For over 20 years, Pamela Lanier's Jackson, Mississippi Travel Guide has been your connection to Jackson's tourism community with invaluable details on local attractions, restaurants, shopping, museums, history, outdoor recreation and more.
Jackson Arts and Festivals
Jackson is now a home to the arts and is famous for its contributions to Blues, Gospel, and R&B. Your bed and breakfast innkeepers will certainly have insights and be able to direct you to any attractions you’re interested in. Jackson has many museums dedicated solely to art including the Mississippi Museum of Art, the Mississippi Arts Center, the Municipal Art Gallery and the Chimneyville Crafts Gallery. Proving its dedication to equality and diversity, the Museum of Muslim Cultures is the only independent International Museum of Muslim Cultures in the world. The museum’s goal is to reduce both religious and racial bigotry and prejudice as well as promote tolerance between faiths. The Smith Robertson Museum and Cultural Center is also a great place to learn about African-American heritage in Mississippi. In particular, it concentrates on the Farish Street Historical District, a historical neighborhood which includes both residential buildings and businesses that have been a center for African American culture within the city. Be sure to see the USA International Ballet Competition if you’re able. This worldwide annual competition is held in Varna, Moscow and Tokyo in addition to Jackson, and rotates to Jackson every four years in June, making it a treat not to be missed by the bed and breakfast enthusiast.
Festivals abound in Jackson, and include varied interests such as CelticFest Mississippi held in September which includes live Irish music and dancing; the Jubilee Jam in June celebrates the arts and music of Jackson; and the Mississippi State Fair in October. Mal's St. Patty’s Day Parade, held every year on the Saturday after St. Patrick’s Day, is one of the best-known festivals of the city. As the fourth largest St. Patrick’s Day celebrations in the US, the festival draws over 50,000 people each year.
