Visit North Alabama

Grammy-winning singer-songwriter John Paul White has built his entire career from Florence, Alabama. He has never lived in Nashville. Not once.

Host Melea Hames sits down with the Muscle Shoals-raised musician - former half of The Civil Wars, co-founder of Single Lock Records - to talk about the talent show that accidentally revealed he could sing, why his recording studio is still somebody's house, and what the Muscle Shoals legacy actually did for the generation that came after it.

He shares how David Hood, Spooner Oldham and Jimmy Johnson treated him like an equal when he was nobody, why Single Lock feels more like a co-op than a record label, the Shoals and Huntsville artists he thinks deserve your attention right now - Caleb Elliott, Carver Commodore, Billy Allen + The Pollies, Gary Nichols - and the one place in North Alabama he tells everyone to visit. Listen to the full episode at northalabama.org/podcast!

Get ready to get lost in the best way possible! 🌽🍂 The West Blount Corn Maze in Warrior returns for another season of fall fun, open weekends October 3-31.

The centerpiece of the experience is a three-mile corn maze, but there’s plenty more to keep the whole family entertained. General admission includes a hayride to the maze along with access to the corn maze and other farm activities. Upgrade to an Adventure Ticket for unlimited rides on the barrel train and zip lines, plus two shots on the corn cannon!

On October 10 and 24, plan a little extra time for Market at the Maze, featuring arts and crafts vendors and food trucks from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It’s a great chance to shop, grab something to eat and enjoy even more time on the farm.

📅 Weekends | October 3-31
⏰ Fridays: 4-10pm | Saturdays: 10am-10pm | Sundays: 1-6pm
📍 2543 Rock Springs Road | Warrior
🎟️ General Admission: $10 | Adventure Ticket: $15 | Ages 3 & under FREE

Whether you’re navigating the corn maze, taking a hayride or testing your aim with the corn cannon, West Blount Corn Maze is a fun way to spend a crisp fall day with family and friends in North Alabama! 🎃🌽

🍂🎃 October in North Alabama is PACKED with fall fun! From German celebrations and old-time music to barbecue, art festivals, storytelling and a few spooky adventures, there’s something happening just about every weekend this month.

🥨 Cullman Oktoberfest
🎻 Tennessee Valley Old Time Fiddlers Convention
🍖 Scottsboro BBQ Festival
🍁 Covered Bridge Festival
🎨 Alabama Gourd Show
🎶 Attalla Heritage Day Festival
📖 Athens Storytelling Festival
🖼️ River Clay Fine Arts Festival
👻 LaGrange Haunted Hayrides
🍂 Buttahatchee River Fall Fest
🌽 West Blount Corn Maze
…and plenty more!

Whether you’re ready for festival food, live music, arts and crafts, fall traditions or a good Halloween scare, October is a great time to get out and explore North Alabama.

Check out our October events roundup and start planning your weekends! 👇
https://www.northalabama.org/blog/post/october-events-in-north-alabama/

Which one is on your October calendar? 🍁

October Events in North Alabama | Visit North Alabama October has a different feel to it: crisp air, colorful foliage, pumpkins, festivals, and the list goes on. It also has a spooky edge to it as well, and there are several haunted walking tours across the region that tell of the paranormal activity in north Alabama.

It was a pleasure to welcome Alabama State Tourism Director Glenda Allred to North Alabama last week! 💙

Visit North Alabama hosted an evening at Cook Museum of Natural Science, bringing together tourism partners and community leaders from across the region for an opportunity to meet Director Allred, connect, and talk about the incredible things happening in North Alabama.

We’re grateful she took the time to visit our corner of the state and look forward to working together to continue showcasing all there is to discover across North Alabama! ✨


Sweet Home Alabama

Congratulations to the Rocket City Trash Pandas for winning the Southern League Championship! Way to go! 🚀⚾️🦝

KINGS OF THE SOUTH 👑

🏆 Congratulations to our 2026 PEAK Award winners! We were honored to recognize some of the incredible people, organizations, attractions, and events making a difference in North Alabama tourism during our Annual Meeting in Decatur.

👏 Organization of the Year: Bear Creek Collaborative
🎉 Event of the Year: North Alabama Airfest
⭐ Attraction of the Year: Ave Maria Grotto
🤝 Good Neighbor Award: Michelle Epling, Madison Chamber of Commerce
🌟 Northern Star Award: Johnny Belew, Rhythm & Belew’s Tours
🍏 Young Professional of the Year: Katlyn Lott, Muscle Shoals Sound Studio
🏆 Tourism Professional of the Year: Rob Carnegie, The Shoals/Florence-Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau
❤️ Lasting Impression Award: Red Bay Museum
📰 Chairman’s Cup: The Library Of
🏅 President’s Award: Lauren Pelto, Jori Chatman, Lauranne James, Jared Carter, Renona Seibert, and Michelle Jordan
📸 North Alabama Ambassador of the Year: Paige Watts
🎬 North Alabama Film Commission Reel Difference Award: Mayor Ronnie Marks

North Alabama’s tourism industry is strong because of the passionate people who invest in their communities, create memorable experiences, and welcome visitors to our region every day.

Please join us in congratulating all of our 2026 PEAK Award winners! 👏🎉

🍺🥨 Get ready to say PROST! Cullman Oktoberfest is back, and this year, you get an extra day to celebrate!

The 44th annual Cullman Oktoberfest takes over downtown Cullman October 1-4 with FOUR days of German food, live music, biergartens, contests, shopping and family fun. 🇩🇪

You’ll find everything from stein-hoisting and brat-eating contests to German bands, artisan vendors, heritage activities and plenty of delicious food. And don’t miss the huge kids carnival featuring the return of the 105-foot Ferris wheel and double-decker carousel! 🎡

Saturday also brings the Oktoberfest 5K & 10K and the Volkswagen Car Show, and this year’s festival keeps the fun going through Sunday!

📅 October 1-4
📍 Downtown Cullman
🎟️ FREE admission

Grab your lederhosen, bring your appetite and come celebrate Cullman’s German heritage at one of North Alabama’s biggest fall traditions! 🥨🍺

Huntsville didn’t just wake up one day with a thriving music scene; it built one on purpose. In our latest blog, we sit down with Huntsville Music Officer Matt Mandrella to look at how a music audit helped create a roadmap for the city, why small venues are just as important as places like The Orion Amphitheater and how Huntsville and the Shoals are working together to strengthen North Alabama’s music story. We also dig into some pretty impressive numbers, including a music economy that now generates $278.2 million in direct economic output. Click to read the blog, then listen to Episode 122 of Unexpected Adventures in North Alabama for the full conversation!

No Guitar on the Logo: How Huntsville Built a Music Scene on Purpose There is a detail from this episode I have not stopped thinking about. When the city of Huntsville designed the logo for its music office, nobody put a guitar on it. That was on purpose. “We identified really quick that we're not really a specific town,” Matt Mandrella told me. & #...