Three Good Stops

Memphis to Wilmington: where to stop

810 miles, about 11 hr 48 min of driving. Here are the real towns worth stopping in between Memphis, TN and Wilmington, NC, and why each one earned it.

Your first stop

Tupelo, MSStretch your legs in Tupelo, MS · mile 136

The other 5 stops on this drive

Named for your own departure time and driving style when you plan the trip — your first full plan is free.

I•••••, ALstretch, fuel, meal · mile 275
A•••••, GAstretch · mile 413
M•••••, GAstretch, fuel · mile 554
R•••••, SCovernight, meal · mile 597
D•••••, SCstretch · mile 739

Name every stop — first trip free

No card for the first trip. After that it's 99¢ for three trips, or $2.99 a month.

How the days break up

DayMilesDrivingNight in
15978 hr 37 minRed Bank, SC
22123 hr 11 min—

How we picked these

Every stop is a real town on your actual route — not a chain billboard. We score towns on what a driver needs at that point in the drive: fuel and food for a stretch break, parks and grass when a pet is along, hotels and restaurants when it's an overnight. Detour distance counts against a town, so nothing here costs you a long side trip.

This page is planned for a 9-hour driving day leaving at 8:00 AM. Change any of that — your hours, your MPG, pets, small children, an EV's charging range — and the stops change with it. Plan Memphis to Wilmington your way →

Questions

How far is Memphis, TN to Wilmington, NC?
About 810 miles, roughly 11 hr 48 min of driving before stops.

Can you drive Memphis to Wilmington in one day?
Not comfortably. At a 9-hour driving day it splits into 2 days, with a night in Red Bank, SC.

Where is a good place to stop between Memphis and Wilmington?
Tupelo, MS is the first one on this route.