Weekend Getaways: Nashville

If live music, delicious food and sporting events check the box for you, Nashville, Tennessee, should be at the top of your list for a weekend getaway. There’s no shortage of hot chicken to taste or cowboy boots to try on, and a weekend is just the right amount of time to get a sense of the city’s culture.

Whether you want to stay in the heart of downtown or near the Grand Ole Opry, we’ll help you earn, plan and book your getaway using points and miles. Your trip will definitely not disappoint with some can’t-miss spots that we’ve included in this article.

How to Book Flights to Nashville on Points and Miles

With Nashville growing so rapidly in popularity over the past few years, it won’t be difficult to find a flight on an airline that works best for you. Let’s highlight some of the better flight options to book using points and miles.

Southwest Airlines

Without a doubt, Southwest Airlines is going to be one of the best options when visiting Nashville. They just recently added a brand new concourse with more gates and flights, offering 50+ nonstop flights to and from Nashville. If you have the Southwest Companion Pass® (Southwest’s buy-one-get-one-free perk), choosing this airline is a no-brainer.

United Airlines

United Airlines offers a few nonstop flights to Nashville from Chicago (ORD), Denver (DEN), Houston (IAH), Newark (EWR) and Washington, D.C. (IAD) that makes it doable to get to Nashville in one stop or fewer. With United’s shift to dynamic award pricing the redemptions can be hit or miss. The best way to find a cheaper award fare is to filter through the award calendar to find the flight that’s right for you.

American Airlines

American Airlines offers nine nonstop flights that make it easy to get to Nashville. Looking at the award calendar, fares are reasonable for the fall. When American Airlines fares are more expensive, a good option for finding cheaper rates is to book through British Airways using Avios where you can find the same American Airlines flights often for fewer miles because their award chart is distance based, rather than being based on dynamic pricing.

Delta Air Lines

Delta Air Lines’ dynamic pricing can make it difficult to find inexpensive award fares, but they do offer a total of eight nonstop routes to Nashville that will get you where you need to go. You can use the calendar view to find the cheapest option.

JetBlue

JetBlue only has three nonstop flights in and out of Nashville, but it’s still a good option to check out since it’s a transfer partner of Chase Ultimate Rewards. They also offer a points + cash feature that allows you to cover part of your trip with cash if you’re short on True Blue points.

Frontier Airlines, Spirit Airlines, Allegiant Air

If you’re just looking for the cheapest cash flights available, Frontier Airlines, Spirit Airlines or Allegiant Air are going to be your best options. Allegiant has more than 20 nonstop routes to Nashville and is a great choice if you’re located near a smaller airport. If you do decide you want to book one of these low-cost carriers using points and miles, you can use the Chase Travel Portal to pay with Ultimate Rewards.

Where to Stay in Nashville with Points and Miles

Nashville has a huge range of hotel options that you can choose from to find something that suits your needs. Most people will want to stay near downtown to be close to the action, but I’ve included some options that are slightly outside the city for the sake of variety and budget.

Budget Options

The three budget options I’ve selected are the Hyatt Place Nashville/Opryland, the Hyatt House Nashville at Vanderbilt and the Sheraton Music City Hotel.

At the Hyatt Place Nashville/Opryland, I’m seeing rates for this fall at around $180 per night for a standard room over the weekend or 8,000 World of Hyatt points per night. This three-star hotel is seven minutes from the Grand Ole Opry and about a 15-minute drive to downtown Nashville. It also has a pool you can relax in after a day of exploring the city.

Another Hyatt option is the Hyatt House Nashville at Vanderbilt. Weekend rates for this fall are around $293 per night which may not seem like it belongs in the budget category, but for 12,000 World of Hyatt points per night, this hotel is a steal. It’s much closer to downtown (a seven-minute drive) and is within walking distance to Music Row. The rooftop pool isn’t a bad feature either.

The third budget option is the Sheraton Music City Hotel which is near the airport and about a 15-minute ride into Downtown Nashville. This hotel is a great example of why you should always compare prices between booking through Marriott Bonvoy and the Chase Ultimate Rewards Travel Portal.

With weekend night rates at about $166, it would cost 13,306 points per night within the portal if you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card that offers a 1.25 cents per point redemption rate. If you were to book directly with Marriott, this same room would be about 30,000 points per night.

