B.B. King making trek to Indianola for concert

B.B. King returns to Indianola for his annual Homecoming Festival Saturday, which will be staged for the first time at the museum bearing his name. And, as usual, he’ll be entertaining blues fans late in the evening at the historic Club Ebony.

King, who turns 86 in September, heads to Europe later in June for a monthlong tour. On Tuesday he returned to his home state to perform at the fifth annual Mississippi Grammy Celebration at the Beau Rivage in Biloxi.

The Homecoming concert at the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center begins at 2 p.m., with King scheduled to perform at 8:30 p.m.

June 9, 2011

clarionledger.com

Summer Fun Guide: Road trips

Arkansas

Just a few hours south of St. Louis, lovely Arkansas offers a host of travel opportunities: museums, historical sites, state parks (for boating, fishing, hiking, camping, interpretive centers and more), scenic drives and prospecting for gems. The only diamond mine open to the public in North America is there. But best are the quartz mines in the Hot Springs/Mount Ida region of the rugged Ouachita Mountains where visitors can dig for treasure and virtually always find it. More info: arkansas.com

Memphis

From Elvis’ Graceland home to live music on Beale Street to the world-famous Sun Studio, music infuses every part of a trip to Memphis.  While there, visit the sea lions and giant pandas of the Memphis Zoo or play on Justin Timberlake’s Mirimichi golf course. And no trip would be complete without a stay at the Peabody Hotel, known as much for its plush accommodations as the ducks that frequent the lobby. More info: memphistravel.com

stltoday.com

May 24, 2011

New to Nashville: Cool digs, hot clubs abound

The next excursion was a walk to The District’s Wildhorse Saloon. There wasn’t a huge crowd that weeknight, but if you want to sit at a bar, chat with other tourists and watch the bartender perform magic tricks, it was worth the visit. (Don’t leave without getting your picture taken with the wild horse out front)

After taking in some of the sights, I stopped in the hotel lobby and collected a handful of tourism brochures.

I wasn’t interested in doing the traditional venues,like visiting the Grand Ole Opry, so I opted for Gray Line Tours’ Homes of the Stars jaunt.

Our tour driver pointed out many Nashville landmarks and offered celebrity anecdotes as we drove past the homes of Alan Jackson, Dolly Parton, Martina McBride, Ronnie Dunn, Kix Brooks, Hank Williams, Trisha Yearwood, Tammy Wynette, Lori Ann Crook, Little Jimmy Dickens and others. It was worth the $41 ticket.

clarionledger.com

May 21, 2011

Some serious fun: Tourism brings in billions for Mississippi

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Travelers in town for this weekend’s slew of Jackson-area festivals, regattas, concerts, art shows and more will stay in hotels an average of 3.2 nights.

Each tourist group will average 2.8 people.

They will help keep many of the state’s 78,000 tourism-related employees working another year.

“One of the greatest things about travel and tourist revenues: They come to $5.5 billion a year and account for $350 million in our state’s general fund,” said Sandy Bynum, spokeswoman for the Tourism Division of the Mississippi Development Authority.

If spending money on tourist attractions and events is fun, collecting it is a laugh riot.

clarionledger.com

May 14, 2011