Where to Stay in Savannah (2026)

Top tips for Savannah

Image by Robbyn McClain from Pixabay

The Quick Answer

• The best neighbourhoods for sightseeing: Historic District & Downtown, Ardsley Park & Midtown
• The most historic neighbourhoods: Historic District & Downtown, Ardsley Park & Midtown, Gordonston

Table of Contents

Beautiful, lush, languid and historic, many of us met Savannah via the book, or film, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.  And that unusual travelogue is actually pretty accurate. The sweeping architecture, lush green, hot-house atmosphere, appreciation for history — it’s all here in Savannah. This is the kind of city to stroll around, whether you’re here with a paramour, your friends or family.  Expect great food, convivial nightlife, and some excellent museums and galleries.  

A Visitor’s Guide to the Neighbourhoods of Savannah

Via Google maps

There’s a huge range of accommodation in Savannah, a lot of it clustered around the Historic Districts and Downtown. If you stay in one of these neighbourhoods, you can walk to many of the city's major sights. For a feel of old Savannah, we recommend the very central Historic District, which is quite large, or historic Gordonston, which is one of the newest designated Historic Districts, and is off-centre, and much more peaceful for it. Of the Midtown districts our Gurus recommend Ardsley Park, which is still very central and historic, with oak-lined streets and a good mix of 1910 bungalows and grand, classical architecture. For something a little more contemporary, try Starland, which is great for independent shopping, perusing galleries, appreciating street art, and a great food and drinks scene. 

Historic District & Downtown

Image by Mary from Pixabay

Savannah’s Historic District broadly matches the pre-Civil War city layout and limits. It is a collection of smaller neighbourhoods that radiate outwards from around 22 park squares, each of which features fountains, monuments and mature trees dripping in Spanish moss. This area broadly spreads between Forsyth Park and the Savannah River.  Around each of the squares are orderly rows of 18th and 19th century homes, in Gothic, Greek Revival, and Victorian styles, some of them fabulously grand and graceful. The Historic District also encompasses neat rows of shops and boutiques, bars and cafes, and around a hundred restaurants. Forsyth Park is a good starting point to get your bearings; from here head south to Jones Street, which is one of the prettiest examples of the historic architecture this district is known for: Colonial and Georgian in particular. City Market is another landmark worth knowing about: a great place to shop and eat, and the location of The American Prohibition Museum. Other local landmarks include the Telfair Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Webb Military Museum, the Savannah Children’s Museum, and the Savannah Pirates and Treasure Museum.  This is also a good place for carriage rides, ghost tours, and setting out on river tours.

Ardsley Park & Midtown 

By Flickr user Bruce Tuten

Ardsley Park is about five minutes drive from the Historic District: but it doesn’t look very different, with more 18th and 19th century architecture, and mature oak trees with canopies that drip with Spanish moss. Around a thousand properties have made the ‘historic’ list. The strictly unified square layout is gone, though, replaced by some arcing roads and crescents, and small parks which are very popular with local families. This is an affluent neighbourhood, with lots of beautiful properties, but if you’re looking for the prettiest bits, look for accommodation around Chatham Crescent.  

Starland District

By Flickr user Johnathon Strebly

The Starland District is directly south of Forsyth Park and the Historic District. Its 35 blocks have become one of the coolest neighbourhoods of Savannah, partly because of its student population, especially the students attending the famously fun Savannah College of Art and Design. Creative, arty, and with a great foodie scene and lively nightlife, the Starland District is a great choice for people wanting to experience contemporary Savannah as well as historic Savannah. It's a great place to shop too, whether you love perusing an antique store, a vintage emporium, or art galleries and independent local boutiques, book shops and record stores.

Gordonston 

By Flickr user denisbin

Gordonston is around five miles south of Savannah’s main Historic District, but it has many of the same features to recommend it and promises a quieter atmosphere with it, and fewer visitors. The architecture is slightly younger, and the layout is not as uniform, but there are the same oak-lined streets and many parks: including Juliette Gordon Low Park, named for the woman who founded the Girl Scouts, who was from the same Gordon family who originally owned this land.  This was originally the Gordon family farm and was said to occupy the highest ground in Savannah.