September 25, 2023

Fall Activities in Downtown Nashville, TN

Treat yourself to a fall getaway in Music City, USA with historic and luxurious boutique accommodations at The Union Station Nashville Yards. Our Marriott Autograph Collection hotel promises the ideal lodgings in the heart of town, with ready access to all that the season has to offer—which, needless to say, is an awful lot!

From festivals (many festivals!) to the timeless seasonal beauty of fall colors and abundant sunshine, come experience autumn in Nashville while marinating in the pinnacle of Music City hospitality.

Things to Do in Nashville This Fall

Leaf-peeping, bicycling, festival-going, pumpkin-patch-hopping: There are many ways to embrace fall in Nashville, and there’s no better place than The Union Station Nashville Yards for doing so!

It’s impossible to sum up all of the possibilities when it comes to autumn events in Music City, but we’ve wrangled together a representative highlight’s reel that should hopefully inspire some near-future trip planning on your part. Let’s dive in, shall we?

Fall Festivals & Fairs in Nashville, TN

Nashville’s fall calendar comes chockablock with festivals: music festivals, film festivals, family-friendly seasonal soirees—you name it! The Union Station Nashville Yards offers a well-situated launchpad for taking in these annual events.

Take, for example, the Nashville Film Festival, among the longest-running of its kind in the U.S., and bringing more than 125 films—plus panels, filmmaker Q&As, and other events—to Music City September 28th to October 4th this year. It overlaps with the equally illustrious International Black Film Festival, which runs September 27th through October 1st.

Then there’s the Nashville Fair, which debuted last year and already has a slew of fans. The 2023 edition is underway September 8th through the 17th. Held over at the Fairgrounds Nashville—only about 15 minutes away from The Union Station Nashville Yards—this family-friendly event comes chockablock with good times, including live music and comedy shows, pig races, milking demonstrations, the Adventure Family Circus, and lots of opportunities for up-close hangouts with barnyard critters.

Naturally, you’ll find loads and loads of music on offer in Nashville this fall—as all year round. (Hey, they don’t call it Music City for nothing!) From the free September evening concerts at Centennial Park presented via the Musicians Corner Fall Series (September 15th, September 22nd, September 29th, and September 30th) to AMERICANAFEST: The American Music Festival & Conference (September 19th through the 24th)—which’ll feature hundreds of performances from the likes of Yasmin Williams, Shovels & Rope, Bahamas, and Amythyst Kiah held across the city—you’re very much spoiled for choices on the tune-age front.

On September 24th, Cheekwood Estate & Gardens will once again be hosting its Otsukimi: Japanese Moon Viewing Festival, with live music and dance, origami and other crafts, and tea ceremony demonstrations into the evening.

Throw in the Nashville Brew Fest—bringing more than 150 beers from 50-plus craft breweries, plus lawn games, live music, food trucks, and more to First Horizon Park on September 29th—to the family-friendly fall vibes on tap at Lucky Ladd’s Pumpkin Festival over at Lucky Ladd’s Farm or the Walden Pumpkin Farm patch in Smyrna—both just a hop, skip, and a jump outside of Nashville—and you’ve got quite the array of festivities to partake in on a fall getaway to The Union Station Nashville Yards.

Enjoy Local Fall Foliage During Your Union Station Nashville Yards Stay

Autumn means our many local hardwood trees and shrubs—from the street and parkland trees of our urban forest to the lovely wild canopies within easy day-tripping distance—are strutting their stuff with vibrant multi-colors.

During your pampered stay with us here at The Union Station Nashville Yards, you can indulge in a little Music City-style “leaf-peeping” nearby at spots such as the Shelby Bottoms Greenway & Natural Area or on pleasant forays outside town to the Natchez Trace Parkway and other fall-fired destinations.

Halloween & Day of the Dead Celebrations & Experiences

It’s the time of year when the boundary between living and dead gets a bit thin, right? And from family-friendly All Hallow’s Eve and Day of the Dead crafts to legitimately freaky haunted houses, Nashville delivers in this department as well.

You’ll find ghost tours aplenty in and around Music City, not least the Hermitage Haunted Tour over at Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage. If you’ve got the nerve, see if you aren’t scared silly at such Halloween attractions as Beast House (3976 Dickerson Pike, Nashville, TN), Nashville Nightmare (1016 Madison Square, Madison, TN), or Bloody Acres Haunted Woods (318 Big Station Camp Blvd, Gallatin, TN).

Or get your Day of the Dead celebration on and delve into Mexican-American culture at Cheekwood Estate & Gardens’ El Dia de los Muertos celebration, on tap October 28th and 29th.

Join Us for Fall Hospitality in the Heart of Music City at The Union Station Nashville Yards

Afternoon bike rides on Nashville Greenways amid the warm sunshine, taking in a show at the Ryman or the Grand Ole Opry or the Nashville Symphony Schermerhorn Symphony Center, going museum-hopping or gallery-hopping or restaurant-hopping or honky-tonk-hopping—there’s so much more to see and to do in Nashville in the fall, and our Marriott Autograph Collection hotel supplies the ideal accommodations!

Savor the comforts and privacy of our bespoke rooms and suites, tuck into exceptional on-site dining at our Stationairy restaurant, have a cocktail with live-music accompaniment at ERGO, and marvel at our grand and historic Richardsonian-Romanesque architecture.

And if you’re looking to hold a special event this fall—from a conference or meeting to an autumn destination wedding—you’ve got our lavish event venues encompassing more than 11,000 square feet of function space to take advantage of.

Don’t forget to keep tabs on our Special Offers page, which surely has an irresistible fall package with your name all over it!

Book your fall getaway or special event at The Union Station Nashville Yards on Broadway today!