Experience Elvis! That’s exactly what fans worldwide do when they visit Tupelo, Miss. Tupelo brings the formative years of Elvis Presley to life as visitors tour his birthplace grounds and explore meaningful sites on the Early Years Driving Tour.

Every August, fans from across the world gather at the birthplace to celebrate the annual Fan Appreciation Day and to tour the features, set in a memorial garden. The components of the garden represent an integral part of Elvis’ childhood, one which was influenced heavily by his Tupelo upbringing. It includes the “walk of life” around the birthplace which consists of 42 granite blocks representing each year of Elvis’ life, a “fountain of life” symbolizing the significance of the Tupelo years, a “story wall” featuring 11 childhood narratives as told by boyhood friends of Elvis and a 1939 green Plymouth, which duplicates the type of car that the Presley’s owned at the time they moved from Tupelo to Memphis in 1948. The parking lot includes a bus turn-around and drop-off point adjacent to the Museum, which has also been renovated to include an arbor and a handicapped accessible portico. Fans can relax among benches set in the beautiful park area, enjoy a picnic or even meditate in the chapel, which has become a popular setting for weddings.

The newest attraction at the Birthplace Park is the ASSEMBLY OF GOD church that Elvis attended as a small boy. The church has been fully restored and will excite you as you sit and watch a presention of an old time worship service.

The Early Years Driving Tour, which begins at the birthplace and leads visitors to several sites important in Elvis’ formative years, also helps to capture his life. The tour highlights significant locations with bronze plaques and provides information about each site. The Tupelo CVB funded the plaques in an effort to make the Elvis experience more complete. The tour includes Tupelo Hardware where Elvis’ mother purchased his first guitar, schools Elvis attended and other notable sites.