Destination Nashville, Tennessee, USA

Nashville gets to you in the same way as a great song. So watching the TV drama series, Nashville, about the city and its music industry, brought back fond memories of this wonderful place and I have become addicted to the show. 

As I was not a country music fan I didn’t really know what to expect of the state capital of Tennessee and what I perceived as a southern Bible Belt town.

From the moment you arrive at the airport you know music flows through its veins. Ranging from rock to R&B through to classical, there is plenty of choice. Nashville is a place where you can easily get drunk on its energy and creativity, yet at the same time be incredibly relaxed.

Nashville skyline
Courtesy of Tennessee Tourism

Lush green hills and fields filled with cows are not far away from this riverside city that is studded with plantation houses and beautiful parks. Its unpretentiousness and the Southern hospitality Nashville dishes up makes it one of the most welcoming and friendliest places in the US.  

A visit to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum has to be on any visitor’s itinerary. There are plenty of costumes, instruments and audio recordings to keep you amused for hours. Not to be missed is the Ryman Auditorium for more music history. You can also take tours back stage. Some of today’s great artists now appear here. It was the original home of the Grand Ole Opry. 

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
Courtesy of Tennessee Tourism

Now this huge venue is a fair distance out of town, but it is really worth getting tickets for a performance of the “Grand Ole Opry”, the radio show credited for making country music famous. Its ability to adapt and evolve with the ever-changing music scene has kept it on the air for more than 80 years.

In the honky-tonk bars along Lower Broadway you may discover tomorrow’s stars. The performances are free and I have even been invited into places during the day just to listen to the music. You don’t even have to buy a drink. The renowned Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge, where the walls are plastered with autographs and photos, is an experience not to be missed.

Yes, there were plenty of cowboy boots and women who looked as if they had taken style advice from Dolly Parton, but delve a little deeper, and you’ll discover another side of Nashville that rocks to an edgier beat. 

The Bluebird Café
Courtesy of Tennessee Tourism

The Bluebird Café, featured in the TV show, does exist. It’s slightly outside of the down town area on Hillsboro Pike. At this venue, where stars mingle with song writers, you never know who you will bump into.

Nashville has, without doubt, under gone a metamorphosis. Once a quiet city, it is now exploding with top-notch restaurants and sophisticated nightclubs – especially in East Nashville – as well as interesting boutiques. The New York Times wrote an article titled “Nashville’s Latest Big Hit Could be The City Itself”.

In my opinion Nashville already is. The more I immersed myself in its culture, the more I didn’t want to leave.

By Daralyn Danns

Getting there

United Airlines (united.com) 

I stayed at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Centre
(marriott.co.uk)

For more info on Nashville (visitmusiccity.com)

First published in All About Hair (All About Hair UK), the travel and lifestyle blog with a luxury twist