If you came from my planning a road trip post, then you would know that my fiance and I planned and went on a road trip last year just before the pandemic started to spread in the United States. (I mean daysss before they were getting ready to shut things down. It was intense).
As a note, we had also arrived in Nashville just about a week after they were hit by a tornado, so it was unreal seeing the damage and it made us appreciate the trip and us being together much more…
The way we planned our road trip allowed us to visit Nashville, Tennessee, New Orleans, Louisiana, and Savannah, Georgia.
{ If you’d like to know about Road Trip Necessities and Essentials, then go ahead and read this post! Linked here and at the bottom of this page 🙂 }
When we arrived in Nashville, it was pretty late. I’m thinking it was around 2 a.m.? We called our hotel about a half an hour before arriving to ensure that we would be able to check into our room easily.
Unfortunately, we stood in the lobby at the hotel for SO long (about 30 to 40 minutes) because the front desk receptionist was nowhere to be found. After driving for 14 hours, all I wanted was a bathroom to shower in and a bed to sleep in…
We finally found the receptionist and were able to check into our room. We ended up going to bed almost straight away as we were exhausted and decided to venture out for our 1 day in Nashville the next morning.
While in Nashville, we decided to just have a free day and take on the town for a full day.
From our research prior to our trip, we knew we wanted to go downtown and visit some of the “must-see” sights. I was also really looking forward to seeing the Parthenon and some of the gorgeous murals.
So we went downtown!
Tim and I explored downtown Nashville, looked through all of the shops, and listened to some nice live music!
For lunch, we ate at The Stillery. They offered seating in a restaurant downstairs, or a more casual seating area upstairs with a bar and live music. When in Nashville, you’ve gotta choose where the music will be!
The stairwell leading upstairs is pretty cool as well, as it’s decorated with music posters!
Our server was great and the food was amazing. Tim ordered the MC Burger and I ordered the Prosciutto & Arugula Pie (pizza). The food was delicious!
I ordered the Dreamsicle Mason Jar Cocktail to try their alcohol selection. Again, like the rest of their menu, it was amazing! When Tim and I visit Nashville in the future, The Stillery is on the list to eat at again!
Next, we found a fun bakery that offered giant versions of typical treats! Like this m&m cookie that’s the size of my head and Tim’s, LOL. Mattheessen’s Bakery in Nashville offers an arrangement of treats so be sure to check them out when you’re in town!
After lunch, and our delicious treat, we decided to go ahead and seek out some of the famous murals in Nashville.
We found the Cry Baby mural near the Cry Baby Beauty Bar. Seeking out this mural was a ton of fun. Bonus, there’s another famous mural in the same alley way!
In the same walkway (literally steps away), there is a beautiful mural of a hot air balloon by Kelsey Montague. Here’s a link to her Instagram.
Around the corner, and a little down the street, we found this mural of an octopus called the Giant Little Octopus. This mural is so large that Tim actually crossed the street to get some pictures of me with it! (If you do the same, be careful as it is a busy street).
As this was our only day in Nashville, we decided to leave the mural searching and find the Parthenon. I’m a huge history geek and I found this very exciting (yes, I know it isn’t the real thing. lol).
The Parthenon in Nashville was built in 1897! You can find a ton of interesting information on the building here. The area is surrounded by a beautiful park and makes for a perfect photo op.
We decided to do a little photo shoot, since it was an amazing location AND pretty much everyone else there was doing the same thing!
After we spent the day exploring, we headed back to the hotel since I had some homework to finish up some homework (college, amirite?). Once my essay/ exams/ whatever I was working on was turned in, it was already midnight. I was a bit disappointed that we weren’t going to be able to spend the rest of the night in a Nashville bar BUT…
We realized that the time change occurred so we had an extra hour for bars to be open! So we pulled our exhausted selves off the hotel beds and got ready to go out.
We only had one evening in Nashville, so it was on our trip bucket list to go to a Nashville Bar together. We ended up going to Honky Tonk Central together. The live band was amazing and the party life was pretty awesome. In the bar, and even walking on the streets, felt as crowded as walking in NYC. Even though it was 1 a.m. when the bar closed, there were still other places that were open!
Tim was really wanting something to eat so we found this awesome restaurant called the Sun Diner. Tim ordered Chicken and Waffles and I had their French Toast. Both were amazing!
The energy in the cafe was quite fun! It was super busy and packed though, so be warned that you might not find seats if you have a larger party. Once someone stands up, you basically sit down and take their seat. Somewhat of a first come, first serve basis. However, when there’s a crowd and most people have been drinking, it can be difficult to find a seat!
Tim and I were lucky to find seats and enjoy the cheerfulness of the cooks and waitresses prepping food and making drinks for crowds of people at 2 a.m. It was actually a really fun experience!
Driving Info: We were lucky to find parking in a nearby parking garage, but warning you now that the streets will be full of cars and pedestrians. If driving in a stressful environment isn’t for you, and you don’t have a designated driver, then find a taxi or Uber. Tim didn’t drink when we went out, so he drove us around. Fair warning it was absolutely insanity in the streets.
If you’re dreaming up your next adventure, make sure you have everything you need! I’ve compiled a list of Road Trip Essentials for an easy checklist! Happy exploring!
Have you visited Nashville? What’s your favorite part of it? What should we do next?
Let me know in the comments below & don’t forget to follow my accounts for more content!
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