Sing the Glory Down - Christian, Gospel Tour

Day 1

Day 1: Monday, May 6, 2024
Grab your luggage and head on out to meet up with your Trailways Travel Tour Host and Driver and then settle back and relax as they whisk you off to Paducah, KY for an overnight stay at the Drury Inn & Suites this evening. Of course, we will make a stop for lunch and to stretch your legs along the way later in the afternoon too. This evening, you can enjoy the included Kickback Reception at the Drury Inn – always a favorite with our travelers. Not familiar with the Drury Kickback? It is a great spread of both hot and cold foods along with drinks included, some adult ones too! There’s so much to choose from that most will utilize this as dinner. But if you are looking for more, you can go on your own to either the Texas Roadhouse or Buffalo Wild Wings located adjacent to the hotel. Rest up tonight, tomorrow we continue on to our main destination of Clarksville, TN.

Day 2

Day 2: Tuesday, May 7, 2024
Take in breakfast at the hotel this morning before departing for a morning of touring in Paducah, Kentucky! This step-on guided city tour will give you some insight on the community of Paducah, most generally known for the famous National Quilt Museum making Paducah one of only a handful of UNESCO Creative Cities in the US. Located at the confluence of the Tennessee and the Ohio Rivers you will find their “Wall to Wall” Floodwall Murals consisting of 50 life-sized panoramic murals that you can stroll along while discovering Paducah’s rich history. You will get to see and learn much more about this community that lies right between St. Louis, MO and Nashville, TN.
We say good-bye for now as we continue on our way stopping for lunch at the Adams Breezy Hill Farm Restaurant nestled in a beautiful country setting. Enjoy one of their signature sandwiches and chips before we set out for another stop before arriving in Clarksville, TN.
Located in the heart of Princeton, Kentucky, we stop to tour the Adsmore Museum/Home. This former residence of four generations of the Smith-Garrett family is truly something you must experience in person. Take a step back in time to the legacy and lifestyle of a wealthy western Kentucky family. Imagine the family has stepped out for a moment and immerse yourself in this unparalleled interactive experience. Most of the belongings and pieces you will find in the rotating exhibits are authentic, original, and once belonged to members of the original family. Now restored to its original Victorian grandeur, come join us for a trip through this cultural time capsule. You will soon find that it is more than just a beautiful home with a fascinating history, it’s a moment frozen in time.
We arrive and check into our hotel for a 3-night stay. Take some time to settle in and freshen up before we depart for dinner. Tonight is a treat with an included barbecue dinner and an evening of old-time Southern Gospel music with the fabulous bluegrass band, Passenger Creek. With full tummies and music still running through our heads we return back to the hotel for a great night of rest – tomorrow will be a busy one with even more music!

Day 3

Day 3: Wednesday, May 8, 2024
Fuel up on breakfast at the hotel this morning before departing for a full day. We begin with the Johnny Cash’s Storytellers Museum & Hideaway Farm with an included lunch in Bon Aqua, TN. Above all else, Johnny Cash loved his Lord. He traveled all over with Rev. Billy Graham. Today we will hear stories about Johnny from his nephew, mark Alan Cash, as he sings tributes to his Uncle Johnny. You can enjoy the peace and tranquility of the 107-acre property that Johnny Cash owned for 33 years and called “the center of his universe.” Johnny took ownership of the Cash Hideaway Farm in the early 1970s, after finding out that his accountant had been embezzling his money and buying properties (including the farm). Featuring a 200-year-old Farmhouse, with an intimate collection of family photos, memorabilia, and video footage of Johnny Cash at the property, as well as stories from his family and Bon Aqua pioneers, the Weems family. Learn about the history of the property, and the man behind “The Man in Black.” Visit the American Garage which includes the incredible “One-Piece-at-a-Time” car based on Johnny’s 1976 #1 hit song, which was Johnny’s last song to reach number one on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart.
The Storyteller’s Museum was born from an 1800’s building that was a general store located next to the railroad tracks supporting the area and supplying goods for visitors from throughout the Southern states who were on their way to the cabins in the Bon Aqua Springs Resort. In the 1960s, independent record producer Red Wortham used the building as a recording studio and sold the building to Johnny Cash in the early 1970s. In 1973, Johnny’s Song Catalog Manager, songwriter Loney Hutchins, Mel McDaniels, and several other young musicians were looking for spaces to play and to gain experience in performing. Hutchins asked for Johnny’s backing in renovating the abandoned, tumble-down building. Johnny gave his full support, including some financing. The young men used their own volunteer sweat-equity, and the rough building soon housed The Little Stage and began picking for the community. Today it’s been restored to its architectural beauty and is the heart of Saturday Night in Hickman County coming back to life, with a twist.
It’s time to head out and venture on over to the west to Hurricane Mills, TN and the antebellum home where Loretta and DooLittle Lynn raised their children, known as The Loretta Lynn Ranch. Here folks are able to walk the ranch grounds, visit the Doll and Fan Museum located in the Grist Mill, see the Native American Artifact Museum created for her fans to showcase some of the amazing gifts they had given her throughout her long iconic career. Check out the exact replica of her Butcher Holler Home that was built on her ranch so visitors could see firsthand how she grew up to become the woman she was. Loretta first arrived in Nashville 55 years ago, signing her first recording contract on February 1, 1960, and within a matter of weeks, she was at her first recording session. A self-taught guitarist and songwriter, Lynn became one of the most distinctive performers in Nashville in the 1960’s and 1970’s, shaking things up by writing her own songs, many of which tackled boundary-pushing topics drawn from her own life experiences as a wife and mother.
This evening we have dinner at the Ranch’s Amphitheatre with “Cowboy Church Night!” Enjoy gospel music with a country twist! We will have some wonderful music and fellowship with Ken Mellons – who had hits like Jukebox Junkie and Rub a dubbin’ in My Tub, following by the powerful testimony of Jeff Bates, who had hits on the country charts in the early 2000’s, who was addicted to methamphetamines and has been clean for more than 20 years.
We return to the hotel for the remainder of the evening. Rest up, tomorrow will be just as exciting as today was!

