Nashville Travel Guide

Hello, hello! Coming at you fresh after arriving home from a long weekend in NASHVILLE! This was my third trip to the Music City and each time I visit, I am reminded of just how much I love it! My first visit there was over six years ago with my girlfriends, and it has grown SO much in such a short amount of time – it is definitely a hotspot now! If you enjoy music, good food, and friendly people, then Nashville is for you. Several of you told me you were planning trips to Nashville in the near future, so I wanted to quickly put together a travel guide of sorts to share with you some of my favorite spots in Nashville, as well as a few other spots that I have not been able to check out yet but were highly recommended.

Where to Stay:

I have stayed at The Hilton Downtown, The Sheraton Grand , and most recently the AC Marriott. The Hilton overlooks Broadway street and is in the center of everything, but it can also be loud at night. The Sheraton and AC Marriott are each within walking distance to downtown, but are far enough removed from the hustle and bustle so that it is not too noisy at night. The Sheraton is in a more historic area, whereas the AC Marriott is an area where a lot of the newer hotels have recently been built. You really can’t go wrong with any of these hotels. There are also Air B&B options – if I was going back with a larger group, I’d probably consider going that route.

Where to Eat:

I am always on a mission to find good food, lol! And Nashville does NOT disappoint! In my opinion, it ranks up there with Charleston in terms of great southern cuisine. I’m going to share several of the restaurants I have tried there, as well as some of the ones that you guys recommended on Instagram!

• The Southern Steak & Oyster – We have eaten lunch here on our last two visits. They have the best burger and sandwich menu and I dream about “the southern” burger! Also a good dinner spot.
• M. Restaurant – We had dinner here for the first time this weekend and I was very impressed. I mean, they have bacon & pork lollipops as an appetizer…sign me up 😉 .
• Whiskey Kitchen – I have eaten here twice – good place to go for apps!
• The Pancake Pantry – You’ll need to Uber here (it’s near Vanderbilt University) and there will likely be a line, but it is worth it! I had sweet potato pancakes that were to die for!
• Peg Leg Porker – We passed this place driving into the Gulch this past weekend and our Uber driver said it was the best barbecue in Nashville…so we decided to try it for lunch. It was fantastic and I loved the laid back atmosphere. I had the pulled pork which is something I never order, ever, but I decided to try it here and I was glad I did. Their sides were amazing, too!
• Burger Republic – This is a great spot for gourmet style burgers and they also have amazing shakes. Located in The Gulch.
• Biscuit Love – This place is in The Gulch and came highly recommended, but when we got there, the line was wrapped around the building and we were hungry so we decided not to wait it out.
• Milk & Honey – This is right around the corner from Biscuit Love and also came highly recommended, but had an hour wait. I would say if you want to try either of these, go way early, get your name on a list, and then walk around and shop. Don’t go hungry and expect to sit right down!
• Urban Grub – I have read great things about this spot and their menu looks amazing. We had planned to do brunch here on our last day, but as luck would have it, the stomach bug hit and we had to cancel. Definitely plan to try it on our next visit!
• Five Daughters Bakery – I have been wanting a donut from here for the past two visits and have yet to make it! I hear about this place allll the time – apparently their donuts are unbeatable!

Things to Do:

• The Honky Tonks on Broadway Street – this is a must and one of my favorite things to do in Nashville. You can find live music at all hours of the day, and all of the bands are super talented. I prefer to go during the day as it gets very crowded at night. We usually walk up and down Broadway, going in and out of the different bars until we find a band we really like. Next thing you know, HOURS will have passed! There are tons of very old honky tonks on Broadway, but recently a lot of famous musicians have started opening bars & restaurants (Blake Shelton, Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Kid Rock). We checked out Kid Rock’s bar on two different days and ended up spending several hours there – the bands they were featuring were awesome and we met a lot of great folks while we were there. Honestly, the Nashville crowd is the best! Everyone is so friendly and down to earth – just good ole people!
• The Bluebird Cafe – The Bluebird is one my most, if not top, memorable moments from Nashville. I have been on both prior visits, and we had tickets to go last night but I was too sick to make it – I was so upset about missing it that I could have cried! The Bluebird is a listening room where several famous artists have been discovered (i.e.: Garth Brooks, Faith Hill, Vince Gill, even Taylor Swift!). If you watched the ABC Series, Nashville, then you probably saw The Bluebird. They have shows every night featuring various songwriters and the talent will blow your mind. The cafe is VERY small and intimate, and truly is an experience like no other. The last time we went, we went to an “in the round show” that featured five or six songwriters that had written hits for all the famous country singers, and they told the stories behind how the songs came to be, and then they sang their version of the songs. Getting tickets to a show is hard – they don’t go on sale until a few days before the event, and you have to be online at least an hour early to get a virtual place in line…and once you’re in the site, you only have like a minute or two to snag your tickets. Again, I cannot recommend this enough! Even if you have no clue who the performers are, it’s still an awesome place to experience.
• Printer’s Alley – On a prior trip to Nashville, we asked our Uber driver where we should go for night life that was NOT on Broadway so he took us to Printer’s Alley. It’s literally an alley in between buildings in the historic area of downtown that has several little bars with live music. Picture a back alley with string lights hung between the buildings, neon signs everywhere, hot dog stands and other food vendors, and live music pouring out of the bars…it’s SUCH a fun experience!
• The Gulch – When I first visited Nashville over six years ago, development of The Gulch was just getting started and there were just a couple of restaurants and stores. It has grown so much since then and is a thriving neighborhood. It is much more urban than downtown Nashville, with lots of great food, shopping, artsy wall murals, and a couple of hotels. This is also where Kristin Cavallari’s store, Uncommon James, is located. Who else is a fan of her reality show!? We stopped into her store this past weekend – there were no Kristin sightings, sadly, but I did purchase a pretty necklace! I love the simplicity of her jewelry and her home line is awesome, too.
• 12South – This is another neighborhood that is super popular, and yet somehow I have missed it every time! This is where Reese Witherspoon’s store, Draper James, is located, along with lots of other shopping and food.
• Green Hills Mall – We visited this mall when I was in Nashville with my girlfriends – it’s very nice and has a ton of great stores, including several luxury brands. It is not near downtown though…you’ll definitely need to Uber here.
• John Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge – (pictured above) This bridge is within walking distance from downtown/Broadway and has a beautiful view of the river and downtown. It’s also a great spot for a photo opp!

I hope you found this helpful. If you have been to Nashville or if you’re a Nashville local, please feel free to comment below with any other recommendations or must-dos for folks reading this post! Have a great night!