After visiting Charleston, we drove a little over two hours to Savannah, Georgia. We chose to stay at The Cotton Sail Hotel Savannah. It’s located right on the Savannah River, so we booked a room with river views. After dropping our bags off, we bought tickets to the Hop on, Hop off Trolley Tour. Based on the price I’m seeing on Expedia, I should have bought our tickets on Expedia, instead of from the guy in the lobby. (Oh well, live and learn.)
To board the tour, we walked over to the City Market, just a few blocks away and didn’t wait long before the next trolley arrived. The tour stopped at 15 different places with the operator giving fun facts and places to go all through the ride. We ended up staying on for the full 90 minutes (instead of hopping on and off). At the tourist center there was a brief 15 minute pause while the trolley switched drivers. We enjoyed the tour, feeling like it gave us a nice overview of Savannah being this was our first visit.
Savannah Riverfront and Shops
After the bus tour, we checked into our room and then took the elevator downstairs to explore the Savannah Riverfront. There are a lot of shops and places to visit. We stopped into Gallery 209 and Christmas on the River and picked up a couple of things to remember our trip. We passed by the Historic Steps, but didn’t walk up and down them. (Although you can if you’d like.) We didn’t walk down to the River Street Marketplace, but that looks like a fun place to visit if you like to shop.
For dinner we decided to eat at Huey’s. There were plenty of tables open since it was off peak dinner hours. We both had a pint and then I chose to have the Shrimp and Grits and my husband had the Jambalaya. We were both stuffed and happy with the delicious meals.
Our Stay at The Cotton Sail Hotel Savannah
After dinner and our walk we headed back to the hotel. The first room we stayed in was more industrial/warehouse-like with tall windows and a small balconies facing the river. This is the view to the right off the small balcony.
And this is the view to the left.
After we settled in, we decided to go to The Top Deck Bar in the hotel for drinks and to hear some live music without having to leave the hotel. The service was great, the drinks good, the music enjoyable and we also got to see the moonrise from the outside deck.
After drinks we returned to our room. Night was upon us and the view was very pretty.
But unfortunately the heat in the room wasn’t working (gasp) and that night just happened to be on the colder side. After the room temp dropped below 63 in the room we opted to switch rooms to one without a view. We were credited $50 for the room difference and as an apology we also got a $30 breakfast voucher. (That was nice of the front desk staff.)
The new room looked about the same as first upgraded one, but without the taller ceiling and the view. The photo below shows the parking lot view from the second room. It also didn’t open up to a small balcony – which is understandable – I wouldn’t want to hang out here. In my opinion, these photos show how it’s worth it to upgrade to a room with a view – especially if its a short stay.
The next morning we had breakfast at The Nest Rooftop Lounge, you’ll see their version of Avocado Toast with scrambled egg. The atmosphere of The Nest was very cool, with lots of greenery and fun lighting. We probably wouldn’t have gone there, if it wasn’t for the voucher but I am glad we did.
After breakfast we checked our bags at the front desk for safe keeping and strolled back to the City Market to check out the stores. On the way, I was taken by the Live Oaks with Spanish Moss. While in a store called Sea Bags, known for their recycled bags and totes made from sails, the store clerk recommended we go see the Live Oaks that were planted at the Wormsloe State Historic Site. So off we went!
Wormsloe State Historic Site
Wormsloe State Historic Site features a walkable one-mile avenue lined with over 400 Live Oak Trees that was planted by Noble Jones. (If you don’t want to walk there is a trolley that takes you from the visitor center to the museum and back.) But first, let’s set a couple of expectations…
- There isn’t a historic home to visit. There are ruins that are way back on the property that I didn’t choose to visit. There is a home on the part of the property that is owned by the descendants.
- The museum is small. There’s only two rooms and mostly features artifacts of what was found on the site with some information about the family history. There’s not a lot of information about indigenous people who formerly utilized the land or the enslaved people who worked the plantation.
However, if you want to see a nice avenue of Live Oaks with the dripping Spanish Moss, I think its worth the $12 adult admission price. I wanted to take pictures and experience the wonder of walking through a mile of them. There are trails further back on the property after the trolley and the museum, including trails that lead to ruins of Noble Jones’s original fortified residence and the Jones family burial ground.
For more information about the history of Wormsloe, click here to read the article.
Things we plan to do next time we’re in Savannah
- Go on a Savannah River Boat Cruise
- Visit the Telfair Museums
- Stay at the River Street Inn
- Spend time at Forsythe Park
- Attend an event or just get a beer at The Service Brewing Company
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