Maybe it's our freshly shucked corn, vine ripened tomatoes, plump blueberries, juicy watermelons, and a kaleidoscope of peppers, peas, and potatoes. It could be the sweet and savory local honey, or dairy products that are so abundant across the state. Fresh baked bread, or a jar of tangy pickles will add to your dining pleasure. Mississippi's Certified Farmers Markets provide fresh fruits and vegetables sold in a facility where you can be sure that the food you are buying is safe; a place where you know how the food was grown and where it was grown. To locate a Certified Farmers Market near you, visit www.msfarmersmarket.org 
Mississippi, it's where freshness grows.

Mr. Ed Hahn, originally from New Orleans now a resident of Carriere, MS is the Executive Chef for Paul’s Pastry. Ed's passion is food and has worked as a chef for 35 years, but his real love is art. Ed has carved wooden duck decoys since he was a small boy with his grandfather. His grandfather, Mr. Earl Blappert taught him the techniques of repairing the decoys heads and bodies before each hunting season. He had no idea that his love for hunting would turn into this fantastic folk-art, developing his skill in painting and carving. Ed will be at the Pearl River County Welcome Center April 6, 2013 demonstrating his gifted talents.

This April 13^th through 15^th, the 9^th annual Juke Joint Festival will be held in Clarksdale, MS. What is the Juke Joint Festival? It’s a positive event for everyone in Clarksdale. It’s good for families, businesses, musicians and tourists alike. The festival itself combines an international “blues festival” with a community-minded “small-town fair,” creating a strong and memorable event like no other in the universe. It’s organized by the Clarksdale Downtown Development Association (CDDA) and staffed by enthusiastic volunteers. This “half small-town fair, half blues festival” does more than simply entertain attendees -- though it definitely does that, too! It aims to educate and enlighten native Deltans and blues tourists alike through a series of performances, exhibits, and presentations involving music, art, storytelling, film, and children’s events. The event mixes visitors with locals and showcases the economic power of cultural tourism, turning average Deltans into ambassadors for the region. 

Clarksdale is just 90 minutes south of the Memphis International Airport and was once home to such blues greats as: Son House, John Lee Hooker, Junior Parker, Ike Turner, Muddy Waters, Pinetop Perkins, Earl Hooker, Lil Green, Big Jack Johnson and many many others.  This year’s festival is dedicated to Delta blues legend David "Honeyboy" Edwards was a regular performer at Juke Joint Festival.  He passed away on August 29, 2011 at 96 years old.

A family-friendly event, the festival also provides a bus service at night to discourage drinking and driving between music venues. All daytime Saturday events are all FREE while nighttime Saturday events all come for the price of a cheap, $15 wristband (which gets you unlimited rides on the blues shuttle bus and entry to almost 20 nighttime 'juke joint' venues). For more information, event listing and pictures from past festivals go to www.jukejointfestival.com

Or go to http://visitclarksdale.com/ for more information on Clarksdale itself.

April is Golf Month throughout the state of Mississippi.  Golf courses all over the state are opening their doors and encouraging people to come and enjoy a round on the links by offering special deals and giveaways all through the month.  So grab your clubs and head to your local course, or take a day trip across the state to one you’ve never played and start working on your swing!  If you don’t have time to play 18 holes, then some other ideas could be to schedule lessons or just head out to the driving range for half an hour.  Golf is a great sport to share with the whole family or one you can play by yourself and unwind from a week at the office.

Golf in Mississippi is divided into five regions throughout the state:

The Hills Region- Located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in the northeastern corner of the state, it has the highest elevation of any of the regions.

The Delta Region- Defined by its wide open of cotton, it’s remarkably flat and contains some of the most fertile soil in the country, as evidenced by the plush, green fairways and greens.

The Capital/River Region- This region is a large mix of glaring contrasts, from wide-open flatlands, to water-laden fairways and rolling terrain with large undulating greens. 

The Pines Region- A soothing blend of rolling countryside, towering hardwoods and trickling streams.  This region also contains three of the highest rated courses in the state (Old Waverly and the two courses at Dancing Rabbit).

The Costal Region- Offering a wide variety of trees, marshes, lakes and winding streams combined with gently rolling hills, The Coastal Region plays host to several hundred amateur golfers at the International Golf & Blues Experience annually.

For more information on Mississippi’s award winning golf courses, visit our website’s golf page, here.

