Fairhope

Fairhope attracts visitors looking for a big dose of Southern charm. It is better renowned for its stores, cafés, art galleries, gift shops, and seafood restaurants than for its beach. When you're not enjoying Mobile Bay from the 1,448-foot-long pier adjacent to the beach, visit the Eastern Shore Art Center to immerse yourself in the town's art culture. Visit in March, when the town is taken over by the free Fairhope Arts and Crafts Festival.

Along with the normal beach activities of swimming and sunbathing, there are additional things to do at Fairhope to help occupy an afternoon without having to get back in your car. Feed the ducks at the duck pond at the park's northern end; walk the shaded, meandering walks; fish from the pier; and relax under the gazebo while the kids play in the neighboring playground area. Bring binoculars for birdwatching, as the park is a stop on the Alabama Coastal Birding Trail and home to the "Purple Martin Riviera", a chain of enormous birdhouses perched on tall poles close offshore where the migrating Purple Martin swallow stops to nest in spring and summer.