Queer and Paranormal in Savannah, Georgia

A Pleasant Surprise

An unexpected trip to Savannah was very pleasant and not at all the conservative tourist nightmare that I thought it would be. The locals were welcoming and proud of their colorful – and occasionally eyebrow raising – history, our lodging was satisfactory, and there was more to experience in the city than my husband and I could fit into a 3 day weekend vacation.

• Why Visit Savannah?
• Husband’s Take
• Ghost Tours
• Historic Homes
• Plant-Riverside District
• Broughton
• Forsyth Park
• Food
• Club One
• Lodging

Pride Flags, Ghost Tours, and a Successful Marriage 

Out of all the cities in the world, why would a queer black man choose to visit Savannah, Georgia? That’s the question that immediately entered my mind when my husband floated the idea of a weekend in the city of ~148,000 people, located on the southeastern coast of the State of Georgia. And if anyone else had asked I’d have quickly said, “No,” and moved on with my life. But since the suggestion came from the man that I willingly chose to marry I had to consider it. Let that be a warning to all you singles. Marriage complicates things – especially vacation planning.

So instead of dismissing the idea entirely, we sat down on the couch to talk it through. And as you would expect – the conversation eventually came down to dollars and cents.

My husband is a practical man who wants to retire someday. He “wants to retire someday” so he works a good job. He “wants to retire someday” so when the job asked him to spend a week in Savannah for a project he said yes. And because he “wants to retire someday” he thought that it would be a good idea for me to join him in Savannah for a few days after his work project ended so that we could save a little money on a weekend getaway.

I was reluctant for a number of reasons: I’m busy with the show, I’m busy with the podcast, we’d have to get a dog sitter, it would be too hot down there in June, and so on. All the usual overworked Midwestern millennial reasons.

Added to that – there’s something about revisiting the past that does not appeal to me. I’ve been to Savannah plenty of times. I grew up in the South and moved to the Midwest to get away from the South so – in my mind – the days of me taking weekend trips to Savannah, Georgia were long gone. But – *deep, resigned sigh* – one of the secrets to a successful marriage is being willing to revisit past decisions for the sake of your partner’s happiness. My husband is a good guy, he works really hard at his career, I love spending time with him and – importantly – he said that he’d pay for the hotel.

So off to Savannah I went. And guess what – I’m glad that I did!

Let’s first acknowledge that all of my concerns were well founded. I did miss time that I could have spent working on the show and podcast. We did have to get a dog sitter. The heat and humidity were oppressive and I definitely sweated through all of my clothes but – as the weekend wore on – I found myself setting out into the day again and again because the sights and experiences were worth the sweat.

Savannah has developed since my time there in the early 2000s. The city has preserved both important and controversial historic markers while also allowing for the development of nearby shopping and tourism districts. The historic squares are micro-parks with old trees and markers for people that contributed to Savannah’s history. Too many of those markers are for old white men because – in their time – those were the people whose actions society chose to remember. There are, however, also markers for indigenous people and people of color. I spent far more time in those historic squares than in the others and – if you visit – I encourage you to do the same.

Since I do produce content about personal growth and development, it’s no surprise that I have also changed since my last visit to Savannah. My memories of the city are centered around field-trip friendly activities like the cheap sections of gift shops with confederate flag shot glasses or discount pizza chains. The things that little black boys remember.

Now as a black queer adult visiting in 2023 I saw far more Pride and Progressive Pride flags flying than those old stars and bars. The food offerings were varied and tasty. Shopping was plentiful. For instance, when I needed to buy a sun hat I had my choice of cheesy beach sandal shops, large chains like Banana Republic, or smaller boutiques. And there were more transplants to Savannah than I expected! Our two favorite bartenders were both transplants – one from Colorado and the other from New York.

Savannah was full of surprises and I’m glad that I gave the city a chance. And I might even go back again, especially if my husband is the one paying.

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What to do (and not to do) in Savannah

Ghost Tours: Savannah has a strong association with the Southern Gothic to the extent that there are dedicated: ghost trolley tours, brewing company paranormal investigation tours, 3 hour haunted theater tours, ghost city walking tours and so on. We chose a two-hour walking tour called The Witching Hour that took us to Tomochichi’s historic square, Colonial Park Cemetery, and The Marshall House. Our tour guide let us handle instruments that have some association with the paranormal and told some pretty great tales. My husband ate it up and it was a highlight of the weekend.

Historic Homes: Midnight in the Garden helped put Savannah on the map for tourism. The home of the book and movie’s central character is the Mercer Williams House. The 35 minute tour is very informative as to the history of the house and its previous owners. The tour is more informative than thrilling but you’ll leave the tour with a far more intimate view of Savannah’s history that you might otherwise receive.

