University of North Alabama in 2 Days: A Florence, Alabama College Visit Fly-In Trip
A parent-first plan for visiting the University of North Alabama in Florence: how to book a campus tour that starts at the Gunn University Commons, where tour parking is reserved, The Stricklin Hotel about a 10-minute walk away plus Budget and Mid-range options, drive times from Huntsville and Nashville airports, the Rosenbaum House and Muscle Shoals Sound Studio for siblings, and Shoals weather by season, every fact sourced and checked Oct 31, 2026.
Lion family sculpture on the University of North Alabama campus in Florence (Jun 2010). Photo: Carol M. Highsmith · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons · resized and cropped
Last checked Oct 31, 2026. Every fact comes from the pages listed in Sources at the bottom. Some hotel and tour links are affiliate links (disclosure).
The short version
Trip at a glance
School
University of North Alabama (Florence, AL; United Athletic Conference)
Days
2 days: fly in and drive to Florence on day 1, campus tour and the Shoals on day 2.
Fly into
Huntsville International (HSV), about 83 minutes from downtown Florence with no traffic, or Nashville International (BNA), about 2.5 hours away.
Best base
The Stricklin Hotel on North Court Street in downtown Florence, about a 10-minute walk or 2-minute drive from the center of campus.
Car or transit
Rent a car: UNA's own directions are drive routes from Huntsville, Nashville, Birmingham and Memphis.
Registration
Book the campus tour on UNA's tours and events registration page. Students may bring up to two guests.
1. Who this guide is for
This plan is for parents with a high schooler, and maybe younger siblings, who want to see the University of North Alabama, a public university in downtown Florence in the Shoals area of northwest Alabama.
UNA's tours are walking tours that begin in the Wendell W. Gunn University Commons at 607 Aderholt Way, with parking reserved for tour guests in Lot B, to the left of the Commons entrance.
Why this order
The campus tour includes a look inside Mattielou Hall, a residence hall, and showings of Rivers Hall are available on request.
When you book the tour online, you can ask to meet with an academic department as well, and admissions will schedule it for you; departmental appointments may not be available May through August.
Plan ahead: registration and timing
Register on UNA's tours and events page, which also lists Academic Experiences by department. Department meetings must be requested before your visit.
Students are welcome to bring up to two guests on the tour. Wear comfortable shoes and weather-appropriate clothing, since the tour is on foot.
UNA encourages visitors to fill out its Request for Visitor Parking Permission form before parking on campus.
Tour availability varies by season.
Preview Day is UNA's open house: you check in at Norton Auditorium, and campus and housing tours leave from Memorial Amphitheater. Registered guests get a box lunch. Dates are on the Preview Day page.
Admitted Student Day is for accepted students and their families, with academic-college sessions for students, a presentation for families and a residence hall crawl at the end of the day.
Campus dining options are limited during the summer.
2. The suggested 2-day plan
Drive times are no-traffic estimates from OpenStreetMap routing, and walking times use OpenStreetMap foot routing, with addresses geocoded by OpenStreetMap Nominatim. Campus times are to the Guillot University Center, next door to the Gunn University Commons where tours start.
Day 1: Fly into Huntsville or Nashville and drive to Florence
Huntsville International Airport (HSV) → The Stricklin Hotel (317 N. Court St.)
Driving (no traffic)
~83 min, 62.6 mi
Driving and walking
Rental car
Nashville International Airport (BNA) → The Stricklin Hotel
Driving (no traffic)
~2 hr 33 min, 123.6 mi
Driving and walking
Rental car
The Stricklin Hotel → Rosenbaum House (601 Riverview Dr.)
Driving (no traffic)
~3 min, 1.0 mi
Driving and walking
Drive
From Huntsville, UNA's directions follow U.S. 72 west through Madison, Athens, Rogersville and Killen into Florence, where it becomes Florence Boulevard and then Tennessee Street. From Nashville, take I-65 south to exit 351 at Athens and pick up U.S. 72 west.
If you arrive before 3:15 p.m. (1 to 4 p.m. on Sundays), the Frank Lloyd Wright Rosenbaum House is about 3 minutes from the hotel and needs no reservation for small groups. It's closed Mondays.
