The city can be a part of musical history but there's more to Chatanooga than the usual catchy tune. It's got a lot more than its fair share of stunning scenery, outdoor activities that will make an Olympian blush, engaging and inspiring cultural experiences, along with a progressive push towards technology that is improving the lifetime of every local.
But don't need to break the bank to get a little taste of all things Chattanooga has on board. From public sculpture gardens to city parks, from historic sites to quirky craft markets, there's a lot you can do in the Scenic City for free. You just need to know where you can look – start with our gather from the 16 best samples by mail to do in Chattanooga.
1. Coolidge Park
Once an abandoned shipping yard Coolidge Park is a favorite spot for families since the early aughts. It features a fun fountain where water shoots out of the mouths of stone lions that children like to climb on, a late 19th-century wooden carousel lovingly restored by local master carver Bud Ellis, a 50ft climbing wall on a single of the piers of the Walnut Street Bridge and winding walking paths along the edge of a river.
One end is anchored by the Chattanooga Theatre Centre, which has placed on fun performances by adult and youth casts for many years. Another ends with the Market Street Bridge, although it connects to Renaissance Park on the other hand.
There's a kayak and canoe launch which get you onto the Tennessee River, and many restaurants and shops have back entrances opening towards the park. Grab a sandwich from River Street Deli, frozen treats from Clumpies, or a gourmet weenie from Good Dog and begin exploring.
2. The Chattanooga Library 4th Floor
Chattanooga got the nickname "Gig City" when the Electrical power Board rolled out one of the country's first municipal fiber-optic broadband networks. Now Chattanooga has a few of the fastest internet within the land, including at its public library.
Right downtown near the city's designated Innovation District, the library boasts all of the usual books and historical archives you'd expect out of this kind of institution. But the Chattanooga Library also boasts unique facilities made to help visitors get the tech skills they'll need for tomorrow's professional and creative opportunities.
The 4th floor includes a 3D printer, a button-maker, a zine studio (zine is really a shorthand for self-published magazines on the variety of topics, from music fandom to creative nonfiction to DIY how-tos), a laser cutter, vinyl plotter, photography studio, sewing lab, the ground loom, an Arduino and Electronics Project Kit, or even a HTC Vive Virtual Reality Booth.
While some services require price of materials (usually 6 to 30 cents per gram of plastic or vinyl) or perhaps a public library card to use, most are free and it's an enjoyable method to try equipment for creative projects.
3. Walnut Street Bridge
The Walnut Street Bridge has been part of the Chattanooga skyline for more than 100 years. It was a dark symbol of racial divides in the Jim Crow South after a pair of lynchings – one in 1893 (3 years after it had been built) and also the other in 1906.
The bridge was nearly demolished in 1978 since it was at such poor repair. Several concerned citizens rallied to save the bridge and also got it put into the National Register of Historic Places.
Money was raised to retrofit the Walnut among the longest pedestrian bridges in the world, also it quickly was a magnet for tourists and locals alike, linking the revitalized downtown and North Shore neighborhoods.
Today, the Walnut Street Bridge hosts a number of events throughout the year such as the Wine Over Water Festival, local craft markets and the Seven Bridges Marathon and offers an enjoyable viewing spot for events happening elsewhere around the waterfront such as the Riverbend Festival, Ironman competition or downtown fireworks displays.
4. First Street Sculpture Garden
Tucked away at the south end from the Walnut Street Bridge initially and Market Streets is a small sculpture garden that rotates its works every year approximately, keeping things fresh. Have a stroll down the hill on your way as much as the Bluff View or down towards the Aquarium and revel in pieces like Louise Peterson's "High Four," a beloved statue of a Great Dane offering a paw that took on the patina as more humans paused to shake it.
5. The Tennessee Riverwalk
The Tennessee Riverwalk is a 16-mile greenway running from Chickamauga Dam in Hixson towards the north and the old Wheeland Foundry in St. Elmo towards the south. It's paved in concrete the entire way and is a popular spot of locals out for lunch breaks or pushing strollers with a morning coffee.
There are several restaurants along with other businesses you can stop at on the way, from the Boathouse on Amnicola Highway (obtain the tableside-made guac and margaritas) and the Third Deck Burger Bar on an old riverboat downtown, towards the St. Elmo Tap House. You'll also encounter lots of picnic spots, playgrounds, and kayak launches, too.
6. The Chattanooga Market
This lovely mix of a farmer's market and craft fair typically runs from April to December, thanks to Chattanooga's mild climate. A good roof covers the First Tennessee Pavilion that houses the Chattanooga Market in the event of rain, but its sides are open air- bringing in nice breezes.
Live music acts go ahead and take stage at one end from the market, where food trucks are clustered by first-come cafe seating. The rest is filled with rows of booths selling everything from art work to handmade baby clothes, jewelry, skincare products, local honey, spices, produce, local gifts and much more.
7. Sculpture Fields at Montague Park
Home to huge sculptures by artists all over the world, Montague Park is 33 acres of outside space dedicated to open-air art. There are 40 pieces of art at any given time, sprinkled throughout a large field interspersed with big trees, picnic pavilions, and walking paths.
The Sculpture Fields are dog-friendly and afford panoramic views of Lookout Mountain. Since opening in 2022, it's be a popular spot for joggers, portrait photographers, kite enthusiasts and families strolling over from their condos on the Southside.
8. Chickamauga Battlefield
Once the view of among the bloodiest fights of the Civil War, and supposedly haunted with a cryptid called Old Green Eyes, Chickamauga Battlefield is mostly a winding maze of walking, cycling, and driving routes spread across rolling former farmland and stands of tall pines.
