Music Valley · Nashville
Broadcast since 1925, the Opry puts rising singers and country legends on one Nashville stage for about two hours.
No two nights share a line-up, so the show you book is the only one like it.
Straight answers
For most visitors to Nashville, yes, including people who never play country music at home. You get about two hours of live music from several different acts, from newcomers to long-time members, with bluegrass, gospel and a comedy spot mixed in. Because each act plays a short set, the evening keeps moving, and a song you do not like is over quickly. It is also a live radio show that has been on the air since 1925, which is half the point.
A seated concert that is also a radio broadcast, staged in a theatre east of downtown with cushioned pews on two levels. The ticket is a reserved seat in the section you choose. The Opry announces performers for each date as they are confirmed, so the line-up for your night may be partly unknown when you book, and it is never the same twice.
It is not an instant ticket: the Opry sends your confirmation within 48 hours, so leave a margin if you book close to the date. It is not a backstage visit; that is a separate tour. It is not always at the Opry House either, because some winter shows move downtown to the Ryman. And it is not a dinner show: food and drinks cost extra.
Visitors in Nashville for the first time who want one evening that explains the city, mixed groups where only some people love country music, and families, since the content is billed as family-friendly. It suits people who need a fixed plan less well, because you will not know the full line-up far ahead, and anyone set on seeing one particular star.
Before you book, in four lines
Six strands of an Opry night
The Opry mixes famous singers and current chart acts playing country, bluegrass, Americana, folk and gospel, with comedy in between. These are the strands you are likely to hear, each summarised from its Wikipedia article.
This is a guide to styles, not a line-up. The Opry announces each night's performers itself, and no two nights are the same.
Bluegrass grew up in the Appalachian region in the 1940s and is played on acoustic instruments: fiddle, mandolin, banjo, guitar and upright bass. Players take turns on the melody while the others accompany, which is where the speed and the solos come from. Exposure on radio shows such as the Opry later drew young musicians from outside the South to the style.
Honky-tonk is the name of both a country music bar and the music played in it. Before the Second World War, the music industry used the word for the country music heard from Texas and Oklahoma to the West Coast, and the style reached its golden age in the 1950s. Nashville, through venues like the Opry, carried it to national audiences.
Also called country jazz, western swing began in small-town dance halls of the lower Great Plains in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Fiddles lead, a steel guitar cuts through, and the band swings like a jazz group. One early bandleader had added drums to his band by 1935, despite opposition from the Opry.
Gospel is one of the styles the Opry showcases, and its old downtown home, the Ryman, was built in 1892 as a gospel tabernacle. Southern gospel grew from the music of white churchgoers in the American South and is often called quartet music, after its traditional line-up of four singers and a piano.
Americana is a broad name for American roots music. The Americana Music Association describes it as the threads of country, folk, blues, soul, bluegrass, gospel and rock woven together, often on acoustic instruments but sometimes with a full electric band. Folk, Americana, gospel, blues and Southern rock acts now appear frequently on the Opry.
Comedy has been part of the Opry for a century. The show presents comedic performances and skits alongside the music, and the Opry has long invited comedians to join its cast as members; it added two new comedian members in the 2020s after a gap of decades. Expect a stand-up spot or a skit to break up the songs.
Inside the Opry ticket
The ticket is a reserved seat for one show. The Premium Experience option adds a lounge; everything else is paid for on the night.
The night, from booking to the car park
Your date's curtain time appears in the calendar and again on your confirmation; plan the rest around it.
01Book
Pick your evening and the seating section you want. The seat within that section is assigned for you, and the Opry sends your confirmation within 48 hours.
02Check
Most shows are at the Opry House in Music Valley. On some winter dates the show is downtown at the Ryman instead, so go where your confirmation says.
03Travel
The Opry House sits east of downtown, beside the Opry Mills mall. From downtown, come by car or rideshare; paid parking can be booked ahead.
04Arrive
Food and drinks are sold inside and can be taken to your seat. There is no coat check, so bring only what fits on your lap.