Day 4

Day 4: Thursday, May 9, 2024
This morning, after having breakfast at the hotel, we head out to Historic Collinsville in rural Montgomery County. Here we step away from the hustle and bustle back to a time when toys, tools, clothing, and furniture were hand-made. Food was grown in your garden or your livestock pen and generously shared. Work was hard and constant, but the quiet stretched for miles. Historic Collinsville is a rural pioneer settlement featuring authentically restored log houses and outbuildings dating from 1830 to the turn of the century. The settlement takes visitors from the earliest “first home” to the expansive big house on the hill with separate kitchen, living and sleeping areas. Each home and outbuilding have been painstakingly restored to its original condition and furnished authentically. Travel back in history with a self-guided tour audio of the 16 restored log homes and outbuildings on these 40 rolling acres in an open-air setting. Authentic period furnishings and artifacts fill most buildings and illustrate rural life before and after the Civil War. While here we also enjoy an old time “dinner on the grounds” complete with music by a Southern Gospel Quartet, Still Water.
Then it’s off to Miss Lucille’s Marketplace where you can enjoy some shopping this afternoon. Miss Lucille’s may be best described as “where Pinterest meets Etsy” as it is an eclectic marketplace with over 52,000 square feet of shopping proving that there is something for everyone! Formerly the abandoned Acme Boot Distribution Center, Miss Lucille’s practically bursts at the seams with history, hand-crafted goods, vintage clothing, and even more that you didn’t know that you needed! With over 200 vendor booths to shop you might need a break from hunting down vintage treasures and finding yourself at the coffee shop and Miss Lucille’s Café.
Gather up those treasures and get them loaded on the motorcoach – we are headed off to the Clarksville-Montgomery County Visitor Center for a quick stop before returning to the hotel to freshen up for this evening’s dinner and main event.
We will have dinner at a local favorite restaurant before we head over to a local Clarksville Church for a special performance and concert by Jason Crabb, winner of a GRAMMY and of 21 Dove Awards. He was named the Gospel Music Association’s Dove Awards Artist and Male Vocalist of the Year along with Song of the Year! While attending the American Bus Association conference in 2023, some of our office staff got to experience Jason and his musical talent first-hand, and we must say he is fantastic! You will see for yourself as you experience his electrifying stage presence, powerhouse vocals and magnetic personality that has endeared him to millions across the world… but tonight, he will be performing for YOU!

Day 5

Day 5: Friday, May 10, 2024
After breakfast at the hotel this morning it is time to depart and make our way to Nashville, TN for some more musical entertainment! We kick off our start in “Music City” with time for lunch, on your own, at the Nashville Assembly Food Hall located right across from our next stop. Go behind the scenes during a self-guided tour of the historical Ryman Auditorium, considered one of Nashville’s true country music icons. Start with the “Soul of Nashville,” a state-of-the-art introductory video. Then check out the multimedia exhibits, stand on the stage for a photo op, and you might even be able to get the opportunity to record a song in the recording booth. Over the course of more than 130 years, the Ryman Auditorium has transformed from a religious entity to one of the most revered music venues in the world. It is a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Landmark, National Historic Landmark, and the former home of the Grand Ole Opry from 1943 to March 15, 1974. It then moved to its custom-built home, The Grand Ole Opry House at Opryland.
We continue on to another Nashville icon, the Country Music Hall of Fame. Even if you’ve been here before, the exhibits continue to change so it is always ‘new’. Through exhibits, publications, and educational programs, the Museum teaches you about the enduring beauty and cultural importance of country music. Even the building is iconic – if you look at it the windows form the “black keys” on the piano making the building itself resemble the keyboard. You will get to wander through the exhibits on your self-guided tour so that you can go at your own pace, but you’ll probably agree seeing the Hall of Fame Rotunda, the museum’s most hallowed space and final stop on the tour is pretty amazing; be sure to look up.
Check into our overnight hotel, the Club Hotel Nashville, and have some time to freshen up for dinner this evening at the Santa Fe Cattle Company before heading off to see the Grand Ole Opry performance tonight. While they do not announce scheduled performers until just a few weeks before the show, you are still sure to see some great Opry staples! The Opry has been running since November 28, 1925 and has produced over 5,000 episodes making it the longest-running radio show in broadcast history. The Opry represents the pinnacle of success for country artists – play the Opry is the country music equivalent of playing Carnegie Hall!
We return back to our hotel for the remainder of the evening and prepare for our return home tomorrow.

Day 6

Day 6: Saturday, May 11, 2024
Rise and shine, grab some breakfast and we are headed back home today – after all, tomorrow is Mother’s Day! We will make our usual rest and refresh and meal breaks along the way as needed. We are sure you will all have some very happy, musical memories to share with your family and friends.

B=Breakfast, L=Lunch, D=Dinner