Jackson (Mississippi)

Jackson is the capital of the state of Mississippi. While it does not offer much in terms of tourism, it can be used as a stopover for getting to other parts of the state or further.

Get in

By plane

• 🌍 Jackson-Evers International Airport (JAN  ^IATA). With direct flights to a number of major cities by Southwest Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United, and American Eagle. Flights to regional hubs (Charlotte, Memphis, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston (Bush and Hobby), Atlanta, Chicago (Midway and O'Hare), Baltimore, Washington-National, Orlando)  

By train

Amtrak serves Jackson with the once-daily City of New Orleans between Chicago and New Orleans. 🌍 Union Station is located at 300 W Capitol St, just west of downtown. The station also serves as a hub for local buses.

By bus

• Greyhound, Union Station, 300 W Capital St. offers buses from Union Station in downtown Jackson. Keep in mind the area immediately around the station and to the south is not the best at night. 

By car

Downtown Jackson is situated just northwest of the junction of Interstate 55 (running north and south) and Interstate 20 (running east and west). New Orleans, LA is about 190 miles south of Jackson; Memphis, TN. is about 210 miles north; Dallas, TX is about 300 miles west; Atlanta, GA is about 320 miles east.

Get around

JATRAN, the city transit system, has buses from Union Station six days a week until shortly after 5PM each day. Their phone number is: [phone] Pick up route schedules at the JATRAN office, open weekdays inside Union Station. The JATRAN is not considered safe or efficient transportation by locals.

See

• Dixie National Livestock Show, Parade and Rodeo, Mississippi Coliseum and Fairgrounds, 1207 Mississippi St. The Wild West Rodeo comes to Jackson each year with this exciting event. 
• 🌍 Jackson Zoo, 2918 W Capitol St, ☎ [phone].  
• 🌍 Mississippi Museum of Natural Science, 2148 Riverside Dr, ☎ [phone], fax: [phone]. M-F 8AM-5PM, Sa 9AM-5PM, Su 1PM-5PM. A museum whose mission is focused on the promotion and protection of Mississippi's natural landscape and its inhabitant. Part of the LeFleur Museum District Pass $6/adult $4/child $5/senior, free for children under 3.  
• 🌍 Mynelle Gardens, 4736 Clinton Blvd, ☎ [phone]. Mar-Oct M-Su 9AM-5PM, Nov-Feb M-Sa 8AM-4PM. The gardens are 7 acres long and can be rented out for events. 
• 🌍 Mississippi Agriculture & Forestry Museum, 1150 Lakeland Dr, ☎ [phone]. M-Sa 9AM-5PM. Offers train and carousel rides for $1. $5/adult $4/concession. 
• 🌍 Mississippi Museum of Art, 380 S Lamar St, ☎ [phone]. 
• 🌍 Russell C Davis Planetarium, 201 E Pascagoula St. 
• Telecom Center. 
• Jackson Convention Center. 
• 🌍 Old Capitol Museum, 100 S State St. 
• 🌍 New State Capitol, 400 High St, ☎ [phone].  
• 🌍 Supreme Court Building, ☎ [phone].  
• 🌍 War Memorial Museum, 120 S State St. 
• 🌍 Mississippi Children's Museum, 2145 Museum Boulevard, ☎ [phone]. (coming soon) 
• Take a tour of Jackson with the John M. Perkins Foundation for Reconciliation & Development. 1831 Robinson Street. or contact the Jackson Convention and Visitor's Bureau.
• 🌍 Battlefield Park, 953 Porter St.  
• 🌍 Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, 222 North St., ☎ [phone]. Tu-Sa 9AM-5PM, Su 1-5PM. (updated Dec 2017)
• Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum, 1152 Lakeland Dr., ☎ [phone]. (updated Dec 2017)

Do

• On the weekends you can always find live shows to attend. Jackson has a blossoming music scene, and various bars such as Martins, WC Dons, and Hal & Mal's often feature music ranging from Heavy Metal, to Indie Rock, to Blue Grass. The three aforementioned bars are all located in the same inlet off of State Street, and also just south of the Pearl Street exit from I55.
• Mississippi Braves minor league (AA) baseball - Pearl, MS
• Mississippi Brilla pro-soccer - Clinton, MS

