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Mississippi · the United States
Clarksdale and the Mississippi Delta, where the blues was born: the Delta Blues Museum, the crossroads of legend, the cotton plantations of Dockery, and the B.B. King Museum, with live music in the juke joints.
In the photo: Algodoal near Friars Point, in the Mississippi Delta.
Illustrative images. The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it.
Get to know the place
The Mississippi Delta is the flat, fertile plain between the Mississippi and Yazoo rivers in the northwest of Mississippi. It is not a river delta at the sea, but a floodplain of cotton plantations where, in the early 20th century, Black farmworkers created the blues.
Clarksdale, an hour and a half south of Memphis, is the region’s center for music travelers. There you’ll find the Delta Blues Museum, housed in an old railroad depot, and the intersection of Highways 61 and 49, linked to the legend of guitarist Robert Johnson. Muddy Waters grew up on a farm beside the town, and John Lee Hooker and Ike Turner also have roots there.
The town has live music almost every night in the juke joints, simple bars where blues is played up close, and several festivals throughout the year. Across the Delta, Mississippi Blues Trail markers identify houses, churches, crossroads and musicians’ graves.
South of Clarksdale, Dockery Plantation, where Charley Patton lived, and the B.B. King Museum in Indianola complete the itinerary.
This destination brings together 1 city: Clarksdale.
One destination, many paths
Start with one city or combine several in your itinerary.
Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau / geoBoundaries (public domain). Adapted by Cidade Turismo.
✈ Memphis International Airport (MEM), in Memphis · 120 km to Clarksdale
The most used airport is Memphis (MEM), in Tennessee, about an hour and a half drive from Clarksdale via Highway 61. There is no practical public transport through the Delta. Entry requirements depend on your nationality: confirm the rules before traveling.
The local experience
The blues museum housed in an old Clarksdale railroad depot, with instruments, photos and the cabin where Muddy Waters lived on the Stovall farm.
The intersection of Highways 61 and 49 in Clarksdale, marked by a pole with guitars, associated with the legend of guitarist Robert Johnson and a pact made at a crossroads.
Old cotton plantation between Cleveland and Ruleville where Charley Patton lived and where several blues pioneers passed through, with preserved wooden sheds.
Museum dedicated to B.B. King in Indianola, the town where he grew up, housed in an old brick cotton gin. The musician is buried in the museum garden.
Before you go
A little planning leaves more time to enjoy the journey.
The most pleasant months are April, May, October and early November. In April the Juke Joint Festival fills Clarksdale; in August the Sunflower River Blues & Gospel Festival takes place. Summers are very hot and humid, rising above 33 °C, and winters are short and cool.
The seasons shown are the most usual ones; nature doesn't always follow the calendar.
Two days allow time for the museum, the crossroads and two nights of music in Clarksdale, with an afternoon at Dockery and in Indianola. On a day trip from Memphis, you can visit the museum and the town center.
In downtown Clarksdale, near the juke joints, so you can walk back after the music. In the surroundings there are cabins on old cotton plantations adapted for lodging. If you prefer a larger city, stay in Memphis and do the Delta by car.
Take your trash with you, follow the signs and support local businesses. In natural areas, follow the visiting guidelines.
Get your questions answered
In northwest Mississippi, on the plain between the Mississippi and Yazoo rivers. Clarksdale, the most visited town, is about 125 km south of Memphis.
In the juke joints and bars in the center, which usually have music almost every night, especially Thursday through Saturday. Schedules change: check the local show calendar on the day.
Yes. The towns, plantations and Mississippi Blues Trail sites are spread across the plain, and there is no practical public transport.
Yes: it’s about 125 km via Highway 61, roughly an hour and a half by car. To hear music at night, it’s worth staying overnight in Clarksdale.
Central Time: UTC−6 in winter and UTC−5 in daylight saving time, from March to November, the same as Memphis.
