Travel: Tennessee

We were about an hour out of Nashville when a new sound made itself heard on the Tennessee Music Highway - the dull repetitive thud of a blown-out tyre.

As the sun set, all sorts of things began to run through my mind. Were there bears? Snakes? Aliens? Corrupt cops? It was an American road trip after all. Surely something scary was going to happen, we’ve all seen those movies.

Reality turned out to be somewhat less exciting. A friendly traffic officer did check we were OK, our tyre was fixed, we continued our journey to Memphis, got a new rental car and lived happily ever after. No Hollywood drama in sight.

But the incident did highlight one thing - how surprisingly familiar Tennessee can be for a state that is far from the top of many tourists’ destination lists.

It’s the state that became home to dozens of household name musicians - from Elvis and Dolly Parton to Jack White of the White Stripes.

Battles of both the Civil War and the later Civil Rights Movement were won and lost here, and one cannot fail to be moved by sacrifices made by those such as Martin Luther King.

Our trip began at Atlanta airport in neighbouring Georgia, where we headed north to the majesty of the Smoky Mountains National Park.

We were fortunate to visit ‘the Smokies’ when the leaves were just turning autumnal red, but the view over the park is impressive at any time of year - just miles upon miles of undulating hills.

On the Tennessee side of the park is Gatlinburg, which is a bit like Blackpool crossed with an French alpine ski resort. There’s an endless supply of hotels, restaurants and good clean fun.

Hikes and wildlife are in plentiful supply - we were lucky enough to see two black bears - but there’s also a lot of history here, as the park was once home to both native American groups and white settlers.

Just a short drive away is Dolly Parton’s ever-fabulous theme park Dollywood. Though don’t be fooled by the constant playback of Dolly tunes and traditional costume, the rides are not for the faint-hearted.

Next stop was Nashville. The Music City is home to the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Ryman Auditorium and the Grand Ole Opry, venues which hosted the likes of Johnny Cash, June Carter and Hank Williams.

The history of country music - from its origins in the cotton fields, to rock ‘n’ roll and modern-day musicians like Taylor Swift - is inseparable from the history of the South itself. Elvis’s gold piano, Carl Perkins’s famous blue suede shoes and Johnny Cash’s guitar are just some of the memorabilia on show at the Music Hall of Fame.

Today, music is as much a part of Nashville as ever, and Broadway is the place to go to catch some live tunes after hours. We settled on Robert’s Western World, a classic honky tonk where Brazil Billy and his band played relentlessly to a delighted audience.

And so to Memphis, heading south-west on the Music Highway, formally known as Interstate 40, where our tyre blew.

Nashville may be the home to country music but in Memphis they sing the blues. Perched on the banks of the Mississippi River, it’s a cultural and musical melting pot.

It’s a soulful and almost melancholic city, and nowhere is this more visible than at the Lorraine Motel, where civil rights leader Martin Luther King was assassinated in 1968.

Left as it was on that fateful day, the motel is now the National Civil Rights Museum, which charts the African-American struggle for human rights from before the Civil War until the present day. Dedicate at least half a day to go around its exhibits, and you’ll leave with a better understanding of the struggles and injustices that affected this city’s people and so many others across the South.

A short walk away is Beale Street, once the heart of Memphis’s black community and now known as the home of the blues. Do the Beale Street Walking Tour by day and, by night, catch some live music in music legend BB King’s Blues Bar.

Of course, no trip to Memphis would be complete without a visit to Elvis’s former abode, Graceland. The sheer number of mementos and tributes from around the world at his graveside are a testament to the love so many people felt for him.

The Sun Studio is another of Memphis’s music highlights. This little building was where Elvis cut his first record and the famous Million Dollar Quartet photo, which pictured him playing the piano with Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash, was taken.

If soul is your thing, head to the Stax Museum of American Soul Music. Starting off as a record shop before developing into a label, Stax still plays a key role in the local community and runs a music school reaching out to neighbourhood youth.

Memphis is pretty much Tennessee’s western-most point, so our road trip continued back east on Highway 64.

The highway is the main route across southern Tennessee and the towns it passes through tell their own stories about the history of the Volunteer State - a nickname earned during the War of 1812 because of the prominent role played by volunteer soldiers.

Of particular note is the small town of Pulaski, where the Ku Klux Klan was established - albeit as a very different association from the one it is known as now.

The state’s southern heartlands are farming country and home to the Jack Daniels Distillery in Lynchburg.

Ever seen an advert for the famous sour mash whiskey? Well, they’re not lying. The barrels are left to mature in the hills and they really do use the same spring of water they always have done, since 1866.

You can tour the distillery for free but don’t expect a sample. Lynchburg is a dry county thanks to laws introduced during the Prohibition era, so the best you get is a whiff of the distillery barrels. Although even that is enough to leave you light-headed.

I had a similar feeling at the top of Lookout Mountain, near Chattanooga, where we ended our trip with outstanding views of a small part of America that proved so familiar, yet so full of surprises.

• Natalie Marchant flew Delta direct to Atlanta, Georgia. Return direct flights from around £470 including taxes (0871-221 1222 or visit www.delta.com). Car rental costs from £145 for a week booked online with Hertz (Hertz.co.uk) while stays at the Millennium Maxwell House Hotel, Nashville, start at £68 per night www.millenniumhotels.com/millenniumnashville), and Holiday Inn Select Downtown Memphis, from £105 a night (http://www.holidayinn.com|www.holidayinn.com| www.holidayinn.com).

Operators to Tennessee include Bon Voyage, which offers seven nights in March from £1029, including flights into Memphis and ex-Nashville (indirect) from Heathrow, four nights at Holiday Inn Downtown in Memphis, three nights at Sheraton Downtown, Nashville, and one-day hire of full size Alamo car for Memphis-Nashville journey. Add around £100 for reg departures from Glasgow. Bon Voyage reservations: 0800 316 0194 and www.bon-voyage.co.uk.

Late deals

La Manga: Costa Calida, four-star Hotel Cavanna, seven nights B&B on 4 March costs £335 per person based on two adults sharing.

Prague:Three-star Hotel Globus, three nights B&B on 1 March is £215 per person. Both fly from Edinburgh. Visit www.Jet2holidays.com or call 0800-408 5599.

Paris: Flight and three nights at the three-star Residhotel Les Hauts D’Andilly costs £173pp room only on 23 February.

Madrid: Flight and three nights in the four-star Husa Mirador de Chamartin costs £225pp room only on 21 March. Both fly from Edinburgh. Book at www.ebookers.com

PARIS: Three nights from £229 per person including sightseeing cruise, staying at the two-star Roma Sacre Coeur, B&B, flying with Air France from Edinburgh on 6 May. Call 0844-879 8014 or www.crestaholidays.co.uk

Disney Med Cruise: Treat the kids with a four- night Disney cruise from Barcelona on 9 July 2013 or 8 August 2013. Pickncruise (0131-443 0766) has cruise-only cabins from £559p/p adults and £399 kids. Also available - seven and 12-night cruises.

The Evening News reader holiday service offers a wide range of holidays to suit all tastes and budgets. For a brochure call:

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