Nashville to Knoxville road trip: Distance, time & best stops
The best three stops on a Nashville to Knoxville road trip are Edgar Evins State Park, the Stonehaus Winery and the Mt Roosevelt Scenic Overlook. The distance from Nashville to Knoxville by car is 180 miles, with a 2h45m driving time.
Planning a Nashville to Knoxville road trip itinerary
The drive from Nashville to Knoxville takes you from the country music capital of the world to Eastern Tennessee.
Nashville is renowned for its country music, but the National Museum of African American Music is also in the Tennessee capital.
The best Nashville experiences include backstage tours of the Grand Ole Opry House, helicopter flights over the city and tasting tours at the Big Machine Distillery. You can also try line dancing classes, the Country Music Hall of Fame and haunted pub crawls. Or, for lavish old homes, visit Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage, the Travellers Rest Historic House Museum and Belmont Mansion.
Excellent Nashville accommodation choices include the gloriously evocative Belle Air Mansion and Inn, plus downtown’s grand dame, the Hermitage.
How to see Nashville the smart way
You can save money in Nashville by combining a tour ticket with admission to two top attractions. These combo tickets give you a half day tour of the main sights, plus entrance to the Ryman Auditorium and Country Music Hall of Fame. Find out more here.
Highlights of Knoxville include World’s Fair Park, which hosted the 1982 World’s Fair. The often-dazzling Sunsphere is the major landmark, here. You can also visit the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame and Knoxville Museum of Art.
Other Knoxville experiences include ghost tours and downtown walking tours that pick out local secret spots, while serving up coffee and ice cream.
Top Knoxville accommodation options include the handily-located Graduate Knoxville, the affordable Hampton Inn and Suites Knoxville Downtown and the character-packed Oliver Hotel. To compare prices, search here.
Nashville to Knoxville distance and driving time
By car, the distance from Nashville to Knoxville is 180 miles. You can expect a driving time of two hours and 45 minutes. The quickest route is along the I-40.
The best stops to add to a Nashville to Knoxville road trip itinerary are Edgar Evins State Park, the Stonehaus Winery and the Mt Roosevelt Scenic Overlook.
Edgar Evins State Park
Edgar Evins State Park is focused around the splintered arms of Center Hill Lake. It covers 6,000 acres on the Eastern Highland Rim. The landscape is steep, hilly and forested, but there are plenty of options for camping and hiking. Or, on the lake, fishing and boating.
If just dropping by, the best place to stop is the Visitor’s Centre, which has its own observation tower. This offers great views over the lake and hillsides, and you can often spot several bird species from there.
Stonehaus Winery
Tennessee’s wine scene is growing, and the Stonehaus Winery in Crossville offers a good opportunity to see what the state can do. Its wines can be found in liquor stores state-wide, but the tasting room in Crossville is the best place to try different wines from the range.
There are some single varietal wines made here, including a chardonnay and a zinfandel. But the emphasis is firmly on blends. There are a fair few sweet and semi-sweet options, too.
Mt Roosevelt Scenic Overlook
Mt Roosevelt is one of the highest points on the Cumberland Escarpment, and there’s a cracking photo stop that doesn’t require any hiking. The Mt Roosevelt Scenic Overlook is just to the west of Rockwood, Tennessee, and you can drive up.
Get lucky with the conditions and you can see the Smoky Mountains, more than 70 miles to the east. There are some picnic tables here if you want to stop for lunch.
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