Things to do in Nashville with kids are amazing! According to the US Census, 22.7% of residents living in Nashville are under the age of 18. Many museums, parks, entertainment centers, and other attractions cater to children and adults alike. However, the sheer number of attractions in Nashville with kids can be overwhelming, especially if you’re on a budget or have a short period of time to visit Nashville.
Take a look at a few of the best things to do in Nashville with kids. Compare your options in the Music City and find the right things to do for live music, history buffs, and art fans. Here are the 10 best things to do in Nashville with kids.
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Nashville Zoo | Best Thing to Do in Nashville With Young Kids
The Nashville Zoo at Grassmere is one of the most popular things to do in Tennessee. According to the Nashville Zoo, 1.4 million people visited the zoo in 2024 alone. The zoo is home to over 3,500 Nashville Zoo animals and over 300 different species, including plains zebras, red pandas, and Galapagos tortoises. You and your children can visit dozens of exhibits and participate in experiences like backstage tours.
The Nashville Zoo is home to several attractions intended for young kids. The Wilderness Express Train is intended for kids up to five years old. The train provides scenic views of trees and nature trails around the zoo. Younger and older kids can ride on the Wild Animal Carousel, which contains 39 wooden animals. The zoo recently installed a jungle gym with a 35-foot-tall structure and an area for young children with disabilities.
- Nashville Zoo address: 3777 Nolensville Park, Nashville, TN, 37211
- Nashville Zoo phone number: 615-833-1534
Adventure Science Center | Over 175 Hands-on Nashville Kids Activities
The Adventure Science Center is the top science museum in Tennessee, with over 175 hands-on and interactive exhibits. You and your kids can learn about astronomy, medicine, paleontology, physics, and other forms of science. Early Explorations is a 1,800-square-foot exhibit for children five and under, allowing them to explore four areas about wildlife, engineering, space exploration, and medicine.
Adventure Science Center is also home to the Sudekum Planetarium, a 63-foot dome theater with a projection system. You and your kids can view planetarium and laser shows, including presentations on the night sky and identifying constellations and bright stars. The center is home to day-long and week-long Adventure Science Center camps for children from kindergarten to fourth grade. Your child can enjoy hands-on activities, including computer programming.
- Adventure Science Center address: 800 Fort Negley Boulevard, Nashville, TN, 37203
- Adventure Science Center phone number: 615-862-5160
Centennial Park | Hub for Sports and Outdoor Things to Do in Nashville With Kids
Centennial Park is a 132-acre park, making it one of the largest outdoor things to do in Nashville with kids. Centennial Park contains a few different attractions in Nashville with kids. The most famous attraction is The Parthenon, a full-size replica of the Parthenon building in Nashville. The interior of The Parthenon is an art museum that contains a recreation of the Athena Parthenos statue in Greece and paintings from over 50 different artists.
The park is also home to the Centennial Sportsplex, which contains a kid-friendly wave pool, 12 pickleball courts, and 12 outdoor tennis courts. Your children can participate in a range of athletics programs at the Centennial Sportsplex, including ice skating and swimming classes. Musicians Corner and Centennial Park Bandshell are home to live music performances throughout the day. On sunny days, you can go for walks through the park and view Lake Watauga, gardens, historic memorials, and other points of interest in Centennial Park. You can also visit Centennial Dog Park, one of the best Nashville dog parks.
- Centennial Park address: 2500 West End Avenue, Nashville, TN, 37203
- Centennial Park phone number: 615-862-8400
Country Music Hall of Fame | One of the Best Attractions in Nashville With Kids for Music Lovers
The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum is the world’s largest museum dedicated to country music and Nashville sounds. You and your kids can view exhibits with song manuscripts, instruments, cars, and photographs from Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, Taylor Swift, and other notable country music artists. The Country Music Hall of Fame is home to the Taylor Swift Education Center, which offers interactive and educational exhibitions for kids and families. Children can learn how to write songs, make visual art, and go on scavenger hunts.
Children from ages two to seven visiting the museum can receive a Young Explorer Kit with coloring pages and stickers. Children and teenagers can participate in musical workshops, dancing lessons, and songwriting camps. The Country Music Hall of Fame offers family things to do in Nashville, like puppet shows and book-reading sessions for preschool students.
- Country Music Hall of Fame address: 222 Rep. John Lewis Way South, Nashville, TN, 37203
- Country Music Hall of Fame phone number: 615-416-2001
Grand Ole Opry | Top Country Music Venue in Nashville Near Shopping, Restaurants, and Unique Things to Do in Nashville With Kids
The Grand Ole Opry is the top country music venue in Nashville and is home to concerts and music performances in Nashville with kids several times a week. Children under four can tour the Grand Ole Opry and enjoy live music performances for free. Children between the ages of four and 12 receive discounted admission for tours and music performances. Grand Ole Opry backstage tours allow you to stand on the Grand Ole Opry stage, view memorabilia, and walk through dressing rooms and the backstage area.
After touring and listening to the music at the Grand Ole Opry, you can visit Gaylord Opryland Resort, a kid-friendly hotel and family resort well known for its fun Christmas attractions in Nashville with kids. Gaylord Opryland Resort is one of the best things to do in Nashville with kids during the winter, containing ice skating rinks, visits with Santa, and Christmas tree lightings. The Grand Ole Opry is within walking distance of several top Nashville kid-friendly restaurants, including Paula Deen’s Family Kitchen.
