'Road-tripping clients will love this lesser-known US state'

American activist Rosa Parks and Lynyrd Skynyrd’s catchy Sweet Home Alabama song are probably the two things that come to mind when you think about the southern US state. With this in mind I joined Andy Facer, the UK representative for the Alabama Tourism Department, and four other USA travel specialists to see what else the destination has to offer.

Starting in Tuscaloosa we saw what this beautiful college town had to offer. Home of Crimson Tide, Alabama Universities American Football team, and one of the best university campuses in the country, this is also where former heavyweight world champion Deontay Wilder was born and raised. Away from sport, the city and university played a huge part in the civil rights movement, and we learnt all about this on a walking tour with people who were there at the time, foot soldiers as they’re known, several were present at Dr Martin Luther King Jr’s speeches.

We enjoyed some typically ‘Southern’ Alabamian cuisine. Dishes like gumbo, seafood soup, and grits, a porridge that can be served with almost anything, including local crawfish and shrimp. Not forgetting the smokehouses and we visited the original Dreamland BBQ joint for their famous ribs.

Heading south we took the road to Mobile. This is a bustling city with lots to offer. Mobile is home of the original Mardi Gras celebration in the USA, and it has many parades during January and February, not as big as its New Orleans neighbour, but just as spectacular and passionate.

An airboat trip through the Mobile Tensaw Delta to see alligators is a must do – this area is widely regarded as America’s Amazon. The recent Netflix film ‘Descendant’ tells the remarkable story of Africatown, on the outskirts of Mobile and has become a tourist attraction in its own right. The Africatown Heritage Museum opens this month and tells the story of Clotilda, the last known US slave ship.

Also in Mobile, you must try a beignet (a deep-fried sweet pastry), thank me later!