Buy

• Antique Mall, 1217 Vine Street. 
• Antique Market, 3009 N. State Street, ☎ [phone]. 
• Fondren District, North State Street from Woodrow Wilson to Meadowbrook Rd. Office: 3318 North State Street, [phone]. Shopping, antiques, restaurants and more in this quaint neighborhood that is reinventing itself.
• 🌍 Metrocenter Mall.  
• Highland Village. 
• 🌍 Northpark Mall, ☎ [phone]. (updated Feb 2018)
• Dogwood Festival Market. 
• Dogwood Promenade. 
• Renaissance at Colony Park. 
• Galleria (coming soon). 
• Bloomfield Outlets (coming soon). 
• NeuMarket Outlets (coming soon). 
• Outlets of Mississippi . Located at 200 Bass Pro Drive in Pearl, MS, the Outlets of Mississippi is the state's largest outlet shopping destination. Stores include VF® Outlet, COACH Factory, Michael Kors, Gap Factory Store, Banana Republic Factory Store, White House/Black Market, Chico's Outlet, Nike Factory Store and Under Armour®. https://www.outletsofms.com

Eat

• Sophia's-Fairview Inn, Belhaven Neighborhood (Downtown Jackson), Casual Fine Dining, Southern Cuisine, Lunch, Dinner and Sunday Brunch [phone]
• Aladdin's, on Lakeland West, right before you reach State Street. Authentic and delicious Mediterranean.
• Jerusalem Cafe. Down the road from Aladdin's, offers Lebanese cuisine and a hookah bar.
• Little Tokyo, two locations in Jackson. One is along I-55 North ([phone] - 4800 I 55 N, Jackson), and the other is in Ridgeland near the Northpark Mall ([phone] - 876 Avery Blvd N, Ridgeland), . This is not a sushi-buffet restaurant, but their food is VERY good. If you're want to save money go during lunch, and purchase one of their bento-box specials (about $6.00 - $7.00 USD).
• 🌍 Big Apple Inn, 509 N Farish S, ☎ [phone]. Fourth generation-owned sandwich shop and an institution in Jackson. Serves the classic smokes & ears sandwich, with pig's ears. (updated Aug 2016)
• 🌍 The Iron Horse Grill, 320 W Pearl St, ☎ [phone]. Located in an historic smokehouse near downtown. (updated Dec 2017)
• 🌍 Mayflower Cafe, 123 W Capitol St, ☎ [phone]. M-Sat 11am-10:30pm. Located in Downtown Jackson. Absolutely fantastic seafood. Try the broiled redfish with lump crab meat on top. Other specialties are the scallops and the shrimp. (updated Aug 2016)
• Nagoya's Sushi and Steakhouse. Exit I-55 at County Line Road. Continue west on County Line Road. You will turn left into a shopping center facing I-55. Nagoya is between Target and Home Depot. There is another location a brief distance north in Madison, MS.
• Pizza Shack. Located on State Street across from the Baptist Heath Center. Pizza Shack is Jackson's best pizza restaurant and offers a number of local favorites in addition to pizza. Priced very modestly and near the heart of the city, Pizza Shack is one of Jackson's best locally owned restaurants.
• Amerigo's. 
• Cock of the Walk. 
• Biaggi's. 
• Penn's Fish House. 
• AJ's. 
• Mama Hamil's. 
• Steam Room Grille. 
• Bulldog's. 
• Corky's B-B-Q. 
• Logan's Roadhouse. 
• La Cazuela. 
• Las Margaritas. 
• El Portrillo. 
• Cancun. 
• Bonefish. 
• Mellow Mushroom. 
• Up the Creek. 
• Garfield's. 
• Zaxby's. 
• Raising Cane. 
• Barnhill's. 
• Firemountain. 
• Newk's. 
• Oby's. 
• Piccadilly's. 
• Que sera sera. 
• Schimmel's. 
• 🌍 Sal and Mookies, 565 Taylor St, ☎ [phone]. Great NY pizza restaurant and ice-cream parlor. Also one of the cities best beer bars. 
• Walker's Drive-In, State Street, Fondren District. Nicely appointed 1950s atmosphere restaurant with an elevated approach in its uniquely Southern epicurious menu. Wine, spirits, full bar selections. Moderate to high prices for dining.

