Savannah, GA

Mashama Bailey's Port City Southern inside a restored 1938 Greyhound bus terminal, the restaurant most responsible for putting Savannah on the modern dining map. Tasting menu and a la carte from a James Beard Outstanding Chef winner; book ahead, the room only seats so many.

The Grey's bodega-style sandwich and grocery counter half a block from the main restaurant, run by the same team and far easier to get into. Blue plate specials, a serious turkey club with Benton's bacon, and house-made pickles and pantry goods to take home.

Sean Brock's Charleston Husk concept in a converted 1850s townhouse on Oglethorpe Avenue, run today under chef Jacob Hammer with strict if-it-isn't-Southern-it-isn't-here sourcing. Heirloom grits, whole-hog cookery, and one of the better cured-meat boards in town.

Brandon Carter and Joseph Harrison's seasonal restaurant in a converted Thomas Square Victorian, both 2025 James Beard Outstanding Chef semifinalists from the FARM Bluffton team. Menu changes weekly with whatever the boats and farms send; the wine list is unusually deep for a city this size.

Pink-stuccoed 1771 mansion on Reynolds Square, the city's most architecturally serious dining room and a real locals' celebration spot despite the tourist density. Kitchen plays the Lowcountry classics straight: she-crab soup, fried green tomatoes with shrimp, BLT salad.

Old bank building in Ardsley Park turned new-Southern bistro, run since 2014 by Savannah-native Zach Shultz with a husband-wife chef team. The fried chicken, ricotta dumplings, and burger have been on the menu through every revision, which tells you which dishes locals come back for.

Restored 1950s bank a block south of Forsyth Park, with a coastal Georgia menu and the city's best rooftop bar (Perch) one floor up. Long the locals' Forsyth-side date-night room and a regular James Beard semifinalist mention.

Elegant 1900 mansion on E 37th Street, opened in 1981 by Elizabeth Terry as an early flag for serious Lowcountry cooking. The current team holds the line on the seven-course coastal menu, and the dining rooms still feel like a special-occasion home.

Sturdy daytime-and-dinner bistro inside the oldest standing tavern in the Southeast, on E Bay Street, with daily brunch, a raw bar, and a wine list that has earned Wine Spectator notice. The morning biscuit and shrimp-and-grits combo is the order.

Communal-table boarding-house lunch on W Jones Street, run by the Wilkes family since 1943 and still serving fried chicken, sweet potato souffle, okra gumbo, and ten more sides at long ten-tops shared with strangers. Open weekdays for two hours only and worth the line.

1933 grocery-turned-tavern that fed the Hostess City through the war and never updated more than it had to. Burgers, fried shrimp, and the city's longest crab-stew run; locals' default for a casual midweek dinner with a beer.

Funky Bay Street kitchen with PB&J wings, chicken-and-waffle nachos, and a daily-changing dessert that lives in the case at the front. Locally owned with two sister rooms a block away (Hitch and Double Wide); the original is still the most fun.

Andrew Brochu's casual Starland-area neighborhood restaurant from the Michelin-starred chef who used to cook in Chicago, built around oysters, fried chicken, and pies in a low-key dining room. The cooking is serious; the prices are reasonable.

Wine-bar-leaning bistro in the old Atlantic gas-station space on Victory Drive, voted Connect Savannah's best restaurant in 2024 and still the locals' choice for an unhurried patio dinner. Vegan options are real, not afterthoughts.

Two-story Prohibition-themed restaurant and bar a block from the Grey, with a tight Southern menu, a bourbon list two pages deep, and chef tasting events that locals book months ahead. The schnitzel and the steak tartare are the dishes that define the kitchen.

Open-air seafood shack on the Moon River marsh in south Savannah, with picnic tables on a working dock and the city's clearest sunset over the water. Fried oysters, peel-and-eat shrimp, smoked fish dip; arrive early in summer.

Coastal Italian inside the new Hotel Bardo on Forsyth Park, with house-made pasta, a wood-fired hearth, and one of the better wine lists to open in Savannah this decade. The agnolotti and the seafood paccheri are the dishes regulars come back for.

1980 Italian institution on W Congress in a former 1871 firehouse, with white tablecloths and a menu split between coastal Italian and Lowcountry seafood. The crispy scored flounder has been the signature dish for four decades and is what locals send their out-of-town family to order.

