Must see attractions in Alabama

  • Top Choice
    Sloss Furnaces

    The Sloss Furnaces constitutes one of Birmingham's can't-miss sites. From 1882 to 1971, this was a pig iron–producing blast furnace and a cornerstone of…

  • Top Choice
    Birmingham Civil Rights Institute

    A maze of moving audio, video and photography exhibits tell the story of racial segregation and the Civil Rights movement, with a focus on activities in…

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    Top Choice
    National Memorial for Peace & Justice

    Stark and harrowing in its simplicity, this memorial stands in honor of 4400 African American victims of lynching. Great rectangular steel slabs, each the…

  • Top Choice
    Splinter Hill Bog

    Blankets of white-topped pitcher plants can be found here, a 2100 acre plot of land owned and protected by the non-profit Nature Conservancy. Walk into…

  • Top Choice
    US Space & Rocket Center

    If you ever entertained dreams of playing Major Tom to someone's ground control, head here. This Smithsonian-affiliated museum boasts one of the world's…

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    Top Choice
    Dismals Canyon Conservatory

    In many other states, Dismals would be a headlining tourist attraction. In North Alabama, it quietly persists as just an amazing place to visit. This…

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    Top Choice
    Dexter Avenue Parsonage

    The home of Martin Luther King Jr and Coretta Scott King has been frozen in time, a snapshot of a mid-century home complete with Mad Men–era furniture,…

  • Top Choice
    Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge

    Centuries ago, salt-lashed oak forest, inundated coastal prairie and great quilts of sawgrass covered the Gulf Coast. Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge…

  • Moundville Archaeological Park

    One of the largest and best-preserved sites of the pre-Columbian Mississippian civilization sits outside of modern Moundville, about 17 miles south of…

  • Little River Canyon

    Occupying an exceptionally beautiful stretch of the Southern Appalachians, the Little River flows much of its course over Lookout Mountain, which marks…

  • Legacy Museum

    This museum, a companion to the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, artfully explains the roots of institutionalized racism in the USA, and…

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    Gee's Bend Quilt Collective

    The African American quilt makers of Gee's Bend – officially, Boykin, AL – are the inheritors of a tradition that has been recognized as one of the nation…

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    Civil Rights Memorial Center

    With its circular design crafted by Maya Lin, this haunting memorial focuses on 40 martyrs of the Civil Rights movement. Some cases remain unsolved…

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    Vulcan Park

    Imagine Christ the Redeemer in Rio, but made of iron and depicting a beefcake Roman god of metalworking. Vulcan is visible from all over the city – this…

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    Birmingham Museum of Art

    This fine museum boasts an impressive collection, especially given Birmingham's status as a mid-sized city. Inside, you'll find works from Asia, Africa,…

  • Kelly Ingram Park

    When Bull Conner was the sheriff, civil rights activists, led by Dr King, embarked on a desegregation campaign downtown. Their strategy was to flood the…

  • Dexter Avenue King Memorial Church

    Martin Luther King Jr had only recently presided over the congregation at this church when he was chosen to lead the Montgomery bus boycott – precisely…

  • Monte Sano State Park

    Spanish for 'Mountains of Health,' Monte Sano is a forested upland breath of fresh air located just east of Huntsville. There are some 20 miles of hiking…

  • Lake Guntersville State Park

    Where much of North Alabama feels a step removed from pure wilderness, Lake Guntersville State Park provides an interesting counterpoint. This park has…