Things To Do In Savannah, GA

Things to do in Savannah are abundant and varied. Although the city is best known for its historic sights – particularly its beautiful parks and squares and the architecture of the Historic District – there are plenty of other attractions in Savannah that cater to all kinds of preferences.

Sightseeing in Savannah often centers around its many historic houses, picturesque old cemeteries, and downtown tourist attractions such as River Street and Ellis Square/City Market, but there are also quaint neighborhoods such as riverside Isle of Hope, a wealth of African-American history sites, two botanical gardens, and night-time ghost tours, or you could go antique hunting or enjoy a round of golf.

Savannah also has a vibrant food scene, with many great restaurants, fresh seafood, riverfront dining and a host of regional specialties, with several guided food tours offering a taste of the highlights. Art is big in Savannah too, with several art museums and dozens of galleries showing the work of local artists.

Entertainment in Savannah ranges from musical shows and national-tour concerts and performances to local comedy and theater, and a full event calendar featuring some of Georgia’s best food and music festivals and a huge St Patrick’s Day parade.

→ See upcoming Savannah events in January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, or December

Outdoor activities in Savannah include kayaking the scenic marshes, hiking in nearby Skidaway Island State Park or Savannah National Wildlife Refuge, dolphin-watching boat tours, or a day trip to a secluded barrier island such as Little Tybee Island or Wassaw National Wildlife Refuge.

There are also several beaches near Savannah, the closest of which, at Tybee Island, are only 30 minutes away by car. Other things to do near Savannah include visits to charming Bluffton or Beaufort, historic forts such as Fort Pulaski or Fort Jackson, African-American cultural attractions such as Pin Point Heritage Museum or Sapelo Island, or enjoying the best of lowcountry cuisine at one of the area’s several seafood festivals.

Guided Tours Of Savannah

Trolley tours – Narrated overview tours of the Historic District.
Walking tours – Guided tours of a smaller area of the Historic District, either general interest or focusing on a special aspect of the city’s history.
Architecture tours – Walking tours of Savannah focused on the architecture and antebellum mansions of the Historic District.
Black history tours – African-American history of Savannah, from enslavement to freedom.
Ghost tours – Ghost stories from Savannah’s haunted past, including after-dark and adult-only tours.
Comedy tours – A fun approach to Savannah’s history.
Carriage tours – Narrated horse-drawn carriage tours of the Historic District.
Food and drink tours – Guided tours focusing on aspects of Savannah’s culinary history and culture.
Civil War tours – Military history and Savannah’s experiences in the Civil War.
Midnight and movie tours – Locations and history associated with the best-selling book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil and Savannah’s movie industry.

Museums In Savannah

Savannah offers several museums, primarily concerning aspects of local history. A couple of these museums, while bearing Savannah addresses, are located somewhat outside of the Historic District. Their distance from downtown is noted. For more museums that are near to, but not in, Savannah, see below.

General Savannah & American History

Savannah History Museum – Overview of Savannah’s historic achievements, attached to the Visitor Information Center.
Massie Heritage Center – Focus on Savannah’s architectural heritage and educational history, plus other miscellaneous aspects of the city’s history.
American Prohibition Museum – Museum of the history of prohibition in the United States.

African-American History

Ralph Mark Gilbert Civil Rights Museum – History of segregation and the Civil Rights Movement in Savannah.
King-Tisdell Cottage – History of African-American lives and labor in Savannah and the lowcountry.
Pin Point Heritage Museum (12 miles) – History of Savannah’s Gullah-Geechee community of Pin Point, which grew up around the seafood processing industry.

Military History

Webb Military Museum – Private but extensive collection of military artifacts and uniforms from the Civil War onwards.

Transport History

Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum – Savannah’s maritime history, with model ships and other maritime artifacts.
Georgia State Railroad Museum – The railroad in Savannah, with historic locomotives and former railroad shop buildings.

Other Local History & Specialty Museums

Graveface Museum – Museum of serial killer history and other assorted oddities, including a collection of playable pinball machines.
SCADstory – Immersive 4D experience exploring the history of the Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah.

