Mississippi Feels Like Coming Home
Whispering pines. The sound of a single guitar. The smell of magnolia blooms. Sunset along the coast. Antebellum columns against an evening sky. Ancient Indian mounds in the distance. Smiling faces gathered together breathing in the day.

Mississippi.
Find out why authors flock to it, musicians sing about it, artists canÕt leave it, sportsmen love it, daydreamers bask in it, and tourists just have to escape to it. Mississippi is a land riddled with tales and mysteries, history and intrigue, with a past that still draws people near, and with a future that is promising. Mississippi will offer you more than you can imagine. Whether you are planning a weekend or an extended stay, you will understand why Mississippi feels like coming home.

Birthplace of the Blues
The Blues has been noted as AmericaÕs only original music, and it began right here in Mississippi. Travel to Clarksdale, home of blues greats John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson, HowlinÕ Wolf, Charlie Patton, and W.C. Handy. While there be sure to visit the Delta Blues Museum, a renovated railroad depot, where you can learn about the Blues and purchase CDs and other souvenirs. Visit Morgan FreemanÕs own Ground Zero Blues Club and plan for some good music and down home cooking. Book a stay at the Shack Up Inn, on the land of renowned Hopson Plantation. Here you can stay in one of six renovated sharecropper shacks and catch local Blues musicians serving up a good dose of rich Blues flavour. Tunica offers the Bluesville Showcase Nightclub at the Horseshoe Casino for some great music, and while youÕre visiting the casino, take a stroll through the Blues & Legends Hall of Fame Museum for great information and artifacts of legendary Blues greats. Of course, if youÕre adventurous you can hop to each casino in Tunica where youÕll find other great music venues.

In Greenwood, you can see where cotton was king, and tour the Blues Heritage Gallery, dedicated to Robert Johnson, the ŌKing of the Delta BluesĶ. And who wouldnÕt want to visit GreenwoodÕs mysterious three burial sites of Robert Johnson? Of course to experience the soul of the Blues, no trip would be complete without a visit to the CrossroadsÉthe intersection of Highways 61 and 49, where Robert Johnson is said to have sold his soul to the devil to make Blues music.

An Era Revisited
Mississippi is replete with a rich antebellum heritage. You donÕt have to travel far before reaching a significant Civil War landmark or glancing at the remaining beauties of an era gone by. Natchez alone has over 500 antebellum homes, churches, and public buildings, many of which are available for public tours year-round and even more during the Spring and Fall Pilgrimages. Whether it is in staying at one of the mansions, dining in one, or simply touring Natchez for a day, youÕll find more than enough to tempt your pleasure. DonÕt forget its great shopping, too; if you are looking for antiques, Natchez is the place. Natchez-Under-the-Hill offers an array of shops, restaurants, and non-stop, Vegas-style casino gaming. Visit the Vicksburg National Military Park which features 1,800 acres of earthworks, cannons, and monuments. You can also see the USS Cairo, a Union ironclad sunk by the Confederacy and raised after more than 100 years. Of course, you can tour magnificent antebellum homes in Vicksburg and try your hand at the cards, too, in one of its four casinos. In Corinth, visit Curlee House and Corinth Civil War Interpretive Center, one of CorinthÕs 16 National Historic Landmarks. To the south youÕll find Beauvoir in MississippiÕs coastal town of Biloxi, the last home of Confederate President Jefferson Davis, available to the public for tours. After visiting his home, be sure to cruise down the Gulf Coast for the latest in casino gaming, fine dining, and live entertainment.

A Literary History
Bring your imagination and love for literature and head to Mississippi. We have produced a wealth of internationally renowned literary giants, and their stories are often based on people and places located here in the state. Get to know these literary giants by taking a trip to Oxford, where you can visit Rowan Oak, the home of Nobel prizewinner William Faulkner. See the plot outline for A Fable that he charted along the walls of his spare office. Along with other literary greats, contemporary novelist John Grisham also has a home in Oxford. Visit Square Books on Oxford Square, from there you can travel to Tennessee WilliamsÕ home of Clarksdale, the setting that informed much of his writing.

Mississippi offers its travellers unique accommodation, excellent cuisine, extensive entertainment, 24-hour casino gaming, and an experience that we are sure will leave you with a story.