I have seen a few posts on Franklin - this town really interests me. How long will it take to drive to Franklin from Nashville (Oprland)area? What can we see and do there? Where would you recommend we eat lunch?
Are there other small quaint towns you could recommend that we could do in a day trip for two middle aged adults in late May.

Franklin is a short drive from Nashville, maybe 25 mins? Bell Buckle is worth a visit if you like antiques...have lunch at the Bell Buckle Cafe.

The tour of Jack Daniel's Distillery in Lynchburg isn't far, and is a very pleasant way to spend a couple of hours. You could also take a drive around Tim Ford's Lake a little further south.

Oh and if you do get down to Lynchburg, be sure to make lunch reservations at Miss Mary Bobo's Boarding house. It's a must !

Only great lunch option (if you are heading Bell Buckle way) is Miller's Grocery Country Cafe in Christiana, TN.

Here's a link -
http://www.millersgrocery.com/menu.html

Franklin is maybe 30 minutes from Opryland. You can get there off I-65. Alternately, take 65 south as far as the Brentwood/Old Hickory Blvd exit, go right, then take a left on Franklin Rd. This will take you into Franklin past several large antebellum mansions. If you are interested in Civil War sights, in Franklin you can visit the Carter House which was right in the middle of the Battle of Franklin. You can still see bullet holes in some of the buildings. I would definitely recommend visiting the Carnton Mansion, which was used as a hospital during the battle. It is a beautiful site with restored slave cabins, next to a Confederate Cemetery. You should be able to find directions to both of these online, if you have trouble, write back. Also take some time to walk the downtown area which has several antebellum homes.

Thanks Bob KY this is the kind of things we are looking for.

You will LOVE Franklin! It was voted to have one of America's best main streets several years ago so a stroll through downtown is a MUST. Lots of cute shops, little restaurants, an old-fashioned movie theater, even a Starbucks on the corner. Visit The Factory as well. It is in the downtown area. It is an old stove manufacturing warehouse that has been renovated and now houses shops, restaurants (Stoveworks Restaurant is so charming and is very yummy), antique stores, even a Farmer's Market on Saturday's in the summer. There are also lots of antique shops and other fun stores surrounding the downtown area (not on main street but close). One of our favorites is PD's. It is located in an old train station (you would never know it had such great stuff inside by looking at the outside).

I would try to drive over to Leiper's Fork also. It is in the same county as Franklin and a beautiful drive from downtown. Leiper's Fork is a haven for artists of all types. Lots of the country music stars have homes there. It is so pretty- lots of open land, horse farms, even a very quaint little downtown area. You can stop at Puckett's Grocery (one in downtown Franklin, too) and eat and listen to live music on weekends. Hope you love the Franklin area as much as we do!

So glad you started this thread, Joyadvtr!

Is their a large Mennonite community in the Franklin area? My elderly parents passed through a large Mennonite community in Tennessee a few years ago and fell in love with the area, but they can't remember exactly where it was.

We are planning a trip to TN at the end of April, and looks like we should definitely include a stop in Franklin. Any lodging recommendations?

Thanks!

I don't think there are Mennonites in Franklin (unless they are disguised as investment bankers driving BMWs). You might be thinking of Lawrenceburg, which is also in middle Tennessee.

Someone mentioned Leiper's Fork earlier, from there you can easily get on the Natchez Trace Parkway, which is a pretty drive through the TN countryside.

The end of April is a great time to visit Franklin. Weather is usually great and I believe the Franklin Downtown Festival is the last Saturday & Sunday of the month (check the website to be sure).

As of now, there are no hotels in the downtown area so the closest and nicest options are in the Cool Springs area of Franklin. It is only about 4-5 miles from downtown (about a 10 minute drive). We've had family stay at the Marriot and the Embassy Suites and they enjoyed their stay. I believe they include breakfast. Both hotels are located right off I-65 and are convienient to the Cool Springs Galleria, lots of restaurants and, of course, downtown. There are other hotels in the area, and given the location, I'm sure they are nice. You'll have a great time in this wonderful city!

The end of April is a great time to visit Franklin. Weather is usually great and I believe the Franklin Downtown Festival is the last Saturday & Sunday of the month (check the website to be sure).

As of now, there are no hotels in the downtown area so the closest and nicest options are in the Cool Springs area of Franklin. It is only about 4-5 miles from downtown (about a 5-10 minute drive). We've had family stay at the Marriot and the Embassy Suites and they enjoyed their stay. I believe they include breakfast. Both hotels are located right off I-65 and are convienient to the Cool Springs Galleria, lots of restaurants and, of course, downtown. There are other hotels in the area, and given the location, I'm sure they are nice. You'll have a great time in this wonderful city!

Thanks for the great information, kerrfamily4. I am really looking forward to this impromptu trip!

Bob_KY, I phoned my mom, and sure enough it was Lawrenceburg. They were happy to finally put a name to the area. Thanks so much, and thank for the laugh . . . you painted a great picture and I got a good laugh! ;-)

About 25 minutes from Franklin is Murfreesboro.

Stones River National Battlefield and Cannonsburgh Pioneer Village are there.

Franklin's Main Street Festival is scheduled for April 29-30. Saturday, from 10A to 10P, with the free "Dancin' in the Street" Saturday night from 7:30 to 10P. Sunday from 1 to 6 P. Sounds like a lot of fun, and they will even have a "Kids' Street." Thanks, Kerrfamily4, for the head's up.

We used to love Bunganut Pig. Is that still there?

BayouGal, did you do a trip report?

Bunganut Pig is still there and they have opened a second in Murfreesboro. Mennonite Community is defintely Lawrenceburg although the area does not offer a lot of things to do - Davy Crckett Park is beautiful there. City was home to Murray Manufacturing which was the mainstay but has been sold off - farming area.

Franklin is very nice and the festival is very very good if you go then. Great reatuarants at the Factory in Frankin bulding. Columbia Tn is not far away and you can visit the James K Polk home.

another day trip option is to take a 2 hour jump down to chattanooga - great riverfron city with tons of history and lots of parks, eateries, mountains and steeped in history. And the drive down is beautiful in the spring and fall.