Slice-and-pie counter on the corner of City Market since 1991, doing oversized New York-style cheese pies on hand-tossed dough. Cash only, lines out the door, and zero pretense — the pizza locals actually eat.

Wood-fired Neapolitan pizza inside a converted shipping container at Starland Yard, from chef Kyle Jacovino (formerly of The Florence). Margherita and pepperoni come out blistered and chewy; one of the better pizzas Food & Wine has called out in the state.

Family-owned Mexican on Whitaker Street voted the city's best for nine years running by every local outlet that votes on these things. Honest antojitos, real street tacos, and Savannah's only deep agave bar — over a hundred mezcals and tequilas across the back wall.

Small Bull Street taqueria with handmade tortillas, chef-driven salsas, and a tight craft-tequila list, run from a converted house on the south end of the Historic District. The order is two tacos and one of the daily aguas frescas.

Vietnamese-Thai dive bar on W Congress with a back kitchen run by the Lady Saigon team, putting out drunken noodles, ginger rice bowls, and pho that locals rate above the dedicated noodle shops downtown. Loud, late, and cheap.

Pan-Asian noodle counter on Broughton Street, ranging across Vietnamese, Thai, and Singaporean traditions in one menu. Spicy red noodles and Bangkok curry noodles are the staff's recommendations and the regulars' usual order.

1.2-mile flat paved perimeter loop around Savannah's signature park, with the white fountain at the north end and a tree-lined center walk that locals use for morning runs and dog walks. The training run for anyone staying downtown.

1.5-mile gravel and dirt loop past the tabby ruins of the Jones family colonial estate, ending at a marsh boardwalk on the Skidaway Narrows. The famous mile-long oak avenue is the entrance road; the trail itself is the quieter half.

1-mile boardwalk-and-sand loop through maritime forest and salt marsh on Skidaway Island, with an observation tower over the marsh and frequent fiddler crab and wading bird sightings. Easy enough for kids, scenic enough for adults.

3-mile flat loop through pine and live oak forest on Skidaway Island, passing Confederate earthworks and a moonshine still site from the 1930s. The longer trail in the park and the one regulars use.

Paved 4-mile multi-use trail running the length of the Truman Parkway corridor, connecting Daffin Park to Lake Mayer through wetlands, neighborhoods, and a sports complex. Insulated from the highway and one of the city's best urban biking routes.

1.5-mile paved loop around a 35-acre lake on Savannah's southside, with shade, geese, a kayak launch, and a tennis complex on the back side. The eastside locals' default for an evening walk.

Mile-and-a-half loop around the city's first major park, a 1907 Olmsted-designed green space east of downtown with shaded paths, ball fields, and the original Grayson Stadium where Babe Ruth once played. Locals run this when they don't want to drive to Lake Mayer.

1.75-mile boardwalk-and-dirt trail through marsh and maritime forest, passing enclosures with rescued wolves, alligators, bobcats, and bison. Run by the Chatham County school district and one of the city's quiet bargains at $5 admission.

1.5-mile lit asphalt loop around a 19-acre lake in Pooler with parallel singletrack mountain bike trails through the surrounding woods. The mountain-bike scene's home base on the west side of metro Savannah.

Old Tybee Railroad bed turned out-and-back rail trail east of Savannah along the marsh, partly closed by erosion but still good for 2 miles in each direction from the Highway 80 trailhead. The closest big-marsh experience to downtown.

Half-mile paved cobblestone-and-brick path along the Savannah River from the Marriott to the Cotton Exchange, the easiest and most photographed urban walk in the city. Tourist-heavy but it's the river's only good waterfront access.

Wide quiet half-mile beach walk at the north end of Tybee Island, in the shadow of the 1773 lighthouse. The locals' alternative to the South Beach pier crowd and the access point for the calmer river-side swim.

Easy 1.5-mile loop through camellia gardens, demonstration gardens, and pine flatwoods at the University of Georgia's coastal extension station. The horticultural alternative to a strict-nature trail.

Short marsh-side trail behind the Pin Point Heritage Museum — Gullah-Geechee community history, oyster-shucking shed, and a slow walk along the Moon River salt flats. Quiet, educational, and unique to coastal Georgia.

