Hunter Museum of American Art_Family Walking

Bluff View Art District

Overlooking the Tennessee River, the Bluff View Art District provides some of the best scenery in the Tennessee Valley. Bite into hand-made chocolate filled with whiskey (must be 21!) and sip on a steamy latte on the patio at Rembrandt’s Coffee House while literally smelling the next batch of beans being roasted a few hundred feet away. Choosing between the create-your-own-combo house-made angel hair pasta with wild mushroom tomato sauce or the chicken and spinach cannelloni from Tony’s Pasta Shop & Trattoria is a tough choice to make - but we know you can do it. And they never forget to give you Bluff View Bakery’s giant-roasted-garlic-clove-infused bread.

Pick yourself out a new pair of locally hand-crafted jewelry, a beautiful furnace glass piece or maybe a hardwood musical instrument while perusing the unique collection at River Gallery. Then follow the path to their two-acre River Gallery Sculpture Garden overlooking the Tennessee River and Maclellan Island where you’ll find beautiful sculptures, butterfly garden and a meditation area.

The Houston Museum of Decorative Arts boasts Native American art and arrowheads, Tiffany glassware, antique music boxes, vases that glow in the dark from minerals used in making colored glass, and more. The collection is just a portion of antiques and collectibles donated to Chattanooga by Anna Safley Houston.

Walk over to the Hunter Museum of American Art, which is quite a site to see with their 100 years of combined architecture (late 1800 + 1970 + 2005) . And that is just the outside. The inside includes the most complete collection of American art in the Southeast. They always have incredible exhibits so be sure to check out what is next. It may be yours!

Just steps away from the Hunter Museum, cross over the Ruth Holmberg Bridge to access the gorgeous, pedestrian-only Walnut Street Bridge that offers stunning views and connects you to the North Shore District.

After this long day exploring the Bluff View Art District, spend the night in the beautiful historical Bluff View Inn located throughout three turn-of-the-century homes. You will need to rest up in order to hit the ground the next day exploring more of Chattanooga.