Memphis has some 20,000 hotel rooms, at all price levels. At the top are The Peabody, one of the South’s premier grand hotels, and the Madison Hotel, a swank luxury hotel. You’ll find plenty of comfortable accommodations here, including a handful of bed-and-breakfast inns, but for the most part, Memphis isn’t a travel destination you would choose for its quaint inns (such as St. Augustine, Florida) or fabulous hotels (such as San Francisco, California).
Memphis is the birthplace of the modern hotel. The whole concept of standardized lodging originated here in 1952, when local entrepreneur Kemmons Wilson opened the first Holiday Inn. The idea of a brand-name hotel chain, with hotels that are the same from city to city, is commonplace today, but at that time it was radical. As befits the birthplace of the chain hotel, the city has many familiar lodging names representing every major hotel company. You’ll notice more Hampton Inn properties here than in most cities this size, because its parent company was once headquartered here.
In this chapter we list hotels in five areas of the city: downtown, medical center/midtown, East Memphis, southeast Memphis, and the Graceland/airport area (south Memphis). Downtown is home to most tourist attractions, including Beale Street, but if you choose to stay outside this area, you still won’t be too far away. With the Interstate 240 loop around the city, most destinations are no more than 20 or 25 minutes away, except the far suburbs. It can sometimes take longer, as Memphis has its share of traffic problems.
We don’t list hotels in the far suburbs, although you’ll find many chains represented at the exits along Interstate 40 and Interstate 55 as you come into town. If you come in from Arkansas via I-40 and I-55, most of the hotels you will see cater to truckers rather than leisure travelers. Along I-40 east of the city familiar chain hotels are clustered around the exits, particularly Sycamore View (exit 12), Germantown Parkway (exit 16), and U.S. Highway 64/Bartlett (exit 18). Exits 16 and 18 are convenient to Wolfchase Galleria, the city’s best regional mall, and other shopping, as well as the Agricenter International, where events such as the Ducks Unlimited Great Outdoors Festival take place. You’ll find Wingate Inn (800-228-1000) and Comfort Inn (877-424-6423), among others, at Germantown Parkway, and at US 64, Holiday Inn Express (800-315-2621), Country Inn & Suites by Carlson (888-201-1746), and others. The Sycamore View exit has Baymont Inn and Suites (877-BAYMONT), Holiday Inn (800-315-2621), and other options. If you don’t see your favorite hotel chain listed, check out its Web site or call its reservations number.
Near the airport at the Millbranch Road exit of I-240, you’ll find Baymont (877-BAYMONT), Best Western (800-780-7234), and Hampton Inn (800-HAMPTON), although they’re in a gritty industrial area. In the neighboring office-park area of Nonconnah Boulevard, you’ll find Courtyard by Marriott (800-321-2211) and Homestead Studio Suites (800-804-3724), both well-maintained hotels that offer good values on weekends if you don’t mind an office-park setting.
Although bed-and-breakfast inns are rare within the city limits, they can be found, along with at least one country inn, farther out. We list a few, but you can also check your favorite B&B Web site or directory for other options near Memphis.