Drink

• 🌍 Hal and Mal's, 200 Commerce St, ☎ [phone]. Located near Pearl St. in downtown Jackson, Hal and Mals offers a wide selection of domestic, imported, and locally brewed beers along with burgers, po' boys, salads, and desserts. Hal and Mals is also the home of great live music acts and a weekly trivia night. 
• 🌍 Fenian's Pub, 901 E Fortification St, ☎ [phone]. An Irish style pub, Fenian's, located on Fortification and Jefferson in the historic Belhaven area of the city, is where the local college kids hang out and fill their glasses (Milsaps College and Belhaven University are located less than a mile away). Fenian's never charges a cover and usually has some form of live entertainment nightly, ranging from live bands to Irish music to 'Open Mic Night'. Fenian's also hosts a large selection of Scotch and is very reasonably priced. (updated May 2015)

Sleep

• 🌍 Cabot Lodge Millsaps Jackson, 2365 North State Street, ☎ [phone]. Nice hotel including all typical amenities, helpful staff, a complimentary freshly baked deluxe breakfast, and a complimentary (unlimited) cocktail hour. 
• 🌍 Fairview Inn, 734 Fairview Street, ☎ [phone]. 18 rooms including suites, private baths, phones, voice mail, TV and VCR's, sitting rooms, toiletries, and air conditioning. Some rooms have jacuzzis, fireplaces, plus many other amenities. 
• 🌍 Hilton Garden Inn Jackson Downtown, 235 West Capitol St, ☎ [phone]. Check-in: 4PM, check-out: 11AM. Was for many years known as the King Edward Hotel and is a city landmark. Just two blocks away is the Jackson Convention Complex. 
• Marriot Downtown. 
• Drury Inn. 
• Old Capitol Inn - Downtown. 
• Roberts Vista Hotel - Downtown (formerly Edison Walthall). 
• Holiday Inn (multiple locations). 
• Days Inn (multiple locations). 
• Hampton Inn (multiple locations). 
• Best Western (multiple locations). 
• Comfort Inn (multiple locations). 
• La Quinta Inn (multiple locations). 
• Quality Inn (multiple locations). 
• Clarion Hotel - Downtown (multiple locations). 
• Regency Hotel - Downtown (multiple locations). 

Stay safe

• Areas of the city you may want to be aware of your surroundings are: 'south side of the city - Terry Road, Raymond Road, and McDowell Road. On the west side of the city - West Capital Street, some parts of Highway 80. On the northern area of the city - Baily Avenue, and parts of north-western part of the city: Woodrow Wilson Avenue and Northside Drive. Keep in mind that most of these areas are typically not visited by tourists, and they are mostly the older areas of the city that are in decline.
• Keep in mind that a majority of the crimes in the city of Jackson are typically residential house burglaries, and typically are not against individuals or tourists. However this does not mean you should let your guard down and leave your street smarts and common sense at home. The Jackson police department keeps weekly reports for public viewing of where crimes occur the city.
• Use the same precautions as you would in any large metropolitan city. Protect your vehicle by locking it up and activating the alarm system, and do not advertise yourself as being wealthy or as a tourist. If you are in an area of the city looks dilapidated, use common sense and promptly leave to more secure grounds.
• If staying at the hotels nearby the fairgrounds or the coliseum in Jackson, keep your room door locked and bolted, and always keep your vehicle locked and in a lit area (if possible). Use precautions whenever someone expectantly knocks on your room door, and immediately contact the front office to validate the hotel staff is requesting access into your room. Visitors to the area hotels have been victims of robberies and assaults in the past.

Cope

Consulates

Be aware, there are no official consulates in the state of Mississippi. An honorary consulate only represents the business interests of a nation, and cannot provide legal or emergency assistance to their fellow citizens.

• Germany (Honorary), 1020 Highland Colony Pkwy, Ste 200, Ridgeland, ☎ [phone], fax: [phone], e-mail: [e-mail]. 

Go next

Routes through Jackson

Memphis ← Yazoo City ←	N  S	→ Brookhaven → New Orleans
Vicksburg ← Clinton ←	W  E	→ Pearl → Meridian
Memphis ← Ridgeland ←	N  S	→ Brookhaven → New Orleans
Indianola/Greenwood ← Yazoo City ←	N  S	→ Pearl → Hattiesburg
Vicksburg ← Clinton ←	W  E	→ Pearl → Meridian
Tupelo ← Ridgeland ←	N  S	→ Clinton → Natchez