Nashville with Kids
A stage costume kids get right up close to, a kangaroo that wanders right past you, and a splash pad with a skyline view, the version of Nashville that actually works with children in tow.
Nashville is genuinely one of the friendlier big cities for families, hands-on museums, wide-open parks, and enough family-friendly live music to fill a proper trip regardless of age. Here’s how to spend the time on what actually works with kids.
The Country Music Hall of Fame
Widely a hit with kids of most ages, interactive displays, video stations and a Young Explorer bag turn a music history museum into something properly hands-on. Elvis’s car and Taylor Swift’s stage costumes both draw a reliable crowd of younger visitors too.
Nashville Zoo
A properly good day out, white rhinoceros, clouded leopards and free-wandering red kangaroos at the Kangaroo Kickabout keep kids engaged for hours. The Jungle Gym playground, with a tree house and a giant snake tunnel, is worth building extra time around too.
Centennial Park and Cumberland Park
Centennial Park’s Parthenon replica and open green space make for a properly easy family afternoon, and Cumberland Park adds a free splash pad, climbing walls and skyline views right across the river. Both cost nothing beyond your own time.
The Adventure Science Center
A properly engrossing hands-on museum, the Adventure Tower rises 75 feet through the centre of the building for climbers, and the Sound Box exhibit’s karaoke booth is a properly reliable hit. A planetarium rounds out a solid full day out.
The Grand Ole Opry
A properly family-friendly live music venue, the rotating lineup of short sets holds kids’ attention considerably better than a single long concert. Backstage tours let families step inside the famous circle of wood onstage too, worth booking ahead as shows sell out.
If the weather turns
The Frist Art Museum’s Martin ArtQuest gallery, included in general admission, offers proper hands-on creative activities rather than a passive walk-through. The Tennessee State Museum works well as a free indoor day too, and the Children’s Gallery holds Legos, puzzles and puppets for younger kids.
Eating with kids
Acme Feed & Seed on Broadway is widely family-friendly, hot chicken sandwiches to sushi with a rooftop view over the Cumberland River. Five Daughters Bakery is worth the stop for a treat too, and several Broadway honky-tonks welcome kids during the day, just plan to leave before the evening rush.
A few practical notes
Nashville is widely one of the friendlier cities in the country for families, and the Old Town Trolley is worth it for getting between attractions without worrying about downtown parking. Layer clothing regardless of season, summer runs hot and humid while winter can turn properly cold.
That’s everything I’ve got.
A note before you plan around this: prices, opening hours, booking requirements and admission details in this guide were correct at the time of writing, but venues change these often and sometimes without notice. Always check directly with the attraction or its official website before you travel or build a schedule around a specific time or price.
Before travelling to any destination featured on this site, please also check your government’s latest travel advice, as safety situations, entry requirements and travel warnings can change.
