Landing at Hattiesburg-Laurel Regional Airport in Hattiesburg gives you an easy home base, with nearby cities and getaways close by. Hattiesburg is a college city in the Pine Belt of south Mississippi, home to the University of Southern Mississippi and a downtown that has come back to life with music, murals, and restaurants. Laurel, 30 minutes north, is a small town known for its art museum and its made-over historic district. Together they make a friendly, unhurried pair. Standout experiences around Hattiesburg: - Ride or walk the Longleaf Trace, a 40-mile rail trail through the pines - Browse the Lauren Rogers Museum of Art in Laurel, the oldest art museum in Mississippi - Visit the Hattiesburg Zoo and Kamper Park with kids - Tour the African American Military History Museum in a historic USO club - Catch a Southern Miss football game or a show at the Saenger Theater - Shop the renovated downtown Laurel storefronts made famous on television - Paddle or tube Black Creek in De Soto National Forest - Taste Mississippi craft beer at the local breweries Hattiesburg sits at a crossroads of the Deep South. The Gulf Coast at Gulfport and Biloxi is about 75 minutes south, Jackson is 90 minutes north, and Mobile and New Orleans are each about two hours away. Order a plate of fried catfish or a tamale, a south Mississippi staple, and sit outside on a warm evening. Come in fall for football and mild weather, or in spring when the azaleas bloom and the trails are at their best.