Top 10 Attractions in Memphis

Popular Memphis sights and tourist spots

• 1 Graceland

  7.3 /10

  

  If you visit Graceland, it's obvious that you are a fan of the legendary singer, Elvis Presley. This is one of America's second most highly visited private homes, second only after the White House that attracts over 60,000 visitors each year.
  
  This white-pillared mansion called Graceland is built in Georgian Colonial style on a 13-acre property and is situated in Memphis, Tennessee ...

  Read more about the Graceland

• 2 Beale Street

  7.3 /10

  

  In 1841, an American entrepreneur and developer Robertson Topp in Memphis, Tennessee, named Beale Street after a military hero. However, its original name wasn't Beale Street but Beale Avenue. At the time, its western end shops of merchants who traded along the Mississippi River, and on its eastern end lived the rich and famous. As time passed, several black musicians performed on this street, of whom the first was the Young Men's Brass Band ...

  Read more about the Beale Street

• 3 National Civil Rights Museum

  7.3 /10

  

  In downtown Memphis, at 450, Mulberry Street is situated the National Civil Rights Museum around which history abounds. In fact, no American can shrug it off because of the deep sentiments attached to it. For it was on the balcony of Lorraine Motel where the American civil rights activist and leader Rev. Martin Luther King was assassinated on April 4, 1968. Today, this is the site of this museum which is constructed in Memphis, Tennessee, USA, around the former Lorraine Motel ...

  Read more about the National Civil Rights Museum

• 4 Pyramid Arena

  7 /10

  

  On the banks of the Mississippi River in downtown Memphis, Tennessee, you're sure to come across the Pyramid Arena—a 20,142-seat arena. Built in 1991 in the shape of a stainless steel pyramid, the original owners were the city of Memphis and Shelby County. Its unique structure is a throwback to the original in Egypt with which it shares its name.
  
  Specifications: It is 98 meters tall and its base sides measure 591 feet ...

  Read more about the Pyramid Arena

• 5 Pink Palace Museum and Planetarium

  7 /10

  

  When looking for something interesting to do in Memphis, Tennessee, go to the Pink Palace Museum and Planetarium – it's a fascinating science and history museum. Originally built in 1923, it was the home of Clarence Saunders, who founded the Piggly Wiggly grocery stores. The house was later donated to Memphis in March 1930 and was called the Memphis Museum of Natural History and Industrial arts.
  
  When visitors spend the day at this Museum and Planetarium, there are several sites to visit as well as activities to do, such as:
  
  1 ...

  Read more about the Pink Palace Museum and Planetarium

• 6 Memphis Brooks Museum of Art

  7 /10

  

  The Memphis Brooks Museum of Art was founded in 1916 and is clearly the oldest art museum in Tennessee, and the original building is a national landmark in America. This is a great place to spend a day and visit the galleries, and participate in the various activities that are available each month. Both traveling exhibits and permanent collections are found in this exceptional museum.
  
  There are several activities that visitors to the Museum of Art can see and participate in, such as:
  
  1 ...

  Read more about the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art

• 7 Memphis in May Festival

  7 /10

  

  Need something to do during of May? Try the Memphis in May Festival. This is a month long celebration highlighting the music of the area, featuring fabulous food that everyone will enjoy, and providing special events that are sure to excite all visitors to the area. Its illustrious history dates back to the 1800s when African American musicians would gather around Beale Street to perform ...

  Read more about the Memphis in May Festival

• 8 Sun Studios

  7 /10

  

  Sam Phillips started Elvis, B.B. King, and many other greats at the most famous Sun Studios in Memphis. It was originally named the Memphis Recording Studio, sharing the same building with Sun Records – quite convenient for everyone. The birthplace of rock and roll began in 1951 with Jackie Brenston and The Delta Cats. Many a songwriter and musician entered these doors and passed into fame ...

  Read more about the Sun Studios

• 9 Mud Island

  7 /10

  

  A really fun place to spend the day is Mud Island – and no, it's not a great place to take a mud bath – in fact it's not even an island, it's a peninsula jutting into the Mississippi River. Opened in 1982, soon became home to restaurants, an amphitheater, a museum, a monorail, and several other attractions that entice guests to linger and enjoy the place.
  
  There are a variety of activities to do in and around Mud Island, with such things as:
  
  1. Harbor Town which is on the northern side and includes the Mississippi River Trail with beautifully manicured jogging trails and sitting areas overlooking the might Mississippi ...

  Read more about the Mud Island

• 10 Memphis Zoo

  7 /10

  

  The Memphis Zoo is a delightful zoo that is home to more than 3500 animals from around the world. It was built in 1906 as part of Overton Park, and sets on 76 acres. It began with 23 simple cages and a row of concrete dens for the bears, expanding over the years by adding an elephant house, a primate habitat, aquarium, and much more.
  
  There are four zones in the Memphis Zoo that visitors can spend a day or two roaming through, such as:
  
  1 ...

  Read more about the Memphis Zoo