The 10 Best Budget-friendly Things to do in Tennessee, United States

January 15, 2022 Karren Gelb

Discover the best top things to do in Tennessee, United States including National Civil Rights Museum - Lorraine Motel, Cherokee National Forest, Lotz House Museum, Parrot Mountain & Gardens, Foothills Parkway, Sugarlands Distilling Company, Ole Smoky Tennessee Moonshine, Tennessee Legend Distillery, Tennessee Aquarium, Lookout Mountain.
Restaurants in Tennessee

1. National Civil Rights Museum - Lorraine Motel

450 Mulberry St, Memphis, TN 38103-4214 +1 901-521-9699 [email protected] http://www.civilrightsmuseum.org
Excellent
82%
Good
14%
Satisfactory
3%
Poor
1%
Terrible
0%
Overall Ratings

5.0 based on 8,750 reviews

National Civil Rights Museum - Lorraine Motel

At the place of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'S death in 1968 in Memphis, TN, the National Civil Rights Museum is a renowned educational and cultural institution. The Museum chronicles the American Civil Rights Movement with compelling presentations of iconic exhibits, oral histories of lesser-known civil rights foot soldiers, and visceral, in-the-moment experiences. Visitors will learn through emotionally charged, multi-user, multi-touch interactives, and a visually engaging, contemporary exhibit design that guides you through five centuries of history. Bring the whole family.

Reviewed By annmarieduffy - New York City, United States

National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorrainne Motel. Chilling seeing this famous site as we turned the corner to enter. Site of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. etched in our memories. Amazing exhibitions, chronologically bringing you through-the Slave trade, many hero’s including educators & pastors, the Civil War, 13, 14 & 15 Constitutional Ammendments , Jim Crow, Rosa Parks, with both her bus & the burnt out bus of the Freedom riders & of course MLK & his speech’s, the hotel room to Obama’s election. It finished with all the Civil Rights hero’s throughout the world & then award winning Civil Rights workers including many different fields such as Gore for the environment, Marlo Thomas for St Judes children’s hospital, Jimmy Carter, Anwar Sadat, Gorbachev & of course Mandela. One of my biggest shock was that 5 million Africans were captured & enslaved in Brazil & another 5 million brought to the Caribbean. 388,000 were brought to North America & 9,000 to Europe. Now looking at the Slave Trade Database 10.7 million survived of the 12.5 million people transported. Horrific history.

2. Cherokee National Forest

Timothy Branch Road Ga State Line To Ky State Line, TN 37320 +1 423-476-9700 http://www.fs.usda.gov/cherokee/
Excellent
83%
Good
13%
Satisfactory
3%
Poor
1%
Terrible
0%
Overall Ratings

5.0 based on 198 reviews

Cherokee National Forest

Breathtakingly beautiful mountainous forest: great for hiking.

Reviewed By Itinerant_Foodies - Greensboro, United States

Gorgeous views while driving the Cherohala Skyway and plenty of hiking opportunities as well as opportunities for viewing various water falls. We stayed at the Indian Boundary Campground, about 16 miles from Tellico Plains. It's in a great location around a beautiful lake, a large campground area that is well-managed, and a hiking trail around the lake that offers many great views. Note that the campground has electric connections but not water at the sites themselves. However, there are a multitude of water spigots around the campground loops making it easy to get more water if you run dry. There are also plentiful trash receptacles around the campground making it easy to keep the area clean.

3. Lotz House Museum

1111 Columbia Ave, Franklin, TN 37064-3616 +1 615-790-7190 [email protected] http://www.lotzhouse.com
Excellent
88%
Good
11%
Satisfactory
1%
Poor
0%
Terrible
0%
Overall Ratings

5.0 based on 3,146 reviews

Lotz House Museum

The compelling story of the times, the family, and the fine antiques of the Civil War era. The Lotz House, which has been on the National Historic Register since 1976, is located in the heart of downtown historic Franklin, Tennessee, at “the epicenter” of the Battle of Franklin, which was a pivotal battle of the Civil War on November 30, 1864. The House was the most heavily damaged structure on the Franklin battlefield. Walk in to witness the damage from the cannon balls that crash through the house and numerous bloodstains on all the floors. Plus on this tour, your will learn about the family, the Master Wood Worker who built the home by himself, how the family survived and how the bloody battle affected them for the balance of their lives! Reservation are not required for Guided tours of the historic home. In addition, walking battlefield tours and an archeological tours are also available, but please call for reservations. Please join us as we step back into Civil War history.

Reviewed By jimrF2631PS - Hartselle, United States

My wife and I were in Franklin and had some time to kill so we decided to take in this attraction. This is a very awesome place to go to get some great details about the history of our great nation Our tour guide Seth did a great job and we highly recommend this to anyone with kids that are over the age of 13

4. Parrot Mountain & Gardens

1471 McCarter Hollow Rd, Pigeon Forge, TN 37862-7248 +1 865-774-1749 http://parrotmountainandgardens.com
Excellent
85%
Good
10%
Satisfactory
3%
Poor
1%
Terrible
1%
Overall Ratings

5.0 based on 4,964 reviews

Parrot Mountain & Gardens

Reviewed By MikeZxb

Extremely friendly staff and so many adorable and friendly birds! A great place for family and bird lovers!! Peaceful and beautiful gardens to relax in as well. 11 out of 10!!

