Tennessee is best known for its capital city of Nashville, which is the heart of the country-music scene. The Grand Ole Opry has seen some of the country’s greatest musicians, as have Nashville's own legendary downtown streets. The Country Music Hall of Fame is also located here. Elvis Presley’s Graceland and Sun Studio, a pioneer in the rock-and-roll and blues scene, draws crowds to Memphis every year. Tennessee is not only rich in music culture, but rich too in its landscape. The natural beauty of its countryside is both rugged and breathtaking. Wooded forests, mountain ranges, lakes, rivers and streams, and open prairies are home to an abundance of wildlife. Visitors can explore caves, enjoy watersports, zip line, camp, rock climb, and even hike the Appalachian Trail. A host of family-friendly museums, zoos, parks, and attractions create fun for all ages.
Ijams Nature Center
Ijams Nature Center in Knoxville is loaded with action packed activities for the whole family. A 35-mile loop of hiking trails connects Ijam with five other scenic state parks. There are also 9 miles of rugged, beginner-intermediate level mountain bike trails. The park also boasts Ijam’s Crag; Knoxville’s only rock climbing location. Visitors to the park can cool down on Mead’s Quarry Lake.
Kayaks, canoes, and paddleboards may be rented on-site. The most thrilling attraction is the Navitat obstacle course, which is suspended mid-air among the trees. Tight ropes, balance bridges, ziplines, rope ladders, and low crawl tunnels test courage at every turn.
A visitor’s center and gift shop are on-site. Ijams hosts field trips, homeschool programs, pre-school programs, and day camps.
Ijams Nature Center, 2915 Island Home Avenue, Knoxville, TN, Phone: 865-577-4717, Map
Rusty’s TV and Movie Car Museum
Owner Rusty Robinson has been collecting cars for over twenty years. His collection of over 35 vehicles includes race cars, vintage cars, and even a 1981 DeLorean DMC-12. The collection’s cars span decades of feature roles in productions as old as Dukes of Hazard and as recent as Fast & Furious. Over twenty of the cars have been used in television shows. Each “mint condition” vehicle has been restored by Rusty’s own hands. Rusty’s TV and Movie Car Museum is located in Jackson, and happily hosts personalized field trips for school groups and various clubs.
Rusty’s TV and Movie Car Museum, 323 Hollywood Drive, Jackson, TN, Phone: 731-267-5881, Facebook
Adventure Science Center
Exhibits at the Adventure Science Center are designed to be hands-on and interactive. Permanent attractions include Anatomy of an Earthquake, Beekeeping, Physics of light, Soundbox, and many, many more. Kids even get to step inside a jet aircraft simulator, which features 360 degree movements and high speeds. There are several programs offered daily, including early explorers, where toddlers get to enjoy an age-appropriate science-based films at the full-dome planetarium, followed by story time.
In the Innovation Incubator program, kids participate in STEM based projects that encourage imagination and creation. Kid’s camps, field trips, homeschool support, and special events are hosted year round.
Adventure Science Center, 800 Fort Negley Boulevard, Nashville, TN, Phone: 615-862-5160, Facebook
Incline Railway Lookout Mountain
The Incline is a one-mile single track system that climbs vertically through breathtaking, panoramic views of Lookout Mountain and its valleys.
Cumberland Caverns
Cumberland Caverns offers walking tours through its amazing crystalline formations, underground waterfalls, and the iconic Volcano Room.
The trek is moderate in difficulty and 1.5 hours in duration. The “Rocky Topper” tour is the least challenging of the adventure tours, suitable for ages 6+. Families try beginner spelunking; twisting, turning, and climbing through passages that run deep into the cavern.
The Legacy Tour is the most extreme of the tours, appropriate for kids ages 16+. Spelunking during this tour involves high climbs, ropes, ladders, and traversing handlines. Secret passages, immense cathedrals, Devils’ Quarry, The Monument Pillar, Blue Mud Mountain, Rock of Ages, and 20,000 year old Lynx bones are just a few of the breathtaking rewards of the journey.