05Listen
Acts follow one another through two halves with an interval, while the show goes out live on WSM. Personal cameras are fine; video recording is not.
06Leave
Staff direct you to the nearest exit. If your group is seated apart, agree a meeting point in the plaza outside before the show starts.
Show or backstage tour
Nashville's music landmarks
The Ryman, home of the Opry from 1943 to 1974; its pews under coloured glass; the oak circle cut from its stage and set into the Opry House stage; and the music bars of Broadway downtown.
Build the day around the show
The show is the evening. The backstage tour, the museum downtown and the Ryman's own self-guided tour fill the daylight hours before it.
A reserved seat in the section you choose, for a live broadcast that mixes new singers, stars and long-time members with bluegrass and comedy. Confirmation within 48 hours.
An hour with a live guide through the dressing rooms, the green room and the artists' entrance, with a chance of a photo on the stage itself.
Self-guided galleries of recordings, instruments and stage clothes downtown, ending in the rotunda where the inductees' plaques hang.
A multimedia introduction, then the pews, exhibits and stage of the Opry's downtown home from 1943 to 1974, at your own pace.
More to book in Nashville
Plan the Opry evening
Your booking is confirmed by the Opry within 48 hours, not on the spot. If you are in Nashville for a short stay, book at least two days ahead so the confirmation arrives before your night.
The Opry has played at the Opry House since 1974. On some winter dates it returns downtown to the Ryman, its home from 1943 to 1974, billed as Opry at the Ryman. Check the venue on your confirmation before you set off.
The Opry House has more than 4,000 cushioned seats on two levels. You choose a section when you book and the seat is assigned within it. Lower-level sections are closer to the stage; the upper level sits further back and higher.
The Opry House stands east of downtown in the Music Valley area, next to the Opry Mills mall. From downtown, a car or a rideshare is the straightforward way to get there.
Parking at the Opry House is paid and can be booked in advance for evening shows. Drive into the Opry Mills area and follow the Opry House parking signs.
A passport or ID card, a small bag and, if you like, a personal camera. Video recording, selfie sticks, large bags and outside food and drinks are not allowed, and there is no coat check.
There is no dress code. The Opry says you will see everything from faded jeans to business suits in the audience.
Further Opry reading
FAQ
Usually, yes. An Opry night brings several acts in two hours, each with a short set, and mixes country with bluegrass, gospel, Americana and comedy, so the pace changes often. Many visitors go for the history of a live radio show running since 1925 as much as for the music.
Within 48 hours. The confirmation comes from the Opry after you book, not instantly, so book at least two days before your chosen night if you can.
No. Most shows are at the Opry House in Music Valley, but on some winter dates the Opry moves downtown to the Ryman, billed as Opry at the Ryman. The venue on your confirmation is the one that counts.
Pick by section. Lower-level sections put you closer to the performers; the upper level gives a fuller view of the stage and the room. All seats are cushioned pews, and the exact seat is assigned within the section you choose.
Nobody can tell you far ahead. The Opry adds performers to each date as they are confirmed, and every night is a different line-up of newcomers, stars and long-time members. If you are hoping for one particular artist, look at the Opry's own calendar before booking.
About two hours, with an interval in the middle. Your start time shows in the calendar and on your confirmation.
Access to a lounge that opens before the show and stays open through the interval, a meeting with an Opry performer, appetisers, two top-shelf drinks and a souvenir photo. It suits a celebration or a first visit; the music on stage is the same.
No. Snacks, drinks and light meals are sold in the lobby at theatre prices, and you can take them to your seat. Outside food and drinks are not allowed.
A passport or ID card and a small bag. Personal cameras are allowed, but video recording, selfie sticks, large bags and plastic bottles are not, and there is no coat check.
By car or rideshare. The Opry House is east of downtown, next to the Opry Mills mall. Parking there is paid and can be booked ahead for evening shows.
No. You are reading an independent guide, not the Opry's website. It is not affiliated with the Opry, its venues or the company that runs them, and it sells no tickets itself. Every booking is made with GetYourGuide.
Prices change with the date and the seating section; the calendar converts them into your currency at checkout.