Where to stay

For a historical perspective, stay in Downtown Nashville and see a show at the Ryman Auditorium, which held its first concert in 1892. This very walkable neighborhood has everything from honky-tonks on Lower Broadway to ballet and theater at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center. Hotels on Music Row are in the heart of Nashville's musical birthplace. Tour recording studios here and listen to live music. Book a place to stay in Opryland, about a 15-minute drive east of Downtown, where the Grand Ole Opry now has its home, surrounded by resort accommodations, restaurants and theme park attractions. Stay in Green Hills, where the iconic Bluebird Café and other venues feature up-and-coming and established singers and songwriters. The Gulch, a former industrial neighborhood south of downtown, has great boutique hotels and even more live music venues. Accommodations in West End are also close to live music performances, but here rock clubs might outnumber country music venues.

Nashville dining ranges from iconic Southern comfort foods to fine cuisine and drink. In neighborhoods across town, enjoy breakfast biscuits, hot chicken, farm-to-table fare and meat-and-three, a choice of meat with three sides. Hotels in Downtown Nashville are convenient for meals at fine dining spots, steakhouses and restaurants offering organic, farm-to-table and vegetarian food. Stay in the Midtown Nashville area near Vanderbilt University, where top chefs create new food inventions and bustling bars serve the student population with late-night snacks. East Nashville, across the Cumberland River, is a good spot to stay for more a casual atmosphere in cafés, dive bars and coffee shops. The Hillsboro Village neighborhood is also near Vandervilt and Belmont colleges, with trendy restaurants for students and several high-end spots where their parents treat them to more expensive meals. Book a hotel in Brentwood, about a 20-minute drive south of Downtown for its wide variety of restaurants, including an outpost of Prince's, where the dish of spicy hot chicken with pickles originated.

While country music is important in Nashville, it's just one of the city's many cultural offerings. Book a hotel in Downtown Nashville for an architectural tour of historic buildings, many of which are now music venues, boutiques and restaurants. This is also a great neighborhood to stay for a Tennessee Titans game. They actually play in East Bank, which is just a 5-minute ride across the Cumberland River from Downtown. The Donelson neighborhood, near Nashville International Airport, has budget-conscious hotels and is perfect for touring the home of Andrew Jackson, the seventh U.S. president. From a West End hotel, visit the historic Belle Meade Plantation as well as a surprisingly realistic Parthenon replica. Hotels in Franklin, about a 25-minute drive south, are close to sites of American history, where three house museums have battlefield artifacts from one of the last great battles of the Civil War. Stay in Murfreesboro for a perfect mix of history and culture at the Stones River National Battlefield, Oaklands Mansion and performing arts center.