Day 2: University of North Alabama campus tour and the Shoals
The Stricklin Hotel → UNA campus (Guillot University Center)
Driving (no traffic)
~2 min, 0.5 mi
Driving and walking
~10 min walk, 0.5 mi
The Stricklin Hotel → Muscle Shoals Sound Studio (3614 N. Jackson Hwy., Sheffield)
Driving (no traffic)
~6 min, 2.8 mi
Driving and walking
Drive
UNA campus (Guillot University Center) → Huntsville International Airport (HSV)
Driving (no traffic)
~84 min, 62.7 mi
Driving and walking
Drive
Park in Lot B, to the left of the Gunn University Commons entrance, where spots are reserved for campus tours. If it's full, use the Visitor Parking section of Lot A in Harrison Plaza or Lot Q by the Coby Hall Honors House off North Court Street.
Lunch on campus: the Guillot University Center and the Commons have Chick-fil-A, Starbucks, Panda Express and Moe's Southwest Grill.
3. Campus by campus
Lion family sculpture on the University of North Alabama campus in Florence (Jun 2010). Photo: Carol M. Highsmith · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons · resized and cropped
Tours begin in the Wendell W. Gunn University Commons, 607 Aderholt Way, Florence, AL 35630. They're walking tours of campus and include a viewing of Mattielou Hall.
The Office of Admissions is in Coby Hall at 459 N. Court Street, a house on Court Street with a parking lot beside it.
Visitor parking
Parking for campus tours is reserved in Lot B, to the left of the Gunn University Commons entrance. Guests can also use the Visitor Parking section of Lot A in Harrison Plaza or Lot Q, next to the Coby Hall Honors House off North Court Street.
UNA asks visitors to complete its Request for Visitor Parking Permission before parking on campus.
Getting there
From Tennessee Street, turn north on Seminary Street to reach the Harrison Entrance of campus, where the lot has visitor spaces in the front right row. For Coby Hall, turn left onto Irvine Avenue, go one block and turn left onto Court Street.
Campus is about a 10-minute walk or 2-minute drive from The Stricklin Hotel, and about 3 minutes by car from the Hampton Inn & Suites downtown, with no traffic.
What to know
Ask about Rivers Hall when you book if your student wants to see a second residence hall; UNA shows it on request.
School groups from high schools or community colleges can book group tours on Wednesdays and Thursdays with at least 2 weeks' notice.
Contact
UNA Office of Admissions: admissions@una.edu, 256-765-4608.
Last checked Oct 31, 2026. Tour and admissions details change often, so confirm them on the school's official visit page before you go.
On the Tennessee River east of downtown, about 9 minutes by car from campus with no traffic.
Expedia lists this hotel as a 3.5-star property, so we place it in the Mid-range tier. Rates vary by date, so check your dates on Expedia.
Good to know
Expedia lists an indoor pool and an outdoor pool, an on-site spa, two restaurants and free self-parking. Confirm details on the Expedia listing before you book.
Stay downtown so you can walk to the tour start: The Stricklin is about 10 minutes on foot from campus, and the Hampton Inn & Suites is about 3 minutes by car. Both list free self-parking on Expedia.
5. Meals between tours
Hours change, so check before you go.
On campus
UNA lists Mane Market, the Guillot University Center food court and the Commons, with Chick-fil-A, Starbucks, Panda Express and Moe's Southwest Grill. Options are limited in summer.
Downtown Florence
The Stricklin Hotel has two on-site restaurants and a coffee shop, per its Expedia listing, so dinner on arrival night can be right downstairs.
6. Things for siblings along the route
With siblings
Frank Lloyd Wright's Rosenbaum House
601 Riverview Dr., Florence, AL 35630
About 3 minutes by car from The Stricklin. Open Tuesday to Saturday 10 to 4 and Sunday 1 to 4, with the last tour no later than 3:15 p.m.; no reservation is needed except for groups of 10 or more. Closed Mondays and some holidays.
About 6 minutes by car from The Stricklin. Tours run Tuesday to Saturday, 10 to 4, and last about 45 minutes; arrive at least 10 minutes early to get or redeem tickets in the gift shop.
Tour parking is reserved in Lot B by the Gunn University Commons; fill out UNA's visitor parking permission request before you go.
Coming in on Tennessee Street, Seminary Street takes you straight to the Harrison Entrance, with visitor spaces in the front right row of the lot.
