Category Archives: Alabama

The Coolest Day Trips You Can Take from Birmingham, Alabama (Miles Away)

Posted on 2015-07-23 by tikichris

All the places listed here are within roughly four hours (most a lot closer) to Birmingham. They’re all in Alabama too. However, there’s so much to see and do in and around Birmingham that this list is hardly exhaustive. Get excited about Alabama, and keep in mind that this is just the tip of the iceberg! Continue reading →

Posted in Alabama, CheapOair, Miles Away, Travel | Tagged Alabama, birmingham, cheapoair, Miles Away, Travel | Leave a comment

Trampolines, African Villages, & Vulcan: Your Guide to Birmingham’s Quirkiest Attractions (Miles Away)

Posted on 2015-07-22 by tikichris

Going down to Birmingham and hoping to get off the beaten track to discover some of the quirkier sights in Alabama’s biggest town? You’re in luck! In addition to an impressive range of popular museums, parks, restaurants, and attractions, there’s something for everybody in Birmingham – no matter how obscure or off-kilter your sightseeing proclivities might be. Continue reading →

Posted in Alabama, CheapOair, Miles Away, Travel | Tagged Alabama, birmingham, cheapoair, Miles Away, Travel | Leave a comment

Best Hotels – 2014

Posted on 2014-12-19 by tikichris

From the inner core of downtown DC to a sparsely settled archipelago at the junction of the North Atlantic and the Norwegian Sea – with loads of scenery and bon vivant adventures along the way – I stayed in some fantastic hotels this year. Continue reading →

Posted in Alabama, Best of 2014, Best of the Best, Faroe Islands, Hotels, Luxury, Portugal | Tagged 1804 Inn, Alabama, Albernoa, alentejo, Barboursville, battle house, Battle House Renaissance Mobile Hotel and Spa, Best of 2014, Best of the Best, douro valley, faroe islands, florence, Herdade da Malhadinha Nova, Hotel Foroyar, Hotel Koster, hotels, koster islands, luxury, Marriott Shoals Hotel & Spa, mobile, Muscle Shoals, North Royal Street, Peso da Régua, portugal, Quinta do Vallado, Quinta Nova, Quinta Novo de Nossa Senhora do Carmo, scandinavia, sweden, The Hay-Adams, torshavn, Travel, Vilarinho dos Freires, virginia, Washington DC, west sweden | 1 Comment

Best Bars (Everywhere Else) – 2014

Posted on 2014-12-17 by tikichris

A blogger walks into a bar … and has an amazing time! No joke! Here’s a quick write up of some excellent places to have a drink in a handful of awesome destinations I had the pleasure of visiting this year. Continue reading →

Posted in Alabama, Beer, Best of 2014, Best of the Best, Drink, Food, Greece, Hotels, Louisiana, Luxury, Music, Restaurants, Spain, Travel | Tagged 10560, 16th Street, 70116, 70130, Alabama, athens, athens greece, bar, Best of 2014, Best of the Best, Carousel Bar & Lounge, Edwin's French Wine Bar and Restaurant, florence, french quarter, frenchmen street, greece, Hay-Adams, Hotel Monteleone, hotels, Kalamiotou, louisiana, luxury, Madrid, Marriott Shoals Hotel & Spa, Muscle Shoals, music, new orleans, nola, Off the Record, Royal Street, spain, Swampers Bar and Grill, tapas, The Dude Bar, The Spotted Cat, Washington DC | 1 Comment

Tops Sights and Sounds Around Muscle Shoals, Alabama (OneTravel)

Posted on 2014-04-06 by tikichris

Nestled along the banks of the Tennessee River, the area of Muscle Shoals in northwest Alabama is a nature lover’s dream. It’s a music lover’s dream too, where a small handful of recording studios have been responsible for some of … Continue reading →

Posted in Alabama, Design, Music, OneTravel, Shopping, Travel | Tagged 20th century design, Alabama, Alabama Music Hall of Fame, ARCHITECTURE, aretha franklin, birthplace of helen keller, colbert county, Deep South, design, do right woman do right man, Duane Allman, Etta James, fame studios, florence, florence alabama, frank lloyd wright, helen keller, ivy green, live music, Lynyrd Skynyrd, mid century modern, Muscle Shoals, muscle shoals rhythm section, muscle shoals sound studio, music, north alabama, northwest alabama, paul simon, Percy Sledge, recording studio, Rock 'n' Roll, rolling stones, rosenbaum house, sheffield alabama, shoals, soul music, sticky fingers, tennessee river, the shoals, Travel, travel blog, tuscumbia, tuscumbia county, Wilson Picket | Leave a comment

Dixie Detours: Laissez les Bon Temps Rouler!

