Chicago, Ill. - Graduate Hotels and Atlas Obscura are excited to announce a partnership to create guided tours uncovering hidden gems within the local communities of Nashville and Knoxville. Launching on September 15, 2020, with Orientation Tennessee, the multimedia road trip will showcase a uniquely Tennessee adventure between Nashville and Knoxville. The experience will include immersive city walking tours of each destination, followed by the addition of road trip itineraries in October and hotel storytelling tours at the Graduate Nashville and Graduate Knoxville in December.
“Our hotels are deeply rooted in the power and importance of local storytelling, and we’re honored to team up with our friends at Atlas Obscura to build upon these narratives in such a meaningful and culturally rich way,” said Graduate Hotels President, David Rochefort. “Today’s travelers are looking for accessible, yet inspiring, opportunities to experience a new destination and no one creates these types of distinct experiences better than Atlas Obscura. We look forward to sharing this fresh perspective with guests.”
Created for travelers who seek memory-making journeys, Graduate Hotels is a thoughtfully crafted collection of hotels that reside in dynamic university-anchored cities across the country. Each property celebrates and commemorates the optimistic energy of its community, while offering an extended retreat to places that often play host to the best days of our lives.
"Exploring the roads less traveled and discovering the hidden places and stories that make a destination special is at Atlas Obscura's core,” said Atlas Obscura CEO, Warren Webster. “It's very exciting to help arm travelers with itineraries that enrich their exploration of Nashville and Knoxville within the Graduate Hotels community and beyond."
Atlas Obscura highlights the world's hidden wonders and inspires curiosity through its storytelling, online experiences led by experts on topics like scientific histories, magic, and obscure arts, and its online community has built a global database of more than 21,000 incredible places and foods.
Destination and road trip itineraries provide a new point of view on Nashville, Knoxville and the 200 miles that separate them. Graduate Knoxville and Graduate Nashville tours uncover hidden gems throughout each hotel from local nods in lobby art to more obscure hints to storied alums and locals incorporated into custom bedroom furniture, window treatments and more. In Nashville, recommendations range from squirrel spotting at Magnolia Lawn at Vanderbilt University and indulging at Bolton's Spicy Chicken & Fish, while in Knoxville guides will lead foodies to grub at Gus’s Good Time Deli, followed by a visit to the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame. Travelers will meet diverse and eclectic people, gain a greater understanding of the corresponding community’s history and come away with a keen understanding of the dynamic personality and charm of Tennessee.
Trips can begin at either Graduate Nashville or Graduate Knoxville and once guests arrive at the hotel, they’ll be armed with an interactive introduction to their corresponding destination. Each road, hotel and destination itinerary will be fully optimized for mobile usage, encouraging travelers to grab their phone, a friend and step out of their comfort zone to explore. Access to Orientation Tennessee is provided to guests complimentary throughout their stay. All tour and video content will additionally be available on Graduate Hotels and Atlas Obscura social media and web platforms.
For more information on Graduate Hotels and each individual property please visit www.graduatehotels.com/atlasobscura, and for more on Atlas Obscura please visit https://www.atlasobscura.com.
Graduate Nashville
101 20th Ave N.
Nashville, TN 37203
Graduate Knoxville
1706 Cumberland Ave
Knoxville, TN 37916
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About Graduate Hotels®
Graduate Hotels is a hand-crafted collection of hotels that reside in dynamic university-anchored towns across the country. Each hotel pays homage to the heritage of its unique town through cultural nods to the local community. Launched in 2014, there are currently 26 hotels across the U.S. and an additional 9 hotels set to open by the end of 2021. Graduate Hotels is owned by Adventurous Journeys (AJ) Capital Partners, a Chicago-based vertically integrated real estate developer, owner and operator, founded by Ben Weprin in 2008. For more information on Graduate Hotels, please visit www.graduatehotels.com.
About Atlas Obscura
Atlas Obscura is an experiences and media company based in Brooklyn. Founded in 2009 by Joshua Foer and Dylan Thuras, Atlas Obscura has a mission to inspire wonder and curiosity about the world. As the definitive guide to the world’s hidden wonders, Atlas Obscura chronicles hidden places, incredible histories, scientific marvels, and unique food and drink. It has published two New York Times bestselling books. Atlas Obscura creates hundreds of unique global trips and local experiences every year, bringing our community with us to visit the world's most unusual places and try the world's most extraordinary foods. Visit www.atlasobscura.com.
