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Have you experienced fireworks in Music City? Although I recently made a brief stop in Nashville to tour Vanderbilt University, I was back in Tennessee at the Embassy Suites. Did I travel to Nashville to see fireworks? Well, I was also in town for the Music City Hot Chicken Festival.
The fare to Nashville was $102 after I rebooked for a lower fare. If you are looking for deals on flights, make sure you sign up for email notifications. Of course, the least expensive flight to Nashville was at 5:15AM. Club MDW opens at 4:00AM. Oh, the bar isn’t open until 6:00, but I have two drink tickets on my boarding pass because of my A-List Preferred status. Although BNA does not have a lounge, my layover for the flight to Chicago is at CVG. I will relax at the Escape Lounge for three hours in Terminal B. There is also a Priority Pass Lounge in Terminal A.
Even with more than enough points to cover my stay, I opted to charge my room at the Embassy Suites Nashville to my credit card, taking advantage of my $50 quarterly credit as a Surpass cardholder. Please be aware of the $25 mandatory charge per night. When you arrive at your hotel early, be nice. As the front desk clerk looked for my name, he thanked me for being a Diamond Member. He also found a room upgrade on the 14th floor. Finally, I was allowed to check in at no extra charge. Yes, I was in my room by 7:43AM. I slept for five hours before I toured the city. I love Hilton.
Two things consistently draw me to Embassy Suites: their made-to-order breakfast and the Manager’s Reception. You can’t beat a complimentary breakfast and cocktails! My order is always an egg white omelet with spinach and jalapenos. Each hotel adds its unique twist to the special cocktails at the reception, which is always fun to discover. As a Hilton Honors Diamond Member, I also received a $25 credit per night, redeemable at the coffee shop or the Overlook Rooftop Bar and Grill on the 30th floor. I put that credit to good use on the Fourth of July, indulging in the all-you-can-eat patio meal, which included hot dogs, hamburgers, fruit, hand-cut potato chips, potato salad, salsa, peach cobbler, lemonade, and iced tea. The highlight of the night was the fireworks in Music City. I had the perfect view from the 30th floor.
If you want to try hot chicken from different restaurants at one time, this is the event for you. However, the lines were long, and the sun was beaming. Do not forget your sunscreen. When you attend this event, invite your crew. You will need people to camp under a tree or secure a table. Other people will stand in line for the food. You can also rotate people in and out of the lines. The key is to divide and conquer the food trucks. The line for Hattie B’s was less than 30 minutes, but the line for Eugene’s was 75 minutes to order, and then there was a 20-minute wait for the food. Luckily, I tried Prince’s hot chicken a few years ago when we were in town for the Bears game. There were eight vendors. I only tried two, and both meals were delicious.
Have you linked your Hilton Honors and Lyft accounts? You earn 3X points for every $1 you spend. I used Lyft to and from the festival, Uber for the ride to Embassy Suites, and Lyft again for the trip to the airport. Remember, with the Amex Platinum card, you receive a $15 Uber credit each month as part of your benefits. If you have not been to Nashville in a while, check SWA for inexpensive flights. I highly recommend reserving a room in the downtown area to immerse yourself in activities close to many of the hotels. I need to return to check out Humble Baron at Uncle Nearest.
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