Cumberland Caverns, 1437 Cumberland Caverns Road, McMinnville, Tennessee, Phone: 931-668-4396, Facebook
Discovery Center at Murfree Springs
The Discovery Center at Murfree Springs fosters play-based learning through its interactive installations and displays. There are several sweetly named exhibits such as, Creation Station, Five Senses, Clark Maples Train Depot, Farmers Market, and Tiny Town.
The center offers a variety of learning programs for kids PreK to 5th grade.
Staff-led activities are 60 minutes in length and content is age appropriate.
A few of the fun programs are Animals All Around, Splash and Flash, STAR La”, and Winter Wonderlab. During school breaks, the center hosts CAMPOLOGY. Days are packed with exciting games and hands-on activities, designed to develop the whole child.
Kids get plenty of outdoor play, weather permitting. Discovery Center also hosts field trips, homeschool programs, scout programs, and special events.
Discovery Center at Murfree Springs, 502 Southeast Broad Street, Murfreesboro, TN, Phone: 615-890-2300, Facebook
The Creative Discovery Museum
Located in downtown Chattanooga, the Creative Discovery Museum currently features Framed: Step into Art, a collection of interactive, world famous painting replicas. Kids get creative by helping to finish paintings, imagining themselves within the setting, and just being silly.
The center offers field trips and group tours, accompanied by an educational program. Homeschoolers may join STEAM Club, which inspires use of STEM concepts to solve real-world challenges and think critically. The club is best suited for kids K to 8th grade.
PlayGYM is offered daily and includes music, movement, language, and socialization activities for preschoolers. The center also hosts Countdown to Kindergarten, a school readiness program. Science based summer camps, scout programs, and events for sensory sensitivity kiddos are also offered.
Creative Discovery Museum, 321 Chestnut Street, Chattanooga, TN, Phone: 423-756-2738
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
The Great Smoky Mountains are an emblem of natural beauty and Southern Appalachian culture. A robustly diverse plant and animal population make this one of the country’s most incredible national parks. Wildflowers, spruce forests, streams, and roaring cascades delight the senses. Cades Cove is one of the more popular attractions, containing remnants of old Cherokee hunting grounds and several historic buildings dating back to the early 1800s.
An expansive network of hiking trails leads to scenic destinations like Alum Cave Bluffs, Charlies Bunion, Rainbow Falls, Andrews Bald, and Chimney Tops.
There are kid-friendly hikes, day hikes along the Appalachian Trail, and multi-day hikes. Frontcountry campsites offer a host of amenities, while backcountry campsites are for the rugged explorer.
107 Park Headquarters Road, Gatlinburg, TN, Phone: 865-436-1200, Map
Obed Wild and Scenic River
The Obed Wild and Scenic River rushes along the wildlife rich, Cumberland Plateau.
Featuring 500-foot-deep gorges and earthy rugged terrain, the river and surrounding land deliver a generous serving of outdoor adventure. Thrill-seeking visitors will dive at the chance to whitewater raft in the parks roaring river.
It doesn’t hurt that the park also sports one of the world’s most famous rock climbing locations. There are over 20 miles of hiking trails. Kid-friendly walks include the Lilly Bluff Overlook and Emory River Nature Trail.
For families with older children, the park has longer day-hikes and even backpacking treks. The Rock Creek Campground has 11 campsites, which include grills and camping-style toilet facilities. There is no running water at the campgrounds.
Obed Wild and Scenic River, 208 N. Maiden Street, Wartburg, TN, Phone: 423-346-6294
Casey Jones Home and Railroad Museum
The Casey Jones Home and Railroad Museum displays exhibits dedicated to the life of Casey Jones, a Jackson, Tennessee railroader. The museum, which sits next to the historic house that Casey called home, houses three authentic rail cars, including the original engine model that Casey drove. Kids get a kick out of climbing aboard to ring the train bell, just like a conductor.
The museum features a short film about Casey Jones’s life. A special exhibit named, The Railroads & the Civil War in Tennessee, is also on display. The Village, as it’s called by locals, has specialty shops, a diner, an ice cream parlor, a bakery, a mini golf course, and more.
Casey Jones Home and Railroad Museum, 30 Casey Jones Lane, Jackson, TN, Phone: 731-668-1222, Facebook
