We are considering visiting friends who live in Nashville. We might do this as a road trip. What are one or two must see sites that are roughly along the route? We have already been to Gettysburg.
Also would like recommendations for must do’s in Tennessee. This trip would be in Feb probably.
Let me reverse the order.
If you’ll be in Nashville and want history, you have myriad choices.
15 miles or so South is Franklin - loaded with Civil War history and a downtown once billed the best town in America.
You’ve got Carter House, Carnton Plantation, Lotz House - and things like Haunted Ghost tours, etc.
If you like Presidential stuff, you have (near the airport) The Hermitage (Andrew Jackson). In Columbia, about 45 minutes south of Nashville (30 minutes South of Franklin) - James K Polk Home & Museum.
There’s lots of markers everywhere but a fascinating road run by the National Park Service called the Natchez Trace Parkway that starts in Nashville and ends up in Natchez, MS 444 miles away. You wouldn’t take the entire thing - but you can certain go down an hour or so and come back and you’d hit sites - and can even hike or short walk. For example, Meriweather Lewis is buried on the Natchez Trace….just lots of things.
In Nashville itself, you have the tours of the Country Music HOF, the Grand Ole Opry if you like country music, the Ryman Auditorium. You also have the Cheekwood Botanical Gardens and the Parthenon, a replica of Athens….nearby to Vandy.
For hiking, my favorite is Radnor Lake….it can be easy….but there’s also a few ridge trails if you want a bit more exercise. It’s 15 minutes South of downtown.
As far as your drive down, I would look for history off the I-81.
Looks like in Virginia, there’s
Patsy Cline House - WInchester, VA
Virginia Museum of the Civil War - New Market VA
Woodrow Wilson Library and Museum - Staunton, VA
Frontier Culture Museum - Staunton VA
There’s also attractions such as Sunspot Glass Blowing - Staunton, VA
There’s the Shenandoah National Park and W&L, JMU, and Va Tech - if you’re into looking at colleges - and then UTK. W&L is in Lexington, a nice place to stop for a meal. Va Tech is a bit further off the freeway.
And just before Knoxville, is the Smoky Mountain National Park - the most populous one and it’s subjective, but not nearly the best from a scenery POV.
That’s some thoughts anyway. Hope that helps a bit.
Thanks! I am not looking at colleges. My youngest graduated two years back. But others might find the college info useful.
I guess in Feb I will have to check which historic sites will actually be open. These are good ideas.
All in Franklin will be open and the Presidential museums.
We sort of have four seasons - but not really.
It’s a year round place.
Not exactly historic, but Luray caverns isn’t too far off 81 and very cool. And warmer than outside in the winter.
Monticello is a short drive from 81. You could then take US29 north to Manassas National Battlefield, though I’m sure Gettysburg is better.
Williamsburg/jamestown/yorktown is great but far away from your drive.
edit - if you do go to manassas, the Air & Space Smithsonian at Dulles is close by. They have all kinds of planes including the Enola Gay. Then you could swing up to Harper’s Ferry on the way to Gettysburg.
A lot of people don’t know about the museum at Dulles. Links is Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center | National Air and Space Museum I grew up not far away and several things my Dad worked on are there. It was like having your own personal guide. The museum is free, but you pay to park. And it’s so huge, even if it’s crowded, it doesn’t feel so.
Adding a few others I don’t think have been mentioned yet:
-if you take 81, stop at Natural Bridge in Virginia. It can be done in a short amount of time but there is also a little cafe in the visitor area so it’s a good way to break up the drive.
-Abingdon, VA is a cute town with good access to hiking trails and an historic theater that is a good spot to catch a play if you need an overnight stop.
-if you take the 65/71 route instead, Bernheim Forest just outside of Louisville is my favorite place to stop. You can do it quickly but could also spend a full afternoon quite easily too.
I actually went to the air and space museum last year and it is great. Well worth the effort to get there, but we stayed in DC last year and had a car so it was easy.
I went to Luray caverns as a kid, that might be a great thing to do again.
