My family loves to take adventures in and around Nashville. I love to check out the Music City Mom’s Blog and see what is coming up! One of the awesome things as a blog writer is getting to check out places for all of your families. The Country Music Hall of Fame asked for one of us to come and I was so excited to get to go with my crew. It has been a while since we had visited and I really wanted to check it out again.
Two tips to remember before going:
- Park at the Music City Center for easy parking that does not cost an arm and a leg. It was seven dollars to park for four hours. It is a short walk down to the Hall of Fame.
- There is no eating or drinking in the museum. There are water fountains by each bathroom and some food options down in the lobby, but no food in the exhibits. So, plan your visit around that fact if you have young children.
Not many people realize that the Hall of Fame is actually really family friendly. You start your tour near the Taylor Swift Education Room. Inside the door, there is a whole display of all kinds of scavenger hunts, games, etc., to do while touring the museum. They also have different activities to do in that room depending on the day and time. We explored the Taylor Swift Education Room for a little bit, made a hall of fame medal to wear, and then headed out to see the cool exhibits.
The newest exhibit is a Loretta Lynn exhibit. It was really nice to see. I love her music. So, seeing her hand written notes on Coal Miner’s Daughter and some of her other songs was really neat. My daughter loved seeing some of her costumes throughout the ages on display. My son thought the Medal of Freedom she received from the president a few years back was really cool. We then continued to tour the upstairs area. Our favorites from up there were the two cars on display. One of which is one of Elvis’s cars, so cool to be able to look into the backseat and see the old TV. The other really neat thing on the top floor is the interactive displays where you explore different types of country, design your own costume, and so much more. There are many of the touch screens throughout the Gold Record area. You could even sit down and watch some old clips of shows or color your own costume on paper. Your kids will want to spend a while in this area. We spent a good thirty minutes and could have spent more time.
The second floor has more fun to explore. Many different stars have items on display to learn about and see. You will see everyone from Jason Aldean to Johnny Cash. You can step into the listening areas and explore many different sounds of country. My kids loved listening and comparing who they heard. I studied all of the awards and beautiful costumes from the stars. Then you can go into the area to become Certified Country!! This is the biggest hit for kids and adults of all ages. You take your pictures and then go to nine stations to complete different task. You get to answer trivia, sing a song in the recording booth, fill in song lyrics, etc. This is the highlight of our trip each time. You will be spending a while in this area for sure. Each station has you pull up your picture and you earn a badge after you do the task. My kids loved seeing their badges fill in. My husband and I each took a kid through the stations, and we tried to beat the other pair through all of them.
We then explored more of the costumes, awards, and music the museum held. My kids loved it even though they are not huge country music fans. It was still fun for them. (I am the country fan in this house.) It is neat to see how country music changed and grew over the years. The dresses and jackets were beautiful and interesting to look at. Getting to see guitars played by Johnny Cash and other stars was amazing. I would actually love to go back and be able to read more of the history on the walls for each exhibit, without my kids saying hurry up. LOL!
I totally recommend taking your family and enjoying this amazing local museum. The best part is thanks to the Community Counts initiative that allows free museum admission to kids 18 and under your kids can get in for free. So if you live in Davidson or surround counties please take advantage of this amazing program. Also, for Nashville Public Library patrons you can check out two adult Community Counts Passes. So, I could easily take my family for free using those two programs and just pay parking. This is an awesome family outing that can be done with little money and great impact for all who attend. The Country Music Hall of Fame is so much fun for all ages and levels of country music fans.
