MEMPHIS’ HIDDEN GEMS

[HostDave]

What do you think of when you think of Memphis? If you’re like most people, you think of the blues, barbeque and, of course, Elvis’ legendary Graceland home. But Memphis is more than just the home of Elvis and the American Queen Steamboat Company; it is also a vibrant and exciting destination with even more to offer than first meets the eye. That’s one reason why we offer so many cruises that either begin or end in Memphis in 2014. It’s a city worth exploring in-depth.

Fortunately, on all American Queen Steamboat voyages, a complimentary pre-cruise hotel stay is offered in each embarkation port which means that for American Queen sailings departing from Memphis, it’s easier than ever to explore our hometown. For voyages that end in Memphis, optional packages provide the opportunity to discover Memphis’ many charms.

While we highly recommend a stroll along Beale Street for blues and barbeque or a tour of Graceland, we also suggest some lesser known attractions that we like to think of as Memphis’ hidden gems.

Though it’s not hidden in any true sense of the word, the Lorraine Motel often plays second fiddle to the attractions of Graceland and Beale Street. The motel is the National Civil Rights Museum and the spot where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968. The museum’s mission is to chronicle “key episodes of the American civil rights movement and the legacy of this movement to inspire participation in civil and human rights efforts globally, through collections, exhibitions, and educational programs.”

The museum was an outgrowth of the civil rights movement. Understandably, the assassination of the civil rights leader sent the Lorraine Motel into a tailspin from which it never recovered, even though the owner at the time carefully protected two rooms in honor of King’s legacy. As the building fell into disrepair and the business struggled, by the mid 1980s the community recognized the importance of preserving this critical piece of history and formed the Martin Luther King Memorial Foundation which later became the Lorraine Civil Rights Museum Foundation. The foundation purchased the motel for $144,000 at a public auction and set about creating a museum that would do justice to the life and struggles of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as well as the entire civil rights movement that he spawned.

By 1991, the museum opened and in the last two decades has welcomed more than three million visitors. Just as the story of King’s life and assassination were far more meaningful than the facts would indicate on their own, so was the area around the Lorraine Motel. In 1999, the museum purchased several additional buildings, including Canipe’s Amusement store and rooming house; King’s assassin, James Earl Ray, stayed at the rooming house. Today, the museum is the custodian of the “evidence files associated with the manhunt, indictment and confession of the assassin of Dr. King. This transfer affords the National Civil Right Museum the distinction of being the first museum of its kind to receive evidence materials and court documents connected with a criminal case into its collection holdings.”

From the dark days of 1968 at the Lorraine Motel to the vibrant music city that is Memphis in 2014, diversity in attractions abounds. With music such a celebrated part of life in Memphis, our guests are drawn to the blues bars, jazz clubs and legacy of Elvis but often forget the instruments that create that very same music. A small company named Gibson was formed in the 19th century and took on the task of building mandolins in 1894. If the name sounds familiar, it should: Gibson is today the most renowned manufacturer of electric guitars and has provided instruments for greats such as “Chuck Berry, Eric Clapton, Sheryl Crow, Bob Dylan, Peter Frampton, John Lennon and George Harrison.”

The Gibson Beale Street Showcase is conveniently located within walking distance of most downtown Memphis hotels and offers tours seven days a week. Our guests can watch guitars being built by skilled craftspeople known as luthiers and “see each step of the process: binding, neck-fitting, painting, buffing, and tuning.”

If you want to see what the legends of music did with those Gibson guitars, head down the street to the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum. As the Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau describes it, the museum was created by the Smithsonian Institution to tell “the story of musical pioneers who, for the love music, overcame racial and socioeconomic barriers to create the music that shook the entire world. The Rock 'n' Soul Museum offers a comprehensive Memphis music experience from the rural field hollers and sharecroppers of the 1930s, through the surge of Sun, Stax and Hi Records and Memphis’ musical heyday in the 1970s, to its global influence. The audio tour takes you through at your own pace through seven galleries, packed with 300 minutes of information, including over 100 songs, 3 visual programs, more than 30 instruments, 40 costumes and other musical treasures.”

As you can see, Memphis offers far more than meets the eye to guests sailing on the American Queen. But to sweeten the appeal, the American Queen Steamboat Company is offering a special Two Cabin Category Upgrade on all 2014 American Queen voyages for new, paid-in-full bookings made before March 31, 2014; that represents a savings of up to $3,200.* There has never been a better time to explore Memphis and discover the lure of Mark Twain’s mighty Mississippi River than this year. Won’t you join us and unearth your own hidden gems?

* Offer expires March 31, 2014 and is valid on new, paid-in-full bookings only. Full payment at time of booking is required to redeem this offer. Estimated savings of up to $3200 ($1600 per person) is based on double occupancy for a standard American Queen 9 day voyage. Offer is not valid on Group bookings or existing reservations and cannot be combined with other offers, promotions or discounts. The free 2 cabin category upgrade means that guests will be placed in cabin(s) that are 2 sequential categories above initial cabin(s) requested at time of reservation. This offer is not valid on cabin upgrades into American Queen categories LS, AAA, SO and SI. This offer is based on cabin availability and only while inventory lasts. Cruise fare does not include taxes, port charges, insurance, gratuities, or airfare. Additional terms and conditions may apply - call for details (1-888-749-5280).