Chattanooga
Myriad songbirds of the avian variety call Tennessee home, but Chattanooga's newly revamped Songbirds – an innovative interactive learning space devoted…
Must-see attractions in Tennessee
Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum
Downtown & the Gulch
This monumental museum, reflecting the near-biblical importance of country music to Nashville's soul, is a must-see whether you're a country music fan or…
Chattanooga
Just ten minutes from downtown Chattanooga, Tennessee, rising along the upper rim of the city, Lookout Mountain is rich in both Civil War history and…
Memphis
If you only make one stop in Memphis, it should be here: the sublimely kitschy, gloriously bizarre home of the King of Rock and Roll. Though born in…
Memphis
This dusty storefront is ground zero for American rock and roll. Starting in the early 1950s, Sun's Sam Phillips recorded blues artists such as Howlin'…
Memphis
Housed partly inside the Lorraine Motel, where Martin Luther King Jr was fatally shot on April 4, 1968, is the gut-wrenching National Civil Rights Museum…
Stax Museum of American Soul Music
Memphis
Wanna get funky? Head directly to Soulsville, USA, where this 17,000-sq-ft museum sits on the site of the old Stax recording studio. This venerable spot…
East Tennessee
On April 15, 1912, the steamship Titanic sank on her maiden voyage after colliding with an iceberg. The ship's history and the stories of many of her…
Chattanooga
Situated on the Tennessee River in downtown Chattanooga, TN, the Tennessee Aquarium is home to 10,000 animals. The aquarium, Chattanooga’s most visited…
Reflection Riding Arboretum & Nature Center
Chattanooga
A 317-acre green oasis just 15 minutes from downtown Chattanooga, Reflection Riding Arboretum & Nature Center pairs outdoor recreation with botanical and…
Nashville
One of Music Row's most historic studios, this is where Elvis, the Everly Brothers and Dolly Parton all recorded numerous hits. The latter did a little…
Cheekwood Botanical Garden & Museum of Art
Nashville
Cheekwood is a botanical garden with an arty inclination, just southwest of downtown Nashville. The numerous gardens combine themes (Japanese, water,…
Nashville
A beautiful day trip or extended road trip from Nashville, the Natchez Trace Parkway runs for 444 miles through three states until reaching its eponymous…
National Museum of African American Music
Nashville
The National Museum of African American Music tells the story of the impact that African American culture has had on music around the world, from gospel to…
Memphis
Don't laugh, but the most striking building in Memphis, a 32-story pyramid completed in 1991, is now home to an enormous Bass Pro Shop. Even if you don't…
Nashville
This unassuming modern brick building seats 4400 for the Grand Ole Opry multiple times per week. Daytime backstage guided tours are offered every 15…
Nashville
For a photogenic view of this graceful double-arch bridge, pull into the Birdsong Hollow overlook, about 4 miles south of the northern terminus of the…
Chattanooga
Set high on the river bluffs, this striking edifice of melted steel and glass – fronted by an early-20th-century mansion – is easily the most singular…
Chattanooga
Finished in 1891, this half-mile span carried vehicles from downtown to the North Shore until 1978, when it was closed for safety reasons. In 1993 it was…
East Tennessee
A 'chondola' whisks visitors from downtown Gatlinburg to this playground in the sky, where views of the Great Smokies are superb. Once atop Anakeesta…
Tennessee
The irony of the Jack Daniel's Distillery being in a 'dry county' is lost on no one – local liquor laws dictate that no hard stuff can be sold within…
Downtown & the Gulch
This 6.5-acre park hugs the Cumberland River's eastern bank across from downtown. For kids, there's a climbing wall and an innovative washboard play area…
East Tennessee
Site of the canoe and kayak slalom events for the 1996 Summer Olympics, the Ocoee Whitewater Center today doubles as a regional visitor center and a…
Museum of East Tennessee History
Knoxville
This glossy museum spotlights key moments in the history of East Tennessee as well as regional cultural topics, from 'hillbilly' music to mountain tourism…
East Tennessee
Waterfalls crash high and low inside this rugged 26,000-acre park that hugs the craggy surface of the Cumberland Plateau 115 miles southeast of Nashville…
East Tennessee
This small-batch distillery sources all its ingredients locally. Sample its moonshine, its tequila spin-off and the intriguing Yenoh, an all-honey mead…
American Museum of Science & Energy
Knoxville
During WWII the US military began the Manhattan Project, a top-secret program to develop the atomic bomb. Oak Ridge was one of the key research and…
Memphis
It was a long time coming, but Memphis finally has a shrine to its own. This small but well-done museum, the sister gallery to the Memphis Rock 'n' Soul…
Nashville
Opened in 1927 and named after two local park commissioners, Percy (the larger) and Edwin (the smaller) Warner Parks are where Nashvillians come to enjoy…
Nashville Public Library – Downtown
Downtown & the Gulch
For an excellent overview of the Civil Rights movement in Nashville, check out the Civil Rights Collection, a permanent exhibit in the 2nd-floor galleries…
Knoxville
Sprawled across 65 acres dotted with cabins and livestock, this comprehensive museum spotlights the history and culture of the mountain communities in the…
Nashville
The former home of seventh president Andrew Jackson lies 15 miles east of downtown. The sprawling, well-kept grounds of this 1150-acre site offer a peek…
Chattanooga
Tucked between the Tennessee Aquarium and the Tennessee River, the patch of greenery known as Ross's Landing marks the starting point of the Trail of…
Nashville
Mammals chill out along the grassy Savannah Loop and the bamboo-filled Jungle Loop, and amphibians get their own special house. We're partial to the…
Downtown & the Gulch
A top-notch post office turned art museum and complex, hosting traveling exhibitions of everything from American folk art to Picasso, and as off-the-wall…
Memphis
Dedicated to Blues Hall of Fame inductees, this intimate and well-done space features a rotating art gallery on the lobby level and a small but well…
Nashville
It's hard to imagine that this beautiful lake is artificial, but so it is, built by a railway company in 1914 and handed over to public use in 1973. These…
Nashville
Built in 1897 to celebrate the state of Tennessee's centenary, Nashville's Parthenon is a full-scale replica of the Ancient Greece original, with a jaw…
Memphis
On Sunday, put on your 'smell goods' and head to services in South Memphis, where soul-music legend turned reverend Al Green presides over a powerful…
Chattanooga
A 13-mile, multiuse paved greenway on the south side of the Tennessee River, the Riverwalk runs from downtown through Amnicola Marsh and along South…