There are many other homes to visit (per ThisIsMySouth.com):

• Harper-Fowlkes House
• Davenport House
• Andrew Low House
• Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace
• Flannery O’Connor Childhood Home
• Green Meldrim House
• Owen Thomas House & Enslaved Quarters

Plant-Riverside: The site of a power plant has been converted into an entertainment district with over a dozen restaurants and food venues. The district boasts riverfront views, a river-walk, live entertainment, kids’ entertainment, retail, and hotels. The district just opened in the Summer of 2020 and still has that new-development smell! The juxtaposition between the historic squares and the brand new development is delightful! We really loved Savannah’s commitment to preserving history while also making way for  the new.

Broughton Street: We loved this pedestrian-friendly street full of retail, coffee and snack shops, museums, and more. In fact, we came back several times to walk down the street, peek into the shops, and maybe do a little light shopping. We did not wait in line for ice cream at Leopolds (I cannot abide a line) but lots of other people were into it! Do yourself a favor and walk down the shady side of the street.

Forsyth Park: We walked through Savannah’s 30-acre Forsyth Park on a Saturday morning. The largest crowd had gathered in between a lane of stalls at what turned out to be a farmer’s market. We were able to grab some peaches that had just been picked the day before (peaches are extremely rare in 2023), a cranberry-granola breakfast cookie, and samples of poetry, pet caricatures, and other unexpected offerings. 

You’ll definitely note the large white fountain modeled after the fountains at the Place de la Concorde in Paris. But make sure that you also check out the concert and event space that also serves as a splash pad for kids on Savannah’s frequent hot days.

Food: You’ll have PLENTY of options for food in Savannah. We did not partake in any traditional fine dining but we were very well fed all the same. The nicest dining experience took place at The Fitzroy. We drank wine, shared apps, and dined on their cozy rooftop. 

We had our favorite meal on the last night of the trip after days of sweat and history and good times. Right at the intersection of being ready to go home and wanting one last experience. Luckily we were already in the Plant-Riverside District so we had lots of options to choose from and – on a whim – we chose Graffito.

It was perfect. The staff was friendly, courteous, and attentive. When we ordered a carafe of wine the bartender accidentally poured an extra glass and provided it to us at no additional charge. The woodfired pizza was the perfect portion size for an adult male. Everything was so great that we ordered dessert because we really didn’t want to leave. The tiramisu was delicious and if I were in Savannah right now I’d walk over to Graffito and order it again.

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In my DMs

Sometimes friends chime in with suggestions or thoughts when I post to Instagram stories. In this case Jordan Dasher sent suggestions over DM and Zaylore Stout confirmed that ghost tours are the thing to do when you’re in Savannah!

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Night Life: Oof! Well, I found out the hard way that Savannah has a great night-life scene. We went to Club One. The club is the former home of The Lady Chablis – who had a scene stealing role in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil – so we took in a Saturday night drag show. The show was enjoyable but unremarkable. After the drag show we took to the dance floor, tipped some go-go boys, and made our way back to the hotel. People were still arriving as we were leaving so I can only imagine that the dance floor grew more fun and more crowded and the night went on. 

Lodging: We stayed in two different hotels during our time in Savannah. The first hotel is located near the airport and caters to business travelers. The second hotel is located on the border of the city’s historic district.

Doubletree by Hilton Hotel Savannah Airport

I spent one night and one day at the DoubleTree Hotel near the Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport. The location of the hotel is only 5 minutes away from the airport so it feels incredibly convenient. It’s tough to say anything negative about the hotel because I arrived after my husband had been in the hotel for 5 days. That said, the one bad mark that I noticed is that the air conditioning unit in the room was very dusty, as were the shelves that separated the bedroom from the office area. But that’s the only negative thing that comes to mind.

Otherwise the DoubleTree was more than adequate. The rooms were spacious and the staff was very welcoming. The workout room was spacious with treadmills and free weights. For the savvy business customer, there was an AV hookup in the room – that surprised me. I might have packed an extra HDMI cord if I’d known that I could connect from the desk to the television through a dedicated control panel.

Aloft Savannah Downtown Historic District

We spent 4 days and 3 nights at the Aloft hotel. The hotel is very close to the historic district so we returned the rental car and walked everywhere that we wanted to go. 

The hotel has a contemporary modern design and that is reflected in the rooms. They are smaller than the rooms at the DoubleTree but somehow felt more efficient. Everything from the designer wallpaper to the throw pillows seemed intentionally designed to be just-so. It felt like a splurge when it was actually less per night than the previous hotel.

The pool was large enough to take a few laps in and the gym was serviceable. Laundry is on-site but you have to pay in quarters which is a little weird for 2023. There is an all day coffee and tea bar in the lobby and games for people to play: jenga, connect-4, checkers, etc. We spent most of our time at the coffee but definitely made time for a nightcap. Our bartender was fun and chatty and we got the sense that she didn’t want us to leave.

One last thing – the hotel is pet friendly! Aloft hotels allow pets up to 40lbs for no additional fee! So maybe next time we can bring our dog on our weekend trip!

Final Thoughts 

Husband: There are a few reasons to go back. We skipped the beach. And there’s supposed to be a lot of great golf. Plus we can stay at one of the haunted hotels next time!

Jerome: I’d go back to Savannah but there are a lot of other places that I’d like to see first!