Tour America's Music Cities with Amtrak

Image: PHOTO: The Preservation Hall Band marches through the streets of New Orleans' French Quarter. (photo by Monica Poling)
Image: PHOTO: The Preservation Hall Band marches through the streets of New Orleans' French Quarter. (photo by Monica Poling)
Kristina Rundquist
by Kristina Rundquist
Last updated: 6:00 AM ET, Thu August 10, 2017

She's a little bit country. You're a little bit rock and roll. And the bad news is you're trying to plan a vacation you'll both enjoy. Fear not, there's good news thanks to Amtrak's Jazz Blues and Rock'n'Roll vacation package.

This 9-day itinerary is sure to please even the most discriminating music lover as it takes passengers through America's great music cities, traveling from Chicago to Memphis to New Orleans.

Chicago, Chicago

The adventure begins in Chicago with a hop-on hop-off sightseeing tour that covers the city's major attractions. Spend the day at leisure taking in the city in your own time.

Save some time (and money) for shopping along the Magnificent Mile. The sightseeing continues on the second day when you can take in such highlights as the Skydeck Chicago, Millennium Pier, 350 Chicago and the Navy Pier. Dinner on the second night is included.

Begin the third day onboard Amtrak's City of New Orleans as you head to Memphis.

Walking in Memphis

Walk in the footsteps of such blues and soul greats as B.B. King and Otis Redding as you stroll along Beale Street. Have cocktails at the Peabody Hotel later that day and watch as their famous ducks parade to the lobby fountain at 5 p.m. (Ducks also parade at 11 a.m.)

The tour of Memphis' music history continues with an outing to some of the city's most iconic sites, including Beale Street, Sun Studio and Elvis' Graceland. Visitors will get up close and personal with The King as they tour his home, before visiting the Meditation Garden where he and his parents were all laid to rest.

Other sites along the tour include a stop by the Mighty Mississippi and later that evening, dinner at a popular Memphis restaurant.

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Continue on to New Orleans on the sixth day of the journey, where you'll have the evening free to relax over a café du lait or even a Sazerac at the famed Carousel Bar in Hotel Monteleone.

The day starts with a jazz brunch at the charming Court of Two Sisters before setting off for a city tour. Stroll through the French Quarter and make a visit to the famed Jackson Square, where depending on the day you might have your fortune told or buy a piece of art from the many vendors selling along the park's wrought-iron fence.

From the Quarter, you'll head over to some of the city's most historic cemeteries to tour their above-ground mausoleums. From there it's off to Bayou St. John, where you'll learn about the city's history of voodoo and pirates.

For the last full day of the trip, you'll sail down the Mississippi, taking in views of the French Quarter and Port of New Orleans from the deck of a paddlewheel boat. The cruise ends at the site of the 1815 Battle of New Orleans.

Spend the last night of the trip taking in some of the city's best music venues along Frenchman's Street-or, if you're lucky, in front row seats at Preservation Hall.


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Kristina Rundquist

Kristina Rundquist

Kristina Rundquist is an Atlanta-based freelance writer with more than 14 years experience working within the travel industry.

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