5 Days of Boots, Brunch, and Broadway ~ Nashville, TN

My cousins and I wanted to take a trip during Christmas break when we were all free. We started planning this trip at the end of October and we were trying to decide where we wanted to go. The options were Los Angeles, Austin, Miami, and Nashville. We ended up choosing Nashville and it honestly was the perfect choice.

My sister and I then booked our flight from CT to TN and it ended up being $274 per person roundtrip! (this felt like a win for holiday travel and how late we started planning this trip) After a chaotic Airbnb search, we found a place in East Nashville that worked perfectly for us. It was within reasonable price, close to downtown, and was a good amount of space for the 7 of us. Once everything was booked, it got real fast. The group chat was nonstop.

We wanted to make sure we had a plan before getting to enjoy our trip so we made an itinerary. Not in a strict, minute-by-minute way, but enough so that we were not just standing around asking "wait, what do we want to do?" every five seconds.

Nashville Itinerary

We started our mornings strong with brunch (obviously). One of my favorites was Snooze Eatery. The food came out quick and the pancake flight and eggs Benedict were to die for. Nashville definitely does brunch right. And for the coffee runs, La La Land was amazing! It was the kind of place where you grab a drink and somehow end up staying longer than you planned. It was worth the 40 minute wait even though the fire alarm went off while we were in line. My cousin and I usually taste each other's drinks because we both love caramel. I got the Upside Down Latte which was similar to a Caramel Macchiato and she got the French Toast Latte. The barista asked her if she wanted a tiny bit of salt because the drink usually comes with it and she said sure why not. We both tried the drink and ended up realizing why it was actually a bad idea. NEVER SAY YES TO SALT IN YOUR COFFEE. It does not enhance the flavor of the coffee, it just makes it too salty. On the other hand, my drink was a 10 out of 10 and everyone else enjoyed their lattes as well!

Image created by Esha Shah

For exploring, we spent time walking around different neighborhoods, especially 12 South. It was a cute area with shops and murals everywhere, so of course we took lots of pictures. When we didnt know what everyone was in the mood for food-wise, Assembly Food Hall was spectacular. There were so many options and no one had to compromise, which is important when you are traveling in a big group with people that have opinions about everything. We ended up getting many different things to try and share, we got queso mac and cheese, vegan pho, sushi rolls, tacos, and a few other things. I was amazed by the pho because its so hard to find vegetarian pho full of flavor and spice.

New Year's Eve was the highlight. Getting ready together might have been just as fun as going out (yes we are all 21+). We had music blasting, everyone was sharing jackets and boots, and last-minute outfit opinions. It was chaotic but the best kind of chaotic. It's a good thing we decided not to go to Broadway on New Year's Eve otherwise it would have been packed and overwhelming, especially since it was cold outside. DEFINITELY BRING FLEECE LINED LEGGINGS. Also, there are a lot of happy hour places for cheaper food and drinks!

We also had to try line dancing at Category 10, because you cant go to Nashville and not at least attempt it. Let's just say we were not professionals, but we committed. It ended up being one of the funniest parts of the trip. It was so great to see these dancers doing crazy turns and dancing their hearts out. Later, we went to Post Malone's bar and had a blast but we were slightly disappointed that they didn't play a single Post Malone song at his own bar.

One of our Uber drivers after we landed in Nashville gave us a massive list of places we should go to while we were there. He told us to go to Skye Lounge which was a sushi restaurant on the 33rd floor of a building. The view was incredible and the sushi was fantastic and I never usually go for sushi.

In between the bigger plans were the moments I will remember the most. Walking around the Airbnb, playing Netflix games, watching Christmas movies, making cookies and hot cocoa, and laughing about absolutely nothing. Traveling with cousins is a mix of built-in best friends and chaos but it somehow works.

By the last day, none of us were ready to leave. We squeezed in one more brunch, one more coffee run, and one last walk on Broadway before heading to the airport. Five days felt like the perfect amount of time for this trip. We had plenty of time to explore and also stay in and enjoy each other's company (we weren't tired of each other which was impressive for all 7 of us sharing a space).

If you are thinking about Nashville for a trip, I definitely recommend it. There are lots of things to do for everyone, whether you like music, dance, food, drinks, or vibes. Plan enough to stay organized but also leave room for random moments. You won't regret it!

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/3e9c62_89d668c5f0dc4f2ba5002cc611f2a80f/480p/mp4/file.mp4

Video created by Shreena Shah (Cousin of Esha Shah)

Have you ever taken a large group trip? Would you go with your cousins or friends? And if you had to pick Nashville, Miami, Austin, or Los Angeles, where would you go next?