The SNRS Local Planning Committee for the 2025 annual conference has put together some fun things to do, see and visit while you are in Memphis!

For overall information on Fun Things to do while in Memphis please visit   https://www.memphistravel.com/

In addition, below are some of the SNRS Local Planning Committee’s curated suggestions of top Memphis sites.

• While in Memphis, be sure to consider some of the downtown highlights within walking distance of the Peabody Hotel including the National Civil Rights Museum https://www.civilrightsmuseum.org/ , Beale Street with its music and food, the newly renovated Tom Lee Park along the Mississippi River. 

• If you are a music fan, consider exploring the Memphis locations synonymous with the beginnings of  rock and roll and soul music.  Specifically, tour the Memphis Rock’n’Soul Museum (https://www.memphisrocknsoul.org/), Sun Studio https://www.sunstudio.com/ , Elvis Presley’s Graceland https://www.graceland.com/ and the Stax Museum of American Soul Music (https://staxmuseum.org/) .

• For an overview of the numerous Memphis tours available ranging from exploring music to the civil rights movement to African-American culture that shaped Memphis, you might visit https://www.memphistravel.com/trip-ideas/top-memphis-tours.  Some highlighted bus tours include Heritage Tours (https://www.heritagetoursinmemphis.com/) , A Tour of Possibilities (https://www.atopmemphis.com/) and Backbeat Tours (https://www.backbeattours.com/) .

• And, BBQ is an experience all unto itself.  The world-famous Rendezvous Restaurant (https://hogsfly.com/)  is located in an alley across from the Peabody.  But, there are so many more to try!  Be sure to visit https://www.memphistravel.com/eat to begin exploring the best soul food and BBQ in downtown Memphis (although everyone has a different opinion, and they love to share it).

• The South is a place where we can frequently have good weather even in the middle of February.  Keeping that in mind, discover Memphis’s downtown river park for views of the Mississippi River and a place to walk and play. The newly transformed Tom Lee Park( https://www.memphistravel.com/article/experience-mississippi-riverfront-tom-lee-park) is a must. 

• Also, enjoy our local sky bridge over the Mississippi River, called the Big River Crossing (https://www.memphistravel.com/trip-ideas/BigRiverCrossing), where you will feel the safe and sturdy floors, side panels, and railings of an working railroad bridge while you walk over the Mississippi River and look down on the mighty barges as they travel under you. The views of downtown Memphis and the River will take your breath away, plus you will have one foot in Arkansas and one foot in Tennessee. 

• The Orpheum Theatre, AutoZone Park, and FedEx Forum are within walking distance of the Peabody.  To view their upcoming events/schedules, see the following website for Orpheum Theatre https://www.orpheum-memphis.com/); FedEx Forum https://fedexforum.com/events-and-tickets/calendar , and AutoZone Park https://www.milb.com/memphis/ballpark/autozone-park

• Graceland.  The Home of Elvis Presley | Graceland  You've know the music, now see the place Elvis Presley called home. You can explore the beautiful mansion, walk the gardens,  see his airplane and cars, and encounter Elvis Presley's Memphis entertainment complex.   The tour features legendary costumes, artifacts, and personal mementos from Elvis and his family.