served alongside barbecue, biscuits and the fine bourbon of Tennessee's distilleries. Between impromptu concerts, historic distilleries and the contagious energy of its streets, Nashville is lived to the rhythm of music, from dawn until deep into the night.

Atlanta rises among the wooded hills of Georgia, the dynamic capital of the New South and a symbol city of the civil rights movement. Here Martin Luther King Jr. lived and preached: his memorial, birthplace and the Ebenezer Baptist Church form an intense and moving trail. Downtown pulses around the Georgia Aquarium and the World of Coca-Cola, while the Midtown district hosts museums and the lush Piedmont Park. The BeltLine, a former railway turned green walkway, links lively neighbourhoods such as Old Fourth Ward and Inman Park, full of street art, breweries and markets. Southern cuisine reigns supreme, from fried chicken to soul food specialities. The economic and cultural heart of the Southeast, Atlanta welcomes visitors with energy, history and warmth.

Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama, founded in the 19th century as a steel hub and today known above all as a nerve centre of the civil rights movement. The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute and the historic Sixteenth Street Baptist Church recall the struggles of the 1960s. The statue of Vulcan, the largest cast-iron statue in the world, looks over the city from atop Red Mountain. Between industrial heritage, historical memory and a lively Southern food scene, Birmingham tells a crucial chapter of American history. Montgomery is the capital of Alabama, a city crucial in American history both as the first capital of the Confederacy and as a cradle of the civil rights movement. Here Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat in 1955 and Martin Luther King led the famous boycott. The Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, the Rosa Parks Museum and the moving National Memorial for Peace and Justice recount its memory. Between historic heritage, monuments and a deep civil legacy, Montgomery is a capital that holds fundamental chapters of the history of the United States.

Orange Beach is a refined seaside resort in the far south of Alabama, along the Gulf of Mexico coast, famed for its fine white-sand beaches and emerald waters that make it the flagship of the 'Alabama Gulf Coast'. A paradise for deep-sea fishing, nicknamed the 'Red Snapper Capital', it offers lively marinas, water sports and dolphin-watching cruises. Seafront resorts and coastal state parks round out the experience. Between white sands, crystalline sea and a holiday atmosphere, Orange Beach is the seaside pearl of Alabama.

Mobile is the oldest city in Alabama, founded by the French in 1702 and set on its namesake bay opening onto the Gulf of Mexico. It claims to have originated the oldest Mardi Gras celebration in the United States, still lived today with great passion. Its historic centre preserves elegant antebellum mansions shaded by oaks and azaleas, while the battleship USS Alabama is moored as a museum. Between French heritage, the atmosphere of the Deep South and festive traditions, Mobile is a gem on Alabama's Gulf coast.