Malls, Nashville

Gibson guitars are made here and you can tour the store and see some of the manufacturing steps in progress......I found it very interesting.
Of course you can also try out the instruments or go to the in-store bar and listen to the performers up on a stage.

UPDATE: March 2011 - Opry Mills remains closed, with the exception of the Bass Pro Shops (which was owned independantly of the mall itself), and the steady stream of work seems to have ceased. There are on-going and pending issues between the owners of the Mall and the insurance company, and at this point there is no scheduled re-opening date. Litigation is still ongoing, but here's hoping they can reach a resolution which includes reopening the mall & entertainment complex. I miss the Mills!!

UPDATE: May 2010 - Opry Mills and the surrounding areas (including the Opryland Hotel and Grand Ole Opry House) sustained major damage from the May 2 floods, and remain closed. There is lots of activity as construction crews work to rebuild the mall and hotel. According to the Gaylord website, the Opryland hotel is expected to reopen in November 2010. There is no date yet on when the Opry Mills Mall will reopen. Stay tuned!

Opry Mills is located on the Opryland grounds between Two Rivers Parkway and McGavock Pike and borders the Cumberland River. The site is approximately seven miles from downtown Nashville.

Constructed in 2000, Opry Mills was built on the site of the old Opryland USA theme park, within walking distance from the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center and next door to the Grand Ole Opry.

Opry Mills features the best names in manufacturers' and retail outlets including Bass Pro Shop, Liz Claibourne, Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5TH, Gap Outlet, Kirkland's Outlet, Gibson Guitars and Old Navy; high quality entertainment venues and themed restaurants including Regal Cinemas (and IMAX Theater), Dave & Buster's, Johnny Rockets, and The Aquarium.

What to buy: Opry Mills has many "outlet" type stores, and an awesome first class movie theatre.

What to pay: I bought a $79 pair of Liz Claibourne shoes for $15.99 and a $14.99 Christmas candy dish for $6.99.

Opry Mills is a huge mall located in Opryland. Over 200 stores can be found here, which means there is a lot of selection! For clothing, there is no end to the amount of stores and variety of items to choose from! Some of the most unique things within Opry Mills are the Rainforest Cafe and the Aquarium Restaurant. The Aquarium Restaurant offers a variety of seafood, and the dining area is completely surrounded by an aquarium of fish, so you feel like you're underwater. Meals are about $20.00, so it's quite expensive. The Rainforest Cafe is a recreation of a jungle, in which you may dine. Of course, if you are short on cash, the food court is a great alternative, with a wide variety of stores, like Subway or Chinese food.
(With 200 stores, it would be unreasonable for me to name them all here, so please visit the website I've provided for a complete list of shops, special events, etc.)

What to buy: Although there is a lot greater selection, it's still a typical mall. You can find a wide variety of clothing, Tower records is filled with CDs and DVDs, and a lot of knick-knack stores and special interest stores are scattered about for people who like to find interesting or unusual items!

What to pay: The mall is so big, you have to shop around. Prices vary, especially if you're shopping for clothing.

This huge mall is located next to the Grand Ole Opry and the Opryland Hotel and Conference Center. There is likely nothing that you can't find in this place as it has an enormous food court, an aquarium, and every concievable chain store known to mankind within its walls. It's also got a 20 screeen movie theatre where I went to see the Johnny Cash biopic "Walk the Line" because how many people will ever be able to say that they saw that film across the street from the Opry? Not many! : )

I love Betsey Johnson, I really do. The funny thing is that I have been wearing it for years and when I actually lived in Nashville and went to University I was made fun of because nobody had ever heard of her and they thought the clothes were weird. Now that there is a store in Nashville everyone is wearing it.

Betsey isn't for everyone. She can range from funky to the extreme and everything in the middle. Some of can be ballerina inspired while some of looks downright dominatrix. I prefer the dresses with the lace and frou frou flowers, but I think you can safely say that none of it really goes in the corporate world.

What to pay: Anywhere from $40 for a shirt to $200 and up for a dress. Occasionally she has good sales.

This is one of a chain of Mills outlet malls. Others include Grapevine Mills near Dallas, Texas and Concord (pronounced KON-Kord not "conquered") Mills in concord, North Carolina. Everything from Bass Pro Shops to Burlington Coat Factory. This place has it all.

What to buy: Anything you want.

Opry Mills is basically one big mall. And I do mean big. I think they have a couple of hundred stores. They include the Black Lion, the Apple Barn, GAP, Banana Republic, Barnes and Noble, Bass Pro Shops, and Kirklands.

For restaurants they have the Alabama Grill, the Aquarium, the Rain Forest Cafe, Johnny Rockets, Chili's, TGIFridays, and a bunch of other stuff. There really is something for everyone there.

This mall has 200 retailers with specialty shops like Bass Pro Shops, The Gibson Bluegrass Showcase (guitars), Harry & David, Build-A-Bear. and many more. Eat at the Rainforest Cafe, Alabama Grill, Cajun Grill, Johnny Rockets, or more than a dozen others. http://www.oprymills.com/index2.html

They call this "shoppertainment!"

What to buy: don't forget Boot Country for you "country" fans

What to pay: this has a real variety. Go and just look or take your gold credit card!