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Savannah, GA
Weekend Vacation Getaway

Destination Overview

Just two hours south of Charleston, Savannah seems years apart from its neighbor to the north in their leap into the 21st century. While Charleston has charged into the new millennium, Savannah seems content to walk there, at its own pace. A stroll down its main street reveals store signs that haven’t changed in 50 years. And the locals are quite happy with the state of things. Nevertheless, Savannah’s quiet dignity and welcoming hospitality make it an ideal choice for a weekend getaway.

Georgia’s “first city” may just be one of the country’s most beautiful towns. Founded in 1733 by James Oglethorpe on the banks of the Savannah River, the city was planned with a series of orderly grids around 24 squares. The squares today are delightful parks with benches, fountains, flowers and stately oaks dripping with Spanish moss. The parks are surrounded by magnificent, restored mansions reflecting a variety of architectural styles from the 18th and 19th centuries. There’s even a section in one of the parks’ for the blind to experience the wonderful scents of the flowers.

Savannah is a true southern city that has retained its old charm despite the world around it. The pace is leisurely, the people hospitable and friendly. Sitting on a bench in one of the parks, inhaling the aromas of the flowers around you and watching the horse drawn carriages slide by is one of life’s real pleasures. It just feels right to be here.

The locals will tell you that Savannah is the most haunted city in America. Ghost Tour director Christine Troxell claims 80% of the homes in the historic district are haunted. In fact, one local restaurant is haunted by a “ladies man” who supposedly pinches women’s behinds!

The town got a boost in 1994 from the publication of the book and the subsequent movie, “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil,” the tale of a local sex and murder case involving voodoo, drag queens and assorted other characters. The notorious “Lady Chablis” still entertains a few times a year in a local club.

Savannah’s St. Patrick’s Day celebration is legendary and rivals other Irish enclaves like New York, Boston and Chicago. Unlike those cities, however, the weather cooperates with temperatures in the 70’s and sometimes the 80’s. Perfect for outdoor partying. And, the party is wild, fueled by Savannah’s open container law allowing people to walk around with drinks in their hands. It’s a day everyone should try once.

Click picture to enlargeSavannah HomeSix Pence PubPlanter's Tavern

Making Your Travel Plans

To make your travel plans you can go to our Weekend Planner for all the contact information.

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Click picture to enlargeSing along at Planter'sTapasVenus Di Milo

Getting There

Savannah is accessible by air from anywhere in the country. See Flights to Savannah.It is a 2 hour drive from Jacksonville, Florida, 4 hours from Charlotte, North Carolina, 4 hours from Atlanta, Georgia and 2 hours from Charleston, South Carolina.

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When To Go

Summers are hot, humid and buggy. The St. Patrick’s Day celebration starts the season that winds down in June and restarts in September and goes until November.

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Getting Around

A car is unnecessary in Savannah. Most activities are within walking distance, pedicabs (bicycle cabs) are everywhere and regular taxis are also available. Best way to get around though is by bicycle.

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Accommodations/Dining

There’s no longer any need to roll the dice on where you stay or to settle and stay at a “safe” national chain. BestWeekends Travel Advance Team takes the worry out of where to stay when you go away.

 

The BestWeekends Travel Advance Team does all the work for you. We research each destination by scouring the guidebooks, articles, blogs, reviews and rating systems. Then we visit the destination and stay in the properties. Finally, we talk to the locals to be sure we didn’t miss anything. The result: we post on our site only the best of what we experienced. You can book with confidence knowing that “we’ve been there” and that no one pays us for a review. Inside see our Featured Properties.

When you are away on vacation, there’s few things worse than a bad dining experience. We agree, so we follow the same process for identifying restaurants as we do for accommodations, but with an extra step. We believe that the best dining experience has the strongest combination of food, ambiance and service. Good food is a given in our recommendations, but the best food in the world just doesn’t taste as good in a poor setting and the best setting with poor service just doesn’t cut it for us. The BestWeekends Travel Advance Team only presents those restaurants that meet our strict criteria. Mangia….enjoy! See our Favorite Restaurants.

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Things To Do

Savannah to me is a place to be lazy. Casual walks, reading in a park, a carriage ride, perhaps a picnic by a fountain. The pace is slow and it just seems to be a right to relax and recharge. When the spirit moves you (they do say the town is haunted) there is nearby golf, beaches on Tybee Island, tennis in Forsyth Park, the oldest art museum in the South, biking, fishing, historical sites, shops and restaurants on the River Walk and City Market and tours of all the points of interest. Or, you can just sit in a park and watch the world go by…… Here's the full list of Things To Do.

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BestWeekend' s Exclusives

After selecting our favorite places to stay and eat, we sat down and made a list of all the other things that would save you time and make your stay more enjoyable. The result is “Special Things” and “Good To Know, Good To Go,” BestWeekends Exclusives.

Special Things identifies unique, fun and romantic things for couples to do together in a particular destination. Good to Know is our list of the “best” of everything from breakfast to burgers, cocktails to after dinner fun and much, much more. Why stumble around trying to find the “best”….we’ve already done it for you!

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Don't Miss

  • Breakfast at Clary's
  • The River Walk
  • Forsyth Park
  • City Market
  • Mercer House
  • Lady Chablis
  • Inn at Palmetto Bluff
  • Dinner at Elizabeth on 37th.
See my Photo Scrapbook.

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News and Resources

Savannah Now is the on-line version of the local newspaper, the savannah Morning News. The Savannah Tribune is the other paper. Connect Savannah is the free weekly alternative arts and entertainment newspaper. Savannah Magazine is the local magazine guide.

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