My recommendation from these options would be the Hyatt House Nashville at Vanderbilt. It gets you closest to downtown for an amazing rate.

Mid-Range Options

At the mid-range level, you’ll find some options that are in the heart of the city.

At the Hyatt House Nashville/Downtown, you’ll be a very short walk from the Country Music Hall of Fame in the SoBro neighborhood. Weekend night rates for this fall are $417, but when booking through Hyatt, you can snag a standard room for 20,000 points per night. This hotel is a pretty new property, opening its doors in February 2020 (tough timing…).

The Best Western Plus Music Row is a great option located right between the Music Row and The Gulch neighborhoods. For this hotel, booking through the Chase Travel Portal is going to be your best option. Weekend night rates are around $259 this fall or 20,757 points per night when redeeming through the Chase Travel Portal with the Chase Sapphire Preferred card rate of 1.25 cents per point.

The last mid-range option is the Kimpton Aertson Hotel (an IHG hotel) and another good reminder of why you should always compare prices between booking direct and through the Chase Travel Portal.

When booking with IHG, the asking price for a standard room is 80,000 points per night. Taking a look at the prices in the portal, the same room goes for $346 per night on a fall weekend, which equates to 27,707 points per night when redeeming with the Chase Sapphire Preferred card rate of 1.25 cents per point.

Of these three, my pick would be the Hyatt House Nashville/Downtown — it’s in a great location for exploring the city, and the 2 cents per point redemption rate means you’re getting a good value for your points.

Luxury Options

If you’re looking for a more luxurious stay during your time in Nashville, there are a number of options including the Holston House, Thompson Nashville, the Fairlane and the Joseph.

The Holston House is a part of Hyatt’s Unbound Collection, which is a compilation of one-of-a-kind hotels. A fall weekend night here will set you back about $450. If you’d prefer to reserve a room on points, a standard room goes for 20,000 World of Hyatt points per night. The location is near all the live music on Broadway and they have a rooftop pool and bar which offers great views of the city and a curated selection of whiskey.

The Thompson Nashville is another Hyatt option that will deliver on the luxury you seek. This is a Category 6 hotel, which will run you 25,000 World of Hyatt points per night or about $660 per night on a fall weekend. It’s located in The Gulch which puts you conveniently surrounding some of the city’s best dining options. Heads up that this hotel option doesn’t have a pool.

The Fairlane is an independent boutique hotel that’s located in downtown Nashville. It’s not affiliated with any of the larger hotel chains, so this is an option that you’ll need to book through the Chase Travel Portal. The going rate for a fall weekend night is $551 or 44,125 points per night when booking through the portal using the CSP rate. This hotel doesn’t have a pool either, but the mid-century modern decor is stunning and the retro disco bar on the roof is a fun way to entertain yourself.

The last luxury option is The Joseph, which is part of Marriott’s Luxury Hotel Collection. It’s located in the SoBro neighborhood, right near the Country Music Hall of Fame. If you’re looking for a way to unwind after a day on Broadway, the full service spa and rooftop pool should do the trick.

Although this hotel is bookable through Marriott, that’s not going to be the most cost effective option. It’s a Category 8 hotel, which puts the rate at 100,000 Marriott Bonvoy points per night during peak timing, 85,000 per night during standard timing and 70,000 during off peak. A fall visit will put you right in the thick of peak and standard rates, resulting in a pricey stay.

If you look to book in the Chase Travel Portal instead, you’ll find that cash prices for a fall weekend night are $504 or 40,374 Ultimate Rewards per night when using the CSP rate. I don’t know about you, but I’ll take the option that saves me almost 60,000 points per night.

If I had to choose between these luxury options, I’d choose either the Holston House or The Joseph, but that’s mostly because I’m a sucker for a good pool. Ultimately, between these two options, The Holston House has a better redemption rate of 2 cents per point and the location gets you just a little bit closer to Broadway, so that would ultimately help swing my choice in the direction of the Holston House.

Things to Do in Nashville

Music City, as Nashville is commonly known, is not a place that will leave you bored during your weekend visit. Whether you’re looking to cheer on the Titans at an NFL game, sample every type of Hot Chicken in the city or dance the night away on Broadway, you’ll find plenty to do.

