CMA Fest shuts down lower broadway and partially a little farther up broadway to have a four-day party with music, food, and lots of other entertainment around every corner.
The CMA’s is live performances inside venues and in the streets. There is music everywhere, games, festivities, food, awesome vendors, meet and greets of famous stars. As you walk around meeting new people, you will discover that these people come from around the WORLD to be at the CMA Festival.
Let’s look at what all there is to do during the CMA Fest.
How does the CMA work?
The festival is for four full days. It starts on Thursday at 10 am and continues through till Sunday night to 11 pm. There are multiple stages set up around downtown in the streets and inside some select venues. All the shows are general admission and lots of fun! The only reserved seating during CMA fest is for the shows inside the Nissan stadium. That’s when the big shows happen!!
As for the general admission shows that I have been to, they were all free. You simply walk up to the stage area and enjoy! Oftentimes the stages rotate different artists each day. So if you want the full experience of seeing as many stars as possible, get the 4-day CMA pass.
What is there to do during the festival?
Well as I mentioned above there are lots of opportunities for music. Scattered around on Lower Broadway and the SoBro area will be stages set up in the streets. On these stages could be local musicians or even famous stars playing some great tunes for everyone to enjoy. The number of stages set up in the streets has been known to vary.
There typically is a large stage right on the edge of the river of Riverfront Park. People sitting on the bank watching the show. Boats floating in the water behind the stage and to the side. I’ve been there a couple of times, it’s awesome!!
Inside the Bridgestone Arena, there was a stage set up as well. There were some big ole monster trucks to look at up close to entertain the kids or the kid at heart. You really never know what they are going to have set up and where.
Ya gonna need food eventually! Welp of course there are the restaurants, bars, and clubs that have the delicious grub. The locals know that Nashville has lots of awesome food trucks. There are always lots of them lined up during the CMA Fest. Being that I am in Nashville often I have tried several of them.
Lined up along Lower Broadway will be local businesses, cool product displays, and some of the small food trailers. Each year it gets bigger so it changes up a bit, you really never know what’s gonna be happening. That is why you should try to attend each year.
While you are visiting Nashville, if you want to check out some other great activities .. just click here.
Parking during the festival
Finding affordable parking during the CMA fest is a MUST to discuss!! Parking fees during the CMA fest go up A LOT!!!! There are still a few choices to not get price gouged too bad for parking.
Most of your typical parking lots in and around downtown are about $20 a day on average. During big events like this the fees double or even triple. This is because most lots are privately owned by hotels, restaurants, or private business firms.
You need to get the lots that are owned by Davidson County or certain spots in Nissan Stadium’s lot. The lots owned by the county are the one for the Nashville Public Library and the one on James Robertson Parkway, they both cap at $25 a day for CMA fest as of this writing. This could change so if I were you I’d check and makes sure.
The other option is the lot at Nissan Stadium. I’m not going to say which part of that parking lot because they tend to stay in one area. But, if you purchase the CMA Fest 4 day parking pass it could be a different area.
Where to stay during the festival
Where you stay during the CMA fest can be a matter of preference and/or budget. There are very important things to consider with these 4 days of CMA. The festival covers a large area of Lower Broadway and SoBro. So having a room within walking distance of all the bars and action is either a good thing or a bad thing depending on your wants and budget.
We will discuss the obvious first. The hotel rates in this area are going to be much higher than usual. It is a simple case of economics … supply and demand! So either plan ahead, save up, and purchase way ahead of time. Purchasing way ahead of time will help the odds of getting a room that will be available at this time and often times it can save you some money as well.
Not only will the nightly stay rates go up, so will the hotel parking fees more than likely. Rates can vary between $40 to $50 a day.
Another thing to consider about having a room right in the middle of the CMA Fest location will be the noise. If you are a person to go to bed early, remember something, there are way more party people that have all intentions of shutting down every bar on Broadway. They will be coming down the halls of the hotel drunk and possibly still cranked up and loud. Welcome to the typical Nashville party crew!
If you are the party all-night type and have the budget for a room in the middle of the CMA party, get you a good room and have a blast!!!
In summary … CMA Fest is one huge party that you really should experience at least once.
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