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Oxford: Small, Southern and Spirited

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Oxford, Mississippi, is a small town with a big personality, which makes for interesting after-hours adventures and off-site event options. Here are several to consider, and the helpful staff at Visit Oxford is happy to assist with others.

Dine around the Square

Spend at least one night sampling the wide-ranging dining options clustered on or near Oxford’s downtown square. Some 15 local restaurants make dinearounds a natural at favorites like Oxford Grillhouse, Saint Leo, SoLa, McEwen’s and Kingswood. Or gather everyone at Oxford’s most famous eatery, City Grocery, where restaurant buyouts are a possibility. People come from all over to sample what sails from Chef John Currence’s award-winning kitchen. Other Currence creations are also a draw: Boure, for upscale but downhome meals, and Snackbar, where you will find the flavors of the chef’s Indian heritage blended with the traditions of Mississippi.

Special sips and spaces

Make reservations for a tour and tasting at Wonderbird Spirits, a field-to-bottle gin distillery eight minutes south of Oxford. Wonderbird uses native botanicals like red clover and Southern magnolia to give its spirits the flavor of Mississippi. Downtown, the Lyric — once a movie theater where William Faulkner watched one of his novels come to life — is now a flexible event space for anything from concerts and lectures to dinners and receptions.

Get literal

See how novelist William Faulkner lived during a tour of Rowan Oak, a handsome white Colonial where he and his family lived for 30 years. The home never left the family’s hands before it was sold to the University of Mississippi so it is filled with family treasures like Faulkner’s typewriter and riding boots and portraits painted by his mother, a talented artist. A 20-minute walk from the house through Bailey Woods leads to the university’s museum, where groups can take tours. Keeping to the literary vein, groups might visit Faulkner’s grave, leaving a small bottle of bourbon, the writer’s favorite, or visit Square Books, stocked with Faulkner novels.

Show some school spirit

The University of Mississippi is known for its spirited sports traditions, so a visit to campus might be in order. Visitors can certainly tour on their own, or the Visit Oxford team can assist with arranging a guided tour. When the football stadium and basketball arena aren’t being used for games or other school events, planners might book suites and other premium venues for their off-site events. 

Getting there

The nearest major airport is Memphis International. It’s about a 90-minute drive from there to Oxford — about the time it takes to get from one side of Atlanta to the other. The CVB can supply information about motorcoaches or other transportation options from the Memphis airport. For those driving in, Oxford is 25 miles east of I-55, which links Memphis and St. Louis to the north and Jackson, Mississippi, and New Orleans to the south.

For more information, please contact:

Visit Oxford

Nadia Thornton

Director of Sales and Marketing

662-232-2477

nadia@visitoxfordms.com

visitoxfordms.com