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Nashville event weekends: what to do between sessions

Music City: Broadway honky-tonks, the Grand Ole Opry and hot chicken, home of Vanderbilt and the CMA Fest.

Events we cover in Nashville

22 Apr 2027*Rock 'n' Roll Nashville Marathon
Nashville, United StatesMarathon 14 May 2027*Vanderbilt Commencement
Nashville, United StatesGraduation 3 Jun 2027*CMA Fest
Nashville, United StatesFestival

Arriving

Nashville (BNA) is 15 minutes from downtown.

Where to stay

Budget	Where	Why
Budget	Airport and Music Valley	Chains near the Opry.
Mid-range	The Gulch and Midtown	Near Vanderbilt and downtown.
Splurge	Downtown	Luxury hotels near Broadway.

Three hotels we would book

Budget: Hampton Inn Nashville Downtown
Mid-range: Graduate Nashville
Splurge: The Hermitage Hotel

Event weekends sell out early and prices rise as the date gets closer: book a cancellable room as soon as you know you are going.

Tours

Evening · Nightlife · Family

Grand Ole Opry show

Country music institution.

See times and prices

Half day · Indoor · Family

Country Music Hall of Fame

Downtown.

See times and prices

Half day · Food

Hot chicken and food tour

Hot chicken and biscuits.

See times and prices

Full day

Jack Daniel's distillery day trip

Lynchburg.

See times and prices

Evening · Nightlife

Honky-tonk pub crawl

Broadway bars.

See times and prices

Where to eat

Hattie B's Hot chicken
Biscuit Love Brunch
Arnold's Country Kitchen Meat and three

With kids

Nashville Zoo.
Adventure Science Center.

Rainy-day backups

Ryman Auditorium tour.
Frist Art Museum.

Free things to do

Broadway live music (no cover in most bars).
Centennial Park Parthenon exterior.

Getting around

WeGo buses and rideshare; downtown is walkable.