The Peabody Hotel, where the Mississippi Delta is said to begin, is more of an experience than a hotel. No one goes to The Peabody just to spend the night. That is only a small part of it.

A Memphis Tradition for 130 Years

Since the original hotel opening (in a different Memphis location) in 1869, The Peabody has been a proud Memphis tradition. Such celebrities as Colonel Charles Lindbergh, William Faulkner and General Robert E. Lee stayed at the original hotel. Even Presidents William McKinley and Andrew Johnson were guests, as well. 1923 marked the end of this first grand era as The Peabody closed.

Two years later, a new 14-story building was opened at a cost of $5 million. The Peabody, now located on Union Avenue in downtown Memphis, was designed by architect Walter Ahlschlager.

Beautiful Italian Renaissance Design

Finely crafted in Italian Renaissance style, the huge 2-story lobby is graced with marble columns, an intricately carved ceiling with stained-glass panels, and an incredible fountain, carved from a single piece of Travertine marble.

The huge fountain stands in the center of the lobby and is always filled with a magnificent bouquet of flowers. The fountain itself has carved cherubs holding up the bowl in which the flowers are displayed.

Peabody Ducks

Many decades ago a Peabody tradition began when the General Manager, Frank Schutt, jokingly put some of his duck decoys into the fountain. (Back in the 1930's it was legal for hunters to use live ducks as decoys.)

The famous Peabody Ducks have proudly marched down to take their place in the fountain every day since then. It is quite a grand tradition.

At 11 am every day, a 50-foot red carpet is rolled out for the ducks. They are led from their luxurious penthouse apartment by the Duckmaster into the elevator, then onto the red carpet. An announcement is made over the loud speaker and the John Philip Sousa "King Cotton March" begins playing.

It takes only a few seconds for the ducks to make their promenade down the red carpet, much like the movie stars arriving on Academy Award night. The cameras are flashing and videos whirring, as children and adults alike are charmed by the ducks as they proudly waddle into the center stage fountain.

There are five ducks, a drake and four hens. They happily swim in the fountain, almost in time to the music. First in one direction, and then the other. They change direction several times, performing for an attentive audience as cameras continue to snap at their antics.

When the music stops, the duck food is placed in the fountain as their reward. They will continue to swim and splash their way around the fountain until early evening. Then the show reverses at 5:00pm, when the red carpet is again rolled out and the Duckmaster comes to return the celebrity ducks to their penthouse.

Penthouse on the Roof

The roof of The Peabody houses the Royal Duck Palace and offers an excellent view of downtown Memphis and the Mississippi River, with the Hernando-DeSoto Bridge connecting Tennessee with neighboring Arkansas.

There is large lighted sign proclaiming "The Peabody" in red block letters that I remember from my earliest visits to downtown Memphis when I was a little girl.

This roof has been a popular place to visit since the 1930's and 1940's when CBS radio broadcast live from here. Big band entertainers such as Harry James and Tommy Dorsey were featured here regularly. Many parties and wedding receptions have been held on this roof throughout the years.

The Beginning of a New Era

The 1970's marked a very dark time for downtown Memphis. The economy was suffering and many businesses were leaving downtown Memphis. The Peabody closed in 1975.

Fortunately, for all of us who love The Peabody, the hotel was purchased by Belz Enterprises and underwent a $25 million renovation. The hotel was restored to her elegant finest and proudly re-opened in 1981. Since then, The Peabody remains the grand lady of Memphis.

The hotel has recently been renovated again from top to bottom and an exclusive concierge level was added. The hotel boasts 468 guest rooms and 15 suites. There are also 36 meeting rooms, providing 80,000+ feet of space.

Downtown Memphis is now thriving, with Beale Street attracting visitors from around the world, the recently opened Peabody Place shopping and entertainment complex, and the Auto Zone Stadium. The Peabody is in a prime location for shopping, entertainment and dining in downtown Memphis.

Holiday Time - The Peabody is a Must-See

There is no time that The Peabody is grander than during the holiday season. The huge lobby, ornate and beautiful at any time, takes on a magical air during the weeks before Christmas.

The brilliantly decorated Christmas tree soars approximately 25-feet, to the top of the 2-story lobby. Covered in shiny gold angels, harps, and drums, there are also huge red, green and gold ornaments, red poinsettia leaves, red bows, and red and gold roping and filled with tiny white lights.

You can pose for Christmas photos with family next to the tree, while the grand piano is playing holiday music. Or, you can sit at one of the many marble-topped tables in the lobby to soak in the festive atmosphere. The wrought-iron railings on the open mezzanine area overlooking the lobby are decked with green garland, white lights, and red bows. Two smaller Christmas trees adorn the mezzanine area, as well.

The marble and mirrored lobby bar is free-standing and surrounded on three sides by leather bar stools. It is almost always covered up with patrons as The Peabody buzzes with people arriving in their holiday finery to attend a company dinner or a fabulous, exclusive holiday gala event. This is definitely the place to see and be seen.