Posted on 2014-03-04 by tikichris

Happy Mardi Gras! I hope you’ve enjoyed reading my Dixie Detours miniseries featuring the highlights from my recent trip to Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, Louisiana and Florida along with suggestions for planning your own sojourn to the Deep South. Continue reading →

Posted in Alabama, Art, Coffee, Design, Dixie Detours, Drink, Florida, Food, Georgia, Hotels, Music, Restaurants, road trip, Shopping, Tennessee, Travel, Wine | Tagged Alabama, athens, Deep South, Dixie Detours, florida, georgia, louisiana, MIAMI, Muscle Shoals, road trip, TENNESSEE, Travel | Leave a comment

Dixie Detours: Sweet Shoals Music

Posted on 2014-03-03 by tikichris

Before our visit to the Muscle Shoals area of Alabama, I never would have imagined the music of Aretha Franklin could resonate even more with me than it already did. Goosebumps on top of goosebumps – how’s that gonna happen? But there I was standing in Studio A of Fame Studios in humble little Florence, Alabama where the mighty diva recorded such classics as Do Right Woman, Do Right Man, and something clicked in a deep and soulful sort of way. In the few days since Kemey and I checked out the Shoals, listening to Aretha’s songs has been coupled with an even deeper and more satisfying feeling than before. Continue reading →

Posted in Alabama, Beer, Design, Dixie Detours, Drink, Food, Hotels, Music, Restaurants, road trip, Travel | Tagged 20th century design, Alabama, Alabama Music Hall of Fame, ARCHITECTURE, aretha franklin, back forty, back forty beer, back forty beer company, bar, beer, birthplace of helen keller, Bob Seger, catfish, Cher, colbert county, CRAFT BEER, Deep South, design, Dixie Detours, do right woman do right man, Drink, Duane Allman, Etta James, fame studios, florence, florence alabama, frank lloyd wright, garden gate cafe, hank williams, helen keller, hotel, ivy green, kodachrome, live music, Lynyrd Skynyrd, marriott, marriott shoals, Marriott Shoals Hotel & Spa, mid century modern, Muscle Shoals, muscle shoals rhythm section, muscle shoals sound studio, music, naked pig, naked pig pale ale, north alabama, northwest alabama, OH! Bryan's Family Steakhouse, Oh!Bryan's, Otis Redding, pale ale, paul simon, Percy Sledge, recording studio, restaurants, road trip, Rock 'n' Roll, rolling stones, rosenbaum house, sheffield alabama, shoals, soul music, spa, steakhouse, sticky fingers, still crazy after all these years, sun ra, Swampers, swampers bar, Swampers Bar & Grill, tennessee river, the Osmonds, the shoals, TOM JONES, Travel, travel blog, tuscumbia, tuscumbia county, Wilson Picket | 5 Comments

Dixie Detours: Overnight Luxury in Mobile, Alabama

Posted on 2014-02-26 by tikichris

The rather underrated and often overlooked Gulf Coast town of Mobile proved to be an excellent choice and our time there an all too short and actually quite luxurious stay. Continue reading →

Posted in Alabama, Beer, Dixie Detours, Drink, Food, Hotels, Restaurants, road trip, Travel | Tagged Alabama, battle house, battle house hotel, Battle House Renaissance, Battle House Renaissance Mobile Hotel and Spa, beer, Conecuh sausage, CRAFT BEER, Dixie Detours, downtown mobile, Drink, Food, fried oysters, Good People Brewing Company, Good People Brewing Company Pale Ale, gulf coast, gulf of mexico, Historic Hotels of America, hotels, LODA, lower dauphine street, mardi gras, mardi gras in mobile, marriott, mobile, mobile alabama, mobile mardi gras, pale ale, restaurants, road trip, southern alabama, Travel, travel blog, Trellis Room, Wintzell's, Wintzell's Oyster House | 2 Comments

Dixie Detours: Howdy Y’all

Posted on 2014-02-22 by tikichris

Hey everybody. Let me begin this post with an apology for the scant and at times fairly lame content I’ve been publishing over the past couple of weeks. I have been “away from my desk” and rambling round the Deep South of the United States on a Dixie Detours road trip. Continue reading →