Small Towns Near Nashville, Tennessee
The best small towns near Nashville are Leiper’s Fork, Lynchburg and Bell Buckle. Leiper’s Fork has live music at Fox & Locke, and Lynchburg has the Jack Daniel’s distillery. Bell Buckle is a town of about 400 with a Victorian downtown.
The ten towns below run nearest first, from Ashland City, about 20 miles away, to Pulaski and Linden, about 70 miles out. They cover river trails, state parks, whiskey, a railroad museum and two of Middle Tennessee’s best-known small festivals.
| Town | Distance | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Ashland City, Tennessee | About 20 miles | river trail, an easy afternoon |
| Kingston Springs, Tennessee | About 20 miles | paddling, hiking, history |
| Leiper’s Fork, Tennessee | About 20 miles | live music, galleries, the Natchez Trace |
| Bell Buckle, Tennessee | About 45 miles | festivals, Victorian Main Street |
| Smithville, Tennessee | About 55 miles | lake time, fiddle music |
| Lynnville, Tennessee | About 55 miles | trains, a soda fountain lunch |
| Waverly, Tennessee | About 55 miles | Loretta Lynn, a country drive |
| Lynchburg, Tennessee | About 65 miles | whiskey, a small square |
| Pulaski, Tennessee | About 70 miles | Civil War history, courthouse square |
| Linden, Tennessee | About 70 miles | Tennessee River, camping |
Distances are straight-line miles from downtown Nashville, Tennessee, as the crow flies.
Ashland City, Tennessee
About 20 miles as the crow flies · Best for: river trail, an easy afternoon
Ashland City became the Cheatham County seat in 1856 and sits on the Cumberland River. It’s a town of about 5,200. It’s the closest place on this list for a flat, quiet walk by the water.
Don’t miss: the Cumberland River Bicentennial Trail, 6.5 miles long, with four miles paved and 2.5 miles of gravel
★ Good to know The trail is open daylight to dusk.
Kingston Springs, Tennessee
About 20 miles as the crow flies · Best for: paddling, hiking, history
Kingston Springs grew up as a mineral-springs resort, with a hotel and tavern here by 1819. It’s a town of about 2,800 on the Harpeth River. It wasn’t incorporated until 1965.
Don’t miss: Harpeth River State Park, where the Narrows of the Harpeth holds the 290-foot Montgomery Bell Tunnel, cut through rock in 1818
Leiper’s Fork, Tennessee
About 20 miles as the crow flies · Best for: live music, galleries, the Natchez Trace
Leiper’s Fork is an unincorporated village of about 650 in Williamson County, along the old Natchez Trace. Its historic district went on the National Register in 1998. Thomas Hart Benton’s family settled here in 1801.
Don’t miss: Fox & Locke, a general store since 1947 with live music several nights a week, and the Natchez Trace Parkway
★ Good to know Fox & Locke shows often sell out, so buy tickets online ahead.
Bell Buckle, Tennessee
About 45 miles as the crow flies · Best for: festivals, Victorian Main Street
Bell Buckle is a Bedford County town of about 400, and its Victorian downtown is a National Register historic district. The Webb School moved here in 1886. Two festivals bring big crowds.
Don’t miss: the Webb School Art and Craft Show, October 17 to 18 in 2026, and the RC Cola-MoonPie Festival, held the third Saturday in June
★ Good to know The 2027 RC Cola-MoonPie Festival is June 19; it ends with the cutting of the World’s Largest MoonPie.
Smithville, Tennessee
About 55 miles as the crow flies · Best for: lake time, fiddle music
Smithville is the DeKalb County seat, with about 5,000 people. The Smithville Fiddler’s Jamboree has been held at the courthouse every July since 1972. Center Hill Lake is close by.
Don’t miss: Edgar Evins State Park, 6,300 acres on Center Hill Lake with cabins and a 300-slip marina
★ Good to know Evins Mill, a private resort near town with Carmac Falls, is open only to registered guests and day-package visitors.
Lynnville, Tennessee
About 55 miles as the crow flies · Best for: trains, a soda fountain lunch
Lynnville is a Giles County town of about 300, settled in 1809 and named for a local creek. Its peak population was 596, in 1910.
Don’t miss: the Lynnville Railroad Museum, a free, self-guided depot where you can board every car, and Soda Pop Junction, a burger and ice-cream counter in an 1860s drugstore building
★ Good to know The railroad museum takes donations instead of charging admission.
Waverly, Tennessee
About 55 miles as the crow flies · Best for: Loretta Lynn, a country drive
Waverly has been the Humphreys County seat since 1835 and is a town of about 4,300. Hurricane Mills, a few miles south on TN-13, is home to Loretta Lynn’s Ranch.
Don’t miss: Loretta Lynn’s Ranch, with guided tours of her mansion and the Butcher Holler replica home plus the Coal Miner’s Daughter Museum
★ Good to know The ranch museum and tours are closed Mondays and Tuesdays.
Lynchburg, Tennessee
About 65 miles as the crow flies · Best for: whiskey, a small square
Lynchburg is home to the Jack Daniel’s distillery, which dates its whiskey-making to 1866. Moore County is still dry, but sampling is allowed on distillery grounds. The courthouse square is a National Register historic district.
Don’t miss: a Jack Daniel’s distillery tour, Miss Mary Bobo’s Restaurant and the Moore County Old Jail Museum on the square
★ Good to know The A Day at Jack tour includes a family-style lunch at Miss Mary Bobo’s; the jail museum opens only Thursday through Saturday.
Pulaski, Tennessee
About 70 miles as the crow flies · Best for: Civil War history, courthouse square
Pulaski was incorporated in 1809 and named for Casimir Pulaski, the Polish-born Revolutionary War general. It’s the Giles County seat, with about 8,400 people. The University of Tennessee Southern, founded in 1870 as Martin Methodist, is here.
Don’t miss: the Sam Davis Memorial Museum, a state historic site built in 1950 where Confederate scout Sam Davis was executed in 1863
Linden, Tennessee
About 70 miles as the crow flies · Best for: Tennessee River, camping
Linden is the Perry County seat, with about 1,000 people. It’s named after a Thomas Campbell poem, “The Battle of Hohenlinden.” A 1930 fire destroyed much of the town center.
Don’t miss: Mousetail Landing State Park, 1,247 acres on the Tennessee River with 11 miles of trails and a swimming beach
★ Good to know The park’s name comes from a Civil War-era tannery fire that sent mice running to the river.
What’s the closest small town to Nashville worth a day trip?
Ashland City, Kingston Springs and Leiper’s Fork are each about 20 miles away as the crow flies. Leiper’s Fork is the pick for an evening, with live music at Fox & Locke.
What’s the best small-town day trip from Nashville for whiskey?
Lynchburg, about 65 miles away, is home to the Jack Daniel’s distillery. Book the A Day at Jack tour if you want lunch at Miss Mary Bobo’s.
When is the RC Cola-MoonPie Festival in Bell Buckle?
It’s held the third Saturday in June; the 2027 date is June 19. Bell Buckle also hosts the Webb School Art and Craft Show, October 17 to 18 in 2026.
Where can you go to a lake near Nashville in a small town?
Smithville sits beside Center Hill Lake and Edgar Evins State Park. Linden is next to Mousetail Landing State Park on the Tennessee River.