Art Museums

Savannah’s art museums

SCAD Museum of Art – Contemporary art in a historic former railroad buidling, operated by the Savannah College of Art and Design.
Telfair Academy – Traditional art in a William Jay-designed antebellum mansion.
Jepson Center – The contemporary complement to the Telfair Academy, opposite.
Beach Institute – African-American art, with a special focus on the works of local folk artist Ulysses Davis.
Savannah African Art Museum – Recently-opened museum showcasing a private collection of art works from the African continent.

Historic House Museums

Savannah’s historic house museums

Andrew Low House – Classic antebellum home, former residence of Juliette Gordon Low.
Davenport House – One of Savannah’s earliest preservation triumphs, restored to reflect the life of a middle class family in the 1820s.
Green-Meldrim House – Gothic Revival mansion designed by John Norris, occupied by General Sherman during the Civil War.
Harper-Fowlkes House – Charles Cluskey-designed Greek Revival mansion; tours tell the story of one of Savannah’s leading preservationists.
Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace – Devoted to the life and works of the founder of the Girl Scouts of the USA.
Owens-Thomas House & Slave Quarters – William Jay’s Regency masterpiece, whose interpretation explores the lives of the people enslaved there.
Mercer-Williams House – Savannah’s most famous historic house, as featured in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.
Flannery O’Connor Childhood Home – Depression-era historic house, former home of well-known southern author Flannery O’Connor.
Sorrel-Weed House – Private restoration, claims to be haunted.

Architecture & Historic Attractions

History & Architecture

River Street – Savannah’s historic river front, its old warehouses now occupied by shops and restaurants.
Jones Street – Said to be Savannah’s prettiest street, lined with live oaks and 19th-century homes.
Factor’s Walk – One of Savannah’s most unusual architectural features, where numerous footbridges connect Bay Street to the former warehouse buildings that front on the river.
Battlefield Park – Memorial site for the 1779 Siege of Savannah, with reconstructed redoubt.

Places Of Worship

Cathedral of St John the Baptist – Striking inside and out, this Cathedral has the best collection of religious murals in the South.
First African Baptist Church – One of the country’s oldest African-American congregations, with guided tours available.
Congregation Mickve Israel – One of the oldest Jewish congregations in the United States, with guided tours and a small museum.
Other historic places of worship – Savannah’s many beautiful and historic places of worship, some dating back to the 19th century.

Parks & Squares

The squares – 22 small parks, each with a different character, distributed throughout the Historic District.
Forsyth Park – One of the oldest and prettiest urban parks in the United States.

Cemeteries

Colonial Park Cemetery – 18th century cemetery, one of the oldest surviving landmarks in Savannah.
Bonaventure Cemetery – Savannah’s most beautiful and famous 19th-century cemetery.
Laurel Grove North Cemetery – Savannah’s “other” 19th-century landscaped cemetery.
Laurel Grove South Cemetery – Burial place of Savannah’s African-Americans from slavery through to the present day.

African-American Heritage

Black history sites – Savannah’s African-American heritage sites and attractions.

Historic Neighborhoods

Victorian District – Just south of the Savannah’s main Historic District, this neighborhood is home to some of the city’s best late-19th-century architecture.
Starland District – Savannah’s newest arts district, centered around the old Starland Dairy out along Bull Street.
Isle of Hope – Charming historic suburb on the banks of the Skidaway River.

Other Things To Do In Savannah

Escape Rooms

Savannah has several escape rooms, at which participants need to solve a series of puzzles in order to be allowed out of the – usually themed – room.

Escape Savannah offers haunted and pirate themed rooms; The Escape Company has serial killer, murder, Alcatraz, cavern and speakeasy themed rooms; Encryption Escape has pirate, heist and missing person themed rooms.

Shopping In Savannah

Savannah’s main downtown shopping area is Broughton Street, with a selection of chain and local stores and restaurants. Additional shops and boutique offerings are distributed throughout the Historic District and beyond, with dozens of antiques stores, art galleries, and places to shop for specialty foods, books, home decor, clothing and many other things besides.

If you are looking for a typical souvenir, head to River Street or City Market, which both have many tourist-oriented shops selling a variety of knick-knacks and mementos to suit most tastes and budgets.

Savannah also has several large malls offering the usual range of big chain stores, including Oglethorpe Mall, Savannah Mall and Tanger Outlets.

Golf Courses In Savannah

Savannah offers several public golf courses, and semi-private golf courses accessible to the public, in and near the city.