Areas of Interest

As I awaited the arrival of the ducks yesterday on the mezzanine, I admired hand-carved piano that once belonged to Francis Scott Key, who wrote the Star Spangled Banner. This unique square piano was built in 1838 and is intricately carved all around its rosewood case and features inlaid mother of pearl. The piano is on display on the mezzanine, just in front of the elevators.

The Galleria area of The Peabody features a variety of shops where you can take home gifts, many featuring duck designs. You'll also find Lanksy's (Elvis was their most famous customer throughout the years), a Merle Norman shop, oriental vases, jewelry, and a Northwest Airlines ticket agency.

RESTAURANTS

Cafe Expresso

At the end of the Galleria area is Cafe Expresso, a New York style deli, with the best cheesecake outside of New York. It's a good place for a reasonably-priced breakfast (bagels and cream cheese $2.50) or a late night cheesecake binge. I had the strawberry covered cheesecake and my husband had the chocolate-chocolate cheesecake. They were incredible! ($5.95 for a huge piece of cake)

Dux

Dux, located just off the west side of the lobby, offers breakfast, lunch and dinner in a "casually elegant" style. I have had lunch here many times throughout the years and always find something very tasty and often unique.

Mallard's

Yes, you do detect a definite duck theme here. Mallard's, a bar and grill, has sandwiches, burgers and soup, salad and pasta bar.

Chez Phillippe

Looking for a delicious and elegant dinner? Make reservations and prepare to dress for dinner. Chez Phillippe boasts elegant French cuisine and is a Mobil 4-Star restaurant. It is decorated in magnificent French antiques and it set apart from the lobby with frosted glass and decorative wrought iron.

Other Hotel Features

The Peabody also has plenty of extras to make your stay more comfortable:

* Gould's full service hair salon and day spa
* Indoor Pool
* Exercise Room
* Health Club - whirlpool, tanning bed, cardiovascular
equipment, and free weights
* Business Center
* Concierge services

The Guest Rooms

Bearing in mind the hotel was built in 1925, our room was still a bit small for our taste. The king size room we had requested was not available when we arrived at 8pm on a Friday night to check-in.

The front desk clerk was very apologetic about not having a king size bed available and tried to find us the best available queen room. I have to admit she was more gracious about it than I. I was quite disappointed not to have what I expected, but I was getting a nice discount on the room by virtue of my employer, so I couldn't complain too much.

Our standard queen size room was located at the end of the hallway on the fourth floor. It was approximately 12' x 14', with the bathroom set apart with a hallway and closet area. (We peeped into other rooms on the floor that were being cleaned and saw there were several configurations of varying size -- most were larger than ours.)

The drapes and coverlet were floral in design (I think they were azalea blossoms). The blossoms were a peachy color and were accented with a peach dust ruffle and peach sheets.

There was a desk with chair and lamp on one side of the bed and a night stand and lamp on the other. There was also a small round table and two chairs in the opposite corner. The chairs were upholstered in a peach/gold stripe.

The armoire had three roomy drawers and contained the television. It was about 21-22" and had a good picture. There were optional games and movies available and included HBO in the channel lineup.

There were also two phones and a radio/alarm clock in the room, as well.

We used the hotel services feature to review our bill and check out. With an 11am check-out time, we didn't want to have a conflict with the duck march.

The Bathroom

It came as no great surprise to find The Peabody logo (complete with ducks) prevalent throughout the bathroom. The small bathroom had a marble threshold and slight incline. The floor and walls inside the tub area were covered in white tiles. The walls were papered, with a gold design. There was a small marble counter top extending across the top of the toilet and around the small, round sink.

There was a full-size bar of soaped imprinted with the duck logo, as well as a smaller bar of facial soap. There was a large cotton rug already in front of the tub. There was also an imprinted bathmat and several fairly large white towels. There were not as fluffy and absorbent as I would have preferred but there were adequate.

There were four bottles of The Peabody Spa Collection toiletries (1.5 oz) on the sink -- shampoo, conditioner, body lotion, and mineral bath. There was also a shower cap, sewing kit, and shoe mitt. The most novel item was a small, green duck-shaped soap.

The tub was fairly small, but had an inset window that made the space seem much larger while I was showering. The frosted glass window also made the room quite light. There was a large, framed beveled glass mirror over the sink and a hair dryer hung in the corner.

The Hotel Staff

Perhaps, I should have mentioned the staff first, because they truly made our stay memorable. From the moment we entered until the moment we left, every employee we encountered was extremely courteous, friendly, and helpful. We were greeted with "good evening" or "good morning" and always with a friendly smile. I think they were proud to be part of such a great Memphis tradition and wanted to do their part to make their guests feel truly welcome and at home during their stay.

Don't Visit Memphis Without at Least Stopping By

The Peabody is a must-see when you visit Memphis -- even if you just go to see the elegant lobby or watch the ducks. We thoroughly enjoyed our special Friday night stay (it was my husband's birthday -- and yes, they wished him happy birthday when we checked in).

I think the next time we go back we'll stay for an entire weekend, and maybe even check out a suite or the concierge area. Of course, I would probably feel so pampered I would never want to go home.


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