The world's first bronze Elvis statue was erected in this small plaza in 1980.
© Richard I'Anson/Getty Images
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
6.72 MILES
If you only make one stop in Memphis, it should be here: the sublimely kitschy, gloriously bizarre home of the King of Rock and Roll. Though born in…
0.94 MILES
This dusty storefront is ground zero for American rock and roll. Starting in the early 1950s, Sun's Sam Phillips recorded blues artists such as Howlin'…
0.43 MILES
Housed partly inside the Lorraine Motel, where Martin Luther King Jr was fatally shot on April 4, 1968, is the gut-wrenching National Civil Rights Museum…
Stax Museum of American Soul Music
2.12 MILES
Wanna get funky? Head directly to Soulsville, USA, where this 17,000-sq-ft museum sits on the site of the old Stax recording studio. This venerable spot…
1.11 MILES
Don't laugh, but the most striking building in Memphis, a 32-story pyramid completed in 1991, is now home to an enormous Bass Pro Shop. Even if you don't…
0.04 MILES
It was a long time coming, but Memphis finally has a shrine to its own. This small but well-done museum, the sister gallery to the Memphis Rock 'n' Soul…
0.42 MILES
Dedicated to Blues Hall of Fame inductees, this intimate and well-done space features a rotating art gallery on the lobby level and a small but well…
7.9 MILES
On Sunday, put on your 'smell goods' and head to services in South Memphis, where soul-music legend turned reverend Al Green presides over a powerful…
Nearby Memphis attractions
0.04 MILES
It was a long time coming, but Memphis finally has a shrine to its own. This small but well-done museum, the sister gallery to the Memphis Rock 'n' Soul…
2. Memphis Rock 'n' Soul Museum
0.16 MILES
This Smithsonian museum, next to FedEx Forum, examines how African American and white music mingled in the Mississippi Delta to create the modern rock and…
0.24 MILES
Featuring content culled from a 1.8-million-strong photo archive, this museum and gallery pays tribute to the work of famed African American…
0.27 MILES
On the corner of 4th St, this shotgun shack once belonged to the composer called the 'father of the blues.' He was the first to transpose the 12 bars and…
0.42 MILES
Dedicated to Blues Hall of Fame inductees, this intimate and well-done space features a rotating art gallery on the lobby level and a small but well…
6. National Civil Rights Museum
0.43 MILES
Housed partly inside the Lorraine Motel, where Martin Luther King Jr was fatally shot on April 4, 1968, is the gut-wrenching National Civil Rights Museum…
0.68 MILES
Pop in here to learn a little bit more about the cultural and natural history of the Big Muddy. Be sure to check out the scale model of the lower…
0.94 MILES
A small peninsula jutting into the Mississippi, Mud Island is downtown Memphis' best-loved green space. Walk across the bridge to the park, where you can…