Exploring Art And The Parthenon: Spending a Weekend In Nashville, TN - Updated 2024

Exploring Art And The Parthenon: Spending a Weekend In Nashville, TN - Updated 2024
Jamillah
Jamillah 
Updated
| 2 min read

Nashville is the home of the Grand Ole Opry (a legendary music hall) and country music. It’s also a great place for concerts, shows, great food and southern hospitality. But hidden within Nashville are local treasures that make visiting a real treat every time.

The Gaylord: a hidden treasure (from USD 459)

Cascades Atrium

The Gaylord Opryland Hotel and Resort is one of most unassuming buildings at first glance. When approaching it from the parking lot, the low key, southern colonial facade belies the treats that await you on the inside. Entering the hotel you pass through the reception area into the 6 story Cascades Atrium with its tropical foliage, waterfalls, ponds, tasty restaurants and southern charm. If you choose to stay at the hotel, request a room that faces the atrium space. These rooms have balconies that allow you to sit back, enjoy the view, people watch and relax. Whether you’re actually staying at the resort or just stopping by for a visit, the Gaylord is a great place to explore, have dinner or even take a riverboat cruise. Be sure to check and see if there are any conventions sharing the hotel on the weekend you’d like to visit because it can get very crowded.

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Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center

Wifi Available Wheelchair accessible

Address: 2800 Opryland Drive
526 meters (0.4 ft) from Grand Ole Opry

Parking Restaurant Room service Meeting/banquet facilities Bar 24-HOUR FRONT DESK Sauna Fitness centre

Exploring the Parthenon

The Parthenon

The Parthenon sits on the Acropolis is in Athens, Greece and was built as an homage to the goddess Athena, considered the patron of Athens. It’s one of the most important surviving buildings of Classical Greece and is considered a symbol of Ancient Greece. You can travel to see this cultural icon without even leaving the U.S.; well, a very great replica of it at least! The Parthenon in Nashville was built for the 1897 Tennessee Centennial Exposition and is a full-scale exact replica of the original Parthenon. Nashville dubbed itself the Athens of the South, which is what drove the decision to build the Parthenon of Tennessee.

The original wooden and plaster building was built to be a temporary structure for the exposition, but it became so popular with the city’s residents that it was eventually replaced with the concrete building that stands today. The building is a beautiful art museum with a 42 ft (12.8 m) tall statue of Athena as the centerpiece. A trip to Nashville isn’t complete without a visit to see the wonder of Greece.

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The First Saturday Art Crawl

The Art Crawl

The First Saturday Art Crawl is a monthly event, on the first Saturday of each month, located in downtown Nashville along 5th street and in the Historic Arcade. The galleries host receptions, art openings and a lively atmosphere for viewing art, meeting artists and mingling with locals and visitors alike. Admission to the galleries is always free and most also serve free wine and refreshments. The great thing is that the exhibits change each month and new galleries are always being added, so it never gets old no matter how often you visit.

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New discoveries with each visit

Whether you’re visiting Nashville for the first time or for the 10th time, the city reveals more of itself with each visit. Like a close friend letting you in on a little secret, there’s always something new to discover each time you go.

Any must-sees we missed? Tell us about them in the comments section or write a post here to help out fellow travelers!
Disclosure: Trip101 selects the listings in our articles independently. Some of the listings in this article contain affiliate links.

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I’m Jamillah and I’m an architect who’s traveled through Asia, Latin America, Africa volunteering and helping to build homes. Through my company Inspired Wandering I take my love of travel and...Read more

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