Birmingham

Consider visiting Birmingham if you're touring Alabama and trying to please a variety of travel personalities. The state's most populous city is located in north-central Alabama and has plenty of things to do for families, history buffs, and outdoor enthusiasts.

Birmingham cannot be mentioned without mentioning its significance in the Civil Rights Movement. The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute features an extensive collection of oral histories, as well as a recreation of a 1950s segregated city and the real jail cell door behind which Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote his "Letter from Birmingham Jail." The 16th Street Baptist Church and the Bethel Baptist Church, both of which were bombed during the Civil Rights Movement, are also on the Birmingham Civil Rights Trail.

Birmingham has many treasures for collectors of well-preserved vintage artifacts, including the 1927 Alabama Theatre, which houses a Wurlitzer pipe organ. The Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum has the largest collection of motorcycles in the United States (and possibly the world), with approximately 500 motorcycles on display at any given time. Consider visiting Birmingham's Railroad Park, Birmingham Botanical Gardens, or even the Birmingham Zoo for some fresh air.

Location: in the north-central region of the U.S. state of Alabama.

Tripadvisor rating: 4.5/5

Best times to visit: spring and fall, from March through May or September through November