Your Savannah CME conference.

Savannah after your study day

Study days finish at 2:00 PM Savannah time. For an easy afternoon, choose one outing near your study setting: a walk through the squares, an hour in Forsyth Park, or a stroll along River Street. Leave time for afternoon thunderstorms in summer, and check hours for museums and historic houses, since many keep their own days.

Travel, accommodation and attraction admission are arranged separately. Your conference follows your specialty and interests on your own phone or laptop; the city is simply the setting you choose for it.

Squares, streets and the river

The Historic Landmark District is a walkable area of restored 18th- and 19th-century homes, museums, monuments, boutiques and more than 100 restaurants, with over 20 park squares, many anchored by statues and monuments. Chippewa Square is the site of the climactic scene of Forrest Gump. Lafayette Square is near the Andrew Low House Museum and the Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist.

Jones Street is a brick-lined street often named the prettiest in Savannah. River Street is a former cotton port, now lined with shops, restaurants and nightlife, with cobblestones and stone benches along the riverwalk. The tourism board also lists walking tours, trolley rides, carriage rides, ghost tours and riverboat cruises, so decide how much of the afternoon you want on foot.

Museums and historic houses

Visit Savannah says Telfair Museums is home to the oldest public art museum in the Southeast, and the Jepson Center downtown houses the Telfair Museum of Art and a children’s art museum. The SCAD Museum of Art is also listed among the district’s museums.

The Davenport House Museum is in one of the oldest brick structures in the city and shows how a household lived in the 1800s. The Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace Museum marks the birthplace of the founder of Girl Scouts of the USA. Pin Point Heritage Museum, near the Moon River, offers a look at the Gullah-Geechee community. Compare each museum’s hours with your 2:00 PM finish.

Forsyth Park and the Victorian District

Forsyth Park dates to the 1840s and covers 30 acres, with oak trees, tennis and basketball courts, a playground, an amphitheater and a central fountain. The park also has a Fragrant Garden.

The Victorian District around it spans about 50 blocks and is known as Savannah’s original suburb. Along Bull and Whitaker Streets, 19th-century houses have turrets, towers, bay windows and bright colors. Starland Yard, once an industrial area, is listed for its restaurants, events, games and live entertainment.

Bonaventure, Wormsloe and Fort Pulaski

Bonaventure Cemetery is a Victorian cemetery on a peninsula just outside the Historic District, known for winding pathways and spring azaleas.

Wormsloe State Historic Site is the colonial estate of Noble Jones, a carpenter who arrived with James Oglethorpe. A live oak avenue about 1.4 miles long leads to the tabby ruins, one of the oldest standing structures in Savannah, and a museum displays artifacts found on the site. A nature trail runs past the ruins along the marsh, and leashed pets are allowed on the trails but not in buildings.

Fort Pulaski National Monument is a masonry fort on Cockspur Island near Savannah, where rifled cannons forced a surrender during the Civil War. The Cockspur Island Lighthouse still stands over the south channel of the Savannah River. Hiking and biking are among the park’s activities.

Tybee Island

Tybee Island is Savannah’s beach town, about 20 minutes from the Historic District according to the tourism board. It has a historic lighthouse and local bars and restaurants, and the board describes locally caught seafood and historic sites. Plan it as its own outing rather than adding it to a downtown afternoon.

When to visit Savannah

Visit Savannah describes spring, when the azaleas bloom and temperatures sit comfortably in the 70s, as a favorite time of year. Summers are hot and sultry, with afternoon thunderstorms and temperatures in the 80s and 90s. Fall brings a respite from the heat, and winter highs hover in the 50s and 60s, rarely falling below freezing. Hurricane season runs from June to November, so check the forecast if you travel in that stretch.

Getting to Savannah and your study setting

Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport (SAV) is the arrival point shown in this guide, at 400 Airways Avenue; the tourism board puts it 15 miles from the Historic Landmark District. Amtrak stops at the Savannah station, and Interstate 95 and Interstate 16 connect the city by road. Choose your accommodation and ground transport with both your study setting and your plans outside study hours in mind.

The map shows straight-line distances from Shift’s designated center. These are orientation distances, not driving distances or travel-time estimates. Check your exact address against the conference’s check-in area before booking.