- Grand Ole Opry address: 600 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville, TN, 37214
- Grand Ole Opry phone number: 615-871-6779
Tennessee State Museum | Best Thing to Do in Nashville With Kids for History Buffs
The Tennessee State Museum is one of the best things to do in Nashville with kids interested in history. It’s also one of the best free things to do in Nashville with kids, and the museum charges no admission for children and adults alike. The museum is located downtown within walking distance of Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park and other attractions to do in Nashville with kids. It’s in Germantown, one of the best neighborhoods in Nashville for families.
You and your children can view permanent exhibits exploring thousands of years of Tennessee history, including Indigenous history, the Civil War, and natural history. The museum is home to a Children’s Gallery for children between the ages of three and eight with interactive exhibits, including a giant map of Tennessee. Children can also participate in scavenger hunts and fill in coloring pages while touring the museum, unlike other things to do in Nashville with kids.
- Tennessee State Museum address: 1000 Rosa L. Parks Boulevard, Nashville, TN, 37208
- Tennessee State Museum phone number: 615-741-2692
Madame Tussauds Nashville | One of the Best Things to Do in Nashville With Kids for Photography and Art Lovers
Madame Tussauds Nashville is a wax museum that contains dozens of lifelike wax statues of celebrities and musicians. You and your kids can go on self-guided tours of the museum and explore seven zones, looking at statues of Carrie Underwood, Dolly Parton, Elvis Presley, Taylor Swift, and other artists. Photography is welcome throughout the museum, so you and your kids can take photographs and even touch the statues.
Madame Tussauds Nashville requires less time visiting than other things to do in Nashville with kids, with most visits in Nashville with kids taking place in less than 90 minutes. After you’re done, you can visit the nearby Cumberland River and John Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge. The museum is inside Opry Mills Mall, a shopping mall that contains other things to do in Nashville with kids for family fun. Your children can enjoy The LEGO Store, watch movies at the Regal Opry Mills, and eat meals at the Rainforest Cafe. Children under two years old are free to enter, and tickets for children between two and 12 cost just $20.99.
- Madame Tussauds Nashville address: 515 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville, TN, 37214
- Madame Tussauds Nashville phone number: 615-485-4867
Frist Art Museum | One of the Best Free Nashville Kids Activities
Frist Art Museum is one of the top free things to do in Nashville with kids. Admission is always free for children under the age of 18. School groups with 10 to 60 students and one chaperone per 10 students can visit the Frist for free with an advance reservation. The museum is home to ArtQuest, where kids and parents alike can learn about making art and create their own works of art. ArtQuest offers sensory kits with weighted lap pads, noise-cancelling headphones, fidgets, and other tools for children with sensory challenges.
The Frist Art Museum is unique among things to do in Nashville with kids in having programs specifically for teens. Teens living in Middle Tennessee can participate in the Teens Take the Frist! exhibition and have their art hung in the Frist. Teens can also join the Teen Arts Action Group (TAAG) and collaborate with Frist employees on Frist’s programs.
- Frist Art Museum address: 919 Broadway, Nashville, TN 37203
- Frist Art Museum phone number: 615-244-3340
Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park | Outdoor Destination With Kid-Friendly Free Public Events
Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park is one of the best things to do in Nashville with kids in Downtown Nashville. The park covers 19 acres and borders the Tennessee State Capitol, making it one of the biggest Nashville family activities. Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park has unique features you can’t find in other parks in the Nashville area, making it one of the most unique things to do in Nashville with kids. You and your kids can walk over a 200-foot granite map of Tennessee, listen to bells chime at a 95-bell carillon, and view several different memorials.
The park contains two walkways. The Walkway of Counties represents the state’s geography, with planters depicting the state’s topography and flora. The walkway also has obelisks that describe the state’s physical geography. The Pathway of History contains a series of walls that describe Tennessee’s history, beginning one billion years ago.
The park is a hub for many events in the Nashville area, so you can visit with your kids throughout the year. It’s home to Nashville Pride, the biggest LGBTQ-friendly event in Tennessee. It’s also home to Nashville’s Big Bash New Year’s Eve, the Deep Tropics Music Festival, and the Tennessee History Festival.
- Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park address: 600 James Robertson Parkway, Nashville, TN, 37243
- Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park phone number: 888-867-2757
Wasioto Park | Park With Unique, Fun, and New Outside Nashville Activities for Kids
Wasioto Park is a recently renovated park that’s becoming one of the most popular things to do in Nashville with kids. Wasioto Park is a 6.5-acre park intended for young children. It has unique amenities and features among things to do in Nashville with kids, even when you compare it to other parks and outside Nashville activities for kids. Unlike other things to do in Nashville with kids, Wasioto Park is completely free to visit and open throughout the year.
The Hollow is a play area for kids with an interactive splash pad, a bouncing pad, a green maze, and a tandem see-saw. The Scoops is a cooling off area with mist features similar to areas at a water park, making it a great trip on hot summer days. The Gorge is a stone climbing wall with climbing ropes and nets, sliding poles, and fossils.
- Wasioto Park address: 592 South 1st Street, Nashville, TN, 37213
- Wasioto Park phone number: 615-862-8400
Map of the Top Things to Do in Nashville With Kids
You can use this map of the best things to do in Nashville with kids to plan out your fun visit to Nashville!
Visit the Best Things to Do in Nashville With Kids
The best things to do in Nashville with kids are free, fun, and cool! You can take a nice break at outdoor family-friendly things to do in Nashville, like the Nashville Zoo, Centennial Park, and Wasioto Park. You can also visit great museums in Nashville with kids, like the Country Music Hall of Fame and Adventure Science Center. Free things to do in Nashville with family include the Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park.
You can enjoy all of the best things to do in Nashville with kids once you figure out moving to Nashville. 6th Man Movers has the best Nashville movers, with over 2,500 moves performed each year. Call 615-434-8272 for a free estimate today.
