Learn About U.S. History at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

Big news, locals. If you’ve never been to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, or if you’ve been meaning to visit again, now is the time. This month locals can pay what they want, which can be as little (free) or as much as you can afford. Normal ticket prices are $29.99, and this deal includes counties that touch Davidson County, too. I took advantage of the offer to take my seven-year-old daughter to the museum, the first time for both of us. Here’s why I think you should go, and my tips for making it a great experience.

🧑‍🎓 Learn About U.S. History

As a history nerd, I love learning about history through a unique lens, and going to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum is a great way to do so. It’s packed with displays portraying key moments in country music’s history that reflect not just the genre, but shifting changes in U.S. history as a whole, from the advent of the radio to fashion trends and women’s role in entertainment. I wish there’d been a bit more about how Black music influenced country. Overall, it felt like I was immersing myself in the past.

🎶 Interact With Country Music Legends

You can’t literally chat with country music legends, but the many interactive elements make the history come alive. Watch historic country music performances on several screens, swipe through important moments in country music history on numerous consoles, and listen to playlists. Even the displays felt interactive, with the inclusion of memorabilia from artists’ lives, like notepad doodles and chess boards. There are even several vehicles to check out, like Elvis Presley’s gold-plated Cadillac.

🧒 Spread the Love to the Next Generation

My daughter’s favorite part was the young explorer kit, which comes with an activity page, sticker, pencil, and a magnifying glass that she loved. She was inspecting everything with that magnifying glass, and I now plan to bring one along to every museum we visit. The museum has even more activity pages to guide kids through the exhibits, like search-and-finds and word searches.

The Taylor Swift Education Center includes more activities and coloring pages, including a butterfly wall and a song lyrics board. They host regular kid activities there, though none were going on when we visited. I was expecting the room to have more things for kids to do — along the lines of the Frist’s Martin ArtQuest room or the Tennessee State Museum’s children’s gallery — but it was more sparse in comparison. Still, my kid didn’t complain, and filled out and colored everything she could find.

The museum has a family-friendly map to make locating quiet spaces and bathrooms easy.

🚗 Where To Park

We parked at the Music City Center, which at the time was $10 for five hours, plenty of time to tour the museum, grab lunch, and play at the Walk of Fame Park. Museum members receive a $5 discount at these select Metropolis lots, and in January, locals can park at the Walk of Fame Garage for $10. Make sure to validate your parking ticket at the museum’s information desk.

🍽️ Where To Eat

The museum has two food options: Red Onion and Bajo Taco. Red Onion is a food stand in the museum’s terrace entrance with snacks, burgers and chicken tenders, and coffee. We went to Bajo Taco, and the tacos were great. They had several gluten-free options for me, my spouse devoured a giant burrito, and the staff found milk for my kid when she refused all the other beverage options — even though it wasn’t on the menu. I would absolutely eat there again.

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