We chose Backbeat Tours' Discovery Tour to see the city of Memphis and discover all that it has to offer. Our tour guide, Kathy, was very knowledgeable and she and the driver, Gary, played well off of each other. Our tour group was relatively small so that was nice and we could joke and ask questions easily. The bus was in good shape and clean inside and out. We drove all around Memphis while Kathy told us all about it. Then we got out to see the Peabody Duck Parade...too cute! Short, but cute! We went to Central BBQ for lunch that was included in our ticket price. Delicious! After lunch, we walked across the street to the National Civil Rights Museum that's been built onto the Lorraine Motel and we stood in front of the balcony that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot. One extra tidbit that Kathy mentioned was regarding a little cookie shop down the street from the Museum that sells the best butter cookies anyone's ever put in their mouth. Didn't get to go on the trip, but we'll DEFINITELY be making a side trip over there to get some! The end of the tour left us at the Rock 'n Soul Museum where we went through a self-guided tour. It was pretty much amazing and super rich with musical history. I would recommend this tour if you're looking for an easy way to see the city and learn some of its history. It's a little bit of riding and a little bit of getting out and seeing things up close. Overall we were very pleased and would do this again in a heartbeat. read more

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We had a great tour with Larry! My brother and I took our parents to Memphis to do 'all things Elvis' and the Memphis Discovery Tour was a great introduction to some of the other interesting things about Memphis. Larry got us to the Peabody just in time to see the Duck March and even got us a great viewing spot. We enjoyed learning about the history of Memphis and visiting the National Civil Rights Museum. *The full museum is not part of this tour, but we did return later and it is well worth it* Lunch at Central BBQ was delicious. The tour ends at the Rock and Soul Museum where visitors are welcome to take as much time as they like touring the museum. You are just a short stroll up Beale Street back to the beginning of the tour (and where you parked). read more

Our tour guide was really nice and informative. She told a lot of interesting stories. It was a nice way to learn about parts of Memphis while getting your exercise in. read more

We took the Discovery Tour. It was fabulous. Larry was our guide. He was wonderful! He was very informative and entertaining and a great driver. Highly recommended!! read more

Backbeat Tours - On the tour bus. - Tours Near Me - Memphis, Tennessee

As a local I know a lot about Memphis already and love the music so I knew a bit about that too. But, they offered a tour that I could take my dog on, couldn't pass that up! There were about 8-10 dogs on the bus with their humans, all friendly and well behaved (the humans). The tour was fun, interactive and filled with facts (I learned some new things about Memphis & Elvis!). I you want to see a few sights around the city, get a good idea of where else you can go when you visit and have a great time, this is the tour to take! The tour guide performed songs that went along with the story she told; very good, great energy and entertained us along the way. read more

The Memphis city tour was great!! It was my family and my first visit to Memphis and wanted to get an overview of what the city has to offer. We greatly enjoyed it and Larry the tour guide was friendly and very knowledgeable. This tour is a great value. I highly recommend it!! read more

Mojo Bus Tour: Good place to start for Memphis first time visitors This was our first time to visit Memphis. We thought this tour would be a good foundation for where to start. The customer service and tour guide were very kind and funny. Our 11 year old son was scheduled to go with us, but got sick at last minute, so it was just my husband and I. You could bring any beverages you wanted on the bus with you (alcoholic or nonalcholoic) which we liked. The bus boards at an ideal location on Beale Street. We went over spring break and we were the youngest on the bus and we are in our 40's. So the crowd was a lot more mellow than I anticipated. But we made the best of it and the tour guide did a good job trying to get the rest of the crowd more engaged. It was interesting to see all of the spots Elvis grew up and worked at. Also how other artists during the same period - Johnny Cash, BB King, Aretha Franklin and other famous song writers were up and comers. read more

I took the Ghost Tour on a recent visit to Memphis. It was fun albeit creepy at times. Sarah, our tour guide, is a history buff and provided some nice historical tidbits on the tour in addition to the ghost stories. The tour takes a couple of hours and you walk about 2 miles in total so bring good walking shoes. It was fun exploring the city at night and also very interesting. read more

Great tour with a knowledgeable and talented tour guide! Would recommend this tour for anyone interested in the musical history of Memphis. We added the tour of Sun Studios and we were so glad we did! read more

Catherine was the local musician that guided our tour. She was absolutely, positively amazing! We loved how she weaved stories we had never heard before--while playing music as the bus drove us around. We saw a lot of cool places (e.g., Elvis lived 4 blocks from BB King!). We could've never gotten this rich of an impression of Memphis if it were not for going on the Mojo tour! We also enjoyed going to Sun Studios and Graceland, but we learned new stories on the Mojo tour. Plus, we had so much fun! We are the parents of a five-year-old who was mesmerized the whole time. I highly recommend Catherine and this tour! She has a real skill for storytelling and a beautiful voice and spirit! read more

