• What to know if you go

Michael Mercier/AP (ENLARGE)

Huntsville's Rocket Park includes the Saturn V (left) and Saturn 1B (right).

Michael Mercier/AP (ENLARGE)

Bailey Ables and Jacqueline Peppar, both 10, study John Moore's mural 'The Road We Have Traveled.' The mural was among Huntsville, Ala., sites included in the movie 'Constellation.'

Michael Mercier/AP (ENLARGE)

The Five Points Historic District, Huntsville's first subdivision, was begun in 1892. Portions of the area were used as during the filming of the movie 'Constellation.'

Michael Mercier/STR (ENLARGE)

Tippy Anderson walks her dog, Todi, past the McDowell house, built in 1848 on Adams Street in the Twickenham Historic District.

Michael Mercier/AP (ENLARGE)

Visitors arrive at Early Works Children's Museum in Huntsville.

Huntsville, Ala. — This city, aptly nicknamed "Rocket City," boasts the country's only vertically erect Saturn V rocket, a white beacon that stretches 363 feet into the sky. But it's not all about rockets.

Visitors can take a mission to the Red Planet that suddenly turns into a ride on a Martian roller coaster or head back in time by visiting historic homes, living history museums and a cemetery where slaves are buried.

Many attractions draw travelers to Huntsville, where the first moon rockets were built and where the recent "Constellation" was shot. The film, starring Billy Dee Williams, Gabrielle Union and Zoe Saldana, was made in 2004.

Tourism officials are offering self-guided "Constellation Tour" maps that point visitors to sites shown in the movie, which prominently displays many of the locations like a big-screen brochure.

Old-world charm and modern technology

Only a few of the locations are the product of movie magic. The majestic exterior of the seven-gallery Huntsville Museum of Art plays a role, "Constellation" director Jordan Walker-Pearlman said.

Walker-Pearlman said the film, about an interracial family coming to terms with its past and present problems, needed to be in a Southern city with old-world charm and modern-day advancements. But, he said, he didn't know at first "if such a place existed."

When he found Huntsville, Walker-Pearlman, a native New Yorker with a home in Los Angeles, not only set the movie there, he made the city his third home.

One of the biggest draws to the North Alabama city is the U.S. Space and Rocket Center, which displays several flight simulators and dozens of rockets and military equipment. It has a rock-climbing wall.

Visitors can ride the Space Shot, which zooms 140 feet into the air with four Gs (four times the force of gravity) for a spectacular view of the city and a few seconds of weightlessness.

The Rocket Center is also home to an attraction that will take you virtually beyond Earth's orbit — via a silver shuttle and computer screen. The research mission suddenly turns into a surprisingly rousing roller coaster where riders learn that Martians listen to country music.

A growing area

State tourism director Lee Sentell said Huntsville is a draw not only for tourists but also permanent residents partly because of its growing job market.

"Huntsville is among the most progressive communities in the state in terms of education and equal opportunity for African-Americans," he said. "That really stems from the 1950s when that area had an influx of people from across the country to work for the U.S. Army in connection with the German rocket scientists. So the theme in the movie of open-mindedness and acceptance from one another is very valid in the Huntsville area."

Those looking for the rooftop restaurant shown in the movie will be disappointed because it doesn't exist. But other restaurants featured in the film, like Humphrey's Bar and Grill with its outdoor stage and brick patio and the white-tablecloth Chop House, are real.

Consider trying a Humphrey's hot dog with the sweet salsalike topping called chow-chow and the jalapeño coleslaw. A trip to Melvin's Barbecue is a must for those wanting a taste of down-home cooking.

Night life in Huntsville is exciting — especially on the weekends when most venues have live music. The Jazz Factory is a laid-back swanky spot for the older, professional crowd while Humphrey's and the Crossroads cater to young professionals.

If you're seeking history rather than night life, pay a visit to Glenwood Cemetery. Barbara Webb, director of the Huntsville Cemetery Department, said slaves and black veterans of America's wars beginning with the Civil War are buried there. The cemetery was established by Huntsville in 1870.

Alabama A&M's Black Archives Research Center and Museum is another site for black history, with several exhibits, including one dedicated to the Buffalo Soldiers.

History lives on

The city's three historic districts — Twickenham, Old Town and Five Points — are downtown near the Washington Square area. The homes are privately owned and not usually open to the public, but visitors can tour Twickenham's 1819 Weeden House, the former home of 19th century poet-artist Maria Howard Weeden.

Big Spring International Park with its gazebos, fountains and ducks is one of the most scenic locations in the city.

Huntsville has five hands-on and living history museums, including one at 167-acre Burritt on the Mountain, where history interpreters spin cotton, and the kid-paradise EarlyWorks museum, where visitors can don costumes from pioneer days and sign their names on the Alabama Constitution. They can pump a lever to create an explosion in a coal mine and romp around a fully stocked playhouse. When they get tired, they can sit and listen to stories told by a large tree.

A colorful mural painted by Alabama artist John Moore is one of the centerpieces of the museum.

EarlyWorks executive director Bart Williams said the museum expects an increase in visitors wanting to see the mural after its exposure in the film.

Others also are looking forward to seeing how the movie will affect the town's tourism.

"Having a premiere like this in Huntsville is a really big deal for us," said a city marketing executive, Charles Winters. "We could get used to this."

And why not? For a city whose motto is, "The sky is not the limit," anything is possible.

IF YOU GO

Huntsville, Ala., is about 250 miles from downtown Atlanta, about a four-hour drive.

Information

Huntsville/Madison County Convention & Visitors Bureau, www.huntsville.org, 1-800-772-2348. "Constellation Tour" maps available at the Visitors Center, 500 Church St., Suite 1.

Attractions

Glenwood Cemetery, near downtown off Clinton and Cemetery streets, on the corner of Hall Avenue and Derrick Street. Huntsville Cemetery Department, www.maplehillcemetery.com, 256-427-5730.

Weeden House Museum, 300 Gates Ave., a block from Alabama Constitution Village.

Earlyworks Children's Museum, 404 Madison St.; www.earlyworks.com. Click "Visitor Info" for details on other living history museums, the Alabama Constitution Village at 109 Gates Ave. and the Historic Huntsville Depot at 320 Church St. N.W.

Huntsville Museum of Art, 300 Church St. East; www.hsvmuseum.org, 256-535-4350.

Burritt on the Mountain: 3101 Burritt Drive off Monte Sano Boulevard via U.S. 431 South; www.burrittonthemountain.com or 256-536-2882.

Black Archives Research Center and Museum, in the James Hembray Wilson Building on the campus of Alabama A&M University, www.aamu.edu/portal/page/portal/Featured_Links/Archive_museum_center, 256-851-5846.

U.S. Space and Rocket Center, 1 Tranquility Base off I-565 Exit 15, www.spacecamp.com, 256-837-3400.

Dining

Melvin's Barbecue: 2300 Governors Drive, 256-533-6775.

Humphrey's Bar and Grill and the Chop House: 109 Washington St., 256-704-5555.