Savannah Trolley Tour

Three times the charm, and I am now officially obsessed with Old Town Trolley Tours. I actually went on the Savannah Trolley Tour on my last day in the city, which may have been a mistake because it gave me so many great ideas for things to do and places to visit, that I wished I had more time!

The tour starts at the Savannah Visitor Center where they give you a sticker (so everyone knows you’re a tourist), and you take a seat on the old-style wooden benches lining the trolley. My first driver was John, and as we set off from the Visitor Center we learned about the history of Savannah (founded in 1733), and the friendship between founder James Oglethorpe and Native tribe leader Tomochichi.

The tour took us through Savannah’s Historic District, one of the oldest and largest historic districts in the United States, to stop number 2; the Independent Presbyterian Church (also known as the church featured in the opening credits of Forrest Gump). Many famous movies have been filmed in Savannah, including Something To Talk About starring Julia Roberts and Dennis Quaid, which involved a famous scene outside the Six Pence Pub – a British themed pub!

Stop 3 was the Sorrel-Weed House, supposedly the most haunted house in the US, and stop 4 was Forsyth Park, featuring the most photographed spot in all of Savannah, its fountain (bought from a catalog in New York). Around the southern part of the city we learnt about the beautiful buildings and architecture, in particular those designed and built by John Norris, and the Telfair Women’s Hospital where no man is allowed to set foot (except for babies who are born there, but even they have to be out within 3 days).

Stop 5 was the Massie Heritage Center, which brought us round to Calhoun Square, the only one of Savannah’s 22 squares to still have its original surrounding buildings. There’s also a gazebo inside the square that’s popular for weddings, and was a gift from Burt Reynolds! The trolley briefly rolls through Jones Street, voted one of the most beautiful streets in the US, towards the Church of St. John the Baptist, which is free to enter (and also stop number 6)

Past the Colonial Cemetery and back downtown, it was interesting to see the difference in the volume of people compared to further south – clearly visitors in Savannah like to flock to the river! The City Market (stop 7) was teeming with people, and the queue for Leopold’s Ice Cream was stretching down the street (I went later and can confirm it’s well worth the wait). Here we learnt more about James Oglethorpe and the spot where he landed on the riverbank, now marked by the impressive Hyatt Regency Hotel – who do a great happy hour with a patio overlooking the water.

Stop 8 was Columbia Square where we saw the First African Baptist Church and the Isaiah Davenport House, before reaching stop 9; the Pirates House (with a real pirate standing outside). The next six stops saw us visiting Emmet Park (where the St Patrick’s Day parties are held – hotels sell out 3-5 years in advance for this) the ‘Pink House’, the Parish House, the Exchange Bell, the Old Savannah Cotton Exchange, Ellis Square, Frankling Square, the Ships of the Sea Museum, and back to the Welcome Center where we could switch to another trolley to continue on. Since I’d done a whole round trip, I decided to carry on to stop number 4 (Forsyth Park) and walk my way back down, visiting some of the great destinations that John had suggested

The best thing about the Savannah Trolley Tour (and any trolley tour) is that you can hop-on at any stop, and even though each driver is giving the same tour, they each have unique stories and entertaining anecdotes meaning you never hear the same story twice. The combination of sightseeing tour and means of transport is a winner for me, and I can’t think of a better way to see a new city than on a trolley!