The Hostess City of the South

Savannah, Georgia is well-known for its historic charm and beauty and its residents for their hospitality and love of a party. The medium-sized city, which surprisingly is one of the largest shipping ports in the US, sits on the Savannah River and remains significantly connected to its colonial past. Modern Savannah relies heavily on tourism and the compact downtown offers plenty to do for a short visit. Being from the East Coast and having lived in Charlotte, NC, I was familiar with its reputation and it was on my short list of places for a quick visit. I spent a weekend there in March 2022 hosting the “bachelorette party” of one of my best friends – a party that was just the two of us and not too much actual partying!

The lobby of the Alida hotel

We flew into Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport which is well served by all of the major US airlines with daily non-stop flights to most of their hub cities as well as many weekly flights to other destinations. Many small cities around the US, especially on the East, are also served by several low-cost carriers such as Breeze and Frontier. It was a direct flight for me from DC so super easy to get into and out of. We arrived in the evening (after 7 pm) and there was no taxi service available from the airport downtown, which was a frustration, but we were able to get an Uber relatively easily (more on Ubers later). We had booked our lodging at The Alida, right on River Street and we were very happy with that choice. The Alida is part of the Marriott chain of hotels, the brand I consistently prefer, and can be booked using points or cash. It’s a charming blend of old and new, sitting on the edge of the Riverfront area full of revitalized industrial buildings, shops, restaurants, bars and a walk along the river itself. The hotel is named after Alida Harper Fowlkes, who helped save historic Savannah from “revitalization” in the early 20th century. Today, the Savannah Historic District is flourishing and is one of the largest preserved districts of its kind in the US. The hotel features several restaurants and bars, an open and airy lobby, fitness center and pool, and other amenities such as free cookies at the reception and a daily free happy hour. Since we’d arrived late and after a long day, we settled into Rhett, the main restaurant there for creative cocktails, local craft beer, and delicious coastal-inspired cuisine (including the large and very hearty shrimp and grits).

Gorgeous home (now an Inn) in the historic district

The following day was Saturday and our only full day in the city so we had a lot to pack in and boy did we! I had, optimistically, arranged two walking tours for us: one in the morning of the Bonaventure Cemetery and one in the afternoon of the historic downtown district. Why a cemetery tour? Savannah is known as one of the most haunted cities in America (after Salem, MA and New Orleans) due to its long history of war, slavery, disease, fires, and bloody murders. Its many cemeteries, oak filled and dripping with Spanish moss, are beautiful and often decaying memorials to those who’ve left us and a who’s who of prominent Savannahians. Bonaventure Cemetery, established in 1846, is one of the best known and largest at over 100 acres. Its well known as having been the original home of the Bird Girl statue that graced the cover of John Berendt’s bestseller Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. The novel (made into a fabulous movie) follows a scandalous murder trial in Savannah and remains one of the top New York Times bestsellers. A good read or watch before a visit to the city.

Broad avenues of the Bonaventure Cemetery

We’d booked our 10:00 am cemetery tour with Bonaventure Cemetery Tours (“Where Death & Beauty Meet”) which seemed logical enough. After a surprisingly good avocado toast breakfast back at Rhett in the hotel, we learned an important lesson about getting around in Savannah – Uber takes a long, long time. Invariably the few times we used an Uber we had really long wait times (on average about 20 minutes) and then often the driver struggled to get to the destination. This was definitely the case that morning and we were pretty late for our tour. Luckily, we were the only two on the tour so it was no problem at all. We were greeted by our kooky tour guide Dawn Martin (Dawn of Savannah’s Dead) and were quickly on our way. It was an interesting tour, both the content as well as the guide, and I’d highly recommend it. We learned quite a bit about funerary art and symbolism, the meaning of all the flowers, crosses, animals and other headstone or memorial decoration. It was also fascinating to see the layout of the plots, how they have been preserved (or not), and the evolution of the cemetery from its early days to today. It was a cold and windy day and the resting place along the river was indeed beautiful. I think that since it was just the two of us, Dawn was able to let her hair down and freewheel throughout our time with her. She sang a medley of Johnny Mercer songs at his gravesite and shared a number of personal stories with us. She was a true Savannah character. Our delayed start and her languid pace had us leave the cemetery quite late and, true to form, we had a lengthy wait for an Uber back downtown. The Uber driver also arrived in a pickup truck and jean shorts, another first!

The beauty and serenity of Bonaventure Cemetery

With barely a minute to spare, we made it to our 12:30 Tours By Locals historic district walking tour with guide Bonnie T. She was squeezing us in before a later evening tour so we had a bit of a customized experience but mostly based on her Time Warp Through Savannah’s History tour. Historic Savannah is unique due to its large number of park-like squares (22 of them) that intersect with the grid street pattern. The historic district aligns to Savannah’s pre-Civil War layout and ends with huge Forsyth Park on its southern edge. It’s very walkable and full of interesting 18th and 19th century architecture. Bonnie met us at the Alida and we started with the original old port city and Factors Row’s cotton warehouses along the river built out of ship ballast. There is a higher bluff up from the river with the buildings built at river-level, creating an interesting series of hidden corridors and back streets with bridges that connected the top floors of the buildings to the street level of the town. There is still a thriving commercial scene here, especially lots of bars, and I can image its treacherous to walk on those cobblestones and up steep stairs to the main level of town after a night out. The “Stone Stairs of Death” are located here too and look like they definitely live up to their reputation.

