Nashville is Music City: a neon river of honky tonks, the Mother Church of Country Music, hot chicken with a kick and a full-size Greek temple in the park. This guide gathers the best of Nashville, with the places and tours our readers love most.
Lower Broadway and the honky tonks
Lower Broadway is the neon heart of Music City — live music pouring out of every door from 10 a.m. to 3 a.m. Ride through its songbook on the Music History trolley tour, then settle into a stool at Legends Corner, one of the most famous honky tonks on Earth, for two hours of bands and a cold one.
The legends: Walk of Fame, Hall of Fame and the Opry
Stroll with the stars on the Music City Walk of Fame, go backstage at the Grand Ole Opry where the legends get ready, and take your Country Music Hall of Fame entry — the Smithsonian of country music.
The Parthenon and Centennial Park
Only in Nashville: Centennial Park and the Parthenon, a full-scale replica of Athens’ temple complete with a 42-foot Athena. It’s the city’s Greek treasure and its favorite picnic lawn in one.
Capitol hill, Bicentennial Mall and the bridge
Climb to the Tennessee State Capitol, a hilltop landmark with a view, walk the 200 years of Tennessee history at the Bicentennial Capitol Mall, and cross the river on the John Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge — Nashville’s prettiest stroll, especially at sunset.
Nashville’s green side
When the neon fades, the trails begin: the Warner Parks hold 3,000 acres of happy trails, Radnor Lake is a peaceful wildlife refuge minutes from downtown, Shelby Bottoms is the city’s wild river side, and kids make a beeline for the dragon at Fannie Mae Dees Park.
Food: hot chicken and Southern kitchens
Taste the legend on the hot chicken and history tour of Murfreesboro — where hot chicken was invented — go behind the counter on the Nashville kitchen tour, and after-hours it like a local on the speakeasies and hidden bars crawl.
Franklin and Lynchburg: the day trips
The Battle of Franklin day trip walks the Civil War fields and two grand plantation homes; the Jack Daniel’s Distillery day trip pours history and whiskey in Lynchburg. Both are Nashville at its most Tennessee.
Planning your days? Our Nashville itineraries — from one perfect day to five — map out the music, the food and the day trips hour by hour. And subscribe to the Happy City News newsletter for Nashville’s best events, every week.
