Where to honor Black History Month in the US
Travel influencer Romie Robertson shares her essential itinerary to celebrate Black history and culture in the US—from iconic landmarks to off-the-beaten-track treasures
Who doesn’t love a good city break? Checking into a chic hotel, strolling around a gallery, eating great food, browsing boutiques, drinks in a local bar and then, oh, more great food? But while finding the latest hipster hangout guarantees social-media kudos, you get even more out of a destination by learning about its past. And when better than Black History Month? Held every February, it’s the perfect time to celebrate the Black culture and history of some of the nation’s most buzzing cities.
Travel content creator Romie Robertson—born and raised in Atlanta, a city renowned for its vibrant Black community—is your guide along the way. A former classroom teacher, she was inspired to start posting about travel (@roamingwithromie) to share a destination’s history and the stories of its locals.
“What fulfills me is going deeper, getting to know the hidden history and culture of a place, what it offers that we don’t often see on social media,” she says of her approach to travel, adding that “if you look for it, you’ll find African American history everywhere in the United States.”
Scroll down to find her top five places to visit this Black History Month, plus recommendations for what to see, eat and do—and her favorite Black-owned businesses to support while you’re there.
5 key cities to visit in Black History Month
Civil Rights sites and Black-owned boutiques in Atlanta
Atlanta, GA
A go-to for movie shoots, home to major corporations and the epicenter of hip-hop, Atlanta is a cultural hub packed with green spaces, distinctive and diverse neighborhoods—and a rich Black history. “My hometown played a monumental role in the Civil Rights Movement, and oh wow, there is so much to see,” says Robertson. “Everyone should visit The King Center in the Old Fourth Ward neighborhood. Tours include Ebenezer Baptist Church (where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s father was the senior pastor), his childhood home, and his resting place.”
Robertson also recommends a trip to Atlanta University Center, a consortium of historically Black colleges that were a focus for student organizing during the Civil Rights Movement. Refuel nearby with baked chicken in cornbread dressing and a side of turnip greens at locals’ beloved The Busy Bee Cafe, a soul-food hot spot for more than 75 years.
Find retail therapy in the Old Fourth Ward, with Auburn Avenue and Edgewood Avenue stacked with Black-owned boutiques. Robertson also loves Souk Bohemian in Ponce City Market, whose Black, queer owner curates a clothing and homewares store with global influences. Another favorite is The Village Retail, where everything is created by Black vendors, from candles to books to apparel. “There are a ton of art galleries too: Black Art in America and the ZuCot Gallery are Black-owned and put on events to support Black artists.”
The Big Easy serves up flavors, sounds and storytelling
New Orleans, LA
NOLA is perennially popular for jazz culture, Mardi Gras, the vibes of Bourbon Street, French colonial architecture and its Creole and Cajun cuisines. A cultural melting pot, it’s a joy to explore, and Robertson suggests branching out from the French Quarter: “The Tremé neighborhood is like the Old Fourth Ward in Atlanta—the center of the middle-class Black community in New Orleans. It’s home to the New Orleans African American Museum and the oldest Black Catholic parish in the U.S., Saint Augustine Church.”
A must-eat in Tremé is the famous gumbo and crab soup from Dooky Chase restaurant. “If you’re familiar with Disney’s The Princess and the Frog, the main character Tiana’s dream was to open a restaurant—they got the inspiration from founder Leah Chase. When no one was investing in Black-owned businesses, she opened this restaurant—and made some of the best Creole food in New Orleans.”
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Robertson loves the Black-owned NOPSI Hotel (a stone’s throw from the French Quarter); catch the revival jazz brunch every Sunday at its Public Service restaurant.
She also recommends a stop at the Whitney Plantation. “It’s the first plantation museum to center its stories on those that were enslaved there—versus the plantation owners. Every part of the tour centers on a different story of an enslaved person who lived and worked there.”
Global art and national landmarks in Washington, DC
Washington, DC
As well as being home to key political monuments, incredible museums, the largest library on Earth and North America’s only da Vinci painting, the nation’s capital is also, says Robertson, a center for Black excellence. “Washington, D.C. is known as ‘Chocolate City’ because of the wealth of Black communities.”