@tsbna44 gave you a wonderful list of options including many things that I ought to explore as a Nashville transplant for the last few years. I would only add one small tidbit and that is if you go to the Country Music Hall of Fame, make sure you do the add-on Studio B tour. It is one of the best things I have done in the 23+ years I have been coming to Nashville to deliver children to college, etc. There is an extended Dolly Parton exhibition at the CMHOF through September, 2026 that may draw me downtown at some point.
Weather might be a factor but here are some thoughts.
Philadelphia
Fallingwater then Polymath park. Flight 93 memorial.
Pittsburgh - great museums
Cincinnati-love the zoo and aquarium. German food
Bourbon trail, Corvette museum, caves. Enjoyed Lexington and Louisville.
If you like the aviation type stuff you noted above, if you’re here in Nashville, an easy two hr drive (or 1 hr 40 if staying in Franklin which many do) is the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville. It’s not my thing but I was fascinated by the history of our space program. It was fantastic.
Oak Ridge TN was developed during WW2 for the purpose of creating the atomic bomb. It’s an interesting thing to see on the way to Nashville.
If you were to venture over to Falling Rock or the Flight 93 memorial, the Omni Bedford Springs resort is a very cool old resort. We stayed there and enjoyed the historic nature of the place. On a similar note is the Omni Homestead Resort in Hot Springs.
I do not recommend the Virginia Museum of the Civil War. I spent a morning there. Its focus is much more narrow than the name implies. It is owned by VMI and covers the Battle of New Market (not the whole war) and focuses on VMI and its cadets.
Lexington, where W&L is, has the Stonewall Jackson Museum, as well as a small museum focusing on Robert E Lee at his tomb. Both more interesting than the Va Museum of the Civil War. Lexington is a bit like Nantucket in the Shenandoah Valley (ie beautifully preserved 18th c town in a gorgeous setting). It is about a 15 minute drive from Natural Bridge, which is also worth seeing.
The Barter Theater in Abingdon, VA is right across the street from the Martha Washington Inn (formerly Marsha Washington College back in the day). Also, if you are interested in Thomas Jefferson/architecture, his “mountain” home at Poplar Forest, in or outside of Lynchburg, VA, might be worth a stop; Monticello plus Poplar Forest could be interesting.
In Tennessee, the Big South Fork National Recreation Area on the Cumberland Plateau has some nice hiking trails (elevation changes are very reasonable), and there is Rugby, TN, a community started in the 19th century for the younger sons of English nobility: Rugby, Tennessee - Wikipedia
If you go through Chattanooga, go to Lookout Mountain and just off the interstate in GA (not really out of the way if heading to Nashville) is Chickamauga Battlefield. It’s a pretty drive around the hills that surround Chattanooga and over the hills through Monteagle Pass.
I grew up in Oak Ridge! They relocated the Atomic Energy Museum several years ago and we have had our HS class reunions there, it is a unique town. Not ideal for February but it has become a hotspot for rowing training and competitions.
Some terrible maps of VA possibilities.
The Virginia Creeper Trail is a well regarded rails to trails trail. I’m sure you won’t have time, but it’s a great trial.
If you’re taking 81, Monticello is only a short detour. It’s a “must see” if you’ve never been there. Just incredible!
If you’re going through Ohio, the Serpent Mound just east of Cincinnati is a unique glimpse of America’s pre-history.
We thought Mammoth Cave was worth a visit. And it does have a historic tour where you learn about how the bat guano was a critical component for civil war gunpowder. There’s not much in the way of stalactites though, so don’t expect pretty photos like Carlsbad Caverns.
Abraham Lincoln’s birthplace a few miles north wasn’t so interesting, especially when you learn that the cabin he was supposedly born in was magically reconstructed just before the inspectors came from Washington DC to determine whether it should be designated as a historic site.
The New Market Battlefield is one of my favorites–its fairly small and easy to understand. Agree that the museum is not great
The Belle Grove/Cedar Creek battlefield is great. The tour of the Belle Grove mansion was great. I enjoyed the battlefield walks too.
