Mobile

The French founded Mobile in 1702 as the first capital of Louisiana, before New Orleans existed, and the Mardi Gras tradition came with them - Mobile's celebration predates New Orleans and is still run by mystic societies, which build floats, parade through downtown and hold masked balls. The city has French, Spanish, British and American layers, with a downtown of cast-iron balconies and live oaks. In 2019 the wreck of the Clotilda was confirmed in the Mobile River: the last known ship to bring enslaved Africans to the United States, arriving illegally in 1859 or 1860, whose survivors founded Africatown north of downtown. An exhibition at the Africatown Heritage House tells that history.

The main sights

• The oldest Mardi Gras in the country - predating New Orleans.
• A downtown of cast iron and live oaks - across four colonial layers.
• Africatown - founded by survivors of the Clotilda.
• The Heritage House - an exhibition on the Clotilda.

When to go

October to May; Mardi Gras is in February. A full day.

Good to know

Summer is hot, humid and stormy. Mardi Gras fills the city and closes streets. Africatown sits beside heavy industry and the community has long-standing environmental grievances. Some historic areas are patchy block to block.

Nearby

Dauphin Island is south; the Gulf beaches are east.

Key facts