See more of Tennessee.
Practical guides, family trips, local places, food, history and the things worth knowing before you go — from Nashville to Chattanooga and across the state.
Gaylord Opryland With Kids: Why Our Family Keeps Going Back
A family look at one of Nashville’s most unusual hotels, what there is to do inside, and why it can be worth visiting even when you are not staying overnight.
Read the story →Useful Tennessee stories, not just travel lists.
Real Tennessee is about helping you figure out what a place is actually like before you spend your time or money on it. Some stories come from trips with my family. Others dig into places, events and ideas across the state that are worth knowing about.
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Fresh from across Tennessee
Downtown Nashville To Do: Recommendations First Visit
A practical first-visit guide to Broadway, the Ryman, music museums, Printers Alley and the parts of downtown worth making time for.
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SoundWaves at Gaylord Opryland With Kids: Why Our 5-Year-Old Loved It Even Though He Couldn’t Swim
What our family found inside SoundWaves, including what worked for a younger child and what I would know before going.
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Visiting Ruby Falls With Kids: Our Chattanooga Day Trip Inside Lookout Mountain
Our family trip beneath Lookout Mountain, with the practical details parents will want to know before booking.
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Riding the Lookout Mountain Incline Railway With Kids: Our Chattanooga Day Trip
What the ride is actually like, how it worked with our boys, and what we found at the top and bottom of the mountain.
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Nashville’s Wine Train: What to Know Before You Book the Tennessee Wine Tasting Excursion
A closer look at the Tennessee wine excursion, how the experience works, and what to understand before booking.
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Gaylord Opryland With Kids: Why Our Family Keeps Going Back
Inside the atriums, gardens, restaurants and family experience at one of Nashville’s most recognizable resorts.
Read story →Explore Tennessee
Start with what you are looking for, then find the guides, places and stories that fit your trip.
Built around actually knowing the place.
I have lived in Tennessee since 2012 and spend a lot of time exploring the state with my wife and two boys. Real Tennessee is where I share those experiences alongside useful guides to places around Nashville, Chattanooga, East Tennessee and beyond.
The goal is simple: give you enough useful information to decide what is worth doing and make your trip easier when you get there.
More about rural Tennessee →