Quarter-mile sand-and-shell access to Romerly Marsh from Priest Landing — the only public marshfront on Wilmington Island, used by locals for sunrise dog walks and tidal-creek paddling launches.

1819 Regency mansion turned 1886 art museum, the South's oldest public art museum, holding the Bird Girl statue from the Midnight in the Garden book cover and a strong American Impressionist collection. Anchor of the Telfair Museums system.

Moshe Safdie-designed glass-and-stone wing of the Telfair across Telfair Square, opened 2006, dedicated to contemporary art and the family-friendly ArtZeum on the second floor. A real architectural object as well as a museum.

1853 Central of Georgia Railway depot turned contemporary museum on Turner Boulevard, with the Walter O. Evans Collection of African American art as the permanent anchor and SCAD-curated rotating shows. $10 ticket and rarely crowded.

1819 Scarbrough House on the western edge of downtown holding nine galleries of ship models, scrimshaw, maritime paintings, and trade artifacts. The walled garden out back is one of the best free city green spaces and worth the visit alone.

City Market museum running through the alcohol-Prohibition era with full-immersion exhibits and a working speakeasy bar at the end where the ticket price gets you the first cocktail. More fun than it has any right to be.

Gullah/Geechee community museum in a 1920s oyster cannery on the Moon River south of downtown, telling the story of the Pin Point community freedmen settled after the Civil War. Justice Clarence Thomas grew up here; the museum sits on his childhood ground.

1921 Spanish Baroque movie palace restored by SCAD, with classic film screenings, touring productions, and the Savannah Music Festival's main events through March-April. The interior is the show even when nothing is playing.

Restored 1946 Broughton Street movie house run by SCAD with student film screenings, the Savannah Film Festival, and visiting director talks every fall. Rooms are roomy and the sound is clean.

Continuously operating theater on Chippewa Square since 1818, currently running rotating in-house musical revues from the resident company. Family-friendly evenings; ticket price is moderate; the building itself is the third-oldest continuously operating theater in the U.S.

Hop-on hop-off trolley with 15 stops covering the Historic District and a 90-minute narrated loop, the most efficient way to see the city's whole grid in one day. Drivers riff hard, which most riders enjoy and a few don't.

75-minute open-air tour through Savannah's haunted sites in a converted funeral hearse with eight passengers, voted #1 Ghost Tour in the country in repeated polls. More goofy and theatrical than scary; right for adults and older kids.

Walking ghost tour through the Historic District led by guides with a heavier history-and-research orientation than the entertainment-leaning competitors. The serious option for ghost-curious visitors who want sources cited.

Family of walking ghost and pub-crawl tours led by costumed guides through documented haunted sites, running daily from City Market with multiple route options. The biggest operator in town and the easiest to book last-minute.

Real paddlewheel riverboats running Savannah River sightseeing, dinner, and Sunday brunch cruises from River Street. The dinner cruise is the touristy choice; the daytime narrated sightseeing one is the actual recommendation.

Two-hour eco-cruise from River Street out to the Tybee Roads to find resident bottlenose dolphins, run by a tight crew with strong wildlife knowledge. Almost always actually finds dolphins.

$5 wildlife center east of downtown run by the Chatham County school district, with rescued wolves, alligators, bison, bobcats, and a pine-marsh trail tying them together. The cheap, kid-perfect afternoon nobody outside Savannah seems to know about.

Outdoor children's museum at Tricentennial Park, built among the open-air ruins of an 1850s railroad shop with sand pits, oversized building blocks, a maze, and the new STEAM Center mirror maze indoors. Best for ages 3-10.

Privately-owned military memorabilia museum on E York Street, a one-man passion project with one of the densest small-museum collections in the country, spanning every U.S. conflict from the Revolution forward. The owner is often on the floor and explains the cases.

Adaptive-reuse mixed-use district in a 1912 power plant west of River Street, now anchored by the JW Marriott with the District Live concert hall, restaurants, shops, and a fossil-and-gem exhibit in the lobby. Family-friendly evening destination.

Veteran-owned craft brewery on Indian Street in a converted warehouse with 12+ taps, a real taproom, and a dog-friendly patio that hosts food trucks and trivia nights. The local brewery locals send their out-of-town friends to.

Thirty-acre live-oak canopy at the south end of the Historic District, anchored by an 1858 white iron fountain modeled on the one in Place de la Concorde. The shaded interior path is where Savannah actually lives, not just visits.

