10 Unique Nashville Things to Do

Everyone tells you to hit Broadway, catch a show at the Ryman, and eat hot chicken while you're in Nashville. Fair enough — those are classics for a reason. But Music City has a whole layer of experiences that don't show up on the postcards, and if you only stick to the obvious stops, you're missing the version of Nashville that locals actually love.

Whether you're planning a bachelorette weekend, a family trip, a couples getaway, or a solo adventure, here are ten things to do in Nashville that go beyond the honky-tonk highway — starting with the one that gets you a front-row seat to the city's beer scene without ever touching a steering wheel.

1. Hop Aboard the Music City Brew Hop Tour and See Nashville Breweries

If there's one thing Nashville does almost as well as music, it's beer — and the Music City Brewhop Tour is the easiest, most social way to experience it. Instead of trying to figure out parking, designate a driver, or Uber between breweries, you climb aboard our trolley and let us handle the logistics while you handle the tasting.

The route hits seven of the best breweries and taprooms in East Nashville and beyond, giving you a rotating lineup of local flavor at every stop. You'll get dropped off, given time to explore, sip, and snack, and then picked back up right on schedule — no walking directions, no waiting on rideshares, no math about who's had how many.

What makes it more than just "a bus that stops at bars" is the built-in social element. You're riding with a trolley full of people who are there for the same reason you are: good beer, good company, and a genuinely fun way to see the city. It's become a go-to for birthday groups, bachelor and bachelorette parties, and out-of-town visitors who want a curated taste of Nashville's craft beer scene without the planning headache.

If you're the kind of traveler who wants to experience a city rather than just check off landmarks, this is where to start.

2. Tour Hatch Show Print, Nashville's Living Piece of History

Tucked near the Ryman Auditorium, Hatch Show Print is one of those places that makes you stop and go, "wait, this is still operating like it's the 1800s?" First opened in 1879, it's a working letterpress print shop that still uses traditional 19th-century techniques to produce posters — many of them for real touring musicians today.

You can watch artisans hand-set type and pull prints the old-fashioned way, learn about the shop's role in country music history (they've made posters for basically every legend who's ever come through Nashville), and pick up a print of your own as a genuinely unique souvenir. It's quiet, it's tactile, and it's the kind of hidden gem that makes Nashville feel like more than just a music-and-beer destination.

3. Book a Private Vintage Trolley Tour

For groups who want the charm of old Nashville with none of the crowd, a private vintage trolley tour is the move. Instead of joining a public route, you get the whole trolley to yourselves — your group, your schedule, your stops.

It's a favorite for milestone birthdays, anniversaries, corporate outings, and bridal parties who want a photo-worthy ride through the city without sharing the experience with strangers. There's something about clattering through Nashville's streets on a vintage trolley — your playlist playing, string lights overhead, a city full of life passing by the windows — that just doesn't translate to the back of a rideshare. You set the vibe, we handle the driving, and the whole thing becomes as much a part of the memory as wherever you're actually headed.

4. Do a Honky-Tonk Crawl on Lower Broadway (the Right Way)

Yes, everyone says "go to Broadway." But there's a right way and a wrong way to do it. The right way: know that most of the honky-tonks along the strip — often nicknamed the Honky Tonk Highway — don't charge a cover, so you can wander in and out all day without committing to one bar or one band.

Start early afternoon when the crowds are thinner and the bands are still warming up, then let the night build. Every bar has multiple floors with different acts, so a single building can feel like five different venues. The trick locals know: skip the biggest, most crowded names and duck into the smaller honky-tonks a block or two off the main strip. The music is just as good, the drinks are often cheaper, and you won't be shoulder-to-shoulder with quite as many bachelorette sashes. We highly recommend Printer’s Alley for this adventure.

5. Get Weird at the Lane Motor Museum

If you think you've seen every kind of car, the Lane Motor Museum will prove you wrong. This is one of Nashville's true hidden gems — a museum dedicated to unusual, rare, and downright bizarre vehicles from around the world, including amphibious cars, microcars, and prototypes you've genuinely never heard of.

It's not flashy, it's not on most "top Nashville attractions" lists, and that's exactly why it's worth the detour. Car enthusiasts will lose hours here, and even people with zero interest in automobiles tend to walk away saying, "okay, that was actually really cool."