5. Foothills Parkway

between Chilhowee Lake and Wears Valley, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, TN +1 865-436-1200 https://www.nps.gov/articles/foothills-parkway-next-steps.htm
Excellent
82%
Good
15%
Satisfactory
2%
Poor
0%
Terrible
1%
Overall Ratings

5.0 based on 577 reviews

Foothills Parkway

Reviewed By CountryChick94 - Velpen, United States

Did a June motorcycle trip in the Smokies, and the Foothills Parkway was great. The "missing link" was our favorite stretch. The missing link has enough curves and hills to give you the joy of a mountain ride without the challenges of the Tail of the Dragon. The road is very well cared for, not much traffic, and a lot of pull-offs for site seeing. Ask the locals if you need to know how to get to the missing link. They're happy to tell you why it's called that and how to get there!

6. Sugarlands Distilling Company

805 Parkway, Gatlinburg, TN 37738-3248 +1 865-325-1355 [email protected] http://www.sugarlands.com
Excellent
96%
Good
3%
Satisfactory
1%
Poor
0%
Terrible
0%
Overall Ratings

5.0 based on 26,634 reviews

Sugarlands Distilling Company

Sugarlands Distilling Company is conveniently located in downtown Gatlinburg. Visitors who come to the barn-style distillery can take a behind-the-scenes tour of our still house and learn firsthand how we make our authentic Sugarlands spirits. Adults over the age of 21 can take a guided tasting flight of our spirits at the Sippin' Posts. Our Back Porch stage offers free shows covering many genres, open to guests of all ages. REMEMBER TO ALWAYS SIP WISELY.

Reviewed By SavvyTravelerWV

My husband and I stopped in here during our vacation we had fun sampling the different types of moonshine and even took a distillery tour, very fun and interesting place to go!

7. Ole Smoky Tennessee Moonshine

131 Island Dr, Pigeon Forge, TN 37863-5283 +1 865-436-6995 [email protected] http://olesmoky.com/about/pigeon-forge
Excellent
92%
Good
5%
Satisfactory
1%
Poor
1%
Terrible
1%
Overall Ratings

5.0 based on 5,686 reviews

Ole Smoky Tennessee Moonshine

Ole Smoky Moonshine Distillery was the pioneer in Tennessee's push to provide LEGAL Moonshine to East Tennessee. Since Ole Smoky first opened it's doors in 2010, it has continued to grow and expand into a global leader in moonshine production while staying true to it's Smoky Mountain heritage. Ole Smoky Distillery at the Island in Pigeon Forge is our second distillery to open. The Island provides a great atmosphere in the middle of Pigeon Forge for families to come and enjoy shopping, food, entertainment, and now Moonshine. Our product is made in house and our working still is visible for anyone who likes to see moonshine being made. We offer samples of our moonshine to make sure you like it before you buy it. Some of our products we offer are our Original Moonshine as well as White Lightnin, Moonshine Cherries, Apple Pie, Blackberry, Peach, Hunch Punch, Blue Flame, and several seasonal flavors that will change often. We also offer shirts, hats, glassware, and lots of food products such as BBQ Sauces, Salsas, Jams, Jellies, Butters, and more which are made with our shine as well. We offer live bluegrass music daily on our outdoor stage. Pull up one of our rocking chairs and sit a spell with us, and then you can take home the most authentic souvenir of the Smoky Mountains, Ole Smoky Moonshine.

Reviewed By 363nathaniell

Ginger was a great bartender, funny, smart, and extremely awesome, definitely would go again 10/10 experience

8. Tennessee Legend Distillery

2874 Newport Hwy, Sevierville, TN 37876-2202 +1 865-429-3572 [email protected] http://www.tennesseelegend.com
Excellent
96%
Good
4%
Satisfactory
0%
Poor
0%
Terrible
0%
Overall Ratings

5.0 based on 988 reviews

Tennessee Legend Distillery

Not just another moonshine place. Come sample the best selection of Whiskey, Moonshine, Cream Liqueurs, and other spirits you can find in the Smoky Mountains. Free samples - 7 days a week.

Reviewed By josman817

Great experience!! Great customer service and friendly environment! Super Dave helped us out while we were there and he definitely enriched the experience, and gave some great recommendations on what we should get. Will definitely go back!

9. Tennessee Aquarium

1 Broad St, Chattanooga, TN 37402-1023 +1 800-262-0695 http://www.tnaqua.org
Excellent
72%
Good
22%
Satisfactory
5%
Poor
1%
Terrible
0%
Overall Ratings

4.5 based on 6,874 reviews

Tennessee Aquarium

More than 9,000 animals swim, fly and crawl through this aquarium dedicated to educating visitors about freshwater ecosystems.

Reviewed By kphil27 - La Vergne, United States

My husband and I have been several times and we have a blast every time we go! I could spend all day just watching the fish swim around it's so relaxing. There is a new exhibit called "island life" which is so cool! There's more fish and turtles and lizards in this exhibit. If you go during March, April, or May be prepared to fight off armies of little dudes on their school field trips ???? Be sure to look for Oscar the sea turtle when you're in the ocean journey building! ????????

10. Lookout Mountain

Chattanooga, TN 37409
Excellent
71%
Good
22%
Satisfactory
5%
Poor
1%
Terrible
1%
Overall Ratings

4.5 based on 4,246 reviews

Lookout Mountain

Reviewed By C8004SFlt

Whether for the usual attractions or exploring this beautiful mountain, it is worth the short trip from Chattanooga. You can ride the incline to the top or drive to see the beautiful historic homes, famous Rock City with Lovers Leap, Point Park, Ruby Falls or explore nature at Lula Lake Falls or watch the Hang-gliders jump from the cliffs and soar over the valleys. Great day trip!

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