Andrew Jackson's Hermitage

Lovely tour with a film, museum, home, grounds and historians to help guide you. The garden isn't to be missed. Plan to walk!! There's a a lot to explore and buildings are spread out.

Andrew Jackson's Hermitage is an interesting trip for history nerds. There's plenty of parking available, even during peak hours. Tickets can be purchased online in advance or at the ticket booth near the entrance. An adult ticket is $28 including access to the grounds and a mansion tour. At the ticket booth you can also purchase a wagon tour ticket. Please consider adding this on for $15!! The wagon tour is focused on the lives of the enslaved people who lived on the property, and it's honestly the only time the staff/plaques/signs are transparent and honest about the evils of slavery. Elsewhere, they paint Andrew Jackson as a "good and compassionate plantation owner" which is very disappointing to see. This is the reason I have to only give 4 stars. The wagon tour is also an accessible way to see the extensive grounds, especially when it's hot outside. There is a self-guided audio tour available of the property. You can check out audio equipment in the Visitor Center or use your phone. We didn't use the audio tour and learned plenty with just the signs and map. Definitely spend time at Alfred's Cabin, which isn't far from the mansion. The mansion tour is about 30 minutes long. You cannot take pictures inside the home. The tour was a little robotic and rehearsed, but if we asked questions, it was clear the guides are very knowledgeable and passionate. The gardens around the mansion are very peaceful and beautiful. There is a short introductory video that plays in the visitor center periodically, which is a good way to start the visit. The museum section of the visitor center is small and reading-heavy but informative. You aren't supposed to bring outside food and beverage into the buildings on the property. However, there are picnic tables outside for food. You can bring your own water bottle to fill up as long as it is sealed and packed away while in the buildings. This is good to know for when it's super hot - stay hydrated! There is also a winery/wine tasting room attached to the gift shop, and you can do a $3 wine tasting. Overall, there's a lot to see and do, and the admission price seems worth it. I would budget 4 hours to see and do everything.

This was an interesting experience. I absolutely love history and find it fascinating. Whether it be something good or something bad, I believe it is very important to keep history alive and known so that we don't repeat past mistakes. This is why I agreed to go to the beautiful Hermitage, despite it's ugly foundation. I am not taking stars off due to the nature of its history, but rather, taking stars off due to the lack of being fully transparent about its history. After going through the mansion tour with guides narrating and exploring the grounds while reading the signs along the way, I was pretty shocked and disappointed by how they seemed to very much soften the stories, information and experiences of the slaves who worked and lived on the hermitage during President Jackson's time there. Yes it was the time that he lived in and we already know that Andrew Jackson owned slaves, why try to sugarcoat anything? It's not a secret....*sigh* While I greatly enjoyed their wineries version of a Twisted Tea and appreciate the absolutely stunning beauty of the grounds as well as the historical significance of pieces within the mansion itself, based on how they did not do those who went through hell there in the past justice, I do regret spending my money there in support.

Plan to spend a few hours. And pay the extra money for the home tour. The self guided audio tour is very comprehensive. On a nice day it's wonderful to walk the grounds and listen to the history

Really beautiful. Well maintained. We did the mansion and grounds tour. Learned so much and loved the feeling and peace there. Learned a lot about the slaves and Jackson's place in history.

I never thought I would become as interested in history as I have come to be, much less when I am traveling on vacation. But I have, in recent years, taken it upon myself to visit as many points of significance in the United States as possible.Arts, culture, politics, etc. This place provides a great opportunity to learn a lot about one of our country's former leaders, in great detail, and with great preservative effort. Definitely worth a few hours if you want to enrich yourself in between the silliness and hustle and bustle that Nashville has to offer. Jackson was truly an interesting man, and one who is not adequately reviewed in detail for the majority of public school attendees and graduates.Lastly, the gift shop and wine bar are excellent. I found it quite novel to indulge in some wines in between consuming history.

Last Saturday, my fiancée and I took a day trip to Nashville, Tennessee and this time we went and visited Andrew Jackson's Hermitage. I've been before with my mom back in 2016; but this time, I wanted to take my fiancée to the Hermitage. We had a really good time and our tour guide was knowledgeable about her stuff inside and outside of the Hermitage. I'm glad we were able to visit the Hermitage on such a gorgeous sunny day. :)

Andrew Jackson, lawyer, plantation owner, slave owner, General of the Tennessee Volunteers, General US Army, politician, and seventh President of The United States! A colorful character in every sense of the word. The Hermitage is roughly a twenty to twenty minute drive from downtown Nashville. The mansion is well preserved but access to rooms is very limited and the tour is very nice but short. The wallpaper and furnishings are from the period (early 19th century) so it does represent what the home looked like during his life. The gardens and family burial plots which adjoins the home are also very nice and well taken care of. You can walk on trails throughout the plantation. It's very quiet and tree lined and you may see some horses and other livestock. There is an audio tour which takes you around the house and gardens. It's recommended because you can pick up some trivia about Jackson you may not know. Here are some facts. Jackson and his wife Rachel did not have their own children. They adopted them and raised them as their own. Rachel Jackson died three months before her husband was sworn in as president for his first term. Jackson remained a widower the rest of his life. On his deathbed he did not release the slaves he owned. One of his slaves, Uncle Alfred, lived to be ninety eight years old and passed away in 1901. He is buried in the garden near Jackson's tomb. The Hermitage fell on hard times after the president's passing in 1845. His eldest son was apparently a bad businessman and amassed a lot of debt and the property had to be sold. The state of Tennessee bought it back and still owns it to this day. Jackson was known to be a commoner of the people, crass at times, and used profanity often. One amusing note, the President had a parakeet as a pet during his post presidency. The parakeet mimicked Jackson's voice and his use of colorful language. There is a bookstore, gift shop and bar restaurant on the property when you come in. You can take a pint of beer or glass of wine for your walk through the grounds. It's definitely worth a visit when in Nashville.

Excellent museum and history lesson. It was a bit much for all of the young kids in our party but I think they had a good time overall but I would have liked to spend more time reading and soaking up the history. In addition to touring the house we also did the horse drawn wagon ride. It was exceptional due to our tour guide/driver, Jade. She was a friendly wealth of knowledge. This was definitely the highlight of our visit for me. Much of this portion of the tour centered around the lives of the enslaved people on the plantation. I thought she did a great job describing what had happened there in a way that didn't hold back some of the horrors of slavery but managed to keep it as age appropriate as possible. I hadn't realized how big this place was- we should have brought a picnic because then we could have stayed longer.

Great experience of history, the good and bad. The tour guides were informative and helpful. Grounds and mansion are beautifully kept. The horse carriage ride was my favorite part. I believe our guide was named Craig. He was very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the history of the hermitage.