The best things to do in Fairhope, Alabama, are browsing the independent shops and galleries downtown, watching the sunset from the Fairhope Municipal Pier and eating at its chef-driven restaurants. A weekend is the right length: stay in a downtown inn or bayfront B&B, walk everywhere, and drive south of town for a vineyard, a farm or a fishing charter.
This guide covers where to stay, eat and shop in Fairhope, what to do outdoors, and a two-day itinerary. Every business linked below is locally owned and listed in our directory. For the wider area, including Mobile across the bay, see our Mobile Bay guide.
Fairhope at a glance
- Where: The Eastern Shore of Mobile Bay in Baldwin County, about 30 minutes from downtown Mobile.
- Known for: A flower-lined downtown, the bayfront pier, galleries, a long-running arts scene and good restaurants for a small town.
- History: Founded in 1894 as a single tax colony by followers of economist Henry George, which drew artists and writers.
- Getting there: I-10 to US 98 or Scenic 98. Pensacola International (PNS) and Mobile Regional (MOB) are the nearest airports.
- Best months: March and April, and October and November.
- Don’t miss: Sunset at the pier, Page & Palette, De La Mare Avenue’s galleries and dinner at The Hope Farm or Little Bird.
What is Fairhope, Alabama, known for?
Fairhope is known for its sunsets over Mobile Bay, its walkable downtown planted with flowers on nearly every corner, and an arts scene that dates back to its founding. The town began in 1894 as an experimental single tax colony, and that reform-minded start drew writers, artists and educators who gave Fairhope a creative streak it never lost. Today it is a popular weekend escape on the Alabama coast. Our Fairhope area guide lists every place we cover in town.
Where should you stay in Fairhope?
Stay downtown to walk to dinner and the pier, or on the bay for the view. Fairhope’s places to stay are almost all small and independently run.
| Place to stay | Type | Why stay |
|---|---|---|
| The Fairhope Hotel | Boutique hotel | Six themed rooms in a restored 1925 building on Fairhope Avenue |
| The Fairhope Inn | Inn | A 1906 farmhouse downtown with its own restaurant |
| Emma’s Bay House | B&B | Four bayfront suites |
| Jubilee Suites Boutique B&B | B&B | 200 feet of private beachfront on Mobile Bay |
| Lucia Bleu | Cottages | Three owner-operated cottages on the bay bluffs, each with a private pool and full kitchen |
Lucia Bleu, on South Mobile Street just minutes from downtown, also lends guests cruiser bicycles, which is the best way to get around Fairhope.
What is there to do in downtown Fairhope?
Downtown Fairhope is built for browsing, with bookstores, boutiques, galleries and specialty food shops packed along Fairhope Avenue, Section Street and De La Mare Avenue. Browse Fairhope shopping for the full list.
Bookstores and boutiques
- Page & Palette on South Section Street is a third-generation, family-owned bookstore with frequent author events. Inside, Latte Da serves coffee, and in the evening The Book Cellar turns into a bar with craft cocktails and live music.
- Christina Lynn’s on Fairhope Avenue opened in 2014 in a 450-square-foot storefront and has grown into one of downtown’s best-known boutiques.
- Fairhope Soap Company makes its soaps on site on De La Mare Avenue.
De La Mare Avenue galleries
Short De La Mare Avenue is the working heart of Fairhope’s art scene. Lyons Share Custom Framing and Gallery has been on the block for more than three decades and takes part in the First Friday Art Walk, when galleries stay open late. Gallery by the Bay on Fairhope Avenue shows paintings, pottery and glass by Southern artists, and The Kiln Studio & Gallery offers wheel-throwing and hand-building classes if you want to make something yourself.
Specialty food and antiques
The Happy Olive on De La Mare Avenue runs an olive oil and balsamic tasting bar, with cooking classes and small-batch mustards and spices. Nearby, Aubergine Culinary Antiques & Oriental Rugs, family owned since 2002, specializes in copper and other European culinary antiques, and its sister shop Crown and Colony Antiques carries furniture and decorative pieces.
When is the best time to see the Fairhope Pier?
Go at sunset. At the bottom of Fairhope Avenue, the bluff drops to the Fairhope Municipal Pier, which stretches about a quarter mile into Mobile Bay beside a rose garden and a small public beach. Watching the sun set across the bay from the end of the pier is close to a town ritual, so arrive 30 minutes early on a clear evening and bring a jacket from November on, when the breeze off the water turns cool.
What can you do outdoors around Fairhope?
Head south and east of town for farms, a vineyard and the water.