Arkabutla Lake is 40,704 acres of some of the best Crappie fishing in the country. In fact, Arkabutla Lake is rated one of the top five crappie fishing lakes in the nation. Looking for more than crappie? Arkabutla Lake offers great opportunities for large mouth white bass as well as channel and flathead catfish. The park has seven boat launching ramps or rent a boat when you get there! Anyone interested in fishing Arkabutla Lake should consult with local guides and resources before heading out to fish to make the best use of your time out on the lake and dam area.



Arkabutla Lake was created by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1943 and opens 37,700 acres of land to the public for hunting throughout the year for dove, squirrel, bobwhite quail, rabbit, deer and turkey. If watersports is more your interest, head to Arkabutla Lake for an abundance of sailing or swimming at one of the three beaches. Both tent and RV camping are available on the lake at one of the 333 campsites. Have a picnic at one the many picnic areas or head to the playground.



The Corps of Engineers and DeSoto county Disc Golf Club has rendered an 18-hole disc golf course near Pratt Road below the dam. The Lost Indian Spring Disc Golf Course is 5,623 feet (2,129 steps). Use of the disc golf course is “free”. Located in both Tate and DeSoto counties in north Mississippi, Arkabutla Lake’s remote location is an ideal setting for a serene retreat. Arkabutla Lake is located just 30 minutes from Memphis, TN and Tunica, MS, and just seven miles from Hernando, MS.

The Stennis Space Center experience is not one with an age limitation. Young and old alike are in for an experience that is out of this world at the award-winning StenniSphere in Stennis Space Center, MS! Tours of StenniSphere depart from the Launch Pad at the Hancock County Welcome Center west of Bay St. Louis, Miss., on I-10 at Exit 2– just 48 miles west of Biloxi and 45 miles east of New Orleans. Visitors 18 and older must have a valid photo ID in their possession. International visitors must provide a valid passport. Start your experience by walking beneath an Apollo-era Lunar Lander before viewing exhibits and interactive videos in the Launch Pad.



Now it’s time to board a shuttle bus to StenniSphere where everyone experiences a 25-minute narrated tour through the 125,000-acre acoustical buffer zone to America's largest rocket test complex where Space Shuttle Main Engines are tested! This test complex is 14,000 square feet of exciting displays featuring real rocket engines, scale models of spacecraft, a Navy exhibit, unique presentations and the Rocketeria Diner. StenniSphere’s outdoor exhibits give visitors the rare opportunity to see real rocket engines used in America’s space program. See a Space Shuttle Main Engine used to get the shuttle into orbit! Get close up to a J2 engine used on the second stage of the Saturn V rocket! Touch a real F1 engine, designed as a booster engine for the first stage of the Saturn V vehicle for the Apollo program! See a model of the Saturn V rocket! Walk up to a real Learjet, used in NASA’s remote sensing program! …And more!



In StenniSphere's Test Control Center, you become a rocket test conductor and test fire a Space Shuttle Main Engine. View an engine test through aperiscope just like the scientists do at Stennis Space Center. Check out a hands-on exhibit of Space Shuttle engine parts that have actually flown in space.Try your hand at landing a Space Shuttle! You’re in the pilot’s seat in a replica of the Space Shuttle cockpit. Observe your fellow crew members at work in the payload bay.The International Space Station exhibit demonstrates how astronauts live and work in space. Try your hand in the glove box and see how astronauts sleep. This exhibit is a scale replica of a module on the real International Space Station. See the International Space Station from you rhometown as it orbits overhead.



The StenniSphere is open Wednesday – Saturday, 10 am to 3 pm (Last Bus Departs at 2pm). The Rocketeria is closed on Saturdays but the picnic area is available. Field trips and charter tours are welcome and you may schedule tours for Monday-Saturday by calling 1-800-237-1821.

There is a lot of tribal culture coming to Choctaw, MS on July 13th…four fun-filled days of it! Experience Choctaw culture first hand at the 62nd Annual Choctaw Indian Fair with activities the whole family can enjoy including Tribal arts, crafts, storytelling, pottery making, dances and the thrilling action of World Championship stickball. Gates open at 11am on July 13th as the Choctaw Museum of the Southern Indian opens its doors to kick off the event. The Choctaw Indian Fair offers fun for both young and old alike, from exhilarating rides and contests to chart-topping country and rock entertainers such as Crystal Shawanda and LeAnn Rimes! Adults can enjoy all four days of excitement for $15.00 or purchase a $10.00 day pass. Kids five and under are Free and can enjoy activities at the coloring station or bead making, Buttons the Clown and Face Painting!