It's all collected right into a National Military Park, and you may certainly become familiar with a large amount of detailed Civil War history here in the park rangers. But Chickamauga Battlefield is another great place to discover an array of subjects from local ecology to Indigenous history to monumental art and symbolism in the Reconstruction era.
On any given day, you'll find parents teaching their children to ride bicycles on quiet forest paths, out-of-town history buffs, locals out for a lunchtime power walk, sunset ghost hunters and families outdoor camping for the weekend.
9. The Passage
Before Chattanooga was settled by European colonizers, it had been an essential trading post for Indigenous nations, including the local Cherokee. Within the 1800s, John Ross arrived via the Tennessee River and struck up a long-standing relationship using the Cherokee, who even inducted him to their tribe.
Ross's trading success directly resulted in Chattanooga's founding, and also the reason for his arrival continues to be referred to as Ross's Landing. The Tennessee Aquarium was built near that spot, and later the Passage was added to honor the Indigenous history there.
The Passage is really a beautiful public gathering place, public art installation, and memorial to the Cherokee who have been removed around the Trail of Tears tucked between your Tennessee Aquarium and the Tennessee River. Ceramic sculptures inspired by important Cherokee legends and history are blended with weeping fountains that invite people to bear witness towards the terrible impact wrought by the Indian Removal Act.
10. River Gallery Sculpture Garden
Nestled near the Hunter Museum of American Art and the Victorian Christmas village of bed-and-breakfasts and bakeries that comprise the Bluff View Art District, the forest Gallery Sculpture Garden is really a perennial favorite because of its mix of diverse art within an unbeatable setting.
The permanent collection debuted in 1993, though visiting works happen to be known to pop up from time to time, too. There are cast bronze skateboarders, kinetic sculptures twisting within the waterfront wind and abstract works that glitter in the southern sunshine. Your garden connects towards the Tennessee Riverwalk, too, so it's simple to make a part of a longer stroll through downtown, by the water and as much as the historic Fort Wood neighborhood.
11. Hiking to Sunset Rock
Partway up Lookout Mountain overlooking an extensive valley to the southwest, Sunset Rock is a well-liked spot for rock climbers, casual hikers, and photographers.
The approach could be easy or challenging depending on if you begin with the top of the mountain (note that parking can be tricky in this largely residential area) or in the bottom. If you plan to use the small lot at 405 W Brow Rd, be aware it can fill up fast – and pack a thermos of coffee or a picnic lunch to help make the much of your time at Sunset Rock. It's not even half miles from the parking lot, though you will keep going along other trails.
12. Forest Hills Cemetery
Another great place to learn about Chattanooga's early history is Forest Hills Cemetery in St. Elmo. This garden-style graveyard has been around use because the 1880s, and its splendid tombstones and ornate mausoleums pay tribute with a of the city's founding fathers and lots of prominent families.
Civil War generals are buried here, along with the great industrialists who profited off Chattanooga's old foundries and railroad empires, the founders of local private schools, or even a United States Postmaster General. Having a canopy of enormous old spruce trees, winding paths along with a quiet atmosphere, it's an excellent place for any stroll, only a short walk from St. Elmo's main hub of shops and restaurants.
13. Disc Golf
There are some disc courses readily available for free use throughout the Chattanooga area. Carver Recreation Center within the Orchard Knob neighborhood includes a nice nine-hole disc golf course that's good for kids and beginners.
The Sinks is a well-regarded disc golf course at DuPont Park in the northern suburb of Hixson, with challenging wooded terrain that's free of charge so long as you already have your gear. A tiny two basket course is in Henriette Park within the Ferger Place neighborhood between your Southside and Highland Park is nice to obtain a sense of the sport without encountering crowds.
There's even a disc golf course at Cloudland Canyon State Park (a 30-minute drive from Chattanooga), though you'll need to pay a fee to use that one.
14. Hiking to Snooper's Rock
Snooper's Rock is yet another stunning viewpoint that offers preferred tax treatment for no work. Head to Prentice Cooper State Forest near Signal Mountain to the north of downtown.
You'll have a longish winding drive down dusty forest service roads have a tendency to seem like you've gone a little too far, however the walk from the trailhead to Snoopers Rock itself isn't long at all, just a little steep.
The end result is a panoramic look at the gorge between Signal and Raccoon Mountains by which the Tennessee River has carved its path. Hawks circle within the updrafts overhead and tiny houses peek from the dense green foliage coating the mountainsides. It's among the best views in Chattanooga which will rarely appear on a tourist brochure.
15. Geocaching at Cloudland Canyon State Park
There are many fun things to do at Cloudland Canyon State Park, from hiking to staying overnight inside a yurt. But geocaching is a type of scavenger hunt the whole family can get behind. Several themed geocache hunts you can undertake at Cloudland Canyon possess some type of educational component from Indigenous history towards the park's geography.
You'll need a phone or other device that may use GPS coordinates to help solve clues that cause buried treasure. There is a $5 parking fee to enter Cloudland Canyon, but all other activities you will find free.
16. Enterprise South Nature Park
An old World War II munitions-manufacturing site dotted with concrete bunkers was recently turned into a network of biking courses, equestrian trails and walking paths.
Since 2022, Enterprise South Nature Park is becoming hugely well-liked by residents from the city's northern suburbs and workers at the local Volkswagen plant. Bunkers #28 and #50 are open to the general public for viewing if you're interested in a brief history from the place and leashed pets are permitted if you're looking for a spot to get outside with your pet.