Flying in and out
Huntsville (HSV) is about 83 minutes from downtown Florence and Nashville (BNA) about 2.5 hours with no traffic, and UNA's directions page covers both routes.
Weather by season (1991–2020 NOAA normals: Muscle Shoals Regional Airport)
Spring: April averages about 74°F highs and 52°F lows, with about 4.8 inches of rain.
Summer: July averages about 92°F/71°F, with about 4.8 inches of rain.
Fall: October averages about 76°F/52°F, with about 3.5 inches of rain.
Winter: January averages about 52°F/34°F, with about 4.7 inches of precipitation.
Parent checklist
Register for a UNA campus tour, and request any department meeting when you book.
Submit UNA's Request for Visitor Parking Permission before you drive to campus.
Book flights into Huntsville or Nashville, plus a rental car.
Book a downtown Florence hotel for the night before the tour.
After the visit, take five minutes to jot down what stood out to your student.
8. Student-athlete recruiting visits
For families whose student hopes to play a college sport. Rules below are the NCAA's; each school's links were checked Oct 26, 2026.
Coaches arrange the recruiting part of a visit, not the admissions office. The tour sign-ups in this guide are for the regular family visit. An official (school-paid) visit is offered by the school, and contact with coaches follows NCAA rules that vary by division, sport and grade level.
Start with your sport's questionnaire, then email the coaches. The NCAA suggests emailing coaches with your achievements, highlight videos and interest in their program, including your name, position, NCAA ID and graduation year.
1 Division I
Athletics
University of North Alabama
NCAA Division I United Athletic Conference
RecruitingWe found no department-wide recruiting page. Look for a questionnaire on your sport's team page at the athletics site ↗, or email the coaches.
Unofficial visit: any campus visit you or your family pay for. You can take as many as you like; in Divisions I and II each one has to come after the first permissible date for your sport.
Official visit: a visit paid for by the school. Each school can offer your student only one. Before a Division I official visit, your student must be registered with the NCAA Eligibility Center, be on the school's institutional request list, and the school must have their high school transcripts.
Division I (University of North Alabama): on an official visit the school can pay for travel for the student and up to two family members, lodging, up to three meals a day for the student and up to four family members, and up to $60 a person in entertainment, including five home-game tickets. On an unofficial visit there are no free meals, but the school can give up to three home-game tickets. Division I uses recruiting calendars with contact, evaluation, quiet and dead periods; in a dead period, no in-person contact and no visits.
Rules change. Confirm with the coach, or check the NCAA's recruiting page and recruiting calendars, before you plan dates.
Planning around the season
Check each school's athletics schedule (linked above) before you pick dates, so a coach meeting doesn't land on a road trip or game day for your sport.
Our recommendation, not a school rule: ask the coach whether they can line up an admissions session or tour around your meeting. If not, book the regular family tour yourself through the official sign-up links in this guide, and leave time between the two.
Add your dates and how you're getting there, and we'll pull this guide into one plan: tour sign-up links, the hotel base, parking or airport notes, the route and meals.
Coming soon
Planning more college trips?
Visit-season reminders and new trip guides from College Visit Guides. Newsletter coming soon.
Sources
All checked Oct 31, 2026. Tour schedules change constantly, so always confirm on each school's official sign-up page. Photo credits are under each photo and on our About page.
Expedia listing: The Stricklin Hotel (star class and amenities, checked 2026-10-31) (not linked: https://www.expedia.com/Florence-Hotels-The-Stricklin-Hotel.h28803264.Hotel-Information)
Expedia listing: Renaissance Shoals Resort & Spa (star class and amenities, checked 2026-10-31) (not linked: https://www.expedia.com/Florence-Hotels-Marriott-Shoals-Hotel-And-Spa.h1192023.Hotel-Information)
Expedia listing: Hampton Inn & Suites Florence-Downtown (star class and amenities, checked 2026-10-31) (not linked: https://www.expedia.com/Florence-Hotels-Hampton-Inn-Suites-Florence-Downtown.h1818371.Hotel-Information)
Expedia listing: Comfort Suites Florence Shoals Area (star class and amenities, checked 2026-10-31) (not linked: https://www.expedia.com/Florence-Hotels-Comfort-Suites-Florence-Shoals-Area.h3160009.Hotel-Information)
