Tracks of the Deep South

We fly from London Heathrow to Atlanta and transfer to our hotel, the Courtyard Atlanta Airport South for an overnight stay. On Day 2, entrance is included to the Martin Luther King Center and Church, which pays homage to the man himself as well as the civil rights movement he was a driving force of. Our tour continues to Margaret Mitchell House, where the author wrote her Pulitzer Prize winning novel 'Gone with the Wind'. Following free time for lunch, we transfer to Chattanooga, where we board the Lookout Mountain Incline Railway, taking us on a journey on the world's steepest railway track, overlooking the city below and the Tennessee River. Later, we transfer by coach to our hotel.

Our coach takes us through Tennessee to Lynchburg, capital of Moore County. Moore County has been 'dry' since the days of prohibition, which makes its main attraction all the more extraordinary - it is the home of the Jack Daniel's Distillery. After a tour and tasting at the distillery, we continue to Nashville, staying for 3 nights at the Clarion Downtown. This evening, we visit the legendary Grand Ole Opry. Founded as a radio station in 1925, today this famous music venue still hosts the same regular broadcast, now with a popular extended format, in addition to regular stage shows. We enjoy live music performed on 'country's most famous stage', a wonderful introduction to Nashville's music heritage.

Since the 1940s, Nashville has been synonymous with country music thanks to its collection of recording studios on 'Music Row' and the Ryman Auditorium, home of the Grand Ole Opry for 3 decades. A morning guided tour introduces us to the sights, before we visit the Country Music Hall of Fame, the world's largest music museum. Day 5 is free to explore Nashville.

Our journey through Tennessee continues to Memphis, pausing en-route at Jackson where there's free time for lunch and a spot of sightseeing. We then stop at the Tennessee Delta Heritage Center in Brownsville, a series of museums dedicated to the history of the south; from its musical traditions to its infamous history of slave labour in the cotton fields. We complete our journey to Memphis later this afternoon, checking into our hotel.

We begin our day by paying a visit to the fantastic Graceland, Elvis' 14 acre mansion, and view his preserved living quarters, as well as his private aircraft and car collections. This afternoon introduces us to the sights of Memphis' extraordinary musical history. We visit Sun Studio, which lays claim to being the birthplace of rock 'n' roll and boasted a roster that featured Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash.

Boarding Amtrak's City of New Orleans service this morning in Memphis, we head from Tennessee, through Mississippi to Louisiana. It is claimed that the blues spread along this route by rail. The pretty, floral towns of Brookhaven and McComb lead into the exotic Cajun swamps of the Louisiana Bayou, and we take the train as far as Hammond. From here, we transfer by coach to the Oak Alley Plantation for a guided tour. This restored house stands as testament to both the grand lives of Louisiana land owners and the suffering of those enslaved here, revealing the history of the house, sometimes referred to as the 'Grande Dame of the Great River Road', along with its grounds. Later, we continue by coach to New Orleans, where we stay at the Sheraton Hotel, New Orleans.

Your entire day is free to soak up the splendour of New Orleans. Roaring with life, the 'Big Easy' is known as the south's party city thanks to Mardi Gras, yet year-round there is a sense of spirited adventure and playfulness here. A wander through the colourful streets will offer an excellent introduction to the eclectic architecture stretching back centuries.

We leave New Orleans behind today and board our Amtrak service to Houston. We begin Day 12 in Houston with a guided tour of the city's main landmarks, including Allen's Landing and NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center.

We transfer to the airport today for our flight home, arriving into London Heathrow on Day 14.