My girlfriend and I went on this tour because we were tourists with just two days devoted to memphis. While the owner was nice, this was just C H E E S Y, cheesy is capitalized for a reason. I was annoyed from the word go, because we registered online to get 12:15 tickets and were automatically plugged in for tickets at 1:30. LAME! The tour was then thirty minutes late. LAME!! Then the tour ended shy of the announced time... LAME!!! Aside from the fact that we were then able to escape the tourist bus to hit up the super cool STAX museum which was a steal and waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay cooler and less of a gimmick. read more

Stumbled upon this tour and booked it after reading a few reviews. Honestly, we didn't know how much of a rich history lies in Memphis. With this tour we got a brief view and rundown of historical and prominent sights/landmarks. My kids (college and high school) loved the tour. The bus has plenty of space, it was clean and large window for photos. We toured the streets of Downtown Memphis, watched the Peabody duck march, stopped by Central BBQ for a generous sample, and ended at the Museum. Our tour guide, Larry, was great- knowledgeable and funny. We never felt rushed. If we go to Memphis again, we'll be sure to check out other tours with Backbeat. read more

Excellent tour! Had a great time! You get to play along and sing along. The guy running the tour was a talented musician and was very informed about the city! If you are wanting to tour the city and learn a little bit of everything then I would highly suggest this tour company! read more

Our guide, Sarah, was super knowledgable. The tour was fun and certainly creepy at times. Our final stop, Earnestine and Hazel's, definitely left me with a distinct feeling of paranormal, which I've never experienced before despite being a horror/ghost story enthusiast. read more

This was a great tour. We had Michael as a guide and he was a wealth of knowledge. We went on the ghost tour, and he not only told us all the ghost stories, he also included some history. Our tour was kinda small, but it felt like we were all friends. Highly recommended that Michael gets a raise. read more

Took my mom on the ghost tour. It was immediately obvious that our tour guide (Michael) not only new the history (and haunted history) of Memphis, but also the history of several other areas of neighboring states. Michael was also very patient with our diverse group and took time to answer questions and give his own perspective along the tour. We had a fabulous time hearing about the Orpheum and some of the old homes. The best (and creepiest) part of the tour was Earnestine & Hazel's. Mom and I had a great time. read more

More like a history lesson. Tour guide memorized her speech. She tried to put personality in it, she lacked the talent to pull it off. The bus was broke down and did not tell us until after we started our tour. Tour was 2 miles not 1. I do not recommend. Especially if you can not see well in dark. Her mic was also not working. Hard to hear. read more

My husband & I took the Big Mojo tour & it was fantastic!! Everyone from moment we checked in until we left the tour was extremely helpful & very informative. A local singer, Nancy Apple, was our tour guide on first half making it even more fun! Sun Recording Studio was awesome - so much musical history! Would highly recommend this tour - especially if you only have short time in Memphis!!! read more

Beware. All you are paying for is someone to drive you in an old bus from the CBD to Graceland. On the way the driver gave us a small amount of facts about Memphis but it wasn't much. They show pictures of tour guides singing and give you the impression that they are going to give you a Graceland tour but in reality they are simply driving you there walking to the ticket counter and buying you a regular ticket and then they put you on the line with all the other people at Graceland. They DO NOT give you a tour of Graceland they simply drop you off. Save yourself a few $$$ and drive yourself there and buy your own ticket. read more

My mother and I were on a cross-country road trip and made a last minute decision to stop in Memphis. We had never been on a ghost tour before, so we called to reserve our tickets in the afternoon and paid for them when we arrived in the evening right before the tour. Our guide Emily was very knowledgeable about Memphis and its local ghost stories. She walked us around Beale to Main to the Lorraine, Pontontoc (sp), with other stops in between ending at Earnestine and Hazel's, all the while sharing authentic, chilling tales from each haunted spot. Emily was quiet but a wealth of information, so be sure to ask lots of questions because she has the answers! Very cool to get a mix of history and mystery, much more than anything I learned online while doing research beforehand. Highly recommend if you are into unexplained phenomenon. read more

Fun way to visit Memphis. Knowledgeable tour guide, good music. Uplifting and relaxing way to get to understand Memphis and the musicians that come from here. read more

