Definitely take one of the tours. I also read "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" on the plane (Very unusual book, if you haven't read it. It is a true story.). Then we got to see the actual places in the book when we were there. We didn't eat at Paula Dean's restaurant because my husband doesn't like to wait in lines, but there are tons of great restaurants there. We stayed on the main street at the Double Tree, but after the first night requested a room on the back side of the building because of the street noise. They were very accommodating. I wasn't a quilter then, so I can't direct you to any quilt stores. I'd love to go back there. There is no architecture like it in the U.S. You might want to read about the history of Savannah before you go.