Bluegrass at the Station Inn

As a diehard bluegrass music fan and festival go-er, I can’t recommend the Station Inn enough. It’s a listening room in the Gulch where you can catch some of the best Bluegrass/Folk music around. You can look up the event calendar on their website to see who is playing, but I’d recommend going on a Sunday night to catch the Bluegrass Jam.

Country Music Hall of Fame

If you’re looking to understand a bit more about the history of country music, check out the Country Music Hall of Fame which offers exhibitions on the music genre from its pre-commercial time to its modern day form. You can get a glimpse of the spectacular outfits worn on stage by country music’s most famous artists. There’s also currently an exhibit open that dives deep into the history of the Station Inn.

Concert at the Ryman Auditorium

The Ryman Auditorium is one of the most unique music venues I’ve been to. It’s almost 130 years old, with the first official concert held there in 1892. Check out their website for a calendar of upcoming events to see if anything lines up with the days you’ll be there. You won’t regret it.

Live Music on Broadway

When you’re walking down Broadway, it’s not an overstatement to say that any bar or restaurant you walk into will have some type of live music playing. Some of my favorite spots are Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge, Tin Roof Broadway and Acme Feed & Seed.

Titans Game at Nissan Stadium

If you’re traveling to Nashville during the NFL season, it’s a great time to catch a Titans game at Nissan Stadium. The stadium is right across the Cumberland River and within walking distance if you’re staying in Downtown Nashville.

Favorite Food & Drink Stops

Nashville’s restaurant and bar scene is definitely bustling. While you’ll definitely find a lot of southern food, it’s not hard to branch out beyond that. Here are a few of my favorite spots.

Eats

• Acme Feed & Seed — if you love Ranch dressing anywhere near as much as I do, you’re going to want to go here to try it. Oh, and the food that the Ranch goes on is pretty good too.
• Hattie B’s Hot Chicken — The line will be long, but the chicken will be worth it
• Five Daughters Bakery — Donuts to die for
• Husk — Southern food with local, fresh ingredients
• Edley’s BBQ — a casual BBQ spot with nice outdoor seating
• Pinewood Social — a fun spot for brunch and bowling

Drinks

• Patterson House — a speakeasy with amazing cocktails
• LA Jackson — a rooftop bar at the Thompson Hotel
• Santa’s Pub — a karaoke dive bar
• Tailgate Brewery Taproom in Music Row — great spot for a local beer or cider

How to Earn

The Chase Sapphire Preferred and the Chase Sapphire Reserve® are going to be your best friends when earning points for this weekend getaway. Chase’s transferable Ultimate Rewards can help you book your flights on Southwest, United, American Airlines (via British Airways Avios), Delta (via Virgin Atlantic) and JetBlue — all of which offer nonstop flights to Nashville.

The Sapphire cards are also great options for earning points for your hotel stay. Hyatt, Marriott and IHG are all Ultimate Rewards transfer partners, making it easy to book your Nashville stay on points.

Having a Sapphire card also earns you access to the Chase Travel Portal where you can book some of the hotel options I shared at cheaper rates using the Chase Sapphire Preferred redemption rate of 1.25 cents per point or the Chase Sapphire Reserve® redemption rate of 1.5 cents per point.

If you’re looking for other ways to earn points for your stay, co-branded hotel cards are another good option, specifically, the The World of Hyatt Credit Card. The current bonus would completely cover a two-night stay at the Hyatt House Nashville at Vanderbilt or a three-night stay at the Hyatt Place Nashville/Opryland.

While you could also go for the IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card or the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card, neither of these options would earn you enough points to cover a three-night stay at the hotel options I recommended.

Final Thoughts

Nashville is the spot to be if you’re looking for a lively weekend filled with impressive music, tasty bites and eclectic drinks. There are painless ways to get there from many cities across the United States and great places to stay that will put you right in the middle of it all.

You’ll have a wild time no matter when you go (if you go in the summer, maybe pick a hotel option with a pool), but the spring and fall are typically the best seasons to visit when the weather is less hot and humid. Nothing makes a trip more enjoyable than when it’s completely paid for by points and miles.