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Nashville & Franklin

Nashville is the gateway to Tennessee and acknowledged as Music City USA. Opryland is just around the bend in the Cumberland River, and Nashville itself boasts many great music venues including the Ryman Auditorium and Wildhorse Saloon. The city has all the excitement and bustle of the state capital, combined with an atmosphere and warmth that’s unmistakable of the South. Alongside the music, there are museums, galleries, and historic monuments. And of course scores of shops, bars, and restaurants where you can soak up the atmosphere of this vibrant, welcoming city.

Stroll downtown Nashville and you’ll find an elegant, southern city at ease with its past, from dark country music bars to whitewashed plantation homes. You’ll also find a city looking to the future, somewhere that has blossomed as a destination without casting aside its history.

Music is at its very heart, and yet there’s so much more…museums and galleries, towering monuments and rolling parks, shopping malls and restaurants galore. Still, this is the world’s capital of Country music and isn’t afraid to shout it out – and let you know that Country isn’t just sequins and big hair. You’ll hear everything from cool Fifties Rockabilly to modern Rock, all with that unmistakable Country tinge.

Don't miss...

  • A stroll up the relaxed, leafy Midtown district, past bars, and restaurants.
  • Visit the Great Escape second-hand record and comic shop or Grimey’s New & Preloved Music.
  • A Saturday night hopping between the bands at Robert’s and Tootsies on Lower Broadway.
  • The Grand Ole Opry for country music how it used to be played.
  • Catch a performance each and every Friday and Saturday evening.
  • A look round at least one of Nashville’s grand mansions.
  • The Hermitage, once home to Andrew Jackson, America’s seventh president, even has a guitar-shaped drive.
  • A stylish lunch (and maybe a drop of moonshine) listening to free music in the airy atrium of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

Nashville's Culinery Scene

Food and drink are high on the Nashville menu, whether breakfast at Pancake Pantry – favoured by Garth Brooks – or the New York deli-style Noshville, real beer at any one of a number of brewpubs, or dinner at posh nouvelle spots such as The Twelve Thirty Club (Justin Timberlake’s restaurant) or old Nashville favourite Jimmy Kelly’s. Music, like the weather, is exceptional year-round: In spring stars such as Bob Dylan play free riverbank concerts, in June the city comes alive with CMA Fest, as dozens of country stars converge for shows while in October the Country Music Association awards week is a frenzy.

The centre point is a 16-block entertainment area known as The District, home to a huge Hard Rock Cafe, the blues clubs of Printers’ Alley, the church-like Ryman Auditorium (original venue of the Grand Ole Opry radio show, established in 1925) and Gruhn Guitars (a guitar shop but a show in itself as browsers pick up the vintage instruments).

Fifth + Broadway

Opened in March 2021 this is Nashville’s new favourite hangout for Fashion + Food + Fun, and includes the first and only National Museum of African American Music!

Located across from the Ryman Auditorium and Bridgestone Arena, at the crossroads of one of the South’s busiest and most iconic hubs, the Fifth + Broadway 6.2-acre site was once home to the city’s Convention Center. Now, it is 200,000 square feet of restaurants and retail, representing a dynamic mix of local legends that have made Music City a world class destination as well as some of the nation’s most exciting brands and eateries – everything from signature restaurants and downtown diners to rustic farm-to-table bistros, cafes and lounges. The Rooftop Dining Terrace and Entertainment Deck which overlooks the historic Ryman Auditorium, Lower Broadway and the Bridgestone Arena will hold up to 2,000 people, making it the place to see and be seen in Nashville.

The first and only National Museum of African American Music (NMAAM) is where visitors will discover the many connections and influences that African Americans have had on all types of music.

From classical to country to jazz and hip-hop, NMAAM integrates history and interactive technology to share the untold story of more than 50 music genres and subgenres telling a unique narrative through the lens of black music.

Useful facts...

  • Nashville is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Tennessee.
  • Nashville’s musical reputation began with the Jubilee Singers of Fisk University, an all-black capella group that toured the nation during the 1870s to raise money for the university.
  • Nashville was the first city nationwide to be granted an FM broadcasting license.
  • The Grand Ole Opry, the country’s longest-running radio station began in 1925.
  • Elvis Presley recorded more than 200 songs at Nashville’s historic RCA Studio B.
  • Nashville’s local culinary tradition, Hot Chicken, was originally created to inflict pain. The girlfriend of the Thornton Prince, who she believed was cheating on her, added extra seasoning to the batter in an attempt to make him suffer.

 

Franklin

Franklin, Tennessee is home to modern amenities and a rich history, mixed with a healthy dose of Southern charm. With a Great American Main Street that runs through the heart of a 16-block historic downtown. It is a place where you’ll find transformative music experiences and world-class art next to restaurants where you eat BBQ on a paper plate, local distilleries that have transformed Tennessee whiskey, and a world of colourful memories that are not soon forgotten.

Franklin is also home to dozens of incredible parks, trails, and wildlife preserves waiting to be discovered and enjoyed by visitors. Whether you prefer hiking, bicycling, or kayaking, Franklin has outdoor activities that cater to every age and skill level during any season of the year.

Did you know Franklin has some of the best shopping in Tennessee? From the boutiques lining busy Main Street to the small-town antique shops and art galleries dotting the countryside, you’ll find lots of gifts, clothing, art, and locally made goods to suit every taste and budget. Be sure to set aside plenty of time in your itinerary for shopping, and save some room in your suitcase!

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