We had never been to Montgomery, which some call the birthplace of the civil rights movement. We were pleasantly surprised how much we loved it. The city was quiet, but the people were very friendly.
Loved the top of this building
Before we left, I had figured out where we wanted to go and found some places are not open on some days of the week so we drove or walked by them. You could probably walk to all these places and they were all close to our hotel. We drove to all of them.
Across from our hotel
Make sure to download the Parkmobile app. Each place we went they charged for 2 hours, $1.35. Load your car info in the first time you use the app, and then you type in a code at each location, choose how long you want to park and then pay through the app. Mine is set to my PayPal account.
On the way to Alabama we stopped at Moton Field home of the Tuskegee Airman, the first African American airman for WWII. The museum was closed the day we went but they have a nice area to walk around and learn some history. It is great place for a break from being in the car. Currently in June of 2021 it is open Friday and Saturday 9 am to 4:30 pm for the museum. What you see in the pictures is always open.
Check here for current times
We arranged our stops in order of how to go, so we did not have to go back and forth. Be sure to click on the websites and find out what days each place is open as some were closed on random days of the week.
Once in Montgomery, our first stop was at the First White House of the Confederacy at 644 Washington Ave. The Capitol is across the street. Check on their website for the hours/days as they vary. It is free to go in and you give yourself a tour. There is a small gift shop and restroom here. It is two floors. You do have to pay using the app to park.
Next we went to Dexter Avenue Baptist Church 454 Dexter Ave, where MLK Jr. was pastor from 1954-1960. It was closed to go in due to covid when we went.
Behind it is the Civil Rights Museum at 400 Washington Ave. At the time it was closed due to covid.
The next block over has two of the Dowe Houses, that are from the early 1900's.
As we were driving to the Rosa Parks Museum we just happened to pass a statue of Rosa Parks. We got out to take a picture to find out that was the spot where she boarded the bus at the Court Square Fountain when she refused to give up her seat. There was something about this spot that just really stuck with me.
We then went to the Rosa Parks Museum. Go in the main museum first and get tickets to both the museum and the movie next door in the Rosa Parks Library and Museum Childrens Wing. It was $32 for 2 adults and 1 kid to do both. The museum has a gift shop and a 10 minute movie about life in the 60's. There are seats in there for a few people. The next room has a bus with a movie about Rosa Parks bus ride. Then there are 2 more rooms with historical facts.
Next door is the Rosa Parks Library and a movie about living in that time. They have a few movies so you may get a different one. You go in a bus looking for a place to sit, the movie is on the wall and they do have smoke effects and it movies ever so slightly. The smoke did not bother us at all and barley noticed it. The bus was nice and big inside. Nothing scary and very little movement.
Nearby for lunch is Mellow Mushroom and Wintzells Oyster House. Both have outdoor and indoor seating.
Wintzells Oyster House
Mellow Mushroom
We stayed at the Renaissance Montgomery Hotel and Spa at the Convention Center. They have a restaurant, The House, and a rooftop pool. We got the basic double size room. I got it free from my one free room a year with my Marriott Visa card.
The House Restaurant at the Renaissance Montgomery Hotel
They have indoor and a few outdoor seats here.
The food was great and we would eat here again.
The pizza was take out we got from the bar here one night.
After lunch we went to the Freedom Ride Museum. It is the old Greyhound Bus Terminal that was segregated and the Freedom Riders came to. Dorothy greeted us when we arrived and gave us some many fascinating history facts. She did an amazing job and we were highly impressed with her!! It was, I think, $5 an adult and $2 a child. There are some more facts on the wall that you can look at in order, just look at the numbers. They do not allow pictures to be taken inside and there is no where for elderly to sit. Dorothy was sweet and grabbed a chair for my mom.
If you have young kids that need a fun park to play at check out the Wright Brothers Park at 544 Maxwell Blvd. They are no bathrooms here, but they did have picnic tables and a cute scavenger hunt posters. You can park right near the playground on the street.
We did all the above in one day including having some pool time.
Other places in the area we did not get to see as we needed to go to our next city, so we left early the next day:
Alabama Sate Capitol (they give tours)
Alley (around the corner from the Legacy Museum) and has a few restaurants. There are 2 ways to enter it, one has a big brown water tower near the entrance by the stadium, the other was across from our hotel)
Escapology (A escape room across from our hotel, reserve a head of time if you can)
Hank Williams Museum (was across from our hotel)
Montgomery
We were not sure what to expect coming to Montgomery, but it left a great impression on us and so glad we came here!
To see the other cities we went to on this Texas trip, check out these posts:
Check out my facebook page every Tuesday for a fun new place to take a family vacation!
For our other family trips, check them out here.
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