My husband and I took a weekend road trip a few weeks ago to Nashville, Tennessee. Nashville is only about a four hour drive from Atlanta, so it was fun to just get away for a few days (alone!) and not have to go too far. We had the pleasure of staying at the beautiful Gaylord Opryland Resort and visit the hotel during their SummerFest celebration which runs from Memorial Day through Labor Day and features Lewis Carroll’s Adventures of Alice and Wonderland. I haven’t been to the hotel since I was a young kid, so I was excited about the opportunity to stay there again as an adult. The hotel is located 10 miles from the Nashville International airport and has several nearby attractions including the Grand Ole Opry, Opry Mills, The Country Music Hall of Fame and the General Jackson Showboat. When I was a kid, we used to visit the Opryland Amusement Park which was nearby, but sadly it closed in 1997. If you have never been to the Gaylord Opryland Resort, it is not like any other hotel that is out there. The inside is filled with nine acres of lush gardens and cascading waterfalls that are absolutely breathtaking to walk through. There are restaurants and shops scattered throughout the property, along with a convention center, fitness center, spa, indoor pool and two outdoor pools.

Dress | Shoes (old) |

Jumpsuit | Shoes | Earrings |

We went to Nashville during one of the hottest weekends so far this summer, so the pool was obviously our favorite place to hang out at. I loved that we had two different options, in case one was more crowded than the other. I was actually surprised that they didn’t have more than two pools and that they weren’t bigger than they were for such a large resort. I realized on the last day that we were there, that the hotel has huge expansion plans for next year. In the fall of 2018,? they are opening a waterpark on the property called Sound Waves.? The new park will include an indoor slide tower, rapid and lazy rivers, an activity pool with rock climbing, a 315,000 gallon wave pool with LED movie screen, and adult-only and kids pools. Now I really want to go back to check that out!

Swimsuit | Shoes | Earrings | Sunnies

Where to Take Pictures

While we were in Nashville, we just HAD to take some pictures in front of their amazing murals. A really great guide for Nashville murals can be found here, but we also found two new walls in the Gulch area that you can see both here and here that were recently just finished by artists Ian Ross and Jason Woodside back in April. The Gulch also has the notorious “Angel Wings” wall too, so you can hit up these three areas all within a 1/4 mile of walking distance.

We also checked out this really cool pink and white wall (located on the guide above) in east Nashville which was on the side of a beauty supply shop.

Another really great area to visit is the 12 South neighborhood. This Nashville mural is located right next to Draper James (there’s also a cute blue and white striped wall on the side of the Draper James building) and there is also this? same Nashville mural next to the Antique Archaeology store (from the TV show, “Pickers”) in case you miss this one.

While we were in the area, we found an awesome place to eat at called the Flipside. It is the cutest little place EVER! The inside is decked out with blue and red 50’s diner-type decor. They serve chicken pounded thin, with seasoned? breadcrumbs that is sauteed in extra virgin olive oil. The menu contains varieties of this chicken, decked out in different toppings and sauces. My husband had the “Phuket” which is covered in Sriracha, peanut butter and Thai basil slaw. I had the “Greenway” which was covered in arugula, avocado and red wine vinaigrette. Both were AMAZING!

Where to Eat

We ate at some fabulous restaurants while we were in Nashville, located both inside the Opryland Resort and in downtown. Definitely check these places out for some fantastic food!:

Bakersfield (phenomenal tacos!)

Solario Cantina (located inside the Gaylord Opryland Resort)

Biscuit Love

The Flipside

Wild Wasabi (great sushi rolls and its affordable)

Also be sure to check out the rooftop bar at the Thompson Hotel for drinks (also located in the Gulch)

We had such a fun time in Nashville, that it was really hard to leave! Getting to stay at the Opryland Resort was such an added treat to our trip. I honestly could’ve just stayed at the resort the entire time and would have been happy as a clam! This won’t be the last time we go to Nashville and I look forward to going back again with my son Bennett next time (and checking out the new water park at the resort too!)

*Photos taken by Krissy Leigh Creative