Most Unique Tours in Middle Tennessee

Music City is packed with history, rumors, and legends, and you can hear them all on the Most Unique Tours in Middle Tennessee. Whether you want to stand in peace and soak in historic landscapes, zoom around town on a Segway, or laugh until your face hurts at every inappropriate true tale in country music history, our list of our favorite tours is sure to have the perfect destination for your summer getaway.

NashTrash Tours

900 Rosa L Parks Blvd
Nashville
A tour with two sisters in a pink bus who mix Music City lore with rowdy comedy.

Since 1997, the internationally famous The Jugg Sisters Original Tour has delighted Nashville visitors. More a stand-up show on wheels than a mere sight-seeing expedition, the OT has thousands of avid fans and hundreds of rave reviews, many of which are left by repeat customers.

If you’re lucky enough to score tickets (we recommend booking months ahead of your intended tour date), you’ll join local comedians Sheri Lynn and Brenda Kay Jugg aboard the one and only Big Pink Bus as they tell the wildest, most hilarious stories from Nashville’s rich musical history.

Snap photos of the Ryman Auditorium as you ride past, stop for souvenirs at the Country Music Hall of Fame, and take in the sights of Music Row on your way back to the Market.

At the end of this nearly two-hour tour, reviewers note that your face is likely to be sore with laughter, but please note that the OT’s humor is intended for a mature audience. Bachelorette parties are not permitted on NashTrash Tours, so if you’re celebrating a bride-to-be, consider another venue.

If your group is looking for a family-friendly musical history tour, consider NashTrash’s Pip’s Music Row Confidential Tour. Intended for a more serious-minded audience looking for historical tales of Nashville’s history, Music Row, and the country legends who have made Nashville their home. Pip, a musician himself, will perform some original tour hits and get the whole bus joining in on the classics.

Belle Meade Plantation

5025 Harding Pike
Nashville
Spend your day enjoying stories, architecture, culture, innovation, sacrifice, and preservation. 

First established in 1807, the Belle Meade Plantation was a self-sustaining plantation whose enslaved residents bred and trained champion horses.

Before long, their efforts garnered widespread acclaim as the greatest thoroughbred stud farm in the country. Home to the great horses Iroquois and Bonnie Scotland (whose line went on to include Secretariat, Seattle Slew, Native Dancer, Big Brown, and California Chrome), Belle Meade thrived for nearly a century, finally closing its doors in 1906.

Today, visitors can tour the fully-restored home and grounds, hear the history of the home, the land, and the surrounding structures.  Explore independently at your own pace or join a guided tour. Either way, complimentary wine tasting is included, and the site includes an ice cream shop and adjoining restaurant.

For the best experience, purchase tickets online. Plan to spend at least two hours from the start of your tour and consider packing a picnic lunch to enjoy on the breath-taking grounds.

Reservations are strongly recommended if you wish to dine at the restaurant.

Franklin on Foot

305 Public Square
Franklin
Delve into Franklin’s rich history with tours about ghosts, the civil war, crime, and cemeteries.

Considered one of the crown jewels of the southern US, historic downtown Franklin’s beautiful streets are rich with history. Mere minutes outside Nashville, this cozy town has been lauded as the “Best Southern Town” by Garden and Gun Magazine and “#5 Best Small Town in the South” by Southern Living Magazine.

For a deep dive into the spookiest tales of Franklin, hop aboard Franklin on Foot’s popular The Haunted Franklin Tour. Feel the chill as you hear the tales of horrors that are rumored to be lurking just beneath the town’s tranquil exterior. Will you encounter a Confederate soldier? A bereft, failed financier? Keep your eyes peeled and your senses keen on your stroll through this picturesque town and bring your camera: past tour guests say they’ve captured shots of real ghosts on the route.

Oaklands Mansion

900 N Maney Ave
Murfreesboro
Explore the history of this civil war era plantation that was once home to both Confederate and Union soldiers.

Caught in the middle of the raging Civil War, many officers from both sides made their beds at Oaklands Mansion, but none was more famous than the Confederate President, Jefferson Davis, who stayed during the winter of 1862.

After the last owner of the mansion was forced to abandon the historic house sometime in the 1950s, it lay in disrepair and decay. The city planned to tear it down, but a group of local women banded together to restore it.

Oaklands Mansion is a museum that has been open to the public for 70 years, and it still welcomes thousands of visitors annually. Join in a tour of the mansion to learn how the original antebellum plantation rose, fell, and was nearly lost to development. Plan to arrive early if you’d like to tour both the mansion and the battlefields in one outing.

Please note that due to the restrictions that come along with preserving historic architecture, the second floor of Oaklands Mansion is not ADA accessible. Photography is permitted, but please disable all flash functions.

iRide Nashville

330 Commerce St
Nashville
Learn how to ride a Segway and experience the most unique and relaxing way to enjoy downtown Nashville.

If you’re looking for an up-close and personal, laid-back way to tour downtown Nashville, iRide’s guided Segway Tour may just be for you! If you’ve never been on a Segway before, don’t worry; the first part of your experience will be learning from the pros. You’ll be fully comfortable before you head through Music City.

Tour the Schermerhorn Symphony Center, Bridgestone Arena, the Farmers Market, the Country Music Hall of Fame, and even the Tennessee State Capitol!

Hear your tour guide loud and clear through your in-helmet speaker, and remember: Segways go where vehicles can’t, so choosing this unique tour means you’re guaranteed to venture off the beaten path.

Lotz House Museum

1111 Columbia Ave
Franklin
Learn about the unique history of this home, its owners, and the role it played in the civil war.

If you only have time for one Civil War landmark in Franklin, this is one to consider. Unlike other historic sites, which often appeal to history buffs alone, this home belonged to the fascinating Lotz family, who despite having no part in the war, was deeply affected by it.

The knowledgeable guides of the Lotz House Museum are eager to make the story of the family come alive for visitors, so consider making an appointment and bringing a list of questions you would like to ask.

When you’ve completed your tour and seen each artifact-laden room, you will be given time to wander outside and explore the historic battlefield. The immensity of the events that occurred across the south will be made vivid and meaningful by the story of the Lotz Family, so don’t miss this small-town gem.

Homes of the Stars Tour

186 N 1st St
Nashville
See the homes of Nashville’s biggest stars while riding through some of the most scenic, upscale, and secluded areas.

If you’re a die-hard country music fan, the Homes of the Stars tour is sure to delight. See homes owned by Taylor Swift, Jack White, Dolly Parton, Garth Brookes, Reese Witherspoon, Hillary Scott, and many more!

Climb aboard a climate-controlled motor coach and sit back for a fully narrated, 3.5-hour sightseeing bus tour through Nashville’s most exclusive, upscale communities. On the way through town, you’ll see the Tennessee Capitol, the Ryman Auditorium, the Second Avenue Historic District, and historic Fort Nashborough.

Due to real estate changing hands, the list of celebrity homes does differ from time to time, but Homes of the Stars stays current. For this reason, the list of stops may be potentially different, depending on when you visit.