Activities and entertainment abound, this is the place to be July 13-16! Stay in a local hotel near the event or bring the RV! There are plenty of RV Parking and Campgrounds near the event.   

Print a map of the fairgrounds and come on down (or up) to see us!

Come down to Long Beach July 2-4 for the Mississippi Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo! This annual event is being held this year at Long Beach Harbor in Long Beach, MS. Known for its continuous entertainment, this year’s event will feature competitive fishing including tons of fish caught by the contestants on display. Enjoy carnival rides, activity booths, food, a beauty pageant of the Royal Queen and Princesses and much more!

If you are interested in competing in the fishing tournament, the registration is free but all contestants must be registered before you begin to fish for prizes. There will be a saltwater Division and a Fresh Water Division to the Competition. All sport fishermen and fisherwomen, fishing from pleasure craft, yachts or charter boats, must be registered contestants except  the hired members of the crew. Scales open at 2:00pm and close at 8pm on all days except the final day. On the final day, the scales open at 2:00pm and close at 4pm. 1st and 2nd place winners receive a trophy and prize, beginning at 7pm, on the closing day. Registration is not required for contestants entered in the Junior Fishing Rodeo, however, contestants must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Fishing begins at 12:01am on July 2nd. Admission to the event opens at Noon on July 2nd and close at midnight each day of the event. Gate admission is $5 per adult and covers the entire event (all three days). Children ages 12 and under are Free!

Come enjoy a weekend of great fun and fishing this Fourth of July Holiday Weekend!!

Fourth of the July weekend is fast approaching and if you are still deciding where to take the family this year, Mississippi has many options from a weekend RV trip to soaking up some sun on the Gulf Coast. Let us help you make that decision and book your plans now!


Into the True Great Wide Open
If wilderness, rugged outdoors and relaxation is what you’re looking for this Fourth of July weekend, we have your spot. The state is covered with camping and RV Parks suitable for every style. Whether just a tent or a full-on RV with all the amenities for the family, we got you covered. Just off of I-20 between Morton and Meridian rests Roosevelt State Park. Named for Theodore Roosevelt and his penchant for conservationism, the park offers over 100 campsites featuring everything from RV parking with water, electricity and sewage, to primitive camping sites with pads for tents. But there’s always more to see. Head south of Meridian to visit Archusa Creek State Park in Quitman. Located on a 450-acre lake off Highway 45 and Highway 18 East, this fisherman's paradise features nearly 70 RV campsites, four cabins and many primitive sites for relaxing between bouts of boating, swimming, sailing, canoeing and a variety of other outdoor activities. Located near the Mississippi Gulf Coast, DeSoto National Forest also offers several campsites to fit the needs of both RVers and tent campers alike. From scenic overlooks, long and winding hiking trails and meandering river tours, the DeSoto National Forest is one of Mississippi’s greatest showcases of natural splendor. Find your Mississippi Campground here!


A True Coastal Celebration
Beach Par, one of the pristine parks fronting on the Gulf of Mexico, is the site of the annual 4th of July Celebration. Thousands of visitors will bring their lawn chairs and blankets to this Mississippi event to watch a spectacular fireworks display launched from barges anchored near the Pascagoula Beach Park Pier. Visitors will be able to take advantage of the newly installed "Splash Pad" at this Mississippi event. They can have a family picnic in the park, walk and fish from the pier and take advantage of the beach area for family activity.  

Find a list of 4th of July Celebrations happening throughout the state right here.

What’s a summer without watermelon? More importantly, what’s a summer festival without watermelon? Celebrate a true southern Mississippi festival this summer at the Mississippi Watermelon Festival and eat all the delicious, ripe, world-famous Smith County melons you want! With the exception of the mouth watering watermelon, enjoy live entertainment from artists like Andy Griggs and Katie Arminger, arts and crafts and tons of family fun. Try your watermelon seed-spitting skills at the watermelon seed-spitting contest or try your hands at the greased watermelon race and watermelon eating contest. An antique car show and motorcycle show round out this year’s activities.

So, make plans to bring the whole family, sit in the shade and enjoy the Mississippi Watermelon Festival July 15-16 in downtown Mize at City Park. No need to pack the watermelon!