Neighborhood 48H guide
Midtown & Vanderbilt: Where to Stay & What to Do in 48 Hours
The Parthenon in Centennial Park, Hattie B’s hot chicken and Vanderbilt’s campus.
Midtown runs along West End Avenue and Broadway between downtown and Vanderbilt University. Centennial Park holds a full-scale replica of the Parthenon, and the streets around it are full of bars, cafés and hot chicken.
Photo gallery
Photo: BullDawg2021 · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: Nick Allen · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Why stay here
Centennial Park, Vanderbilt and Music Row are walkable, and Broadway is a short ride.
Who it's for: Visiting parents, couples and anyone who wants a quieter base.
Pros
- Centennial Park on the doorstep
- Calmer than downtown
- Good bars and restaurants
Cons
- Need a ride to Broadway
- Busy on Vanderbilt event weekends
- Hotels can be pricey
48H in Midtown
Parthenon, hot chicken, a soda fountain.
09:00 – Elliston Place Soda Shop
Breakfast at the 1939 diner and soda fountain.
10:30 – The Parthenon
See the 42-foot Athena inside, then walk Centennial Park.
13:00 – Hattie B’s Hot Chicken
Pick your heat level; the line moves.
Named recommendations
Real places with links to their official site or a Maps place page. We do not invent hours, prices, or ratings.
Eat
Eat
Hattie B’s Hot Chicken
112 19th Ave S
Nashville hot chicken from mild to ‘Shut the Cluck Up’.
Official site / map →Eat
Elliston Place Soda Shop
2111 Elliston Pl
Diner and soda fountain since 1939, with milkshakes and plate lunches.
Official site / map →
See / do
See / do
The Parthenon
2500 West End Ave, Centennial Park
Full-scale Parthenon replica with a gilded 42-foot Athena inside.
Photo: BullDawg2021 · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons Official site / map →
Where to stay
Specific named properties—not vague city-wide searches. Expedia stays use tracked Creator links; others open the hotel's official site.
Roam48 may earn a commission when you book a stay through Expedia or Vrbo links on this page, at no extra cost to you. All commercial stay links use rel="sponsored nofollow".
Hotel · Expedia
Loews Nashville Hotel at Vanderbilt Plaza
2100 West End Ave
Full-service hotel across West End from Vanderbilt.
Check rates on Expedia →Hotel · Expedia
Graduate by Hilton Nashville
101 20th Ave N
Playful Midtown hotel with a rooftop terrace and White Limozeen restaurant.
Check rates on Expedia →
Vacation rentals
Prefer an apartment or whole home in this neighborhood? Browse Vrbo listings for Midtown & Vanderbilt.
Nashville requires a short-term rental permit, and whole-home rentals are limited in many residential areas. Look for the permit number on the listing before you book.
Browse vacation rentals in Midtown & Vanderbilt on Vrbo →Other ways to spend 48 hours in Nashville
- Downtown & Lower Broadway — The Ryman, Broadway’s honky-tonks and the Johnny Cash Museum.
- SoBro — The Country Music Hall of Fame, the Symphony and whole-hog barbecue.
- The Gulch — Bluegrass at the Station Inn, Biscuit Love and the wings mural.
- Music Row & Hillsboro Village — Elvis’s RCA Studio B, songwriters at Analog and pancakes in Hillsboro Village.
- Germantown — The Farmers’ Market, Bicentennial Mall and Rolf and Daughters.
- East Nashville — Five Points, the Pharmacy’s beer garden and Shelby Bottoms along the river.
- Music Valley & the Opry — The Grand Ole Opry, Opryland’s indoor gardens and a riverboat cruise.
- Franklin — Main Street’s storefronts, Civil War history at Carnton and Puckett’s.