Just like everyone these days, my spring and summer travel plans were canceled and without them I have been itching to get away! I started doing lots of research on somewhere driving distance from New Orleans where my boyfriend and I and another couple could spend a weekend. Hence my recent round up of cute airbnbs near New Orleans. We didn’t actually end up going to any of the places on that list, but instead found an amazing place in Fairhope, Alabama. Fairhope is a charming little Southern town nestled on the Mobile Bay, just about a two and a half hour drive from New Orleans. Everywhere we visited in Fairhope was complying with mask usage and social distancing restrictions so we were able to see a fair amount of the town.
Where we stayed
I found the coolest place on vrbo called, The Retreat on Nichols. This place was seriously so ideal. Between the cutest sip’n’ dip mini pool, beautiful gardens, a corn hole setup and a wood-burning pizza oven, there was so much to do on the grounds that we could have just hung there all weekend. The hosts were so sweet and the place was super close to everything in town. They even had a golf cart for guests to use. We didn’t use our cars all weekend!
Friday Night
We got in on a Friday evening and started off our weekend by popping a bottle of champagne to celebrate getting away (duh)! Then, we headed to trendy new Fairhope restaurant Hope Farm for a cocktail and appetizers before our dinner. We sat outside and shared some delicious marinated crab claws and mushroom toast beautiful cocktails.
For dinner, we headed to a Fairhope classic, The Wash House. This place was so cool and I would not recommend visiting Fairhope without dining here! It’s a cozy, dark restaurant with homey vibes that serves delicious coastal Southern cuisine. The meal was one of the most memorable meals I’ve had in a while.
After dinner, we had a couple of bottles of wine in us and were stuffed in the best way possible. We headed back to our place and crashed to get some rest for the next day ahead of us.
Saturday
On Saturday, we ventured downtown to grab breakfast and explore. We had breakfast biscuits and mimosas at the cutest little place called Provision. The place is a modern take on a general store so there was also lots of neat stuff to browse and take home like beautiful home decor and local gourmet goods. I bought some locally made fig preserves to take to my mom as a gift!
We walked the streets of the charming little downtown and stopped in some fun places like Page & Palette book store, Lyons Share Art Gallery and Dr. Music Records. They even have their own little version of a French Quarter in Fairhope!
We wanted to check out Fairhope’s craft brewery, Fairhope Brewing Company, to try out some local beers. My favorite was the Jester, a sour golden ale with mango and habeñero.
A visit to Fairhope wouldn’t be complete without a visit to the pier overlooking the bay so we headed that way later in the afternoon when it was starting to cool down a bit. We enjoyed the waterfront views and then walked along the bay to look at some of the most beautiful Southern homes I’ve ever seen. I’m talking screen porches and massive oak trees – they are the real deal.
On Saturday evening, we headed back to The Retreat on Nichols to hang out in the beautiful garden and fire up that wood-burning pizza oven for some homemade pizzas!
On Sunday, it was time to pack our bags and head home, but not without one more cruise down to the bay in the golf cart 😉 I’m not sure that I ever would have checked out Fairhope, Alabama if it hadn’t been for the pandemic, but I’m so glad I did. We had such a nice weekend and will definitely be back to Fairhope and The Retreat on Nichols.