On Hutchinson Island, across the river from downtown Savannah, is the Club at Savannah Harbor. 9-hole courses nearby include Mary Calder Golf Club and the Legends Course at city-owned Bacon Park Golf Course (at which there is also an 18-hole course).

Other golf courses in Savannah include the Hunter Golf Course at the Hunter Army Airfield (open to the civilian public), LaVida Golf Club, Crosswinds Golf Club, and Henderson Golf Club (owned by Chatham County).

Things To Do Near Savannah – History & Culture

Military History

National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force (Pooler, 12 miles) – The Eighth Air Force from WWII to the present day, with several historic military aircraft.
Fort Jackson (4 miles) – Georgia’s oldest surviving brick fort.
Fort Pulaski National Monument (Tybee Island, 15 miles) – Well-preserved brick fort, site of the Civil War Battle of Fort Pulaski.
Fort McAllister State Park (Richmond Hill, 29 miles) – Civil War-era earthwork fort, with museum and nature trails.

African-American History

Penn Center (St Helena Island, SC, 49 miles) – Historic site and museum interpreting the history of the Reconstruction Era Penn School and local Gullah/Geechee culture.

Maritime & Transport History

Tybee Island Lighthouse and Museum (Tybee Island, 17 miles) – 19th-century lightstation and keeper’s house, with attached museum of Tybee Island’s history.
Savannah-Ogeechee Canal Museum (17 miles) – Restored section of the 19th-century Savannah-Ogeechee Canal and its locks, with museum (limited hours) and nature trails.

Other Local History

Wormsloe Historic Site (9 miles) – Colonial-era plantation ruins, nature trails and a live oak avenue.
Richmond Hill History Museum (Richmond Hill, 20 miles) – History of Richmond Hill and its association with the famous industrialist Henry Ford.
Ebenezer Living History Museum (Rincon, 27 miles) – Small museum operated by the Georgia Salzburger Society, outlining the history of the area’s Salzburger settlers.

Things To Do Near Savannah – Nature & Outdoors

Beaches & Seafront Communities

Tybee Island (18 miles) – The nearest seafront town to Savannah, with miles of beach, a pier and several major annual events.

Botanical, Ecology & Wildlife Attractions

Oatland Island Wildlife Center (6 miles) – Displays of Georgia wildlife and farm animals.
Coastal Georgia Botanical Gardens (13 miles) – Botanical gardens with large bamboo display and one of the best collections of camellias in the country.
Savannah Botanical Gardens (8 miles) – 10 acres of gardens and nature trails.
Tybee Island Marine Science Center (17 miles) – Displays of local sealife and natural history, plus special programs on aspects of Tybee’s barrier island environment.

Kayaking, Paddleboarding & Boat Trips

Little Tybee Island – Unspoiled nature preserve, easily accessible by boat tour or kayak from the town of Tybee Island.
Wassaw Island – Secluded National Wildlife Refuge, accessible by boat or kayak.
Ossabaw Island – Nature preserve and cultural heritage site, accessible by boat or kayak.
Ebenezer Creek (Rincon, 27 miles) – Tranquil blackwater swamp north of Savannah, an ideal kayaking or paddleboarding destination.
Kayak, canoe and paddleboard tours – A great way to explore the marshes and creeks around Savannah.
Watersports and equipment rentals – Where to rent kayaks and other equipment or take watersports lessons in the Tybee-Skidaway area.
Boat tours – Dolphin and nature tours, plus boat charters, in the Savannah-Skidaway-Tybee area.

State Parks, Trails & Refuges

Skidaway Island State Park (14 miles) – Scenic marshes, maritime forest and boardwalks, not far from Savannah.
Savannah National Wildlife Refuge (Hardeeville, 9 miles) – Enormous wildlife refuge on the site of former rice plantations along the Savannah River.
McQueens Island Trail (currently closed) (10 miles) – Hiking and biking trail along the bank of the Savannah River.
Nature attractions near Savannah – Other nature and outdoors attractions in coastal Georgia and vicinity.

Things To Do Near Savannah – Other Activities

Tybee Post Theater (Tybee Island, 17 miles) – Theater hosting a variety of concerts, shows, talks and other performances by local and touring artists.
The Combat Zone (Bloomingdale, 18 miles) – Paintball center.
Helicopter tours – Tours offering an aerial perspective on Savannah, Tybee Island or Hilton Head.