1846 garden cemetery on a bluff above the Wilmington River, where Spanish moss-draped oaks shade the graves of Johnny Mercer, Conrad Aiken, and the Bird Girl statue's original site. Free to wander, and far better in person than the Midnight in the Garden cover suggests.

Twin-spired French Gothic cathedral on Lafayette Square, finished in 1896 and re-consecrated as a basilica in 2020. The interior murals and stained glass are the most concentrated European-cathedral experience in the South.

Italianate mansion on Monterey Square that anchors Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, restored by antiques dealer Jim Williams and still owned by his sister. The first-floor tour is short and unfussy, focused on the art and architecture rather than the murder.

1819 English Regency house museum operated by the Telfair, with one of the most intact urban slave quarters in the South kept exactly as researchers found it. The reframed tour, rebuilt around 2018, leans hard into the lives of the enslaved household, not the Owens family.

1736 colonial estate on the Isle of Hope reached by a 1.5-mile avenue of 400 live oaks planted in the 1890s, the photo Savannah is best known for outside the squares. Past the gate the ruins themselves are modest; the drive in is the destination.

1840 Greek Revival mansion on Madison Square, the first home in Georgia named a state landmark and the model the Savannah College of Art and Design uses to teach Regency interiors. Daytime architecture tours are sober; the evening ghost tour leans into Civil War-era stories with documented sources.

1849 stuccoed mansion on Lafayette Square once home to Juliette Gordon Low, who founded the Girl Scouts in the carriage house out back. Smaller and less polished than the Telfair properties, which makes the docent-led tour feel like a real visit instead of a script.

1820 Federal-style brick house on Columbia Square, the rescue of which from the wrecking ball in 1955 launched the Historic Savannah Foundation and saved most of what tourists now walk through. The standard tour spends real time on the seven enslaved people who ran the household.

1819 Regency mansion turned 1886 art museum, the oldest public art museum in the South, with the Bird Girl from the Midnight in the Garden book cover in a quiet rear gallery. The collection skews 19th-century American with a strong Ashcan and Impressionist room.

Moshe Safdie-designed glass-and-stone museum across from the Telfair Academy, built in 2006 and home to the Telfair's contemporary collection plus a children's interactive gallery on the second floor. The atrium itself is one of the better modern spaces in town for a long sit.

Restored 1853 Central of Georgia Railway depot turned contemporary museum, anchored by the Walter O. Evans Collection of African American art and rotating SCAD-curated shows that punch above the city's size. Architecturally one of the better adaptive reuses in the Southeast.

1856 Greek Revival schoolhouse, the first free public school in Georgia, now a small architecture and city-history museum on Calhoun Square. The 3D laser-lit model of the Historic District is the single best 20-minute orientation in town for a first-time visitor.

One of the five grand squares along Bull Street, named for the 1846 Battle of Monterey and dominated by an 1853 Pulaski monument and the Mercer-Williams House on its west side. The most architecturally intact square in the city; locals' favorite.

Bull Street square at the heart of the Historic District, marked by an Oglethorpe statue and best known to outsiders as the Forrest Gump bench location. The actual bench is in the History Museum at Tricentennial Park; the square itself is the more interesting visit.

Tree-shaded square anchored by the twin spires of the Cathedral Basilica, the Andrew Low House, and Flannery O'Connor's childhood home. Quieter than the Bull Street five and one of the best squares for an evening walk.

Victorian-era southernmost square on Habersham Street, one of two Savannah squares with a wedding gazebo at the center and the only one ringed almost entirely by gingerbread Victorians. Quieter and more residential than the Bull Street circuit.

Iron-and-stone walkway system between Bay Street and River Street, where 19th-century cotton brokers ran prices for the Atlantic trade from the brick warehouses still standing. The city's industrial layer is densest here, and the cobblestone descent to the river is steep enough to take seriously.

1850s burial ground west of downtown holding most of the city's antebellum elite, plus a separately segregated Laurel Grove South for African American Savannahians, both still operating cemeteries. Less famous and far less crowded than Bonaventure, with comparable oak canopy.

1773 lighthouse — the oldest and tallest in Georgia — with the original keeper's quarters, fuel house, and a small museum across the road in the 1898 Battery Garland fortification. The whole-day Tybee stop beyond the beach.