What to do in Chattanooga?

There are so many things to do in Chattanooga — it’s a city full of fun! And, it’s not just for kids. There are plenty of things for adults to do too. Rather you plan to spend a day, weekend, or week here, you’ll have a great time.

If you’re not sure where to stay at during your trip, check out my post on hotels in Chattanooga. If you still need more things to do in Chattanooga after reading this post, take a look at my pre-made itineraries. I have a couple on Chattanooga and remember, as always, they’re free to download and use.

Things to do in Chattanooga: Downtown Area

Downtown Chattanooga is such a fun place to explore. Aside from many restaurants and dessert shops, there is plenty to occupy your time. The most popular attraction downtown is the Tennessee Aquarium. There are over 12,000 animals and the aquarium is split into two buildings: freshwater and saltwater animals. They sell timed tickets online and only allow a certain number of tickets to be sold each day/hour. So, if you plan to visit, be sure to buy tickets online ahead of time.

Another exciting option is to visit Ignis Glass Studio. It’s a glass studio open to the public, I’ve personally visited here and really enjoyed it. I made an ornament but you can also choose to make a paperweight, bowl, or vase. Basically you choose your design, choose colors, fire the glass, then blow the glass. It’s not hard and you have a professional to help the entire time. They try to accommodate walk-ins as much as they can, but they do highly encourage you to book with them ahead of time.

Museums

When you are looking for things to do in Chattanooga, I’m sure you’ll notice there are a lot of museums.

One of my top favorites is the Classic Arcade Pinball Museum. They have a huge collection of classic pinball machines and retro arcade games. Most of them you can play, however, there are a few pinball games that are exhibits only. Definitely get ready to be hit with a wave of nostalgia when you walk in here. Personally, the games I love here are frogger and ms pac man. As for the pinball machines I can’t choose a favorite. The best part? Admission is good for the whole day. Come and go as you please, just be sure to leave your wristband on.

The Coker Museum is popular for anyone interested in vintage vehicles and you’ll find it inside the Honest Charley Speedshop. They do rent the space out for events so just be sure it’s not rented before you head to the museum. Once inside you’ll find over 100 vintage cars, buses, motorcycles, and trucks — and even three airplanes! Aside from that you can see the working woodshop, machine shop, paint booth, and more.

Shopping

There are plenty of shopping options downtown, but there are two places I want to point out: Warehouse Row and The Chattanooga Market.

Warehouse Row was built in 1904, but it’s just recently been redone as a shopping area. Now, it’s known as one of the most unique shopping places in Chattanooga. You can find local boutiques, well-known stores, and restaurants inside.

The Chattanooga Market is where to go if you’re looking for more of a farmers market vibe. They usually open in late April and are open every weekend until the Fall. There are all kinds of vendors that range from fresh produce to art to crafts — you name it! They also have live music often and there are always food trucks waiting to serve you.

Things to do in Chattanooga: Northshore Area

It’s a little more laid back than downtown. Along these streets are plenty of boutiques, local shops, restaurants, cafes, parks, etc. How do you get here? By crossing the Walnut Street Bridge of course. Otherwise known as the world’s longest pedestrian bridge, it connects Downtown to Northshore.

Picture This: You are on the downtown side of Walnut Street Bridge; you grab a cone from The Ice Cream Show and start walking across Walnut Street Bridge. The sun is shining and it’s a beautiful day, you look down at Coolidge Park as you cross the bridge and make a mental note to go down there and check out the greenery for yourself. Now you’ve reached Northshore. You walk the streets stopping in boutiques. You choose a cafe for lunch and an edible cookie dough shop for dessert, then you head down to the park.

Coolidge Park is nestled along the Tennessee River. There are a lot of green open spaces to enjoy, as well as rock climbing, an interactive water fountain, and more. Most notably, the park is known for its 100 year old wooden carousal. It’s been here since 1894 and you can still ride it.

Raccoon Mountain

This area is a little less well-known in Chattanooga, however, it’s only 15 minutes from downtown. There is a campground full of amenities you can stay at. If you don’t have an RV or don’t want to tent camp, there are cabins to rent.

Visiting raccoon mountain is one of the most unique things to do in Chattanooga because you can go both under and over the mountain. You can go under the mountain and explore the Raccoon Mountain Caverns. The formations are 100% natural and you get to explore over 5.5 miles of the caverns. It ranks as one of the top caves in the country and your tour lasts for about 45 minutes.

When you’re finished, you can take the short 15 minute drive to the top of the mountain. Not only are the views beautiful, but TVA uses the manmade lake here to generate electricity when needed. Because of that there is a TVA visitors center where you can learn about the history of TVA, why this manmade lake was created, and more. There is a really nice overlook at the visitors center too and plenty of hiking and biking trails nearby.

Lookout Mountain

You were shocked I hadn’t mentioned it yet weren’t you? Although Lookout Mountain is very well-known and has the most popular things to do in Chattanooga, it still deserves to be highlighted in my post. It has neat attractions that you don’t find just anywhere! Those are: Rock City, Ruby Falls, and Incline Railway.

Let’s start with my favorite: Rock City. I still love visiting it now just as much as I did when I was a kid. The fairy caverns are an oddity but I adore them. They’re so shiny and pretty! Haha. At the Lovers Leap lookout you can see seven states at once – how crazy is that?! Along the rocks and natural beauty there are over 400 native plants, a swinging bridge, the fat mans squeeze (I promise it’s not near as bad as it looks), and so much more. There are plenty of dining options in the park, and be sure to check out their calendar before you go because they always have festivals and events going on.

Next up we have Ruby Falls. For this one you will go inside the mountain — 260 feet inside to be exact. Once there you will get to see the tallest underground waterfall open to the public in the US. The tours are guided and you will get to walk through the cave and see cave formations before you get to the waterfall. There are three types of tours to choose from and you must purchase tickets online in advance. In addition, there is a zipline at Ruby Falls called High Point Zip Adventure. On the zipline you soar through the trees on top of Lookout Mountain. Tickets for both of them are sold separately.

Lastly, we have the Incline Railway — known as America’s most amazing mile. It’s been in operation since 1895 and its’ history includes civil war battles, grand hotels, and more. It is one of the steepest passenger railways in the world but, don’t worry, it doesn’t go fast; it travels just under 10mph. At the top you’ll find many points of interest for Civil War history, an engine room, photo exhibit, a dining area, snack shop, and more. At the bottom there are a lot of shops, small attractions, and restaurants (including home-made ice cream).