Mobile, a Great Weekend Getaway

Mobile Alabama Skyline

Mobile, Alabama, a great weekend getaway

Most people I know think of Mobile, Alabama as the place where the tunnel is when driving to the Alabama or Florida beaches. Rosita and I recently took a weekend trip to Mobile.  It is a great place to go for a weekend getaway.  

Renaissance Mobile Riverview Plaza

Marriott has several great hotel options in Mobile 

I travel a good bit because of my job and I have a couple of Marriott credit cards. Marriott is my choice of hotel when I travel and I accumulated a couple of vouchers for free nights. One was a gift from one of my credit cards and the other was a reward for one of their Megabonus promotions and it was going to expire in April. These are in addition to the regular Marriott Rewards points which don’t expire as long as you have some activity in the account.  

Renaissance Mobile Riverview Plaza

Renaissance Mobile Riverview Plaza Hotel was a great choice for us

We decided to use these vouchers and booked a room at the Renaissance Mobile Riverview Plaza Hotel in downtown Mobile. We were rewarded with this decision by being upgraded to a corner room with lots of tall windows on the 27th floor. This room had a fantastic view of the Mobile River and Mobile Bay. The I10 tunnel under the Mobile River was right in front of us, 27 stories below. This view itself was worth the drive to Mobile and deciding to spend a weekend there. We could have had a great time if we had never left the room.  

the Original Oyster House Stuffed Flounder

The Original Oyster House was a good choice for dinner

We arrived in Mobile around 6:30 PM and decided to eat before we checked in. We ate at the Original Oyster House on Battleship Parkway just east of Mobile. We were worried that on a Friday night during lent that we would have trouble getting in. We found a few parking spaces and decided to go for it. The last time we had come here on a Friday night the parking lot was full so we went somewhere else. The wait for a table was less than 30 minutes, which we thought was very good.  

Mardi Gras Park

Mardi Gras Park has colorful statues of Mardi Gras Legends

The next morning, we decided to get up and wander around downtown Mobile. We walked a block away and found the new Mardi Gras Park, a grass field with several statues around it. There are statues of a king and queen of Mardi Gras, and one that appears to be of Louis Armstrong. There is one of Joe Cain dressed as a Native American.  Mardi Gras is celebrated yearly in Mobile on the traditional Fat Tuesday as it is in New Orleans. 

The History Museum of Mobile

The History Museum of Mobile is rich with information about the city

We went across the street and entered The History Museum of Mobile, AL. This is a great place to spend a couple of hours or a whole morning or afternoon. Here you can learn about the founding and growth of Mobile. I never knew that originally Mobile was a little further upriver on a bluff and was moved to its present location in 1711.  

Joe Cain dressed as Chief Slacabamorinico

Joe Cain Revived Mardi Gras in Mobile after the Civil War

Being from New Orleans I had always heard that Mardi Gras originated in Mobile and residents took the celebration to New Orleans. They have a section of the museum dedicated to Mardi Gras.  Joe Crain is credited with reviving the Mardi Gras celebrations in Mobile in 1866 prior to the start of the Lenten season dressed as fictional Chief Slacabamorinico.   

Royal Scam Roasted Duck Panini

The Royal Scam is a good lunch spot

We left the museum and had lunch at the Royal Scam. This is great spot for a quick lunch or a leisurely drink. After lunch we wondered around the downtown area. We didn’t go in but we passed a Firemen’s museum and a police museum.  

Cathedral Square Mobile Alabama

Cathedral Square is a nice park for people watching

We sat in a park for a while and engaged in people watching. All the people we ran into were very friendly and the area has that small-town feel. You sort of feel like you are spending a Sunday afternoon in Mayberry. There are several bars and cafes with outdoor seating. We sat at one for a while, had a drink and an afternoon snack and more people watching.  

GulfQuest Interactive Maritime Museum

The GulfQuest Interactive Maritime Museum is a must see in Mobile

We strolled back to the River and decided to take in the Gulf Quest Interactive Maritime Museum and we sure are glad we did. We got there 2 hours before closing and had just enough time to see most of the exhibits. We had a great time going through the museum and it was one of the highlights of the trip. There were many exhibits of prehistoric marine life. We saw skeletons of some huge ancient fish and turtles, some that looked like early whales. Since Mobile sits on the Gulf and the intercostal Canal, it plays an interesting part in shipping. I found out that the containers you see on ships, trains and trucks were invented in Mobile. We got to remotely drive tugboats and sailboats.  

GulfQuest Museum Remote Salilboat

Interactive exhibits at the museum are fun.

Who knew that my wife knows how to steer a toy sailboat. Maybe a new hobby for her!  I had a blast driving a coast guard simulator across Mobile Bay and up the Mobile River. The attendant said it was an actual model of the simulator Coast Guard pilots train on. On the top floor you can go outside on a balcony and have amazing views of the Mobile River. The people working in the museum were very polite and very professional. You could tell they take great pride in their museum and they should as it was a great time spent.  

Noja Restaurant Mobile Alabama

Go to Noja Restaurant on N Jackson Street for a great dining experience

After the museum it was time to get ready for dinner. We visited Mobile last year and I spent some time choosing a restaurant to dine at on Saturday night. This time I didn’t have to as we  returned to Noja on North Jackson Street, a few doors north of Daphne Street. And it was just as good this time as it was last year.  

Noja Lamb Chops

The Lamb Chops at Noja are delicious

We started out with a nice bottle of red wine and had scallops for an appetizer. Rosita had Lamb Chops and I had a New York Strip. When the waitress told us that the chef’s special dessert was a raspberry, chocolate covered pasta, (yes you read that right) we had to order it!  We like trying new things and we’re glad that we did as it was good!   If you are in downtown Mobile and are looking for a restaurant , I highly recommend Noja. You will enjoy it, no matter what kind of food you prefer.  

Mobile River and Mobile Bay

Mobile is a great Weekend or longer Getaway

We had a very nice weekend in Mobile and found it a very pleasant get out of town getaway. It is a 2-hour drive from our home which makes it a nice drive, not too far but not too close. If you are visiting New Orleans for a vacation and have a couple of days you are trying to fill, consider Mobile.  

USS Alabama

The USS Alabama is a top attraction in Mobile

There are a couple of places we were planning on visiting but didn’t make it. The USS Alabama is docked just west of Mobile and is an excellent place to spend an afternoon. I went through the ship several years ago and remember being fascinated with it. One thing I do remember is that the shells fired out of the massive guns on the ship have the same mass of a Volkswagen Beetle, imagine that hitting you or the building you are in! On Sunday Morning driving home, we had planned to visit Bellingrath Gardens and Home. It was on our way home and as we turned off the interstate a downpour hit us and we decided we didn’t want to wander through gardens in the rain. Our waiter Sunday morning told us he was not allowed to visit anymore because he was caught picking flowers. We weren’t sure if he was yanking our chain or not but he did pique our interest. On our next trip we will have Bellingrath Gardens and Home and the USS Alabama at the top or our visit list.  

Mardi Gras Park, Mobile, Alabama

Start Planning Your Trip

So Start Planning Your Trip to Mobile, Alabama 

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