6. Make a Pilgrimage for Hot Chicken

You can't talk about unique Nashville experiences without hot chicken — it's not just a dish here, it's a rite of passage. Nashville-style hot chicken is fried chicken coated in a cayenne-heavy paste that ranges from "pleasantly spicy" to "why did I order this," and the debate over which spot does it best is a genuine local sport.

Rather than picking just one restaurant, treat it like a mini food crawl: order a mild plate somewhere first if you want to ease in, then work your way up to the hotter tiers at a second or third stop if you're feeling brave. Bring water. Bring bread. Maybe don't wear white.

Want to taste our favorite hot chicken sandwich - pop in Tennessee Brew Works and be sure to order a side of their perfectly seasoned shoe-string fries.

7. Step Back in Time at The Hermitage

Just outside downtown, The Hermitage — the home of President Andrew Jackson — is one of the largest and most-visited presidential homes in the country, and it offers a completely different pace than the rest of your Nashville itinerary. Walking the grounds, touring the mansion, and learning about the property's complicated history gives you a much deeper sense of Tennessee's story beyond the music industry.

It's a great half-day trip for history lovers, and because it's a bit outside the downtown core, it pairs nicely with an early start and a plan to head back into the city for dinner and live music afterward.

8. Shop Nashville in Style on a Bevē Bus Tour

Here's the one almost nobody expects: a curated boutique shopping tour on a private bus, and it's become one of the most talked-about girls'-trip and bachelorette activities in the city. Bevē Boutiques (part of Bevē Curated) built an entire experience around the idea that shopping in Nashville shouldn't mean fighting for parking outside five different neighborhoods.

The bus itself is designed to feel less like transportation and more like a lounge — perimeter seating so your whole group faces each other, tables in the middle for snacks or a charcuterie board, and a built-in cooler for drinks. A private hostess rides along, and the itinerary is customized to your group's style and budget, hitting boutiques across neighborhoods like 12 South, Midtown, and Green Hills, often with discounts at partner shops along the way. Your bags stay safely on the bus while you shop, so you're never stuck carrying purchases from store to store.

It's proof that "unique things to do in Nashville" doesn't have to mean music or beer — sometimes it means never having to say "I'll circle back for parking" again.

9. Go Mural Hunting

Nashville's walls have become an attraction in their own right. Colorful, larger-than-life murals are tucked into neighborhoods across the city — some tied to music history, some just pure Instagram bait — and hunting them down has turned into one of the most popular free activities for visitors.

Grab a rough map of known mural locations (12 South and The Gulch are packed with them), wear comfortable shoes, and treat it like a scavenger hunt. It's a great low-key activity to pair with a shopping day or a lazy afternoon between bigger plans, and it costs nothing but time.

If you’re looking to elevate your mural experience be sure to check out Photo Walk Nashville!

10. Sip Something Stronger at a Local Distillery

Beer isn't the only spirit Nashville does well. Corsair Distillery holds the distinction of being Nashville's first legal distillery since Prohibition, and it's built a reputation on experimenting with unusual whiskeys, moonshine, and small-batch spirits you won't find at a typical liquor store. Nashville Barrel Company is a local favorite distilling bourbon, vodka, and even agave. Stop by for a tasting or book a tour to thief straight out of the barrel.

A distillery tour and tasting is a great counterpoint to a brewery-focused day — same idea of exploring local craft and flavor, different category entirely. It's an easy add-on for anyone who wants to round out a "drink your way through Nashville" itinerary without just repeating the same brewery format twice.

Nashville Has More Than One Personality — See All of Them

The through-line with every stop on this list is the same: Nashville rewards people who go looking for more than the obvious. Broadway and the Opry aren't going anywhere, and they're worth your time — but the city's real texture lives in its working print shops, its offbeat museums, its neighborhood murals, and yes, its trolleys.

If you want the easiest way to knock out several of these in one day, start with transportation that does the work for you. Hop aboard the Music City Brewhop Tour for a curated taste of the local beer scene, or book a private trolley tour if you want the whole ride — and the whole city — to yourselves. Either way, you'll spend a lot less time worrying about logistics and a lot more time actually enjoying Music City.