From the historic plantations and music scene in Nashville to the music and African-American heritage in Memphis, options abound for group tours that uncover the unique charms of Central and West Tennessee’s group-friendly cities.
Following are six tours to fill any downtime in this outstanding region.
Gray Line of Tennessee, Nashville
Gray Line of Tennessee offers several tours that may be of interest to visiting groups, including the All Things Chocolate tour.
“Guests will visit a chocolate factory and see the makings and pairings of fine chocolate and also experience a wine tasting at a local winery before a fabulous dinner complete with chocolate and wine,” said Kelly Field, Gray Line of Tennessee’s director of marketing.
Discover Nashville, Field added, is Gray Line’s most popular sightseeing tour, with stops that include the Tennessee State Capitol and Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park.
And the Music City Hop Tour is a downtown tour via trolleys and open-air double decker coaches that stops at Ryman Auditorium, the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, and more.
Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Nashville
“No trip to the city is complete without a visit to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum,” said Lisa Wilkerson, museum sales coordinator. “Exhibits are constantly changing, and galleries were created for self-exploration.”
Groups seeking a structured visit should check out the Star for a Day itinerary, which includes a tour and recording at RCA Studio B, a self-guided tour of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, and a meal and line dancing at the Wildhorse Saloon.
After the tour at RCA Studio B, “groups record their own version of an Elvis classic—this is a great icebreaker program,” Wilkerson said. “Guests get to share the unique experience of recording an Elvis song in the same place he initially did, and everyone receives a copy of the recording.”
Groups conclude their visit with a barbecue buffet and line-dancing lessons at the Wildhorse Saloon, where the DJ will play the group’s recording.
Belle Meade Plantation, Nashville
Belle Meade Plantation offers a culinary outing that includes a guided tour of the 1853 mansion, a wine tasting in the on-site winery and a cooking demonstration highlighting Southern delicacies.
“Because Belle Meade was at the center of the horse industry in the 1800s, and therefore the center of society and events, this tour not only represents the best of Belle Meade, but it represents the best of Southern culture wrapped up in a historic package,” said Mark James, director of group sales.
Among the wines attendees may taste are red muscadine and blackberry, which according to James are both “very Southern and very delicious.”
And among the tastes during the cooking demonstration are Southern biscuits and country ham, and blackberry lemonade.
A Tour of Possibilities, Memphis
A Tour of Possibilities, according to Owner Carolyn Michael-Banks, is the only sightseeing tour in Memphis offering regularly scheduled African-American history tours.
“Our intention is to make the story of Memphis complete by filling in the gaps often missed by traditional sightseeing tours,” she said.
Tours begin by the Mississippi River and include stops at the National Civil Rights Museum; Mason Temple, where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous last speech, I’ve Been to the Mountaintop; and Stax Museum of American Soul Music.
Customized tours, including a stop for a meal or a reception, are accommodated.
Backbeat Tours, Memphis
Customized tours, including a meal or reception, are also available via Backbeat Tours, which offers fun musical expeditions of the city.
According to Bill Patton, the tour operator’s president, the most popular outing is the Memphis Mojo Tour, which is led by an actual musician.
“Having live music on the bus and involving our passengers as part of the show with tambourines and shakers takes a simple bus ride through the city to a whole new level,” he said. “Nothing builds togetherness like singing together on a bus!”
Backbeat Tours also offers scavenger hunts and an Amazing Memphis Race for more-structured teambuilding fun, as well as non-musical bus and walking tours, and a nighttime ghost tour through the city’s famous South Main Historic Arts District.
Casey Jones Village, Jackson
Over 500 tour groups annually visit Casey Jones Village, which according to Owner and CEO Clark Shaw, is a great place to stop as groups travel down Music Highway between Nashville and Memphis.
The on-site Southern-themed restaurant features three buffets daily, and after a meal visitors can explore Brooks Shaw’s Old Country Store, the historic Casey Jones Home and Railroad Museum, and grab dessert at the circa-1890s Ice Cream Parlor.
“Tours here are self-guided. However, with notice an escorted tour of the museum and a number of other on-site historical structures can be arranged,” Shaw said, citing the 1837 Providence House, which is also a popular choice for private group dinners and other events.
Among the other gathering spaces here are the train station, an amphitheater and a farm, where groups can host a dinner event for up to 100 people in the middle of the garden.
