August 27, 2004 -- The Redneck Riviera, as the southern shores of Alabama and the Florida panhandle are jokingly -- and fondly -- called, is full of Southern hospitality, white beaches, old fashioned home cooking, quirky towns and lively bars. While it's not the South of France, it is full great travel deals, world-class golf courses, and some famous American authors. The best part? The fall season sees temperatures in the high 70s during the day, and high 60s in the evening.
We'll start in Mobile, Alabama, the birthplace of Mardi Gras and the home of The Grand Hotel in the town of Point Clear, situated between the Gulf of Mexico and Mobile Bay. A Marriott property, (https://marriott.com/property/propertyPage/PTLAL) the Grand Hotel is one of Alabama's oldest and grandest hotels with an extra-large swimming pool and sprawling grounds. Special fall discounts at the hotel include the "Grand Memory Package" with rates as low as $129 per night with 50% off recreation prices (excluding green fees at the golf course) and 25% off meals at the Grand Dining Room and Bayview Restaurant. Another special fall package includes 50% off greens fees on the golf course and deluxe bay view rooms for $159 per night.
Harper Lee wrote To Kill a Mockingbird just down the road in Monroeville, where still stands the old courthouse in which a fictional Atticus Finch defended Tom Robinson. For Forrest Gump fans, author Winston Groom lives down the street from the hotel and often enjoys Southern libations in the hotel's old school bar. For you shoppers, one of the South's largest outlet shopping centers is less than ten miles away, and the Mississippi casinos along Biloxi's beaches are less than an hour's drive. As for bars and Southern quirks, Judge Roy Beans, a local watering hole, has a live Billy goat running free and a host of tipsy folks to tell you why.
Flights to Mobile aren't on the outrageous side, either. From Dallas, Delta (www.delta.com) and American (www.aa.com) will get you there for $202 round trip excluding taxes. From New York-LaGuardia, almost all major carriers are offering roundtrip travel starting from $274.
Due east of Point Clear, along the Florabama coastline as locals call it (there's a great bar called the Florabama that sits directly on the Alabama-Florida border, and you can imagine how they handled things when the drinking age in the two states were 18 and 21 respectively), are Destin and Seaside, Florida. Seaside, the planned community town where they filmed Jim Carrey's The Truman Show (no, it wasn't a soundstage or studio), is an architectural wonder with gingerbread houses and an honest to goodness town square.
Nearby hotels such as the Ramada Inn (www.ramada.com) offer fall specials with rooms starting as low as $56.99 per night. Roadside hotels are typically within walking distance of the big town beaches and nearby beach shops and restaurants. The ideal way to enjoy Seaside, however, is to rent one of the pastel-colored three-tiered houses complete with turrets, towers and wrap-around porches. Gulf Coast Rentals (www.gulfcoastrentals.com) has a list of houses that sleep anywhere from from four to fourteen, in town near the art galleries and town square, or directly on the beach. Houses range in price from $165 per night all the way up to $2,250 per night with discounts given to weekly renters.
Nearby Destin is a golfers paradise with wide beaches and transparent sky-blue waters. Highrise hotels and condominiums dot the beaches along with seafood restaurants, sports bars, miniature golf courses and shopping centers. The beaches are quiet, though, and some hotels offer good rates on golf packages. The Bayside Inn at the San Destin Golf & Beach Resort (www.sandestin.com) has room rates starting at $129 down normally from $155. The 2,400-acre property includes an 18-hole golf course, 15 tennis courts, a fitness track, a spa, salon, marina, several large pools, and restaurants.
To get to Seaside and Destin, you fly into the small but often-used Ft. Walton Airport (there's an Air Force base adjacent to the airport). Flights from New York will run you $223 on Delta and Northwest (www.nwa.com), and $267 on Continental (www.continental.com), but none are non-stop.
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