- Weeks Bay Plantation runs u-pick organic blueberries and blackberries in season, plus kayaking and cable wakeboarding.
- Southern Grove Vineyard on County Road 32 pours estate-grown wine, with live music on weekends.
- Southern Exposure Inshore Fishing Charters specializes in tarpon and works the bay’s grass flats.
- Oak Hollow Farm on Greeno Road covers more than 300 acres, with skeet shooting by appointment and seasonal pheasant hunting from October through March.
Where should you eat in Fairhope?
Fairhope has more good restaurants than a town its size should, from farm-to-table dinners to a barbecue pit that has run since the 1950s.
Dinner
- The Hope Farm is a farm-to-table restaurant with a natural wine list of more than 400 bottles and was a 2024 James Beard Award semifinalist. Its Barn serves coffee.
- Little Bird spreads Southern coastal cooking across seven dining rooms and a courtyard.
- Sallie is a small cottage restaurant where French-trained chef Sally Stringfellow cooks seasonal Southern food.
- Kingfisher Seafood Restaurant on South Mobile Street serves Louisiana-rooted Gulf seafood and takes reservations.
- Sunset Pointe on North Section Street, from chef Pete Blohme’s P.P. Hospitality Group, has a coastal seafood menu with separate wine and cocktail lists.
Breakfast, lunch and sweets
- Panini Pete’s is known for homemade beignets.
- Warehouse Bakery & Donuts on Nichols Avenue makes everything in house, with gluten-free options.
- Refuge Coffee Roasters roasts its own beans.
- Ben’s Jr. Original Barbecue has smoked meat since 1955 and has been at 552 North Section Street since 1980.
Drinks
Fairhope Brewing Company, open since 2013, is dog friendly with live music and food trucks. Downtown, The Monkey Bar is a tropical-themed cocktail bar behind Five Gold Monkeys on South Bancroft Street, with live music and an outdoor area.
How do you get around Fairhope?
Walk or bike downtown and drive for everything else. The shops, galleries, restaurants and pier are all within a few blocks of the Fairhope Avenue and Section Street intersection, and the pier is a downhill walk from there. A car is useful for Weeks Bay Plantation, Southern Grove Vineyard and the barbecue and bakeries north and east of downtown.
A weekend in Fairhope: two-day itinerary
- Day 1 morning: Beignets at Panini Pete’s, then an hour at Page & Palette.
- Day 1 afternoon: Browse Fairhope Avenue and De La Mare Avenue: The Happy Olive, the antiques shops and the galleries.
- Day 1 evening: Sunset from the end of the Fairhope Municipal Pier, then dinner at Little Bird or The Hope Farm, and a nightcap at The Book Cellar.
- Day 2 morning: Coffee at Refuge, then drive south to Weeks Bay Plantation or out on the bay with a fishing charter.
- Day 2 afternoon: Barbecue at Ben’s Jr., then a glass at Southern Grove Vineyard.
- Day 2 evening: Dinner at Sallie or Kingfisher, and a beer at Fairhope Brewing Company.
With a third day, cross the bay to Mobile for its museums and Dauphin Street; our guides to things to do in downtown Mobile and where to eat in Mobile have the details.
When is the best time to visit Fairhope?
Visit in March and April, when the azaleas bloom and the Arts and Crafts Festival fills downtown, or in October and November, when the humidity drops and sunsets on the pier are at their best. Summer is hot and humid but good for the water; plan outdoor time early and late. Check town event calendars for current festival dates.
FAQ
Is Fairhope worth visiting?
Yes, especially for a slow weekend. Fairhope combines a walkable downtown of independent shops and galleries with excellent restaurants and sunsets over Mobile Bay from its municipal pier.
How far is Fairhope from Mobile?
About 30 minutes by car via I-10 and US 98, depending on traffic. Daphne sits between the two on the Eastern Shore.
What is the First Friday Art Walk in Fairhope?
On the first Friday of the month, downtown galleries and shops stay open late for an evening art walk. Galleries on De La Mare Avenue, including Lyons Share, take part.
Can you swim at the Fairhope Pier?
There is a small public beach beside the pier, but Fairhope is on Mobile Bay rather than the Gulf, so the water is calmer than at the Gulf beaches of Gulf Shores. Most visitors come for the sunset and the walk rather than a swim.
Where should you stay in Fairhope?
Stay downtown at The Fairhope Hotel or The Fairhope Inn to walk everywhere, or on the bay at Emma’s Bay House or Jubilee Suites Boutique B&B. For privacy and a pool, Lucia Bleu rents three cottages on the bluffs.