LEGENDARY EVENTS CITY GUIDE
Planning an Event in Nashville?
A walkable downtown. Major event venues. Live music around every corner. And a destination attendees are genuinely excited to visit. Here’s what event planners should know before choosing Nashville.
NEARLY 20,000
Downtown & Midtown Rooms
WALKABLE
Downtown Event District
353,143 SQ. FT.
Music City Center Exhibit Hall
BNA ACCESS
Strong Nonstop Air Service
LIVE MUSIC
Entertainment Built Into the City
LEGENDARY EVENTS CITY
Nashville
Why Event Planners Keep Choosing Nashville
Nashville combines serious meeting infrastructure with one of the strongest destination identities in the country. Downtown, Music City Center sits among major hotels, restaurants, attractions, arenas, museums, and the entertainment of Lower Broadway.
Unlike destinations where the convention district feels separated from the city experience, Nashville’s event core is woven directly into downtown. Attendees can leave a general session and quickly reach dinner, live music, museums, rooftops, and many of the city’s best-known attractions.
The result is a city that works particularly well for planners who want a professional event during the day and a built-in destination experience when the program ends.
How Nashville Compares to Other Choices
These are the things you might be considering when choosing a location.
GETTING THERE 4.5/5
Nashville International Airport offers a broad network of nonstop domestic routes along with several international destinations. Downtown is also relatively close to the airport, making arrival and departure days easier than in many major cities.
HOTEL SELECTION 4.5/5
Nashville has a large and rapidly growing hotel inventory, with roughly 20,000 rooms in the downtown and Midtown area alone. Options range from limited-service properties to major convention hotels and luxury resorts.
EVENT INFRASTRUCTURE 4.5/5
Music City Center provides a 353,143-square-foot exhibit hall, a 57,500-square-foot grand ballroom, and 60 meeting rooms. Nashville also offers Gaylord Opryland for planners who prefer a large resort-style convention environment.
DINING & ENTERTAINMENT 5/5
Few destinations make after-hours planning easier. Live music, restaurants, bars, museums, sports, and entertainment are built into the downtown experience, giving attendees plenty to do without requiring planners to create every activity themselves.
GETTING AROUND 4/5
Downtown Nashville is one of the city’s biggest advantages for events. Many hotels, venues, restaurants, and attractions are within walking distance of one another. Once an itinerary moves beyond downtown, however, shuttles, rideshares, or other transportation become more important.
OVERALL COST 3/5
Nashville is popular, and that popularity comes at a price. Hotel rates, downtown parking, food and beverage, entertainment, and high-demand weekends can make Nashville more expensive than some competing destinations. Careful date selection can make a significant difference.
LEGENDARY VENUE PICK
Music City Center
Music City Center is the natural Nashville choice for major downtown events. The facility spans six city blocks and includes a 353,143-square-foot exhibit hall, a 57,500-square-foot grand ballroom, an 18,000-square-foot secondary ballroom, and 60 meeting rooms totaling approximately 90,000 square feet.
Why We Like It
Music City Center allows planners to run a serious, large-scale event without separating attendees from the destination they came to experience. When sessions end, guests are already downtown near hotels, restaurants, museums, sports venues, and the entertainment of Broadway. That combination of professional event infrastructure and immediate access to Nashville is what makes the venue especially appealing.
LEGENDARY HOTEL PICK
Omni Nashville Hotel
Omni Nashville Hotel combines a major convention hotel with one of the best locations in the city. The property has 800 guest rooms and more than 80,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, while sitting steps from Music City Center and adjoining the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.
Why We Like It
Omni Nashville gives event planners the convenience of a major meeting hotel without sacrificing the destination experience. Attendees can stay, meet, dine, and relax on property while remaining within easy walking distance of Music City Center, Broadway, Bridgestone Arena, restaurants, and downtown attractions. The adjoining Country Music Hall of Fame adds another distinctly Nashville experience without requiring transportation.
LEGENDARY GROUP DINING PICK
Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint — Downtown
Martin’s feels distinctly Tennessee rather than another catered banquet. Its downtown flagship combines West Tennessee-style whole-hog barbecue with private dining rooms and a large open-air Beer Garden. Private rooms can seat up to 110 guests, while larger events and second-floor buyouts can accommodate 400.
Why We Like It
Martin’s turns a group meal into something that actually feels like Nashville. The barbecue, casual Southern atmosphere, open-air Beer Garden, and option to add live music create an experience that is relaxed without feeling generic. It is especially useful for planners who want attendees to socialize after a day of meetings without turning the evening into another formal event.
LEGENDARY EXPERIENCE PICK
Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum gives groups a Nashville-specific experience that can be anything from a daytime outing to a full private event. Beyond the museum, the complex includes event spaces, a 10,000-square-foot Event Hall, the 776-seat CMA Theater, the Hall of Fame Rotunda, and options such as tours of historic RCA Studio B.
Why We Like It
The Country Music Hall of Fame feels unmistakably Nashville without requiring attendees to be devoted country music fans. The exhibits tell a broader story of music, culture, performers, and songwriting, while the venue itself gives planners numerous ways to customize the experience. A group can visit for a few hours, add Studio B or Hatch Show Print, host a reception, or turn the museum into the setting for an entire evening.
THE CASE FOR NASHVILLE
THINGS TO CONSIDER
THE CASE FOR NASHVILLE
THINGS TO CONSIDER
IS NASHVILLE RIGHT FOR YOUR EVENT?
WALKABLE DOWNTOWN
You want meetings, hotels, dining, and entertainment close enough to keep the event compact.
BUILT-IN ENTERTAINMENT
You want attendees to have obvious evening options without programming every minute of their stay.
NATIONAL ATTENDANCE
Strong BNA air service helps when attendees are traveling from different places across the country.
MEMORABLE DESTINATION
You want the city itself to add energy, identity, and excitement to the event and Nashville delivers.
If these priorities sound like your event, Nashville deserves a place near the top of your destination list.
Keep Planning
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