JOHN BORDSEN, Travel Editor

What's the No. 1 Road to Rock & Roll destination?

Cleveland may hold the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but it plays second fiddle to Memphis, Tenn. Last year, 413,000 souls toured the collection on Lake Erie; about 600,000 made the trek to ...

1. This ain't Queens Road

Graceland -- 3734 Elvis Presley Blvd. -- is about nine miles south of central Memphis. The house was built in 1939 by a doctor whose wife's family had long owned the Graceland farm.The mansion is nice, but in our time of McMansions, Graceland isn't palatial.

2. Bring your wallet

You're asked for cash before you get out of your pink Cadillac.

The mansion is on the west side of the street; parking, the visitor center and shops in Elvis Presley Plaza are on the other. Parking is $5. (Tip: Park for free in the strip center just to the north of the plaza -- it's also loaded with stores selling Elvis stuff -- and walk over.)

3. This world is not flat

Graceland is not well-suited for visitors in wheelchairs or with strollers. You must board a shuttle bus for the ride across the boulevard and through the gates. While the mansion's second floor is closed to the public, some key rooms are down narrow stairways in the basement. Graceland was built as a private residence, not a walk-through shrine. The standard route through the place is maze-like.If you can't handle stairs, forget about touring the jets at the plaza. Access is walk-up only.

Graceland was built more than 60 years ago, when rooms tended to be smaller. At 17-by-24 feet, the dining room is large but not grand. Authorized photos, like those in the "Official Guidebook," make the chambers appear larger than they are and do not show the ropes visitors must peer over.

5. The lived-in look

The dining and living room you see first are formal; much more interesting are the places where The King relaxed.The kitchen cabinets have see-through fronts; they're filled with everyday glassware and such. And they're still used every December, when ex-wife Priscilla, daughter Lisa Marie and Presley relatives in Memphis gather for an after-tour-hours holiday party.

Downstairs holds the pool room and TV room -- well-appointed according to the famous owner's tastes and times, but a gussied-up basement nonetheless.

The pool room's ceilings and walls are covered in close to 400 yards of bright print fabric. You can't help but notice the big rip in the tabletop felt. The TV room next to it is an eye-popper in Prussian blue and bright yellow; built into the far wall are three TV sets -- an idea Elvis seized upon after he heard President Johnson liked to watch all three network newscasts simultaneously. There's a small bar, though Elvis was said to be not much for spirits.

6. Not as tacky as they say

So how over-the-top is the decor? You hear a lot about the faux wilderness look of the Jungle Room -- his first-floor den. Its look comes from his fondness for Hawaii, where "decor" is always laid on with a trowel.

EP bought the furnishings in Memphis, in a single 30-minute shopping spree in 1974. The room wasn't called the Jungle Room; he simply knew it as "the den." The glass partition that sets off the music room from the living room looks more Shakey's Pizza than Louis Comfort Tiffany. Elvis commissioned the panels, which bear matched peacocks; they replaced glass blocks he didn't care for.

And the dining room with its high-back chairs around a 6-foot mirror-top table is ersatz chic.

7. Best indoor places to linger

The tour route leaves the house to take in dad Vernon Presley's garage-like office and the trophy building -- a rec room that holds display-case exhibits -- plaques, clothes (including Army fatigues and stage jumpsuits) and curios. The collection is extensive, a place to wallow in pop culture and American folkways. The Sincerely Elvis museum back at the plaza pales in comparison.Part of the racquetball building displays costumes from his later concerts, but the mood is more serious than sequinned.

The attendant stationed there tells you Elvis spent part of the morning of Aug. 16, 1977, at the spinet piano in the lounge, playing/singing for girlfriend Ginger Alden and Presley cousin Billy Smith and his wife.

That concert for four, which included singing "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" and "Unchained Melody" was his last gig: Elvis went to bed and was found dead hours later.

8. Do see the Lisa Marie

Besides the display areas behind the house, there's a special exhibit area in the mansion. (Among the items that were on view this spring: his desk from upstairs. On it were the books "The Creative Process in the Individual" and "Gods From Outer Space.")

Some touches show his affection for conspicuous consumption: The guest bathroom up front has a sink basin with gold flecks and gold-plated sink.

More intriguing are the personal details learned from video monitors that offer snippets about the King and his jet, like his choice of in-flight beverages -- lime Gatorade and diet Dr Pepper.

Or his taste in the then-new world of home videos. His favorites? "Blazing Saddles," Peter Sellers movies and episodes of "Monty Python's Flying Circus."

With the King

For hours and prices for visiting Graceland, Elvis Presley's home and final resting place, call (800) 238-2000, toll-free; or visit www.elvis.com/graceland. A TRIP THROUGH MUSIC HISTORY