Our first stop, on the way into town, was Arrington Vineyards, owned by country music legend Kix Brooks. We did the expanded tasting for $14 and found some very drinkable wines. We also really enjoyed the scenery outdoors - the second picture shows the hill sloped down to the highway, dotted with picnic tables and swings. This would be a wonderful place on a beautiful day to enjoy a picnic lunch and a bottle of wine. There are some food items available for purchase in their tasting room. They also have an enclosed heated patio for the colder months. Check their website for live music events - after all, that is what Nashville is all about :)
After our stop at Arrington, we headed to downtown, stopping on the way for a quick obligatory shot of The Bluebird Cafe, which we have seen featured multiple times on Nashville, one of our favorite TV shows. A word about The Bluebird: when we first started planning this trip, I thought a visit here for music was a no brainer. It seemed so iconic and I felt we'd be missing out without it. Unfortunately, it is in a strip mall on the very outskirts of town, not at all a convenient location if you are staying downtown. You also have to book tickets far in advance or stand in line the day of your visit. Stop by for a picture, sure, but I think you are much better served visiting the venues downtown in walking distance of each other. We didn't feel at all like we had missed anything by skipping The Bluebird.
View of the river near the Tennessee Titans stadium
Love the juxtaposition of old and new in downtown Nashville
We stayed downtown at the Hilton Nashville Downtown and really couldn't have asked for a better location. Easy walking distance to anything and everything you would want to be close to.
When in Rome... I did wonder about dressing up in Nashville - do people really wear cowboy boots? The answer - yes! If you are going out on Music Row, you will see all kinds of attire, but anything country will be completely appropriate. I wore these boots one night with a plaid flannel shirt dress, then jeans and a nice top the next night. It's a great time to go all out - you'll fit right in!
Dinner Friday night was The Southern, and it was amazingly delicious! I'd definitely recommend a reservation here, as it is very busy on weekend nights, but the food is spectacular and quintessentially southern. Great atmosphere.
We also liked that it was so close to our next destination that evening, The Listening Room. If you are a country music fan and you do one thing in Nashville, this is the one I would pick. Basically you listen to a group of songwriters perform the songs they have written for big country stars, and you get to hear the background and stories behind them. They would also play some new songs they had written or that may have been just picked up by an artist. The writers we heard had a great repoire, and it was a relaxing and fun few hours. One tip: be sure you know where the front of the line is when forming one outside. For some reason, the line the night we were there formed in the incorrect place (toward a side door) and this caused havoc when the doors opened. Seating is first come, first served once they start admitting, so this can be an issue. There really isn't a BAD seat in the house, but I would think closer would be better. You can eat at The Listening Room, but many people appeared to have had dinner beforehand. We noticed that service appeared somewhat slow and sporadic, so we ordered a bucket of beers, then sat back and enjoyed.
L to R:
Laura Veltz (Drunk Last Night - Eli Young Band)
Barry Dean (Diamond Rings and Old Bar Stools - Tim McGraw, Day Drinking - Little Big Town,
Pontoon - Little Big Town, Girls Chase Boys - Ingrid Michaelson)
Andrew Dorrf (Somebody's Heartbreak - Hunter Hayes, My Eyes - Blake Shelton, Neon Light -
Blake Shelton, Save It For A Rainy Day - Kenny Chesney)
Mark Irwin (Here In The Real World - Alan Jackson, Redneck Crazy - Tyler Farr, The Highway -
Tim McGraw with Talor Swift)
Saturday morning, we got up and determined this was our time to hit the Ryman Auditorium. We had thought about it in advance and decided not to do a lot of the touristy Nashville things. There are a ton of these available, from Opryland to Belle Mead to Centennial Park. If you have more time in the city, I am sure these are worth your time and attention. However, we knew we had very limited space in our trip and that our focus was to be on the live music. So the Ryman (located downtown in walking distance and truly iconic) was our nod to Nashville history.
The history of the Ryman itself is long and complicated, and you can read about it on the website. They also show a short video when you start your self-guided tour (if this is the option you take) so you can learn about the building and the Grand Olde Opry before you walk around. The self guided tour is $20 per person, and we felt like this was a great way to see the Ryman - enough history, but plenty of time to walk around and appreciate this incredible building for what it is. There are lots of other options for your time here, including a guided backstage tour, getting your picture taken on stage, making a recording... It's up to you! My husband and I did say that we would love to get tickets to a show the next time we are here - it would be an incredible venue for live music. Check out tickets ahead of time if you are interested!
There is a great gift shop on the way out if you are looking for a fun Nashville souvenir :)
I'm going to cover all the honky tonks we stopped at together, even though we skipped around and visited several each night. The (mostly) small bars are arranged along and adjacent to Music Row (or Broadway), and you can easily move between them. Lines do form at some points in the evening though, so consider this in your bar hopping plans. We usually found a good band and stuck with it for a while, and at one point we found that we had been at one honky tonk for several hours and through three acts! Time passes similarly to Vegas here :) You can check out the bands playing every night on the various websites, as well as listen to some of the artists' original music. All of these bands are trying to make it in the big time, but don't expect to hear "their" songs - it is generally all covers. I will say that I am NOT one for crowds - I don't generally love concerts or places where I will be engulfed by people. But I did find Nashville very manageable as long as we didn't get too stuck in a certain place. There will be people, no doubt, but you can still find enjoyable locations to hear great music.
The Stage: This is a really fun place with two different stages - downstairs and the third floor (we spent our time upstairs). There is a great outdoor patio on the top floor where you can view Music Row while listening to the bands. Several bars are available and there is no cover charge. We saw Casey Edgar here and loved him.
Tootsies Orchid Lounge: This is one of the most iconic honky tonks on Music Row, which also means it is one of the most crowded all day and night. We spent very little time here, but did enjoy their upstairs patio for an hour or so on a sunny Saturday afternoon. The lines here were usually ridiculous in the evening.
Layla's: We also spent very little time at Layla's, mostly because it was crazy crowded when we stopped by. I did like that the second floor here overlooked the downstairs stage and the dance floor, so if you wanted to relax and drink, you could find a barstool at the rail and have a great view without the extreme crush of people.
The Second Fiddle: Probably my favorite honky tonk. It's only one floor, and a relatively long narrow room, but they have continuous good music here. We ended up staying through three acts on Saturday afternoon/evening and really enjoyed ourselves. I would say I saw the most local looking people here and also two huge bachelorette parties, so take that for what it's worth. Everyone was friendly though, and seemed to really be enjoying what we were all there for - the music. We saw Jackson Delaney, Smoke N Guns, and Cort Carpenter here.
Printer's Alley: Not a specific honky tonk so much as an area. We didn't go into any of the bars here, but opted just to wander. Nightclubs here first opened in the 1940s, and live music still reigns today. It is supposed to be a lot of fun at night - we just never made it back over here from Broadway.
All in all, I so enjoyed Nashville. Downtown is touristy without question, but even so you get a very authentic country/Southern vibe. I loved being able to hear so many songs we loved and getting the close personal exposure to the artists. I would love to go back and see more of the city and its attractions someday. It's an amazing place!
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