The Savannah River, Factors Row, and other points of interest downtown

The Stone Stairs of Death

I won’t recount everything that we did and saw on the tour because it was a lot. A lot in a good way, we got a very comprehensive and interesting tour of the history of the city, its famous and infamous citizens, shopping and restaurant recommendations, etc. We saw pretty much every beautiful square and many of the historic sites (from the outside) such as City Hall, Colonial Cemetery, the Juliette Gordon Low (founder of the Girl Scouts) Birthplace, the Cathedral Basilica of Saint John the Baptist, the Olde Pink House, the Mercer-Williams House, and many, many more. We also enjoyed a delicious macaron treat (or two) at the delightful Marché des Macarons including Savannah Banana, banana cream and dark chocolate, named after the local baseball team. Our guide, Bonnie T. was so knowledgeable and interesting, the tour was really a great, compact introduction to the city. After the tour we were pretty famished since we’d skipped lunch so we headed back to River Street for some drinks and a snack – we were getting a little hangry so quickly settled on Dockside Seafood Bar and Grill. The place was jam-packed (we were close to Saint Patrick’s Day which is huge in Savannah) and we were lucky to get a high-top at the bar, reliving our youth with beers, greasy pickle chips and nachos. Happy and satisfied, we headed back for a rest before dinner which was at the Collins Quarter downtown, a few easy (but very cold) blocks from the hotel. This smart restaurant is one of Savanah’s top rated and was loud and hopping when we stepped into the small main restaurant and bar area. We were seated in a quieter section of the restaurant and enjoyed creative cocktails and very good food. I had a warm and filling Asian-inspired pork belly appetizer and Middle Eastern-influenced grilled eggplant as my main course. Our server was a delightful young lady and the room was full of beautiful people. It was a great way to end a very long day.

Savannah's historic district (green water in the fountain for Saint Patrick's Day)

Sunday my friend had about a half a day before heading to the airport, I had a little longer, so we got an early start to the day with mimosas (it was a bachelorette party after all) and an enormous Southern breakfast at the Two Cracked Eggs Café, very close to the Alida and right on River Street. It was a very fun meal with sassy servers in another old, historic building. The biscuits were so buttery and flaky and absolutely huge, like the size of two normal biscuits in one. I so loved my shrimp and grits from Friday that I had it again here for breakfast and it also did not disappoint. Great way to start the day! On the recommendation of our guide from the day before, we chose the Owens-Thomas House and Slave Quarters as the one historic home we would be able to visit. It’s lovely home, garden, carriage house and slave quarters provided a comprehensive look at the history of the city from multiple points of view. The 1819 Regency-style mansion, now part of the Telfair museum complex, has only been owned by three families before being turned into a museum in 1954. The museum has well maintained slave quarters and a carriage house in the back of the property, many original features from the kitchen and cellar, and the customary antique filled public rooms. The curators have done a nice job of highlighting the complex relationships between the enslaved people and the families who owned the property. The Owens-Thomas House was indeed a good and comprehensive look into Savannah’s past.

Breakfast of champions at Two Cracked Eggs

The Owens-Thomas House and Slave Quarters

After a small bit of souvenir shopping in the City Market area, especially at the wonderfully local Byrd’s cookie shop, it was time to say farewell to my friend as she headed home. Having a few more hours before my departure I headed to the Telfair Academy, the first art museum in the South and the first US museum of any kind founded by a woman. The original building was also an 1819 Regency style house owned by the Telfair family. It was turned into a museum in 1875 when it was bequeathed to the Georgia Historical Society by the original owner’s sister. The current museum, focusing on American and European art, maintains several period rooms from the mansion as well as a beautiful rotunda and other art galleries and a light and airy sculpture gallery. It is also home to the original Bird Girl statue from the Bonaventure Cemetery. After the museum, I continued some shopping at City Market, though to me Savannah was not much of a shopper’s paradise. For my solo lunch and last meal in the city, I took back to the riverfront area and was seated outside at District Seafood in the Plant Riverside complex. Luckily, they had hanging space heaters since it was still a bit chilly and I enjoyed sitting at the bar directly under one of them. I enjoyed a Georgi (or two) – bourbon, Aperol and simple syrup – and some oysters Rockefeller and hush puppies. A fitting Southern farewell to Savannah.

The Telfair Academy

Around town, Savannah

I enjoyed this very short time in Savannah and am glad I got the see this Southern charmer. It’s a great place for those who love history and those who love to party. Easy to take it in with a short amount of time. Would I go back? Maybe, with some friends for another weekend, but I think I’ve captured the essence of it with just one visit.