Nicest Small Towns To Visit Near Nashville
Five small towns within easy driving distance of Nashville each work for a different kind of weekend. Leiper's Fork runs on art, with three working galleries along its short main strip. Shelbyville is the home of the Tennessee Walking Horse and the Nearest Green Distillery. Columbia anchors President James K. Polk's history and the annual Mule Day festival. Cookeville sits at the edge of three state parks where waterfalls and gorges define the landscape. Gallatin holds Bledsoe Creek wildlife and a Creole café right on Water Avenue.
Shelbyville
Home to the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration, Shelbyville sits about an hour outside Nashville and goes by the title Walking Horse Capital of the World. This equestrian connection shows up almost everywhere in the community of around 25,000, but it starts and ends with the Celebration, the largest walking horse show in the country, running at the Celebration Grounds from late August into early September. Shelbyville also has a historic downtown loaded with local restaurants and independent shops. One of the popular places to stop while exploring the 19th-century architecture is Pope's Café, which has been serving Southern comfort dishes in classic diner fashion, including all-day breakfast, since 1945.
Tennessee is known for whiskey, and even Jack Daniel had to learn the trade from someone. Recent research has made it clear that a master distiller named Nathan "Nearest" Green was the one who taught him. Uncle Nearest is a famous whiskey in its own right, and visitors can tour the Nearest Green Distillery and the surrounding grounds, including a walking horse farm, exactly the kind of setup you would expect in Shelbyville.
Columbia
Roughly the same travel time from Nashville lands you in Columbia. This is one of the best communities to explore on a day trip since it is a sizable city in its own right. There is plenty of history worth seeing, starting with the James K. Polk Home and Museum, a complex devoted to President James K. Polk. The Historic City Square is an attraction on its own with art galleries, locally run breweries, and dining spots like The Bourbon Gospel, a venue that blends Southern comfort food with intimate performances from regional musicians.
Many people plan a trip to Columbia for April, when Mule Day festivities span several days. The event alone draws thousands of regional visitors to Columbia, a tradition running since the 1840s that celebrates these beasts of burden through music, entertainment, food, and races.
Cookeville
Home to around 35,000 people, Cookeville sits a bit farther from Nashville than others on this list, but it is worth the drive for outdoor enthusiasts. Burgess Falls State Park is the headline destination, with four cascading drops, the largest of which falls over 130 feet into a gorge. Another accessible state park is Cummins Falls State Park, home to one of Tennessee's largest waterfalls by volume, though calm enough at the base to let guests swim and wade.
Nature is not the only thing pulling folks down I-40 from Nashville. Appalachian and country music are a big part of the town's culture, and that comes to life at the Cookeville Performing Arts Center, which hosts musical acts alongside theatre productions across a packed annual schedule.
Leiper's Fork
Art plays a major role in certain Tennessee communities, and Leiper's Fork might be the best example, even more so than nearby Nashville. The whole town runs on culture and various art forms, so it is not surprising to find fewer than 1,000 residents supporting three art galleries right on Old Hillsboro Road, including the Copper Fox Gallery. The appeal goes well beyond gallery walls. Many people make the forty-minute drive southwest of Nashville to Leiper's Fork for the scenery, especially the Natchez Trace Parkway in fall, which connects through to the hiking paths of the Garrison Creek Trail.
The place that best embodies the spirit of this small town is Fox and Locke, a general store founded in 1947 by Jack Fox and Martin Locke, later renamed Puckett's, and restored to its original name in 2022. The building has hosted live music since 2002 and now books touring acts and runs open-mic nights several days a week. Fox and Locke is also a restaurant and shop, serving up Southern cuisine like fried catfish and Mississippi mud cake.
Gallatin
If Nashville is the home of country music, a short 40-minute drive to Gallatin brings you to the home of the region's natural wonders. Gallatin is the gateway to Bledsoe Creek State Park, with multiple walking and hiking trails for all skill levels, and one of the best spots in Tennessee for birding since the park supports more than 150 different bird species. Another natural draw around town is Old Hickory Lake. People come from all around for the fishing, boating, and swimming possibilities in the warmer months.
Inside Gallatin, there is a walkable downtown center and plenty to do. History sits on display for anyone wanting to learn more about the region at the Sumner County Museum. The population here is around 45,000, so there is no shortage of restaurants, shops, and boutiques either. Roux's Creole Cafe might be one of the most popular spots, a blast of authentic Creole cuisine like po' boys and gumbo right on Water Avenue.
Going Beyond Nashville For The Real Tennessee
Tennessee has no shortage of small towns with deep history and heritage, whether that means the master distiller's property that showed Jack Daniel how it was done in Shelbyville or biting into authentic Creole cooking at Roux's in Gallatin. Being a tourist in Nashville might give you hundreds of possible things to see and do, but branching out from the city lets folks see the real character of Tennessee in each of these small towns.