If you only have time for one museum, make it the National Museum of African American History and Culture (aka the “Blacksonian”). “I took a trip to D.C. just to go to that museum and I literally needed three days to get around—I went back twice more after my first visit,” says Robertson. An architecturally formidable building, opened by President Obama in 2016, its design was inspired by the crowns used in West African art. The newest exhibition, In Slavery’s Wake, looks at the continuing impact of colonialism (until June 2025).
At the Lincoln Memorial, seek out a marker of the spot where MLK gave his “I Have a Dream” speech, as well as his memorial in West Potomac Park, a statue carved into the Stone of Hope.
Robertson loves to pause at Busboys and Poets, a cultural hub, restaurant and live venue that has been a center for Black community organizing since 2005. “They still do spoken word and live music nights, and have a bookstore focused on Black authors,” she says, adding, “Be sure to eat at Ben’s Chili Bowl, a landmark restaurant in D.C. Civil Rights history where activists came to eat and organize.”
For a five-star experience, Romie recommends adding on a stay at Salamander Resort and Spa in Middleburg, an hour’s drive west of the city, where the luxury spa will soothe weary feet after a weekend traversing national landmarks. “It’s a phenomenal luxury resort owned by a Black woman,” she says, referencing CEO and founder Sheila Johnson.
Exhibitions, archives and heavyweight history in NYC
New York City, NY
New York has long been at the heart of Black culture. “You have to begin in Harlem, because it is quintessentially Black New York,” says Robertson. The neighborhood’s main thoroughfare, 125th Street, shows signs of gentrification, but there are still many vestiges of its rich history.
The Apollo Theater is a must-see for amateur night,” she says. (Stay at the Renaissance New York Harlem Hotel, next door.) “And there’s a phenomenal Black library archive, the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.” Until the end of February, it’s showing an exhibition dedicated to novelist and activist James Baldwin, celebrating what would have been his 100th birthday. May also marks the centenary of Malcolm X’s birth, to be commemorated at The Shabazz Center, once home to him and his wife Dr. Betty Shabazz, now a museum and library.
Next stop, Brooklyn, a borough with diverse Black culture. “When we talk about Black history, we center it on descendants of enslaved Africans, but so much of Black culture comes from more recent Caribbean immigrants.”
Head to Bed–Stuy, home to stacks of Black-owned stores, bars and restaurants, including the buzzing Bed-Vyne Brew and its sister cocktail bar. Take a tour of the neighborhood’s murals honoring local Civil Rights and hip-hop icons, like Notorious B.I.G. on Fulton Street.
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Close-knit community and cultural organizing in Asheville
Asheville, NC
Prefer a trip to a smaller city? Robertson recommends vibrant, artsy Asheville in the Blue Ridge Mountains. (The area was badly hit by Hurricane Helene in September, but the town is up and running and urging visitors to return.) “There’s a neighborhood called The Block in downtown Asheville, which was an enclave of Black-owned restaurants, barber shops and tailors. It fell to urban development and gentrification in the second half of the 20th century, but it’s being revitalized thanks to advocacy by grassroots organizations like Hood Huggers International,” Robertson says.
“Follow the Asheville Black Cultural Heritage Trail, where stops include Stephens-Lee High School, which was the Black school during segregation, and a community center called YMI Cultural Center, where a lot of political and cultural organizing happened,” says Robertson. “There’s a great Black art gallery and bookstore there called Noir Collective AVL.”
Elsewhere in the city, Robertson loved Tiger Bay Cafe for veggie breakfast bowls, lox bagels and breakfast tacos, and try Good Hot Fish for the daily fish plate with hushpuppies, pickles, salt-and-vinegar pork rinds and sidewinder fries. Bed down at The Foundry Hotel after taking in all the city has to offer.
Find Romie’s suggestions for Black-owned hotels in the US at her Travel Shop
Lara Kilner is a lifestyle journalist, who has contributed to The Times, The Telegraph, and more. She has traveled extensively through five continents, but her most memorable trip was the one on which she met her Malaysian husband.
