By Air

Nashville International Airport (BNA; 615/275-1675, www.nashintl.com) is located eight miles east of the city center. To get downtown from the airport, head west on I-40; it’s a short 15-minute drive. One-way taxi fare from the airport to most hotels is $22.

ShuttleMax (615/361-6184 or 888/500-7629) provides regular shuttle service from the airport to hotels in Brentwood, Franklin, and the Opryland area. One-way fare is between $11 and $30, depending on the location of your hotel. Round-trip is between $20 and $50. Reservations are highly recommended.

Gray Line Transportation (615/883-5555, www.graylinenashville.com) offers regular shuttle service from the airport to downtown, West End, and Music Valley hotels. The shuttle departs from the airport every 15–20 minutes between 5 a.m. and 11 p.m.; reservations are not required. Call ahead to book your hotel pick-up. Fare is $11 one-way and $18 round-trip.

By Car

Driving is the most popular way to get to Nashville. The city is 250 miles from Atlanta, 330 miles from St. Louis, 400 miles from Charlotte, 550 miles from New Orleans, and 670 miles from Washington, D.C.

No less than three major interstate highways converge in Nashville. I-40 runs east–west, connecting Nashville with Knoxville and Memphis. I-65 runs north–south, and connects the city with Louisville, Kentucky, and Birmingham, Alabama. I-24 travels at a southeastern angle down to the city, connecting it with the cities of Clarkesville and St. Louis in the north, and Chattanooga and Atlanta in the south.

By Bus

Greyhound (800/231-2222, www.greyhound.com) serves Nashville with bus service to the city from Memphis, Jackson, Chattanooga, and Knoxville, Tennessee, as well as Paducah and Bowling Green, Kentucky. The Greyhound station (200 8th Ave. S., 615/255-3556) is on the southern end of downtown Nashville.

Expect to pay about $40 for a one-way ticket from Memphis to Nashville.

© Susanna Henighan Potter from Moon Tennessee, 5th Edition