I took the Historic Walking Tour through Memphis on short notice. Initially, I wanted to see the sights on my own, but just felt like getting professional input on history of the town. Honestly, it was the worst tour I have ever done. To start, I don't even know who I dealt with as the elderly man with chapeau did not introduce himself by name - I just assumed it would be him because he stood in front of the office. He just waited for all passengers and started walking. The only introduction started with the "joke" if anybody of non-tipping countries would be participating. - Great, an instant reminder of "you better tip me". He advised the actual walking tour would start somewhere else. So we walked almost quietly the first 10-15 minutes of the tour to Court Square. He mentioned he would be saying something about the area on the way later on. - Then why did we not meet up at Court Square in the first time so actually make use of the scheduled time? Waste of time! The only thing he mentioned was the Police Officer (POC) that was in charge during Civil Rights Movements and that he always wondered how he felt. - People would actually like to know the answer. He was living his whole life (meaning probably over 50 years) in Memphis and not once mentioned to talk to this officer and make the contact? Wow! That's a shame! If you don't have an answer, then please just don't give out that information at all. The information he gave were absolutely unsubstantial. No general historical overview about Memphis. Bits and pieces here and there only sugarcoated with little anecdotes. When participants asked questions he could not really answer and vaguely covered up the non-existent knowledge about his own city (he often mentioned how this is HIS city and he would be so proud to live there. Well.. doesn't know much from what it seems). The one sure information that was always given was his personal opinion about the political situation that varied depending on looks in travelers faces. Once he was pro taking down confederate statues, once he was against it. In any case: this is not something that should be brought into a tourist walking tour. Any kind of these information should be objective! Especially in a time like this. Subjectivity is absolutely out of place. The tour schedule noted to see the Peabody Duck March. He made it very clear when asking how important this was to us, that he actually does not want to see them or is interested in showing them. Some wanted to see it, so we went to his "secret spot" that apparently he had reserved so we can see better. It was simply the Mezzanine - nothing reserved, packed with other people of a private event. Also, we never saw any "Panoramic rooftop views of the city". I was not the only person thinking like that. Some other participants that I met later on in other museums felt the same. In the end I felt obligated to tip even though it was very much not deserved. He also didn't properly end the tour or said "good bye". Simply just that he will be waiting outside for the next tour. It was unprofessional and not well prepared. And I am giving this harsh evaluation as I am working in tourism myself and know what good guides actually can be capable of and what a well prepared, profound tour looks like even with bringing in personal, fun stories! I wish I had not spend that money! Safe your time and money and just go, see it on your own. read more

It was really fun to be shown Memphis on the Mojo Tour. Our tour guide was cheerful, informed, and a very talented musician. She had a passion for the music history of her hometown that she shared with the passengers. It was comfortable and I learned a lot. She was the most talented musician we saw during our trip to Memphis. read more

My wife and I have traveled the country full-time for the last three years, and we've been on many tours. Kathryn, the tour guide for the Mojo tour, was by far the best we've ever seen. She either talked or played music non-stop for 90 minutes and never once did it feel like she memorized lines. I'm not sure how long she's been doing this, but the energy level was off the charts. And her energy was infectious, getting everybody to sing and play an instrument. Most importantly, we learned a TON about Memphis and singers that I thought I knew pretty well. It was WELL worth the price and time. read more

It was ok. The musical performer was pretty cool. I was excited to see Sun Records and the bus basically just drove past it with little mention. If I was looking the wrong way for two seconds I would have missed the whole viewing. The Lorraine motel was viewed from a street away. Stax Records is in the HOOD, and is actually a replica building...the original was demolished in the 80s I think. I picked this tour over Graceland so I could see a variety of sights, if I could do it again would have went to Graceland. Like I said it wasn't bad just not awesome. read more

I took the 90 min Mojo tour with the guitar-playing tour guide. It was fabulous. The music kept us in a great mood and contributed to the telling of the history of Memphis music. The song selections enhanced the understanding of the types of music. read more

Great tour. Saw a lot in a short time. Highly recommend it. The only thing I would recommend is to put speakers in the back of the bus. The host was too quiet and when the old bus was accelerating you could not hear her. Driver was great! read more

We saw the pamphlet in the hotel lobby and saw the Haunted Memphis tour, and thought it would be cool to do. Called the local number and just got a message to leave a voice message. Then called the 800 number and got someone on the east coast. When I tried to book tickets they wanted to charge me $2.00 for each ticket. The guy had information and answered my questions and said I could buy tickets at the counter inside B B Kings. When I got to B B Kings I asked at the desk when the Backbeat employees show up so I could buy tickets and they said they show up at 8:30pm, the time the tour was supposed to start by the way. I waited until 8:40 without anyone showing up. When I called the 800 number they told me the tour had been annulled. The whole afternoon and evening was ruined. The local Memphis employees don't seem to care too much about their tours, customers, or their jobs. Don't bother with this company or it's tours. read more

This was a great way to see a lot of Memphis and learn a lot of history in a fun way! Our tour guide had a beautiful voice and she told funny stories. Our teenagers loved it and it gave them a great background for the other places we visited in Memphis. Totally worth the time and money!! read more

took my family on the ghost tour a few nights ago....our guide, who was training and is very nice, had a lot of info about the specific sites, but not a lot of background info about the city as a whole....we have gone on many ghost/food/educational tours around the country, and typically the guide talks about 90-95% of the time...in this case, maybe 25% of the time was spent educating us....the tour is in some very sketchy areas of town as well, including ernestine and hazels' dive bar....the guide's boss, was there, and they both treated us very well, especially my son, but sad to say, i can only give this tour 2 stars.... read more