The honky-tonks on Lower Broadway do not charge a cover fee. You can walk into Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge, Robert’s Western World, The Stage, Legends Corner, or any of the celebrity-branded mega-venues without paying anything at the door. This is a structural feature of the Broadway business model, not a promotional gesture, and it has been in place since the street became a live music destination.
The no-cover policy creates a specific dynamic: you can walk through every honky-tonk on the strip in a single evening, spending twenty minutes in one place, forty in another, and nothing in a third, without any financial commitment except what you choose to drink. On a busy Saturday night, this turns Broadway into a continuous crawl rather than a series of discrete stops.
What You Will Actually Spend Money On
The cover charge is free, but nothing else is. Drinks on Broadway are priced for tourists. A beer at a large celebrity-branded bar on a weekend night typically runs $8 to $12. Cocktails go higher. Rooftop bars at the upper floors of the mega-venues charge more than the ground floor. If you sit down for a meal at Jason Aldean’s Kitchen + Rooftop Bar or Garth Brooks’ Friends in Low Places, you are in full-service restaurant territory with corresponding prices.
The musicians are not paid by the bar. They work for tips. The no-cover model means every band on Broadway is dependent on the cash that lands in the tip jar. This is not a quaint tradition; it is the entire economic system that keeps live music on these stages 16 hours a day. If you enjoy a set, $2 to $5 per person is reasonable. If the band is excellent and you have been standing there for an hour drinking, $10 per person is not excessive. Bringing cash specifically for tipping is the practical move, since most bars accept cards for drinks but tip jars are not card-enabled.
Age Restrictions
Most honky-tonks on Broadway allow all ages until 6 p.m. Some switch to 21-plus at 8 p.m., others at 9 or 10 p.m. If you are visiting with someone under 21, the afternoon window is your option. The daytime Broadway experience is genuinely good: the music quality does not drop, the crowd is smaller, and the bars are actually functional as places to sit and listen rather than mass-movement environments.
Exceptions
Some venues charge for special events or ticketed shows. If a major artist does an intimate performance or a bar hosts a specific themed event, there may be a cover for that occasion. Check individual venue websites before a specific visit if that matters.
The Fifth + Broadway complex across from Bridgestone Arena is free to enter and browse, but it functions as a retail and dining development rather than a honky-tonk.
Sources
- Visit Nashville, Honky Tonk Highway: https://www.visitmusiccity.com/things-to-do-in-nashville/music-entertainment/guide-to-honky-tonk-highway
- Notes on Nashville, Complete Broadway Honky Tonk Guide: https://notesonnashville.com/live-music/honky-tonks-broadway-nashville-guide/
- Broadway Nashville Information Guide (Trolley Tours): https://www.trolleytours.com/nashville/broadway