Visiting Alabama

Warm weather has arrived in the Heart of Dixie - time for an Alabama summer getaway. Start in Northern Alabama's Tennessee Valley, with a visit to Huntsville’s Space and Rocket Center, or Constitution Hall Village. Roads south out of Huntsville pass through historic Birmingham, pivotal in America’s civil rights movement, and Tuscaloosa, home of the University of Alabama – while you're there, remember it’s the season to voyage down the Black Warrior River on the Bama Belle Riverboat. Travel south central Alabama through Montgomery, Alabama’s state capital, and on to Mobile and the Alabama Gulf Coast. Enjoy your pick of summer fun from festivals and sports to historic destinations – Alabama has it all.

It’s hard to beat the beauty of hot air balloons rising in the morning sky – check the experience off your bucket list with a trip to Foley's 8th Annual Gulf Coast Hot Air Balloon Festival. East of Mobile Bay, Foley Sportspark lights up Father's Day Weekend, June 15th through 17th, with 50 bright and colorful hot air balloons. Don’t miss the early morning take off and the evening Balloon Glow on Saturday and Sunday.

Birmingham hosts athletes from across Alabama for the 30th Anniversary State Games. The 2012 Alabama State Games are held June 22nd through the 24th, at venues including Spain Park Sports Complex, Head Over Heals Gymnastics and Pell City Lakeside Park. Organized by the Alabama Sports Festival Foundation located in Montgomery, the games feature 25 different sports, with over 100 events to choose from.

Fourth of July in Birmingham means Thunder on the Mountain 2012. Choose your daytime fun, but reserve the evening for the fireworks extravaganza over Birmingham’s landmark, Vulcan the Iron Man. The Birmingham community converges for the annual tradition Wednesday July 4th at Vulcan Park and Museum for music and the 9pm show.

Montgomery celebrates the Fourth of July at Old Alabama Town north of downtown Montgomery. An ideal day to honor local culture and heritage, visit Old Alabama Town and go back in time to life in early central Alabama. Tour six blocks of authentically restored 19th century buildings and homes with period costumed guides to answer questions.

It’s beach season – and Mobile has a full calendar of events and family fun. Fishermen and fans get set for the oldest and largest saltwater multi-species fishing tournament in the country. The 2012 Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo is July 20th through the 22nd off Dauphin Island, at the mouth of Mobile Bay. Attracting fishermen from across the US, the Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo features 20 categories and awards totaling in excess of $400,000.

Enjoy baseball, America’s summer pastime, at Mobile’s Hank Aaron Stadium with the Mobile BayBears. Honored as America’s Minor League Team of the Year last season, the BayBears are The Double-A Affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Hank Aaron Stadium is recognized as one of America’s top stadiums and houses the Hank Aaron Museum, in the boyhood home of the Aaron family. Aaron Stadium is conveniently located north of the intersection of Interstates 10 and 65 for easy access. With a full summer of games, don’t miss time watching the BayBears.

Alabama Hotel Map