ConventionSouth: Mobile, Alabama Event Planners' Guide

Mobile International Airport (BFM) is expected to open in 2026, just minutes from downtown Mobile. 

Mobile

As the birthplace of the original Mardi Gras celebration in the United States, Mobile offers a cultural heritage that is a tapestry of its diverse historical influences, including early French and Spanish explorers. The city provides 325 years of history, art, and exceptional cuisine, and today is experiencing many new expansions and updates, according to Ashley Rains, public relations and communications manager for Visit Mobile. “Among the big news is the return of regular Amtrak rail service after a 20-year hiatus, with twice daily, round-trip service between New Orleans and downtown Mobile. Slated to open in 2026, Mobile International Airport (BFM) will bring a modern terminal and parking garage to the heart of Mobile, just minutes from downtown and Baldwin County across the Bay. Construction has begun on  a new entertainment arena, expected to  open in early 2027 at the site of the former Civic Center.”

Other recent developments include Mobile’s first distillery, Deerfish Distilling, which opened downtown in August 2025. According to Visit Mobile, a $16.7 million renovation of St. Louis Street in downtown is set to begin soon, transforming 17 blocks into a more modern, walkable corridor.

The city’s largest event space, Arthur R. Outlaw Mobile Convention Center, sits on the Mobile River, just a short walk from multiple hotels, restaurants, shops, and museums. It offers 100,000 square feet of exhibit halls, 16 meeting rooms, two ballrooms, additional pre-function space, and 25,000 square feet of outdoor terraces and riverwalks. The 373-room Renaissance Mobile Riverview Plaza Hotel connects to the convention center and offers 39,438 square feet of event space, with 11 breakout rooms and a maximum event capacity of 1,320 people.

There are more than 1,400 guest rooms in downtown Mobile, with 6,000-plus citywide. Hotels within a few blocks of the convention center include the historic 238-room Battle House Renaissance Mobile Hotel & Spa, with 28,539 square feet of event space, including a ballroom that can accommodate 1,000 guests for receptions; The Admiral, a luxury boutique hotel with 156 guest rooms and 6,000 square feet of event space; 149-room Hampton Inn and Suites Mobile-Downtown Historic District, with 1,542 square feet of meeting space; Holiday Inn Downtown Historic District, with 206 guest rooms and 10,000 square feet of event space; and 93-room Hilton Garden Inn Mobile Downtown, with 1,224 square feet of function space. Fort Conde Inn, a boutique collection of historic homes, offers 19 guest rooms with an event capacity of 100 people.

Beyond downtown, Mobile’s Africatown neighborhood is home to many descendants of the Clotilda, the last known ship to illegally smuggle African captives into the United States in 1860. At Africatown Heritage House, visitors can experience the story of resilience and sacrifice of the 110 captives and see artifacts of the recently discovered burned and sunken ship.

Attractions for all ages include the National Maritime Museum of the Gulf, USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Park, the Exploreum Science Center, and the History Museum of Mobile.

Visitors can enjoy the spirit of Mardi Gras year-round at the Mobile Carnival Museum. Planners should note the city can be very busy during the actual Mardi Gras season (usually falling between late January and early March). 

You can read ConventionSouth's entire Event Planners' Guide to Alabama here.