We often get questions about what to do when in Music City USA . Well, things have changed in the last few years and that is not a good change for tourists.

Opryland theme park closed , the city “cleaned” up the Demounbreun Street area that once had the Country Music Hall of Fame and a few tourist souvenir stores.

The Music Row area is almost all business and tourists just aren’t in the cards.

On the positive side, the nightlife is the best in over a decade. The lower Broadway area, once a dump, is now packed with about a dozen decent tourist places. From Tootsie’s near the Gaylord Arena to The Wildhorse several blocks away. It’s the best place where the old Nashville music and nightlife lives. The Palm Restaurant is pricey but cool. Every other high end chain is in the area too. All of them from downtown out to the Vanderbilt area.

The main spots to see are of course The Grand Ole Opry. The most famous radio show in the world. It is an adventure to attend. You have to go. Like it or not. It’s a must see just like going to see Graceland in Memphis .

The Wildhorse is a very nice bar and sometimes concert hall but Tootsie’s is more the New Orleans gritty kind of experience. You have to go inside the Ryman Auditorium if for nothing else to feel the place where so much history has taken place.

Out in the burbs, find the Bluebird café in Green Hills. A very famous songwriters, and new star hang out. That’s the Green Hills section. Very up town stuff there from shopping to eating and a high end mall. Tiffany’s is even there!

The coolest place for music has to be the Country Music Hall of Fame near the arena. It’s every bit as good as the Rock Hall in Cleveland .  Plan to spend about 4 hours in there to get the full experience .The Opry is a 4 hour event too ( Night time)(weekends and most Tuesday’s)

The Opry Mills Mall is a nice Mall. The Gibson facility there is real nice. You can watch them make musical instruments. An Imax theatre is there and lots of stores and a few good deals. Food court has Dickey’s bar b Cue I like that and some theme restaurants and tnow the more common Bass Pro Shop.

Believe it or not you might want to take one of those cheesy star tours if you can. It’s a whole lot easier than doing it yourself plus you don’t have to drive with the insane Nashville drivers. I’m not sure they go by Alan’s Jackson’s house ( ask them) but the for sure go by Martina’s.

Eating: well I have never been that crazy about the unique  Nashville cuisine. Yes, there are good places to eat but so does Birmingham and Memphis for that matter.  Mario’s was the best upper class place (Italian) but it bruned and never re-opened..The Longhorn off West End was a good place to see stars but that’s gone. .  Around Vanderbilt are a few places You see the real movers and shakers at joints like the Sunset Grill and Fleming’s. .  The Loveless Café out in the far suburbs is a bit over rated but famous. Anyone can tell you where those places are.

Jack’s Bar b cue on Lower Broadway is really good. The Stockyard, Flemings and Ruth Chris are easy very good steak places. Jimmy Kelley’s is great and old fashioned NON chain!.

Texas ’s Bar B cue is a little hard to find but good. Melpark on Franklin road is where I have eaten  folks like the late Eddy Arnold  and Ray Stevens..

If you have to get a room….plenty to choose from. The Opryland Hotel is BIG… Las Vegas big and a very unique experience. I have never liked their food but the place is VERY special. Honeymoon special!!  Also a bit pricey. The hotels around the airport are good.. Music City Sheraton comes to mind. The Vanderbilt Plaza and the Hermitage are places you would put a presidential candidate and they do.

Shopping: The Green Hills Mall and all the little places around it are very good. You might catch Martina or Faith at that one. The Galleria south of town is ok and that is where a ton of chain restaurants are and some good ones. Nikki Taylor the supermodel goes to the Target Store near that Mall. My daughter got a picture with Miley Cyrus at the Galleria.

North of town is Rivergate Mall…Nothing at all special there but a little further north is Hendersonville . Some folks like Lorrie Morgan and The Oak Ridge Boys live there near the lake. Johnny Cash used to live there too as did the late Roy Orbison. The Cash house burned to the ground but I think you can still ride by.

There is one outlet mall and it’s good. ( I like outlet malls and just finally went to this and spent some dough) It’s east of Nashville   near Lebanon . A Ralph Lauren outlet among others. Also in that area, The Hartmann Luggage outlet store at the factory. Some REAL deals on some of the world’s best luggage and brief cases.

There’s a beautiful drive south of Nashville called the Natchez Trace. It is a federal highway with a 45 mph speed limit and the feds police it. But it is breathtaking and goes from Nashville all the way to Tupelo and beyond.

Breakfast choice: The Pancake Pantry near Vanderbilt , Vince Gill's guilty pleasure. The biggest stars in the world will confirm that fact. Always a line..not sure why.not worth a major deal though.

Ok, shopping, eating, sleeping and some nightlife. I think I covered a lot of the bases. Email me at Jimmy@Askjimmycarter.com if I left out something.

 Just updated June 1, 2008